friendstay
It was Christmas 2021, Milano. I was taking out the main dish, roast beef, from the oven. My friend Ege told me to use my both hands to grab the tray, like every sensible person. I told him I could take it out with only one hand, I do it always. I couldn’t. I dropped it. All the sauce started to be poured inside the oven. Ege screamed. I somehow grabbed another towel and managed to survive the situation. When I looked around, I realized everyone was looking at me with puzzlement. They couldn’t understand why a person does a such dumb thing. It was stupid, but It was fun to see Ege’s reactions. That was the reason why I flew to Milano.
Traveling is on everybody’s to-do list. Everyone wants to meet new people and discover new places (this should be a meme now).
And, people are traveling for a long time. Wealthy Romans were traveling for a vacation in their summer houses. Folks traveled to see sacred places and worship. In modern times, people started to travel for the sake of traveling.
My traveling journey started with family trips. We were going to the south of Turkey to stay in hotels, eat Döner and fish on the same plate. As I grew up, the form of travel turned into exploring other parts of the world with my friends.
Now, I am discovering a new type of traveling. Traveling to stay with your friends. Let’s call it, friendstay. The main purpose is seeing your friends, but you also explore a place through their experiences. You discover their loved points, and neighborhoods. You find a chance to see their homes. The place becomes meaningful.
Friendstay has recently become possible for me. Back then, I was young and studying, and most of my friends were living in the same city as me. And before the pandemic, everyone was working in the same location for a long time.
Now, because of the new jobs and higher education opportunities, my social network is scattered across Europe, and when I want to see a different place, I just visit my friends.
What does it look like? I jump on a plane on a Friday evening, I go to my friends’ apartment or to a pub if they are drinking there. I use the weekend for sightseeing (I use them as my tour guide), chatting, dating, and hiking. On weekdays, we make nice breakfasts and work during the day. I also get a day off or two to slowly enjoy my time. I usually stay at least 4 days (you need welcoming friends lol).
Here is a map of my journeys in the last couple of months. It is not much yet, since I also did some summer vacations, family visits, and good old tourist holidays in Europe.
Friendstay is different than touristing in Prague with someone for a weekend. This way, you are emotionally attached to the place. It’s no longer just a place.
In this way, you celebrate Christmas in Milano with 10 people, you ruin the main course by doing stupid things just to see the reactions of your friends.