Ther British Medical Journal recently published a study on how drinking very hot tea can be linked to throat cancer.

If the tea is below 60 degrees celsius, there´s no problem. But if it`s above this temperature, over a prolonged period the chronic inflammation of the cells in the esophagus can cause them to become cancerous.

This study was done in Iran`s Golestan province. This is because other factors that can contribute to throat cancer, such as smoking tobacco and drinking alcohol aren`t very common there. But there`s more tea-drinking than you can shake a stick at.

This link has been made before, in Argentina, where the custom is to drink very hot mate, a type of tea, through a metal spoon.

It`s quite terrifying really. But in the West this is much less of a risk, where the custom is to drink tea at a temperature of less then 60º. Also, we tend to put it with milk, which instantly cools it off.

But it´s fascinating really. Tea drinking is pretty much universal. And it`s such a simple and mundane part of our lives. But the different ways of preparing it, and the the different styles of drinking it can have such drastic consequences.

This really goes to show the things that we can learn from cultural exchange. That even the tiny little routine features of our day can be so massively significant in defining how we out play our lives.

Something to think about when we consider all the things we can learn from going abroad.

This week we bring you a different type of city of the week.

Usually, when we consider the “City of the week” we aren`t pressed into thinking of its life-span. “City of the week” and the concept of a “dying breed” rarely go hand in hand.

But what we give you this week is like no other “City of the week”. Like the rise and fall of the empires, the little town of Appenzell is sure to see layers and landslides of historical change. But the comet currently rising phoenix-like out of its celestial white quilts of snow is rather peculiar.

Well, “City of the week” is no place for beating around the bush. In essence, the reason that this whimsical little town has shot to fame, is because of its growth as a destination for nudist hiking.

Yes, that´s right. People hiking up the mountain, naked. The set: the picturesque rural canton in northeast Switzerland. The script: nothing but the whistle of the wind and your own sheening stream of consciousness. The costume: your bear fleshy skin braving the chilled air and the champion rays of sunlight.

Some say they like it because the equipment chafes. Others say that it`s about freedom. That you feel fully open and free taking in all the mountainous bloom and just being liberated from the chains of fabric in which we tie ourselves every day of our live-long lives.

But this curious attraction has become quite a pilgrimage around the world, to the point that the local government are planning to attempt to legislate against it over the next few months.

So, this freaky little attraction might well be on its way out. If it appeals you, you should definitely get organizing yourself a home exchange in Switzerland.

So stress.

What is it? The adrenaline that our bodies produce when we`re in taxing situations? The rush of blood to the head, the dilation of the pupils, sudden ability to hear tinkles and scratches happening a mile away?

Stress and anxiety, in fair measures, are some of the things that have stopped us from winding up like all the rest of the animals. (Subordinated, no tools, no things like medicine and trains and culture etc.)

But as we`re no longer hunter-gatherers, sometimes the stress builds up inside of us when we`re in the supermarket, in the bank, in the office, at the doctors… And we just don´t have the life-style any more where we can go racing after, for example, a buffalo, and have all the physical exhileration that releases those pumping endorphins and gives us that natural euphoric relief.

So the stress spreads…. and we carry it around. In our bellies, mounting with little globules of fat from all of the nervously eaten packaged crap that comes out of the vending machine. We carry it around… In our heads. In our skin. In all the parts of our body that don´t get that rejuvenating surge of blood pumping furiously around, recharging the organs, vessels and layers of flesh that make us.

So we have developed a buzz word “stress”. It´s a catch all term really. But then again, there`s an awful lot to catch. Everything is “stressed out”, or “because of stress”, or “getting stressed”, or “stress related”. There`s a good reason for this. We don`t have very effective outlets for the physiological strain that plagues our bodies and causes us so much damage.

So how do we deal with this modern concept of “stress”?

With another modern concept. “Home exchange!” Yes that`s right. It`s a widely known fact that holidays are a proven and sure way of eliminating stress. And we have to make time for, and in this weirdly stunted matrix of an economy that we`re planted in this days, money is something we have to fight against. So just like we`ve conceptualised “stress”, we`ve made exchange into the perfect way to combat the minetraps set out in modern life to riddle us with cortesol. (Cortesol = stress hormone ;-))

Home exchange is to the modern human what hunting and gathering was to the hunter-gatherer. Fight the health hazards of the modern life by giving yourself the option of plenty of relaxing holidays. All made possible with home swap

There is something ineffably romantic about a summer in the city. There´s definitely something in the sweltering weight of the city heat; in seeing the cars lazily rolling along through traffic jams. Or in the evenings spent sipping velvety wine an an outdoor table at a bar, watching the city lights softly blend with the sinking hues of the 9 o´clock sky.

You don´t have to take a holiday in the country side to have a distinctive experience. Imagine walking down Madison Avenue, New York City, watching the yellow cabs drift by, shadowed by the towering buildings, watching the city people so groomed and American in their corporate clothes.

Or perhaps prettying yourself up into that slippery evening dress and venturing into the city delight for an evening of cocktail pleasure might appeal to you. The city lights are bright, and sometimes the grainy husk of the city-contaminated summer months can make for a really picturesque experience.

