Like with everything that’s related to home exchange etiquette, there is one simple question that you need to bare in mind. “How would I like to be treated by them?”

So it may be that you’re tired after totally unwinding and relaxing on your home exchange. Or that you’ve spent every spare minute darting over the unexplored city, and have ended up with that happy worn-out tiredness. What with the slightly less than welcome prospect of having to return to work, it can same like the least appealing thing on your mind, to go through the whole house and give it a good rub down and thorough clean.

But it really pays off. It can be a good idea to set aside a day for the cleaning, and you can assign, for example one section of the house to each member of the family. This way you will maintain a great relation with your home exchange partner, so you’ll have the option of swapping with them again the next time.

Also, what will really make the whole thing worth while is when you finally  get back to your own home and find it dazzling brightly clean and tidy!

Summer has arrived!

One the the most delightful things about the British summer time, is drinking tea in the garden. The sweet smell of the blossom rippling through the air as you sit at the white patio table, watching the warm afternoon sun etiolate into the fuzzy, honeyed dusk.

If you live in a flat, the joy of spending a holiday in a home that has a garden is really quite a pleasure. Whilst breakfast on the balcony can be one of the best ways to start your day, a balcony view comes second to an actual garden where you can get up with your tea in hand and walk around bare-foot on the mossy, spongy grass, contemplating the finer points of life.

To be surrounded by the sweet smelling plants in all their crested beauty, and hear the sounds of the birds singing really is quite a unique and beautiful experience.

Plus there is a whole variety of different types of tea that you can enjoy. Not forgetting the age-old tradition of “cream tea” which involves a lot of crumpets, butter, marmite, honey, cream cakes, scones, clotted cream, strawberry jam, and whatever else you might want to throw into the mix.

Watering the plants and hosing the garden gives you the chance to enjoy the sites, smells and sounds of summer in a fruity-licious  private natural haven.