Egeria Orthodox Home and Hospitality Exchange -- the Blog

Glorious Bells

2010-01-01T22:47:00.000-08:00

2009-12-13T02:36:00.000-08:00

Back in the Studio!

Interestingly (at least to me), I worked in my icon studio for the first time since the summer yesterday and today, and tonight I'm writing on my blog for the first time in forever also! Hmmm.

Well, the pretty good reason for the hiatus was that I was working day and night trying to get our Orthodox home exchange website up and running, which it now is! The link is in the righthand margin if you're interested - it's called Egeria Home and Hospitality Exchange. I won't go into the details here; all the information is on the site itself at egeriaexchange.com.

The picture on this post is a bit of drawing I did for the website - I recently started doing calligraphy with a quill (ie a goose feather cut at the end into an edged nib) and boy, now I know what all the fuss is about. There is nothing like drawing or writing with a quill. I don't know if I can go back to metal nibs. The quill nib is flexible and so allows for so more more expression. If you write with a modern metal nib it is nearly impossible to understand how the writing and drawing in the famous manuscripts (eg The Book of Kells) could be so beautiful. With a quill, even if you are not a great calligrapher, it makes a lot more sense.

Anyway, the doodads above were early experiments with the quill. I was replicating some decorations pictured in a book of medieval Russian (although they lump a lot of Armenian stuff in there) manuscript decoration. I love it - it's so fresh and inventive, like so much art from the period. I copied a bunch of these little illustrations and we included them in the Egeria website to add warmth and charm to the look and feel. The idea was one of homeyness and antiquity at the same time, which I liked as being very appropriate for an Orthodox home exchange site!

That done for the time being, I'm continuing work on a largish icon too - a family icon commissioned by a friend as a surprise for her husband. It is quite complicated; a portrait-format board about 14"x 20"with a routed center which is rounded at the top (yes, I will try to post photos at some point) and with generous raised margins. In the routed area are the three standing figures of Sts Peter, Herman and Mary (sister of Lazarus). These are the dad, the family, and the mom's saints, respectively. On the lower margin below are three medallions depicting Sts Finnian, Victoria and Simeon (now some of you will know who this family is. . .shhhh!!!), the three children in the family. These medallion shapes are wreathed with entwined olive branches, a reference to the wedding psalm which says "your children will be like olive shoots around your table." Above the whole group, on the top margin, is the Theotokos holding a protecting veil over the whole composition.

It has taken me a long time to get to where I am now. Namely I 'established' the drawing today and yesterday. This means that I went over the preliminary drawing, which had been put on the gesso with water-soluble pencil crayon, with more 'permanent' egg tempera. I put that in quotation marks because when it is fresh egg tempera is not very permanent, but it's much more so than the pencil, which disappears easily with a little water.

The use of water soluble pencil crayons, especially in a nice sepia colour, is a great trick from my teacher Heather. They allow you to draw fluidly and directly onto the board, which makes the drawing much more alive. Those of you who draw will know that as soon as you attempt to transfer a drawing in some way, something in it dies, no matter how careful your copying or transferring. You do have to be slightly crazy or confident to work a drawing directly onto a gessoed board; I'm a little of both but I always have a lot of studies and preliminary drawings informing the seemingly 'freehand' drawing onto the board. Plus there is always the reassurance that if you mess up at this stage there are fixes in the form of water and sandpaper! Of course for more formal elements, like the olive branches, I have the design carefully worked out in advance. But faces and hands, etc, I prefer to draw in a more immediate way so as not to lose the aliveness.

Anyway, today saw the breaking of an egg, always auspicious in the studio of an iconographer! It means something is getting done. This is the most exciting phase, because you are now able to 'open' the painting, that is, to begin to lay down fields of pale colour and watch the icon begin to take shape and come alive. This process will be especially rewarding in the case of this icon because it was such a complicated icon to compose, and the drawing is, naturally, very detailed.

One other thing I have observed while working today; that is that I am applying knowledge of the end of the process to how I proceed here at the beginning. That is to say, now that I have a bit more experience both in painting icons and in egg tempera itself, I know what things to avoid at the outset, because they will just make life harder down the road.

A good example is drapery lines. When I was more of a rookie, I would establish too many of these lines - that is, lines describing drapery inside the figure, as opposed to the outlines. What I learned later is that as the icon is being painted (as opposed to drawn -- I don't use the term 'written' very much, because it's not very useful in this type of discussion, but that's another post) -- as the icon is being painted it shifts and changes, and decisions you may have made at the drawing stage seem crazy to you now. It is hard to describe. It's like choosing a route by looking at a map, but when you hit the open road you can see a much more beautiful way to go, and you start to take a new route.

The problem is, if you have lain down your lines in egg tempera which has been allowed to cure a bit (ie it's more than a few days old), you are now fighting with these lines even as you are deciding on new lines, because as egg tempera ages it becomes more and more difficult to remove.

This characteristic is wonderful, of course, -- it's what allows egg tempera paintings and icons to last ages and ages, and it's inherent in the very technique of painting with it -- it's what allows for that tremendous subtlety --but it's a problem if you want to change something! You always have the option of sanding lines off, and goodness knows I've done plenty of that, but it's a nuisance to be avoided as it creates dust. Not to mention that any washes or layers of colour you have done over those lines will now be ruined when you have to go beneath to get rid of the lines. If your wash was nicely applied and you like it, having to ruin and redo it can be sad, since it can be difficult to replicate exactly what you did the first time that was so successful!

