airbnb for me

I joined airbnb spontaneously in July, looking for a room for two weeks in October in Florence, Italy. Some of the places looked great, actually amazing, on the website airbnb.com.  But some rooms were hardly larger than broom closets!

I began to wonder if anyone would come over to my town to sleep in a private room of mine. Maybe if the trade fairs in Düsseldorf drew so many people, the hotels would fill up and visitors might need sleeping places.

So I inserted my own ad: a spacious bedroom with half-bath plus shower use. I spruced up the room and took some pictures. And off I went on a new adventure.

Within 24 hours I had an inquiry, which surprised me considerably. Weird thoughts raced through my head and fears crept into my bones.

Then I thought “Why not?!” and said yes.

It’s been over a month since I had my first guest and have had five guests since then and two more have signed up. Would you believe it? It’s lovely!

The guests are quiet, orderly and delightful people. Except for the fact that I’ve been sleeping on the floor of my office, the whole experience has been pleasant up ‘til now. Sometimes they’ll chat but more often than not, they go their own way and just sleep here.

Fine with me!

So I’m in the process of turning my office into a bedroom for myself when I have guests. The room is also quite large so it works out fine. I had bought a fold-up bed on wheels years ago, which my daughter had borrowed. Last year, I loaned the mattress to my son and it’s taken a while to get both parts back together and in my office. But it’s finished and I do sleep better on a mattress with a support!

If the guests come close together, I end up doing lots of laundry: sheets and towels. Since I don't have a dryer (saving energy), I have to hang the sheets over doors and on the balcony if it's not raining, etc. And I keep the bath spotlessly clean, which takes more time than before. It definitely makes me more orderly!

When asked why I let “strange” people stay here, I can’t really answer. My motto has always been “Why not?!” and "Just Do It!" which makes for a more colorful life.