Traveling via HomeExchange

We’ve done quite a few HomeExchange visits over the last two years.  They’ve all been great.  Sometimes they’ve been in places that we wanted to go, and inquired about; other times, it was an inquiry about our house that spurred the exchange.

That was the case for my lovely stay in Ireland over the last weeks.  Their inquiry seemed to be a perfect time in early May; it was seemingly too early to return to Quebec, so why not go to Ireland?  As it turned out, my gardening companion and Woody went to Quebec early, while I traveled solo to Ireland, so Woody didn’t need to be without one of us for three weeks.

It’s been a good time.  I’ve checked all of my places to visit (our HomeExchange partners had a great guide).

My final walk was back to the first place I visited, a beautiful trail in a forest (rare in Ireland), along Lough Gill, beloved by Yeats.

A remnant oak on an island near the trail amazed me on my first visit and was striking again.

It’s perhaps been a bit solitary, as this is a beautiful rural area, but I loved the hiking, views, and experiences along the way, particularly being drawn into a couple of community gatherings that were a wonderful glimpse into the diversity of  “blow-ins,” as a neighbor described them — the folks from elsewhere who have moved here —to the sense of community that exists among them and the folks that have been here a while.

The beauty of HomeExchange is that it gives you time to experience that sense of living somewhere, without the sometimes frenetic pace of ordinary traveling.  Now, I still drove MUCH more every day than I ever would at home, going for hikes regionally and in spots often half an hour, an hour, or more away.  But the beauty of being in a lovely house and garden with a road that provided lovely vistas towards the sea — for two weeks — and I was able to use one of their cars, a sturdy Opel.  Perfect.

HomeExchange is really not about  “saving money,” but I’m mindful of the cost of renting a car and paying for accomodations, regardless.   It’s about the community of global exchanges.  My HomeExchange partner this time was in our house with her sister for the time I was in their (she and her husband’s) place (they’re Americans who live full-time in Ireland now).

So, I appreciate the global community that makes this possible..  I’m looking forward to a couple of more HomeExchange stays as I drive north to Quebec in a week or so.  One is facilitated by GuestPoints;  the other is a non-reciprocal exchange with a couple who’s already been in our house in Asheville.  Nothing not to like.