Let´s not kid ourselves. Nature is wonderful, but some of the most beautiful things that we may ever take the joy of viewing are man made. Beautiful city water features, tremendous buildings teeming skywards, delicate arcs of lights and fabric bending into and against the light, creating some really aesthetic architectural spectacles.

New York, San Francisco, Austin, Los Angeles, Miami. If you´re looking for a holiday that has a sense of glamour, a city-core je ne sais quoi, then propose a home exchange in one of these areas. These are all husky city-life cities. And in the words of Frank O´Hara,

“it’s true that fresh air is good for the body
but what about the soul
that grows in darkness, embossed by silvery images” 1960.

Some people like to decorate their house with stripes. Others like to adorn every surface with a very nineteen-seventies green, with tiny flecks of gold and silver thrown in the balance to give it an extra zing.

Others like to document their lives in photos. A world of pictures. A montage of seconds, cast in celluloid for ever, plastered across the walls, shelves and surfaces of the house. This approach I quite like. Especially if the pictures are tasteful. (Well, it also has a lot to do with the space and lighting, but that´s another thing altogether…)

Alternatively: Carpets or wooden floors? Both have their advantages. You can be so at home hoofing along some spongy red carpets, but equally gliding along those elegant varnished planks of yellow wood is so fun and aesthetic and modern.

Another thing to do is to dangle a chain of cards full of sweet messages from loved ones across the room, or to decorate the whole house with nothing but flowers.

What we´re saying is that there are a lot of different ways to bring a touch of warmth and frosty beauty to a home. And doing a home exchange is the perfect way to inspire you. Spending a considerable amount of time in someone else´s house gives you the opportunity to soak in the little touches and really notice the detail. You can draw on their inspiration and take some ideas not only from the different culture and the different city, but also the different style of home making.

It´s something you exclusively get the opportunity to do if you travel with a home exchange. Lots of people go travelling to find new ideas, to gain new experiences, to free themselves from the shackles of routine and let their creativity flow. The environment of someone else`s home is the perfect place to let this happen.

So. Keys under the flower pot. Or under the doormat. Does anyone do that anymore? I don´t think so. But there is something really quite romantic about it. Something really very World War 2 era, or something very teenage there, lingering somehow.

Which of course brings us to the question of: how do we transfer keys when we do a home exchange? The most obvious thing to do would be to leave the keys with a neighbour. Safe, reliable, easy and simple.

But what about if you don´t have a neighbour you would feel comfortable asking this from? It could happen. People don´t connect as much anymore. Gone are those playful days of a gentle loan of a cup of sugar, or leaving the front door unlocked so that neighbours can come and go as they please. (Like, to access inside of the house.) So some people might not feel comfortable asking a neighbour to do this.

Or what if the other home exchangers have flights that will arrive at 4 o´clock in the morning and you just can´t quite bring yourself to ask Bob and Sue (or Geoff and Viv) to wake up in the middle of the night to do you this favour.

Well. There are other ways of organizing these things. Firstly, depending on your preferences, you could send a copy of the keys via special post delivery. It´s a bit extreme, but possible nonetheless. Obviously don`t put your address on the envelope.

If you don`t feel comfortable with this, you could organize for a family member, or friend to come around on the day that the guests will arrive, and get them to open up and welcome in the new family. Or, if it´s a “4 in the morning” type scenario, they could put the keys in an envelope and hide them in a specific and predetermined point outside of the house. (Flower pot!! It´s screaming out to you!)

Another way to do things is to get the exchanges to overlap a little, so that the family stays with you one day, and that way you can do everything by your own hand. Often home exchangers do like to meet their fellow exchangers, as it puts a nice smiley face on top of everything, and makes you feel more comfortable.

There are fifty ways to leave your keys to the incoming exchangers. You just need to be a bit imaginative, and don´t be afraid to ask for a bit of help from a neighbour or friend. Most people are more than willing to do it.

What are the risks involved when you do a home exchange?

Well, there´s been a lot of bad press about the 419 scam. A horrendous scam it is, but it´s pretty easy to avoid, now that it´s so well known.

So, here´s the juice. Someone gets in contact with you and says they can´t do a home exchange, but would like to rent your home for a few weeks, offering a price of a few thouand dollars. They send a cheque through, with an over-payment. The over-payment exceeds the initial price by several thousand dollars. So they get in touch and ask you to wire the excess over. The money goes, but when the bank processes the cheque, it turns out it was all fake. But the wired money is gone, never to be seen again.

Wow. Quite incredible, huh. For anyone who´s been a victim of this, it´s really gotta suck. It´s an awful invasion of trust, and it´s a lot of money to lose.

However, this is not a reason to be afraid of home exchange. There are some simple rules that we can follow that will always protect us from this kind of fraud.

1) Never wire or send money to someone that you don´t know
2) If someone offers to do a rental and they get in touch with you through the home exchange site, you should be suspicious
3) If people contact you via the internet offering to give you vast amount of money, be on your guard
4) If you are unsure of the tone or the demands of someone who is contacting you about a home exchange, then you shouldn´t get involved with them.