So all of that laborious discussion was just to say that now as I draw I have all the memory of that stuff in my mind, so I don't bother to establish interior drapery lines until some painting has been done already. It makes life easier all around - flexibility further into the process, and a simpler, faster drawing now!

However: I DO include all those interior lines in the studies and preliminary drawings for the icon, because without them you won't end up with a believable outline. You don't want St Peter to look like he was made with a cookie cutter. Don't ask me what the logic is of coming up with lines at the beginning and then losing them and then finding them again is - maybe it's something you have to do to understand.

Happy St Spyridon's and St Herman's days to those on the new calendar! Glory to God for all things.

Egeria Exchange is live!

2009-11-26T23:00:00.000-08:00

Hello! Are you here? Well, as of November 16 you should go here:

http://egeriaexchange.com/

because that is the actual website! Thanks for dropping by :-)

Jenny Hainsworth, proprietor
Egeria Orthodox Home and Hospitality Exchange
http://egeriaexchange.com/

At LAST! We are LIVE!

2009-11-16T22:23:00.000-08:00

Well, friends, the big day has finally come for Egeria Orthodox Home Exchange. We are live on the net and ready to receive membership registrations!

For a limited time, get your one-year membership to Egeria for only a penny!

Head over to EGERIAexchange.com and peruse the site. It takes only a minute to sign up for a membership. Soon this blog will be taken down, and news and user stories/ testimonials will appear on the site itself. Thanks to all who have been following, and God bless!

Egeria Exchange. Matching Orthodox Christians and their friends for home and hospitality exchange -- worldwide!

You have friends there.

Where are we now?

2009-09-24T18:00:00.000-07:00

Thanks so much for your comments and questions. As of today, Sept 24, we are in the test phase of the site, making sure everything works so there are no problems for our users.
Free memberships will be offered first to -- well, those who ask! Everyone on our Facebook page will be invited to list for free, as well as those who have posted comments on this blog. This way we can get a healthy list of possiblities right at the outset, so that there is value in purchasing a membership once we begin to register members in the normal way, ie through Paypal/ Visa. Watch this space, and if you are able, find us on Facebook too! Thanks again.

September 24, 2009 6:00 PM

A New Testimonial -- this one from Bath, England!

2009-07-07T13:11:00.001-07:00

Having been Orthodox from the cradle, I've been exposed to the wonderful feeling of being able to offer and to receive hospitality from friends far away, planned ahead of time or on the spur of the moment, and it is this feeling of true homes from home that Egeria offers.

Among the many places I've had the joy of being entertained and taken into the houses of Orthodox people who I didn't know before I left home are Romania, Greece, South Korea, the USA, Canada, Germany and Montenegro, all of which are memorable experiences with images flooding back to me as I write.

And, as to how well Egeria would work, I can offer one example: Earlier this year, after Jenny had already started thinking about proposals for Egeria, she had a call from a friend of a friend who was coming to the UK. She put me and several other people in touch with them, and they threaded an itinerary between these contacts (luckily we all live in picturesque places).

So when it turned out that I was away for over half the time that Maximus was in Bath, it was no problem. We arranged to meet up when I was there, but before that, because I'd spoken to him plenty beforehand, I was able to call people in my church and make sure he was encouraged to stay for a meal afterwards, as well as encouraging him to myself, and I think that introduction really made a great difference to him and his party's stay.

There are so many other anecdotes I could add, but I think that for the sake of brevity I'd better end there. The possibilities of the Egeria network are pretty much endless, and with Jenny's wit, humanity and graphic design underlying it, I can only be sure that it will reach its potentials.

---

Thank you, Ambrose!

Nearly There!

2009-06-26T01:07:00.000-07:00

Well, it's June. How did that happen.

I just got back from an amazing week studying Byzantine Chant at St Nicholas Ranch in Dunlap, California. The course is put on by John Michael Boyer (Protopsaltis of the San Francisco Metropolia) and his crack team of teachers and guest lecturers. We're talking about Fr Ephraim Lash, Dr Constantine Kokenes, the sublime Stelios Kontakiotis (who came all the way from the island of Tinos to demonstrate what happens when, as my fellow student and friend Fr Kosta put it, you "cram an angel down your throat") and newly-minted PhD Dr Alex Khalil. It was a jam-packed week, with two services and three classes every day. As JMB says, you don't go there to catch up on your sleep. No indeed. But my brain was buzzing very happily despite the sleep deprivation, and despite learning of the existence of INVISIBLE NEUMES, which, as we all know, are just not fair.

Alright, in Egeria news. Things are really cooking now. Our awesome web developer Robert is going full tilt to have the site basically completed in early July, and then we will do a round of beta testing. Basically this means that we will ask a bunch of folks to log on to the Egeria site as though they were customers and proceed to navigate through the site so that we can ensure that everything works properly. This will take up part of July, then it's over to Robert again for fine tuning. Then we launch the site and open our virtual doors for business in late August -- or allowing for Ortho-flex time, September.

Now a big question when you're setting up a home exchange is, of course, how do you get started? How or why does anyone become a member if there are no other members to exchange with yet?

What we're doing is offering free memberships to friends, family -- and pretty much anyone else who asks -- for a limited period of time, or up to a certain number of listings, say about the first 300. That way by the time people are paying the (small) fee for the membership, there is actually something there worth paying for. Then as more and more people join, the usefulness of the site and the value to each member goes up. There will probably be a period of time after that when new memberships are good for three years for the price of one year. In any case the memberships are guaranteed -- if you cannot find a match within the term of your membership, it will be extended one year for free.

