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A great thing about travelling is that you come in contact with different ways to face every day life. Sometimes, even if your home swap requires you to travel only 20 miles to a smaller town or bigger city, the local pace of life may be strangely different to what you are used to. Then, imagine what happens when you travel abroad or to a distant exotic destination. Just the idea got me thinking about my next destination search in HomeForHome.

Buildings, museums, available services… These all say a lot about the history and present of one place, but nothing says more about the culture, customs and heritage of a place than its cuisine. Restaurants that use local produce to prepare their menus are a great way to get experience the flavours of your home exchange destination. But unusual and exotic foods can pose a treat to some people. For example, many people are allergic to some ingredients or are bound to strict diet restrictions (like diabetics). Then, how can you avoid a nice evening eating out from turning into an unexpected trip to the hospital? Here are five tips that may help you:

- Find information to know what to expect. There are many online resources you can use, including travel guides and restaurant websites with online menus.

- If you are swapping to a country where a different language is spoken, learn a few phrases to let waiters know of your requirements. If you are not comfortable with your pronunciation, you can even have such phrases printed in a small card. A pocket dictionary may come handy too.

- If you are not sure about the ingredients do not order.

- Remember to take your emergency kit with you when you head out to the restaurant.

- Ask your home exchange partner for restaurant recommendations or advice about eating out.