Airbnb’s newest campaign talks about the power of travel and how it can transform our perceptions of the world and our place in it. We asked 15 bloggers to share their own tranformative travel experiences. Megan from The Fresh Exchange Blog shares her’s below:
It was an early March morning in Madrid. The clouds outside predicted a day of sprinkling rain, if not downpours. My husband Mike and I gathered our bags and our food to take on the train with us. We were headed to Seville and planned to take the train through the gorgeous olive groves of Southwest Spain. We had only been in Spain for a day and a half, but were already being changed by speaking a new language and experiencing a new way of life.
Even now, after traveling everywhere from China to Chicago, my definition of what it means to experience a place changes with each trip. One thing always remains true: In order to truly experience a place you must seek out those who know it best. For my husband and me this means we very carefully choose where we will lay our heads. When booking an apartment, house, ranch, or room with a local, you gain insight into a whole new way of seeing the world. How he experiences his own city, gathers groceries, or chooses restaurants will leave you with a perspective that will for years change you and challenge you in ways you may never expect in the moment.
Arriving in Seville, the streets were crisp and sparkling from the heavy rains. Our cab driver took us as close as possible to the apartment we had booked on Airbnb. Even in the rain, Seville was stealing my heart and I knew the next four days were going to open my eyes.
Do you have a travel story that tranformed your life? Share your story using hashtag #AirbnbViews. See the campaign and find your next adventure at Airbnb.com/Views
The rain drizzled down our backpacks and the hoods of our jackets as we knocked on the door. The door swung open and there stood the sweetest old Spanish lady. In broken English she welcomed us into the warm building that we would call home for the next few days. It would be the place where life would happen for us and we would gain a fresh view on not just the world, but ourselves, our business, and the relationships in our life. This new perspective would not come from what we brought along on this trip but instead from viewing the world from is little old lady’s point of view. We lived in her home, walked the streets of her neighborhood, and, for a short time, became imbedded in her world.
I knew these valuable moments here would be something that held no price tag and would reach far beyond the money we’d spent on plane tickets. I relished the four rainy days we spent in her home, soaking up all this historic city had to offer.
In partnership with Airbnb. “Book a home. Get a unique view of the world.” Watch the Airbnb video here.