Well, I'm getting bleary-eyed as it is rather late, so I'll stop typing now. I created a Facebook group for Egeria tonight, so feel free to hop over and chack that out too -- I'll post news as it comes up. Look for Egeria to be open for business this September!

Second Testimonial!

2009-05-14T22:00:00.000-07:00

The word is spreading, folks! Here is another positive blurb, this time from the God-protected shores of Scotland:

I live in Scotland and, like many Scots, have connections with Canada. I'd love to visit Jasper, the Okanagan, and especially Victoria ! So when I heard about Egeria I was really excited; I was being offered a different type of travel experience. I could exchange my traditional, much loved Scottish house for a home abroad, and be able to visit places I've always wanted to see. I'm really looking forward to making my first booking ! I probably won't get the chance to meet my exchange family, but I'll be sure to do everything I can to make them comfortable here.

Liz C, near St Andrews, Fife, Scotland

Thanks for sending that in, Liz!

We're at a crossroads with this project once again. On May 12 we received a full and final estimate of the cost for building the site. It is higher than we anticipated due to the technical sophistication required, but we're not deterred. It will just mean some extra steps to secure funding to have the job done. We meet with the developer next week, and we'll see whether how he feels about beginning the work knowing that we're scrambling a bit to make sure he is paid at the end of the project!

If any one reading/ following has ideas for partners, investors, or angels -- of the business variety! -- who might be interested in this project, please do contact us. We have no doubt that Egeria will be very successful, and indeed overall the setup costs are very low compared to the return we expect in the long run. It will also generate significant funds for our partner charities. We just need to get this horse out of the starting gate!

And as always, your prayers, good wishes, blurbs from around the world and comments are most appreciated. Keep in touch! Kalo Pascha!

Bright Week

2009-04-29T19:39:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone had a marvellous, restful Bright Week! Things around here were busy as always, but the joy of Pascha always seems to transcend whatever details are happening in life at the time.

We are still very busy building up Egeria -- nagging friends around the globe for comments about the idea (you know who you are, unless I haven't nagged you yet, and then you will know who you are. . .), planning every detail of the site with our awesome web consultant Michael Linehan, writing content, and converting this blog into Wordpress -- so we can be fancy schmancy and get our info organised into something other than one looong page. Or whatever is happening here.

As of yet we still don't have a launch date -- the site is still under construction, but moving ever forward. I think I can safely say you will be able to use Egeria to plan your 2010 vacation or other travel; possibly not your 2009 ;-)

I am looking for a few good quotations to include in the official site, so if you have anything you would like to say about Egeria and your plans to use it when it goes live, please do drop me a line! Put something in the comments and I'll let you know where to send a longer piece, or just write a few lines AS a comment, and let me know that I can use it. Please remember to include your first name, city and country! Remember, it doesn't matter where you are -- somebody wants to go there.

Thanks, and as always I'll keep you posted as to our expected launch dates. Christos Aneste!

Jenny

PS The photo is me a couple of weeks ago in fun, funky Fan Tan Alley here in Victoria. Our Chinatown is older than yours, Vancouver! Nyah nyah!

Christ is Risen!

2009-04-27T00:22:00.000-07:00

Indeed, He is Risen!

A joyous Paschaltide to all our Orthodox brothers and sisters. Kali Anastasi!

My First Testimonial!

2009-03-09T22:55:00.000-07:00

Egeria Home Exchange has its very first testimonial!

What's that you say -- I thought Egeria was still being built. How can you already have a testimonial?

Well, the fact is that I had a wonderful human guinea pig named Constantin to practise on late last year when I was hatching this idea. Costel was going to Princeton from Victoria to do some research, and he didn't know a soul. As most of us would do under the circumstances, he started to look into booking a hotel.

I could just feel it in my bones that although I didn't know anyone in Princeton either, someone I knew must. I asked Costel if he would wait on booking the hotel while I asked around. Well, I did a little digging and sure enough, among my friends from St Vladimir's Seminary was the 'someone'. I got in touch with our mutual friend in Princeton, and we landed Costel a great place to stay, with friendly fellow Romanians, home cooking and daily transportation to the university library into the bargain!

Now, of course, not every Egeria member will have this amount of interference from me -- this was exceptional; a prototype, if you will. The arranging of home or hospitality exchanges will be up to the members to do for themselves, since there will be a searchable database for that. But the benefits will be very much the same: free or almost-free accommodation, plenty of space, local contacts, and a lasting friendships.

Now, Constantin in his own words:

March 2009

I am writing this letter in support of Jenny Hainsworth's venture, Egeria Orthodox Home and Hospitality Exchange. I am one of the first people to have benefited from Ms. Hainsworth's excellent idea.

I am currently a PhD candidate at the University of Victoria, History Department. In fall 2008 I was organizing a research trip to Princeton University, which was an essential requirement of my PhD program. Even though my trip was going to be supported financially by a research grant offered by Princeton University, I found it difficult to support the cost of accommodation in Princeton.

After conducting extensive research on the accommodation in the area I realized that I was facing two main issues: the high price of accommodation and the difficulty in getting to the university campus. It was at this moment when I talked to Ms. Hainsworth who told me about her idea of Orthodox hospitality exchange. By using her extensive connections, Ms. Hainsworth put me in contact with an extremely welcoming family who offered me not only accommodation but, also, daily transportation to the university campus, since the lady was a librarian who drove every day to the campus.

