It is party time in Spain. Plaza Cibeles, Paseo de Recoletos and Plaza Colon in Madrid gathered over 250,000 people in red and yellow to watch the FIFA World Cup Final. Plaza España in Barcelona received more than 75,000 fans to watch the match. But as soon as the final whistle was heard in Johannesburg’s Soccer City, even more people formed red and yellow waves in the streets to celebrate.

Spain’s victory in the 2010 FIFA World Cup is something that wasn’t only predicted by the Psychic Octopus but also by the lead in registered home swappers in HomeForHome (see The FIFA World Cup in HomeForHome ).

Our means were not the same, the cephalopod was tempted with food, HomeForHome users were tempted with the advantages of home exchange and our free services for making the swap arrangements.

Not only Octopus Paul got right the championship match’s winner choosing Spain over the Netherlands in the first time he was not presented with Germany as one of the options, but he also made the correct guess choosing Germany over Uruguay for winner of the third-place match. Paul leaves this World Cup with a 8/8 record. It may have been just coincidence but what are the odds for correct random prediction of the result of 8 matches? Well, it is 1/256. Not too bad for Paul.

Congratulations to all our users from Spain and for the rest, you know what you have to do if you get tempted by the images of the celebrations you see in the news. If the images from Madrid, Barcelona, Sevilla, Zaragoza, Malaga or Bilbao catch you eye and you decide to visit Spain in your next home exchange, then take advantage of over 5,500 registered homes in HomeForHome and find your perfect swap match in Spain.

Back in April we suggested Aquariums could be great places to list as nearby attractions to add to your HomeForHome home description, and we mentioned a few well known aquariums from around the globe. Well, as the 2010 FIFA World Cup is coming to an end, there’s an aquarium that has drawn the attention of the world to one of its inhabitants: Paul the “Psychic Octopus”.

Image by Allie_Caulfield (flickr)

Paul is a common octopus living in SEA LIFE Oberhausen (in April we mentioned SEA LIFE Berlin but we really didn’t know about this famous creature). Paul seems to have the ability to predict the winner of football matches. Yes, you read correctly, the octopus can tell ahead which team will be victorious. This is how it works: Two plastic containers are presented to Paul, both have food inside and the only difference between them is the flag shown in the front. The tentacled psychic takes a moment and then decides to go for one of the containers to have his lunch and the container’s flag is taken as the flag of the winner. If you are thinking “he’s probably trained to choose the German flag” you are not correct, his last prediction was that Spain would beat Germany in the semi-final and he got it right.

A few facts about Paul:

1. Paul is British, he was born in Weymouth SEA LIFE Park and moved to his current home in 2006.
2. He is also known as das Krakenorakel (German), el Pulpo Paul (Spanish) and the Oracle Octopus.
3. He became a celebrity after predicting correctly the result of all of Germany’s matches in the current edition of the FIFA World Cup.
4. He seems to have improved his “technique” because in 2008 during the UEFA European Championship he failed in two predictions out of the six he made, but during the 2010 FIFA World Cup he made no mistakes.
5. He is a media and Internet sensation, he has made it to appear in the BBC, CNN, and thousands of TV channels worldwide. He is in the top ten trends in Twitter and has both fan and enemy pages in Facebook, the last mainly from defeated teams.

Do you want to meet Paul?

If you are interested in meeting Paul during your next home exchange vacation, you should probably hurry because apparently there are a few offers to buy the tentacled sensation and a few threatening cooking recipes in the countries that he didn’t select. Paul resides now in Oberhausen, a city in Nordrhein-Westfalen, also known for having the largest shopping mall in Germany: CentrO.  If you prefer to wait till the media forgets about Paul to arrange your home exchange, then a good time to visit him would be 5 -10 May 2011, during the 57th International Short Film Festival Oberhausen.

During the weekend we will find out if his latest predictions were correct: he chose Germany as the winner of the third-place match and Spain as the World Cup winner in Sunday’s match against the Netherlands.

Germany is everywhere these days! Their football players keep scoring too many goals in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, they keep advancing in the tournament and somehow they managed to be present in this new travel destination review in our blog. Why? Because we thought that even though you may not be in the mood to think about partying in Oktoberfest, there are still other great possibilities for you to take advantage of the large amount of German users registered in HomeForHome. For example, if you were unable to schedule your vacation days to travel during the Summer, you may reach October in a rest-only-no-party mood and Germany could still be the destination of choice. While beer and party fans head to Munich, there are other places to enjoy a more quiet home exchange:

Hamburg - Architecturally, Hamburg has a lot to offer, like the five high spires of its main churches that dominate its skyline: St. Peter’s Church, St. Jacobi Church, St. Catherine’s Church, St. Michaelis Church and St. Nicholas’s Church (which was the tallest building in the world from 1874 to 1876). Also, there’s the Reeperbahn which is Hamburg’s most famous street for being located in the city’s red light district, where there are countless nightclubs and bars. Hamburg receives millions of visitors every year, many attracted by the varied cultural offer, with music performances leading the way.