There´s no reason to be afraid. In order to protect yourself from any potential fraudsters, you just need to be alert. And now that you know about the 419 scam, there is practically no chance at all that anyone would be able to fool you into anything similar.

People! Are we even speaking the same language?

YES WE ARE! Anglo-American links have always been strong. And with the dawn of the new historical era we are seeing materialise right before our 21st century eyes, we should make them even stronger. So, I propose to you, o great land of the free, that you pay us a visit! Let´s bond!

Here is a handful of things that might entice you into a visit.

1. Jay-walking. Not illegal here! You can go crazy.
2. Everything is little in comparison, and therefore cute. Endlessly cute. Our roads are cute. Our shopping centres are cute. We´re just small, little people. Love us!
3. We have an archaic, ridiculous accent. It makes for easy listening. Everyone sounds POSH. Even when they´re not.
4. Our television news system is really rather different. Try it. You might even like it.
5. We´re bridging the gap between continental Europe and the USA in terms of customer service. Unlike in the states, we haven´t quite mastered the culture of making the customer the most sacred thing that there is. But equally, it´s not like in other European countries, when you ask for a different size and the people look at you as if they hate you. So if you want to see very the strange looking British people dance around the counter, not really sure who is in charge - you or them - making the whole thing a little bit hysterical and sensationally awkward…. Then BUY YOUR FLIGHTS NOW!! It´s like LIVE COMEDY. In the store! People pay to see this kind of stuff.
6. Stephen Fry is really a lot like Oscar Wilde
7. The teeth thing. Is it a myth or is it an ugly truth? You´ll have to see for yourselves.
8. We use irony to the MAX. It´s true. There´s always a chance with a Brit that what they´re saying should not be taken at face value. This has gotten me into all sorts of trouble in the past.
9. Socks with sandals is always a good ´un
10. A group of people who are very very punctual.
11. An English breakfast. Mouth-watering rashers of bacon, grilled sausages, high quality scrambled eggs, crispy toast, baked beans, tomatoes, mushrooms, with a lovely cup of tea to wash it all down.

Did you notice that was more than ten? That´s because the last thing is, that British people can´t count. Well, maybe we can count, but we certainly made a hash of things with the empirical system!

Where did capitalism go wrong?

I mean, it obviously wasn´t faultless to start with. But now look what´s happened. Just take a LOOK at the housing market. It´s in tatters. In absolute tatters!

But aside from the clearly very grave and very difficult consequences of this for some people, we have to look for the silver lining. What´s happened to massive consumption? The age of plastics? We pick up, we use and then we chuck away.

If we feel bad, we can go out and buy something. Use it and consume it. It´s a way of life. But it does mean that we WASTE a lot. So what has the crisis done to this?

It´s given birth to the culture of swapping. CD swapping. Clothes swapping. Car swapping. DVD swapping. Kids´ toys swapping. Antiques swapping. Ticket swapping. Home swapping.

It´s given us pause for thought. Rather than just throwing money away, we´ve begun to recycle a whole world of items that we use in our everyday lives. We have started economising on the economy.

Home swap is every bit a part of this new mentality. We are thinking more, and getting a lot more out of what we put in. Connecting globally with other people is the ideal way to really maximise what you get from your travels. Sharing homes as a way of going on holiday is the smart move.

And it´s part of a generational change in thinking. Although it might be hard, one thing the crisis has taught us is that if we stop consuming mindlessly, and instead put the power back into the community, then our lives really will fare far richer.

So. Compulsive hoarding disorder. Let´s have a little lookie at what Wikipedia has to say about it.

“Compulsive hoarding (or pathological hoarding) is the acquisition of, and failure to use or discard, such a large number of seemingly useless possessions that it causes significant clutter and impairment to basic living activities such as mobility, cooking, cleaning, showering or sleeping. A person who engages in compulsive hoarding is commonly said to be a “pack rat”, in reference to that animal’s apparent fondness for material objects.”

Aha! It´s a recognised condition. I knew it wasn´t just me. This feeling… is a good feeling. (As for the whole “pack rat” thing, that wasn´t so easy on the ears.)

But let´s not get bogged down in aetiology. The more pertinent issue here is how we can deal with this when we do a home exchange. Or - even better - how home exchange can deal with this problem FOR us.

The idea of having someone in your home can work wonders for bringing out in you that religious zeal to make your nest sparkling and neat as a button. It gives us the perfect excuse to do that decade over-due spring-clean.

Seeing your house through the eyes of a visitor often encourages us to put to rights everything that we´ve wanted to get done for the past few months. (Years….decades. However it may be for you. I´m apparently a “pack rat” so I´m not judging anyone here.)

But pack rats or not, there is an element of exposure that comes with doing a home exchange. This is a brilliant way for us to animate ourselves into getting everything into the state we want it to be in. It can imbue within us a greater strive to make our living space, our environment - our HABITAT - look the best it can.

For me this would involve getting rid of the piles of newspapers and the empty water bottles that are taking over my life right now. But for most normal people, it´s a great motivation to finally getting around to doing all the things you´ve been meaning to, but have struggled to find that last push of motivation.

Home exchange. There´s a world of hidden benefits.