With Ms. Hainsworth’s help I was able to connect with a hospitable family who made me part of their social events, such as parties and dinners with friends. In addition to fulfilling the initial purpose of my trip, namely conducting research, I was able to meet new people, exchange ideas and, not unimportantly, to avoid three weeks of isolation, as would have been the case in a hotel room.

My experience proves that Ms. Hainsworth’s venture, Egeria Orthodox Home and Hospitality Exchange, is not only feasible but also unique, realistic and extremely useful. The support and information that I received from Ms. Hainsworth demonstrates that she posses the knowledge and the connections which will allow her to successfully put into practice her endeavour. Furthermore, her ability to plan and organize, spirit of initiative, industriousness and, not lastly, commitment can only guarantee the success of her venture.

Sincerely,

Constantin Chira-Pascanut

So WHEN is this happenening?

2009-02-13T22:17:00.000-08:00

Hello friends;

yes, it's been a while since I posted. That's party because I have been working so hard to get Egeria going, but I cannot neglect the blog any longer!

So here are a few tidbits of what is happening and stuff.

1) I am a couple of days from hiring a local web design company to complete the building of the Egeria site. I have interviewed a couple of firms, and I'm honing in on what I think is the best option. The site is pretty heavy on the technology, and we'll need to be readily expandable, so I have to proceed with caution.

2) I have been reading about a couple of the more 'out there' uses of home exchange. One was an article in Wikipedia about how home exchanges are being arranged by some folks to escape violence in war-torn areas, eg Iraq, the Mideast etc. Lord, have mercy. The idea is that if you are a Shia living in a predominantly Sunni area, and a family you know are the opposite, you switch homes so that you will be surrounded by more of your 'own', and therefore safer. It's sad, but it's a good idea while things are not going well in the peace and brotherly love department.

The other was about how, given the dire economy, some ingenious people are already arranging permanent home exchanges when they can't sell their houses for a good price! George wants to move to Chicago, Ringo wants to move to NY; they somehow find each other , ascertain that their homes are comparable -- and switch!

It's funny -- the idea is so intuitive on one hand, and so new and radical on the other. I don't know whether this is happening in other places; so far I have only heard about it in the States.
If you're in a pickle trying to sell your house so you can move to another city, you may want to give this option some thought! I imagine agencies for permanent house exchanges are popping up as we speak. In fact, I think I will Google that phrase and see what comes up, out of curiosity.

I will post back to keep you updated about the timeline for launching Egeria. Once we meet with our web developers in a serious way we will have a better picture about when we can expect to go live and accept memberships!

Thanks for reading and for sticking with us -- Egeria really will happen!

I Remember a House

2009-01-15T19:14:00.000-08:00

Here is an spellbinding poem by Gerard Manley Hopkins. I chose it for the theme of agapic love and hospitality. It is one I have known and loved for many years, and when I read it it helps me call to mind friends past and present who have shared their homes and their lives over the years.

There is one home in particular I think of, and its inhabitants will always be as a second family to me.

In the Valley of the Elwy

I remember a house where all were good
To me, God knows, deserving no such thing:
Comforting smell breathed at very entering,
Fetched fresh, as I suppose, off some sweet wood.

That cordial air made those kind people a hood
All over, as a bevy of eggs the mothering wing
Will, or mild nights the new morsels of Spring:
Why, it seemed of course; seemed of right it should.

Lovely the woods, waters, meadows, combes, vales,
All the air things wear that build this world of Wales;
Only the inmate does not correspond:

God, lover of souls, swaying considerate scales,
Complete thy creature dear O where it fails,
Being mighty a master, being a father and fond.

Who's in Your Corner?

2008-12-16T11:02:00.000-08:00

Hey friends. I posted this photo of our icon corner -- well, because I like it -- and I thought I would ask all you visitors and 'followers' (still can't use that word without scare quotes -- it's so creepy):

Who's in your corner? Comment on this post and tell us which saints are there & why. If you have originals, who painted them? What other little relics do you have, who gave them to you, and where you were when you received them? Do you use candles, oil lamps, incense -- what do you love to use, and where do you get it?

Perhaps on the Egeria website (which is looking FINE, by the way! we have been working feverishly on it every day for the last two weeks) we will have a page for your pilgrimage photos and stories, as well as your just-for-fun trips with Egeria Home and Hospitality Exchange.

Thanks for visiting, and don't forget to tell us about your icon corner

See also Owl-light Studio blog (link to the right) for a different (hmm-- more intimate?) post about our home icon corner. . .

Specific is Beautiful: Tips for Building your Egeria Profile

2008-12-07T01:06:00.000-08:00

Tips for Building your Egeria Profile

Here are a few great ideas to help you attract enquiries to your Egeria profile:

Photos: A Window to Your World
It all starts with a picture. Even if your place isn't all that picturesque, it's extremely important to have some photos on your profile because they:

* Are more pleasing to the eye than text alone
* Reassure the viewer that something really is there
* Provide details that you may not think to write about
* Offer a fascinating glimpse into your world

You can include pictures of your street or local scenery too -- it doesn't just have to be rooms in your home. What about pictures of your icon corner, your parish church, and your favourite local shops and cafes? Have fun with it!

Be Creative
Don't be shy! Your writing can be as creative, funny and offbeat as you like, as long as your information is clear and accurate.

