We are couch surfers!

Well actually we haven't 'surfed' yet but we hosted for the first time last week and it was an incredible experience. Opening up your home to complete strangers is a fairly daunting prospect and I admit that we were a little scared about the whole thing.

Of course we had no need to fear and we were blessed with truly wonderful guests. Jon and Coco are very special people and being able to eat, drink, chat and laugh with them was a real pleasure.

Couchsurfing is not just about a place to stay, it's an exchange and this was demonstrated to us perfectly. We gave two people a bed for a couple of nights but I came away feeling that they had given us so much more in company and friendship.

Maybe we peaked early but we are looking forward to meeting many more people in this way. If you have ever thought about getting involved or are interested in this idea I would urge you to take the plunge - you never know who you'll meet!

www.couchsurfing.com

P.S. How awesome in Jon's beard? Well of course it is cos he produces Beard Balm for a living. Go check it out - I don't have a beard but it sure smells good!
www.beardbalm.us

Here on Koh Samed

About a month ago, a lucky combination of public holidays and other days of school gave us a surprise week long holiday. Making the most of the time off work, we decided to hop down to Koh Samed with our friends for a bit of beach action.

Sawatdee Pi Mai

This a rather late New Year post but frankly we've been far too busy eating our weight in chocolate and cheese with friends and family to notice how quickly the New Year is already running away from us!

2014 was quite a year for us, it saw us both quit our jobs and move to Thailand to teach. For the first few months, everything felt new, scary and exciting and it definitely took us a while to get used to the jobs and culture - not to mention the heat. We are still learning all the time but we feel very settled in our new home and love our jobs and our life here. Over the year we visited Hong Kong (twice!) and Malaysia as well as countless beautiful places in Thailand. All of that was after taking in our favourite parts of the UK before we left in the Spring.