Leipzig - Another cultural pearl which we reviewed a couple of months ago: http://www.homeforhome.co.uk/destinations-leipzig/

Oberammergau and its Passion Play - In the seventeenth century, the villagers of Oberammergau pledged to perform a Passion Play every ten years. Why? A pandemic outbreak had killed one-fifth of the population and they wanted to prevent that from happening again. To this day, residents who were born or have lived in Oberammergau for more than 20 years participate in the Passion Play to keep their ancestor’s promise. Oberammergau’s Passion Play is taking place now and will last till October 3rd. If you are around, you should not miss it. It takes place only every ten years! For more information, visit the Oberammergau’s Passion Play Website.

To learn about the many attractions waiting for you in Germany you may visit the Official Tourism Website of Germany at http://www.germany-tourism.co.uk/

After all the time we waited for the Summer to arrive, it is probably not the best idea to discuss anything related to the coming Autumn. But, since to be successful in the home exchange world you have to think ahead, it is always a good thing to remind you of the activities to come. Something like the HomeForHome coming attractions

If you are a regular visitor of HomeForHome, you probably noticed at our homepage that Germany is one of the countries with the most registered swappers. If you hadn’t noticed this, you should take advantage of this wake up call and start making plans to spend the coming Oktoberfest in Germany!

Starting September 18th (a few events will take place on the 17th, but the traditional official tapping of the first beer barrel will be celebrated on the 18th at noon), this year the party will last till October 4th and it seems like they have planned it “Longer, bigger and with more attractions than ever before!” to celebrate the festival’s 200th anniversary. This may be worth a home swap, don’t you think?

Besides, if you are not much into beer, you may be into Munich and its cultural side. Or in case you were wondering, there are several attractions that will make Oktoberfest appealing for families with children, like the different rides, and also the tents which are not only about beer… Just check out the past years’ Oktoberfest posts and you’ll see.

The countdown is on in the Oktoberfest.de website so make your move and find your swap. If you already made plans to visit another country while Oktoberfest takes place in Munich, you should know you can find Oktoberfest elsewhere as well, since there are several cities worldwide that host their own beer parties in October, and some are just as legendary:

- Blumenau, Brazil http://www.oktoberfestblumenau.com.br/ (in Portuguese)

- Cincinnati (Ohio), United States http://www.oktoberfestzinzinnati.com/okt.aspx

- Belgrano, Argentina http://www.elsitiodelavilla.com/oktoberfest/(in Spanish)

This is the final part of our tour through the South African cities where the 2010 FIFA World Cup is taking place. So enjoy these ideas for your future home exchanges.

Bloemfontein

Mangaung/Bloemfontein is the judicial capital of South Africa. Surrounded by grassland plains and low hills, its most distinguishable features are its open spaces and its flowers, specially roses. The spirit of the city is reflected by its name, Mangaung  means “Place of the Cheetahs” in SeSotho, and Bloemfontein means “fountain of flowers” in Dutch.

Name: Mangaung/Bloemfontein

Province: Free State

Population: 369,568 inhabitants

Stadium: Free State Stadium - Capacity: 40,911 - Teams still to play here: France, South Africa, Switzerland, Honduras, plus a round of 16 game.

Polokwane

The “Place of Safety” is one place where you can access the natural wonders of South Africa. This is the home of the legendary land of Modjadji, the Rain Queen, where the world’s largest baobab trees are. Some parks and reserves you can visit nearby are:

- Polokwane Bird & Reptile Park
- Polokwane Game Reserve
- Moletzie Bird Sanctuary
- Modjadji Rainforest
- Cheune Crocodile Farm

Name: Polokwane

Province: Limpopo

Population: 508,272 inhabitants

Stadium: Peter Mokaba Stadium - Capacity: 41,733 - Teams still to play here: Greece, Argentina, Paraguay and New Zealand.