Be Honest
Your place is small? Say so. It can still be charming. In a featureless cul-de-sac? Sing out. Maybe your reader only cares that the showers are hot enough. You have nothing to lose from being as truthful and accurate as you can. Your visitors will have a much better time if they arrive equipped with the facts -- warts and all!

Think Like a Visitor
Try to see your city, town or countryside with fresh eyes. If you were seeing it for the first time, what would you find interesting? Answer that question, and your profile writes itself.

What's Possible?
Your potential visitors may not have a feel for distances or geography in your area -- you need to tell them stuff! What can they do as a short trip while based at your home?
For example: if you live in Vancouver, point out that Whistler, Seattle and Victoria are close enough to visit, too. If you live in England, astonish your North American readers with the short travel times to France, Spain, the Netherlands, etc! (We can never quite believe it.)

Pilgrimage Sites
Please make special mention of any Orthodox churches, seminaries, monasteries or pilgrimage sites within a couple of days' journey from your home, as this is will be of particular interest for Egeria members. And if you are not from North America, you should know that Americans and Canadians are usually not afraid to cover what you consider vast distances!

Benefits of Membership -- penultimate draft

2008-11-30T19:31:00.000-08:00

What is Egeria?
Egeria is the name of the first and only Orthodox home and hospitality Exchange. The full name is Egeria Orthodox Home and Hospitality Exchange. The web address is egeriaexchange.com. A home exchange agency is also called a 'club'.

Where does the name 'Egeria' come from?
Egeria (eh-JEER-ee-ah) was a fourth century woman pilgrim who was probably from Spain. She travelled to Egypt and the Holy Land and sent detailed letters home about the liturgical practices she witnessed and the holy sites she visited. You can read this amazing document in a book called Egeria's Travels, translated by John Wilkinson.

*****
Benefits of Membership:

Cut your travel costs by hundreds or more per year: Little or no cost for travel accommodation means you can go for less, and stay longer!

The Orthodox connection: The unique Orthodox focus of our club means that wherever you go, you are among friends. Your host can provide information about nearby church services, local pilgrimage sites, and other points of interest to the Orthodox Christian traveller.

Better digs Why stay in one little hotel room? With Egeria you could have the use of a whole apartment or house, plus possible extras like a car, bikes, boats, season tickets -- you never know!

See the world With Egeria you can see at a glance all the amazing places where there are Orthodox Christians who want to share their home and culture with you. You may end up falling in love with a city or country you never even considered before.

Cook your own food Eating out while traveling is fun, but it can get very expensive. When you exchange homes you have the advantage of cooking for yourself or friends whenever you want. This is ideal for those with dietary restrictions or allergies, and for families with children.

Home, pet and garden care Rather than having to arrange for house sitters, you and your exchange partner will be able to look after each other's homes. You may also discuss the care of one another's pets and the watering of plants and gardens.

Work from home in another country If your work is portable, Egeria offers a unique opportunity: exchange homes with someone in a similar situation for an extended period, and immerse yourself in another culture while paying the bills!

Safe Haven If you have grown children going off to study out of state or abroad, you may be concerned about how hard it can be for young Orthodox Christians to maintain their faith under pressure from the wide world. Campus life can be extremely harsh, and even lonely. Use Egeria to find -- or offer-- alternative healthy, friendly and welcoming accommodation for our young Orthodox students!

Child Friendly As travel lovers and parents of young children, this one is close to our hearts. An Egeria home exchange is wonderful for families with kids. Not only does it help make travel affordable, but you will most likely have a lot more room to stretch out than by staying in a hotel. A kitchen means you can cook for your little monsters. Exchange with another family-with-kids, and you'll get child-sized beds, toys, and room to play the way kids need to.

Stay home, raise funds You don't need to go anywhere to use an Egeria membership! You can turn your guest room into a source of income for yourself, your parish or a favourite charity. Just create a B&B profile, which states that you are charging a fee for the room rather than doing an exchange. Other Egeria members will be glad to know that your little Orthodox B&B is there!

Clergy Breaks Just for the Man in Black. Whether you are a city priest with a hankering for wide open spaces, or an isolated mission priest who would love a holiday but worries about leaving his flock, Egeria can help. Trade homes and parish responsibilities for a change of scenery without the worry. Your parishioners might enjoy the break too!

Live like a local, not a tourist: When you stay in a hotel you are cut off from the true character of the place you are visiting, and you are unlikely to meet many locals outside of the tourist industry. With an Egeria home exchange you stay in a real neighborhood among real people and experience real local life. Experienced home exchangers love the authenticity of this type of travel and the learning opportunities it brings. They can get very creative with welcoming their visitors, too-- everything from tickets to a festival left on the kitchen table, to neighbors dropping by with a hot dinner!

Low price of membership: Most home exchange clubs charge between $75 and $500 annually. Others are free, but this can mean that members are not really committed to making an exchange or hosting anyone, or that the information is out of date. The Egeria membership fee is very affordable, and it ensures that your fellow members won't forget that they joined!

Guaranteed use: If you are unable to make use of your Egeria membership in the first year, we will extend it a second consecutive year FREE.

One membership, unlimited swaps: You are welcome to use your Egeria membership for as many stays as you wish during the year or two-year term.

