In July 2022, I had an Ironman triathlon race in Switzerland, and it was my first international trip. My parents were not able to join me due to visa issues. I was about to leave for my trip a week before and I had this thought: “You are flying to Switzerland, a heaven on earth. So why do you want to stay like a tourist and not stay in someone’s home and experience Swiss homes, cultures, people, and what their life is like?” This hit me hard, and I keep searching for ways to stay in someone’s home.

Then I found out that Couchsurfing is a platform where people host you and you can stay for free. This is where I kept looking for a host but during that time, many people rejected me as they were going away for the holidays. I kept my faith and I found a grandmother on Couchsurfing. I texted her about my race and plans. At first, she said she would let me know in a week if she could host me, as she will be flying to Morocco for her vacation, I asked her if she could let me know now so I could plan, or else I needed to book a hotel.

A few hours later she texts me back saying that I could come to her place. She said that she could host me and she could also pick me up at the station. Because of me, she had postponed her trip for 2 weeks! This was crazy! She was the last host in that city and she postponed her plans for me!

We explored Switzerland in her car. I cooked her Indian food and she loved it! Now we have such a profound relationship that she is my grandmother and I am her grandson! She is coming to India next year! I was returning to India after 10 days and she said to me, “Why do you want to leave so soon?” This was after I had stayed 17 days in Switzerland. If I calculate the expenses for the 17 days it would have cost me to stay at a hotel and be like a tourist, it would have come to 200,000 Indian Rupees or $2200! So I saved a lot of money on top of everything else.

Thank you to the Universe for this amazing experience and support. The Universe has helped me a lot! Thank you to The Secret and thank you to Rhonda, too