Rustenburg

Located in the heart of the savannah, at the foot of the Magaliesburg mountain range lies this Rustenburg, the “Place of Rest” with its ideal climate is a perfect destination for outdoor activities. Just to mention one worth trying, Rustenburg is home to the Rustenburg SkyDiving Club, offering skydiving, parachuting, tandem skydiving, static line jump and accelerated freefall, some even for first-timer jumpers.

Name: Rustenburg

Province: North West

Population: 395,539 inhabitants

Stadium: Royal Bafokeng Stadium - Capacity: 38,646 - Teams still to play here: Mexico, Uruguay, Denmark, Japan, plus a round of 16 game and a semi-final.

Nelspruit

Capital of the fertile Mpumalanga Province, Nelspruit is the gateway to Limpopo Trans-frontier Park, which incorporates the Kruger National Park (South Africa), Limpopo National Park (Mozambique) and Gonarezhou National Park (Zimbabwe).

FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Name: Nelspruit

Province: Mpumalanga

Population: 221,474 inhabitants

Stadium: Mbombela Stadium - Capacity: 40,929 - Teams still to play here: Australia, Serbia, North Korea and Cote d’Ivoire.

Continuing with our South Africa 2010 tour, today we will cover Port Elizabeth/Nelson Mandela Bay and Pretoria. Even though there is no time to find a home exchange deal to visit South Africa during the 2010 FIFA World Cup, it still offers some great ideas for a future destination.

Port Elizabeth/Nelson Mandela Bay

Port Elizabeth/Nelson Mandela Bay is the sunniest city in South Africa and is also known as the “Wind City”, a perfect combination for windsurfing and kiteboarding that makes it a heavenly place for water sports enthusiasts. Overlooking Algoa Bay, in the Indian Ocean coastline, its immaculate magnificent beaches stretch for 40 Km. Port Elizabeth/Nelson Mandela Bay is also an eco-tourism destination, with five biomes converging in the province (out of seven present in South Africa).

Name: Port Elizabeth/Nelson Mandela Bay

Province: Eastern Cape

Population: 1,244,900 inhabitants

Stadium: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium - Capacity: 42,486 - Teams still to play here: Chile, Switzerland, Slovenia, England, plus a round of 16 game, a quarter-final game and the third-place match.

A Must: Addo Elephant National Park - a unique park where you can see the “Big Seven”: Elephants, Rhinos, Lions, Buffalos, Leopards, Southern Right Whales and Great White Sharks. An incredible place 70 Km north of the city.

More info: http://www.sanparks.org/parks/addo/

Pretoria

Pretoria, South Africa’s administrative capital, is a dynamic university town filled with cultural events, open to tourists and offering a variety of options for spending your time. From shopping to nightlife, Pretoria is the African city you do not expect, ready to amaze and enchant you with its surprises.

Name: Tshwane/Pretoria

Province: Gauteng

Population: 2,345,908 inhabitants

Stadium: Loftus Versfeld Stadium - Capacity: 42,858 - Teams still to play here: USA, Algeria, Chile, Spain, plus a round of 16 game.

As we said a couple of weeks ago, millions are watching the 2010 FIFA World Cup, or simply South Africa 2010. This is the first time the most important football event takes place in Africa. We only have one home exchange listing in South Africa, but we can still share some interesting facts about the cities where the world is laying its eyes on these days.

Johannesburg

A tour of South Africa that can only start from Johannesburg, its largest city. Jo’burg, as it is called by its inhabitants, is a city of many contrasts, where wealth and poverty live side by side, luxury hotels and huge landfills, green parks and squalid suburbs as well as a lively nightlife. Johannesburg’s Soccer City Stadium will host the main event: the Final, on July 11th.

Name: Johannesburg (also locally called Jozi, Jo’burg or eGoli)

Province: Gauteng 

Population: 3,888,180 inhabitants

Stadiums:
Soccer City - Capacity: 84,490 - Teams still to play here: Ghana, Germany, plus a round of 16 game, a quarter-final game and the final.
Ellis Park Stadium - Capacity: 55,686 - Teams still to play here: Spain, Honduras, Slovakia, Italy, plus a round of 16 game and a quarter-final game.

Durban

Durban is South Africa’s largest port and one of Africa’s most visited. One of its most important features is its year-round warm water, and everything seems to revolve around water here:

- Durban’s port.
- uShaka Marine World- Africa’s largest aquatic theme park.
- The “mile of gold” - 4 Km of beach surrounded by restaurants and attractions.