Build Community Friendship among Orthodox Christians of different cultures and backgrounds is one of the greatest ways to build unity in the wider Church. It is one thing to imagine what people from a certain place are like; something very different to have friends in that place with names and faces, with whom one has shared meals, in whose parish one has worshipped. It is our sincere hope that in enabling such genuine friendships to form in a thousand little ways, Egeria will be a blessing to the Church and her people.

Help IOCC With every new membership or membership renewal, Egeria will donate 10% to IOCC -- International Orthodox Christian Charities. This excellent international, pan-Orthodox organization brings aid to suffering people all over the world. Help yourself to a great membership, and help those in need too!

Egeria FAQs -- penultimate draft!

2008-11-30T19:25:00.000-08:00

FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

What is home exchange?
Home exchange is the brightest travel idea around. Instead of paying huge hotel bills, two parties arrange to trade homes for an agreed-upon period of time. It is a terrific way to save money, as it can totally eliminate the cost of accommodation from your travel budget. Imagine a beautiful pilgrimage or a fun holiday for the cost of airfare and pocket money alone!

What is hospitality exchange?
Hospitality exchange is a twist on home exchange. Rather than trade places at the same time, hospitality exchangers host one another at different times. This style can offer more flexible timing -- and a built-in travel guide and language tutor! It is a great option for young people, academics travelling for research, or pilgrims in faraway places. It's a friendly light in the window.

What is a B&B (Bed and Breakfast) listing?
This means the member is asking for a donation or charging a reasonable fee in exchange for hosting you. Search the B&B listings for affordable places to stay, or post your own Egeria B&B to raise extra cash and make new friends! Just make sure your B&B fee is not too high, so the B&B listings still offer good value for other members.

How do I use my membership?
Once you become a member , you are free not only to search the listings but to contact your fellow members and start making plans! Egeria offers three main ways to use your membership:

1) Home exchange
2) Hospitality exchange
3) B&B

Of course, the precise terms of your exchange are completely up to the exchanging parties. Egeria starts the conversation; the rest is up to you!

How much does it cost?
The fee is $59.00 US (or __ euros outside N America) for one year
$90.00 US (or __euros outside N America) for two years

(The first 300 members to subscribe to Egeria will receive two additional years FREE of charge.)

Can I search the listings before I become a member?
Yes, but you will only be able to contact the members once you have signed up and paid the membership fee.

Do I have to be Orthodox to be a member?
No. Although Egeria is designed with Orthodox Christians in mind, it is not meant to exclude anyone. If you're Orthodox, great. If you have a friend or family member who is Orthodox, that's great too. Perhaps you just have a cultural or theological interest in Orthodoxy and you like the idea of encountering Orthodox people around the world. Whatever your reasons for being here, you are welcome.

Does Egeria arrange my accommodation?
Not directly. We provide a central, one-stop place on the web for Orthodox home and hospitality exchange listings, as well as information about some paid accommodation of particular interest or value to Orthodox Christians. You communicate with other members directly and make your own arrangements with them by email and phone. But we are available for contact and support should you need us.

Is home exchange safe?
This is usually the first question people ask when they hear about home exchange. In fact, home exchange is very safe, because you don't actually let strangers stay in your home. By the time you get to the actual exchange, you have sent emails back and forth, spoken on the phone a few times, and gotten to know each other. You have a comfortable rapport. Also:

*The other member will have the same concerns about you in their home.

*You are under no obligation to exchange with, or host, anyone who makes you uneasy.

*Cases of negative experiences with home exchange are extremely rare. Realistically, no one is going to fly halfway around the world just to steal your spoons!

*There is an added element of trust and accountability with Egeria, since most of its members are Orthodox Christians.

What about my valuables?
Do whatever is comfortable for you. Many seasoned home exchangers never lock up their belongings. If you can trust someone to stay in your home, you can trust them to respect the rest of your property. But you can certainly take the precaution of removing or locking up items if you wish. You can also arrange for a friend to stop by and greet/ check up on your guest while you are away.

What if I can't make a match?
Egeria guarantees the usefulness of your membership. If you can't make a successful match during the term of your membership, we will extend it another year free of charge.

Can I list more than one property?
Yes. You can list up to three properties on our site using your membership.

What about house cleaning?
You can either hire a cleaner, or roll up the old shirtsleeves yourself. Having someone come to stay is also great motivator to do some deeper cleaning and those little repair jobs you keep putting off. The house doesn't have to look like a museum, but it should be presentable and comfortable.

What if I rent my home?
This is not usually a problem. You are not letting your house out to strangers, but to someone you have formed a good and real rapport with. It is no different from having friends or a house sitter to stay. If you are nervous about it, you can always talk it over with the homeowner first.

What if my town is boring?
What's boring to you could be thrilling to someone else -- you never know. Also, there could be many unseen reasons for someone to come to your area: to visit relatives living nearby, to go to a conference, or just to laugh at your accent, eh?

What if my house or apartment is very small or modest?
That's fine. Just be honest on your profile that the place is small or homely -- it will still be sought after! People are not always looking for a palace -- most just want a home base while they explore the sights. If you were staying in Rome, would you care what the curtains looked like?

I haven't travelled much before. Is language going to be a problem?
Probably not. If you are an English speaker, you're in luck. English is by far the most-spoken second language on earth. Besides that, you would be surprised how far you can get with a smile, a phrase book and sign language. People are usually very touched by even your smallest and most pathetic attempts to use their language. (I was once tearfully given a whole bottle of retsina by a Greek deli owner in Paris because I spoke with him haltingly in Greek instead of French! He was kind of homesick.)

What about insurance?
Your ordinary home insurance should cover the period of your home exchange, because it is really no different from having friends or a house sitter stay. Check with your insurance provider for any specific information you need.

Can I leave my pet?
If that is what you agree on with your exchange partner, yes. Being able to look after one another's pets, plants and gardens is one of the many benefits of home exchange.

Can we exchange vehicles?
Many home exchangers do swap vehicles as well -- it's a matter of personal preference. For our members' convenience we provide agreement forms detailing what property will be exchanged and the terms and conditions of the exchange. For those who are comfortable with it, car swapping is another great advantage to home exchange. Don't forget bikes and boats, too!

What is IOCC?
IOCC -- International Orthodox Christian Charities -- is an international, pan-Orthodox charity bringing aid and support to suffering and vulnerable people around the globe. They are highly respected and astoundingly efficient, with over 90% of all funds donated going directly to aid. They minister to Orthodox and non-Orthodox alike, shining the light of Christ wherever people are in need. With every Egeria membership or membership renewal, we will donate ten percent of the fee to IOCC!

The Look So Far

2008-11-17T21:54:00.000-08:00

Hi friends! Here is the screen shot from our working design, and it is pretty much what the main page of the site will look like. Now, the listings you see are still 'dummy' listings -- just there to give the look and feel of the mature site -- but it's kind of exciting to look forward to when those will be real listings. Make sure you are one of them!

The photo of the 'featured exchange' in Hawaii is a bit tongue in cheek -- we were just there last month visiting friends, but I am in discussion with some new friends we met there about listing their B & B suite. We'll work on the free accommodation too and land something eventually, but in the meantime we can provide information for an Orthodox B & B in Kona, as one of our very first listings!

My next posts will be a concentrated overview of what Egeria is, and all the FAQs gathered into one place, because I know this blog is hard to navigate to get at all the answers. God willing, the site itself will be up before long, and it is there that everything will be laid out properly.

Thanks for reading, and please check back periodically as there will be new information.

Crepes

2008-10-29T21:41:00.000-07:00

This is an example of the kind of photo I have been enjoying taking lately -- cafe interiors. It's all part of my ambition to spend as much time as possible in cafes, in as many different places as possible. This one was taken in the crepe place in Pike Place market in Seattle, on our way to Hawaii for our first family vacation in a looong time. It was amazing. More to come on that later (still waiting for many fun photos), but in any case, I just wanted to let you know that the Egeria site is coming along nicely. Being a realist I refuse to guess at exactly when it will be ready to launch, but suffice to say that it is going to be great. If you are new to this blog, please see the archives to get the general idea of how Egeria will work; later the information will all be laid out properly in the actual website. Keep checking back as we get closer to the day that we go live! Hurrah! In the meantime, have a crepe.

Egeria News

2008-09-26T23:13:00.000-07:00

Have you ever sat at a table full of new acquaintances in a parish coffee hour as a visitor and been told "Oh-- if only we'd known you were going to visit -- you wouldn't have needed a hotel!". Well, I have -- several times. I've also had wonderful people from all over the world scrawl out their contact information on a scrap of paper and plead with me -- seriously! -- to stay with them if I ever come to their village/city/country, so that they could show me all the beautiful and holy sites near their home, and introduce me to their friends and family, and feed me until I explode.

This is not because I am so terrific -- people just really, truly love to meet and host their Orthodox brothers and sisters, even if they don't know them very well, because on a deeper level we are all one body. Egeria is a great way to facilitate people being able to meet and exchange fellowship this way. If you don't believe me, just for a lark I am going to list the actual places I have stayed and been hosted purely on Orthodox connections -- not including monasteries. Here goes!

Eugene, Oregon (1993)
Glastonbury, England (1994)
Aberdeen, Scotland (1998)
Birmingham, England (1998)
Athens, Greece (1999)
Thessaloniki, Greece (1999)
Chania, Crete (1999)
New York, NY (1999)
Montreal, Quebec (1999-2000 New Years!)
Stromness, Orkney, Scotland (2000)
Edinburgh , Scotland (2000)
Edmonton, Canada (2001)
Wappingers Falls, NY (2001)
Everson, WA (2004)
Friday Harbour , WA (2004)
Calgary, Alberta (2005)
Chicago, IL (2006)
Big Island, Hawaii (2008)

That last one is happening this October! :-) Anyway, I have probably missed some, and of course I have been many more places -- these are just the times and places that we didn't pay for accommodation! There are many more places too -- even other countries -- where we have standing invitations to visit. Most Orthodox people do seem to have such standing invitations, and one thing Egeria can help do is to -- in a sense -- pool all of these possibilities into one place! Imagine a one stop shop for Orthodox hospitality or home exchange around the world, so that no matter how far we go in our travels and adventures, there is a friendly light in a window when we get there.

Another Kind of Membership

2008-09-08T00:05:00.000-07:00

In addition to regular home swap or hospitality exchange, Egeria will provide a third option for members who do not expect to need travel acommodation , but have extra room and a willingness to provide hospitality.

The Philoxenia Membership (or so we're calling it at present) will be offered at a reduced rate, and will allow hospitable people throughout the Orthodox world to offer bed-and-breakfast accomodation in exchange for a donation to be made to their parish or to another charity.