Name: Durban

Province: KwaZulu-Natal

Population: 3,468,086 inhabitants

Stadium: Moses Mabhida Stadium - Capacity: 62,760 - Teams still to play here: Nigeria, South Korea, Portugal, Brazil, plus a round of 16 game and a semi-final.

Cape Town

Cape Town is a metropolis welcoming and stimulating a dynamic and multicultural cosmopolitan city, surrounded by breathtaking views of ocean and mountains, perfect for a holiday of sport, culture, music and nature.

Name: Cape Town (derived from its association with the Cape of Good Hope)

Province: Western Cape

Population: 3,497,097 inhabitants

Stadium: Cape Town Stadium (Green Point Stadium) - Capacity: 64,100 - Teams still to play here: Portugal, North Korea, Cameroon, Netherlands, plus a round of 16 game, a quarter-final game and a semi-final.

We looked around for a while and we finally made our choice. Our first recommendation for this summer is the Black Sea Coast.

Being a summer destination it needed to have water. And being we are expecting a hot summer, the more water the better! So, what does the Black Sea Coast have to offer?

Photo by Petro Vlasenko

- Miles and miles of clean sandy beaches
- Warm sunny climate
- Ancient sites
- Small towns
- Mineral baths, thermal springs and even some famous rejuvenation treatments
- Stunning landscapes, with mountains rising behind the shoreline
- And it goes easy on the budget!

The Black Sea Coast has been steadily growing as a touristic destination since the end of the cold war. There are several cities and towns along the coast. Bulgaria, Romania, Russia, Ukraine, Georgia and Turkey are the countries that share the privilege of having Black Sea shores. To help you with your HomeForHome search, here are just some of the many cities lying along the coastline: Sevastopol, Sochi, Batumi, Samsin, Burgas, Varna, Mariupol, Constanta, Novoazovsk, Odessa, Yalta.

There is also growing interest for archaeological exploration, since the Black Sea has excellent conditions for preservation of submerged materials and was sailed by several ancient seafarers, including Greeks, Persians, Scythians, Romans, Byzantines, Goths, Huns, Ottomans and Hittites.

Do you need anything else? Start your search right now and prepare your home exchange to the Black Sea.

Last week we tried an online inspiration tool to get some ideas for our next trip, but maybe be you didn’t find a destination to match your expectations, so this week we decided to take you back to some of our older posts and reviews as the are also inspirational. Maybe your next home exchange will take you to a place mentioned in these pages:

Warm Thoughts invites you to visit Argentina, Australia, Brazil and New Zealand.

Home Swap in Amsterdam

Surrounding Beauty: Landmarks features historical UK sites.

Late Destinations… recommends Australia for its nightlife.

Exchange for London an introduction to London’s best attractions.

Final (or not?) Destination… just a short invitation to discover Monte Carlo.

Destinations: Leipzig

Short Guide of Spain (1) with the second part still to come!

Glamour and Vacation takes you in a film festival tour around the world.

The Isles of Scilly - Blossoming Natural Beauty

HomeForHome's Search on Map

This is just a small selection of places we reviewed since we started this home swap dedicated blog in 2008, but you can use our archive to find other great destinations in Spain, Iceland, Germany, Brazil, USA, France, Portugal, Switzerland, Italy, Norway, South Africa and more…

You can also use HomeForHome directly for inspiration: try our “Search on map” tool and navigate through the listings in a completely different way.

Paris is far more than art and romance and when we wrote our 10 step guide to Paris, we forgot something that could be the top choice for sport fans: Roland Garros. Getting close to the action of the French Open of tennis may energize you for your museum tour.

Image by skoczek /flickr.com

In the Official Site of Roland Garros 2010 you will find everything you need to know about this Grand Slam: schedules, news, tickets, guides, and much more. So get ready for tennis! You may want to change your workout to strengthen your neck muscles, because we are just 20 days away from one of the ATP Tour tournaments with the most beautiful surroundings.

Hey! If there are some rainy days during the tournament, you won’t need any of the tips we shared in our previous post, just head off to a cafe, get caught by the smell from a bakery and for entertainment, well, we don’t need to tell you that Paris will take care of you for as long as you need: Louvre Museum, Eiffel Tower, Centre Pompidou, Seine River and its bridges, Montmartre, Notre Dame Cathedral, the Moulin Rouge… The list is so long! Well, I guess you may want to add a little aerobic to your workout too so that the tour doesn’t leave you breathless. At least avoid tired-breathlessness because there’s no doubt Paris will take your breath away.

HomeForHome has almost 700 properties registered for home exchange in Paris alone, but consider other cities nearby. You just need to search and swap!