This is a great twist to the Egeria concept, because it will add value for the regular members -- a lot more potential places to stay! For the Philoxenia members, it's a great way to meet Orthodox from far away places even if it's hard for the hosting member to travel, and it enables members to use their extra space as a fundraiser for a cause their home parish. Of course, the exact terms of the arrangement, as with all Egeria member swaps, will be up to the guest/host pair to decide.

I would like to write more tonight, but my family have had a rough week, with four out of five of us ill from some kind of stomach bug. Also, Egeria is a little behind schedule due to the design awesomeness we are attempting -- we really want the site to be something special, so it will not be ready to launch in September 2008 as originally predicted. Hang in there! It will come to fruition in the near future, and it will really be a great resource for all of us! Thanks for reading. . .

Work from home -- in another country! And: clergy exchanges

2008-08-19T22:50:00.000-07:00

This is just a section of something I'm working on that doesn't have much to do with Egeria. It's just further evidence of my bird obsession. I'm not even really into birds much outside of an artistic context, but I gravitate to them when I'm designing something. Something about the way they carve up the space is very pleasing, in a similar way to flowers. This is obviously cut paper. The real thing is about five or six feet high (why don't I know!?)and will be crisscrossed with ribbons of calligraphy. Yes, I am an Arts and Crafts fiend too.

Anyway, I had another thought about Orthodox home exchange. Well, this applies to home exchange generally, really. Increasingly, people are able to work from home and send stuff in/conference call to work. So here's the thing. What about going to another country for, say, three months, working from your 'home from home', and absorbing another culture and language in your off hours? Ordinarily you couldn't consider such a thing because the hotel bill would pretty much kill you dead, but with home exchange there is no hotel bill. If you are able to be away, and your host is able to be away, for that long, then Bob's your uncle.

Another thing is that I was listening to a wonderful series of podcasts from Ancient Faith Radio by my new e-friend Susan and her husband Fr Gabriel called Musing on Mission. It chronicles, quite literally, their mission plant (in New Mexico) pretty much from day 1. There is a lot to relate to for me in this, since that is what my husband and I did exactly six years ago this month (this being Aug 2008), but since I am ramping up this Egeria business one thing really popped out for me in one of the podcasts. Fr Gabriel mentioned the pressure and anxiety for the mission priest (I am paraphrasing) knowing that if he has to be away there is no one to keep things going, that there is a gap while people have no teaching and no services.
Well, that is one thing that Egeria can address! Clergy who need to get away can exchange with other clergy who need the same, and experience the freshness of a different parish, maybe even a radically different type of parish! It would be an opportunity for the folks in a mission to hear another voice, yet one in solidarity with their regular mission priest. It is reassuring for new converts in an isolated area to have someone come from far away and say roughly the same things their priest says -- thus showing that he is not some kook/renegade/potential cult leader, and that he really is plugged in, and they through him, into the conciliar and universal, one holy catholic and apostolic Church. This can especially be valuable where people have little or no opportunity to travel themselves.

So thinking about that leads me to another idea for the site. We can set it up so that a priest will be able to put a 'clergy exchange' symbol to indicate that you would be interested in swapping with another clergy family or individual for the chance to experience and help out another parish and walk a mile in another priest's shoes. This can even work for priests' holidays -- it solves the problem of how to find a substitute, and since the travellers need to be somewhere for Liturgy anyway (riiiiiight? we don't take holidays from God, riiiiiight?) he might as well be filling in for a brother priest. Am I making sense? Right, since I'm not sure, I'm going to sign off and get some shut eye. . .soon.

The work continues. . .

2008-08-17T21:57:00.000-07:00

Here's how it's looking so far; at least we're on to a cool idea. The site will look like a travel journal, and when you go to a new 'page' it will look like -- a new page! Yeah, I know!

That page on the right may be recognizable to residents (past and present) of Edinburgh as a fairly strange and vaguely incompetent drawing of George IV bridge. I think I did that on my lunch break working at the Royal Museum of Scotland. On the left in the picture-- not that you can see it -- is the Elephant Cafe, where somebody or other wrote Harry Potter. I probably saw her a few times; it was during the same couple of years, and I went there for coffee all the time. It's also where I learned the cool trick of deciding who goes first in Scrabble based not on a letter drawn but on who can make the longest word to kick off the game. Not from JK, of course; just some random person --or was it!

The lettering is not great -- I know -- I just dashed it off quickly to see how the hand drawn thing would look. It will be laid out better, I promise. The gauzy, abstract background is a piece of cheesecloth I scanned, over top of a piece of a twinkly cardigan of mine. Too much information? Yeah, I thought so.

Well, I have to go and keep working on the site. It's all systems go now! We're trying to get it all up and running this fall. Watch this space!

Bridget and the Bells and Do I Have to Clean My House

2008-07-23T21:41:00.000-07:00

Yes, here she is, about to be in mortal peril -- or at least in danger of being somewhat mashed. It all ended happily, though. Oh, in case you are wondering, yes, those are sawed off gas cylinder bells. They are all the rage on the BC coast, doncha know, and they sound pretty decent.

Well, I am very pleased to have gotten some great feedback about Egeria from several friends and aquaintences recently (Calgary, Port Townsend, Atlanta, -- you know who you are!) It seems the idea will be a hit, and the technical part of the website is nearly done. We just have to finish designing it and then go through the testing to make sure it all works well. We are postponing our holidays till October, partly so that we can have the site up as soon as possible. So with that, it's time for another installment of:

Egeria FAQ's (Frequently Asked Questions)!

I'm fairly tuckered out right now (husband away on Group of 12 trip, me with three kids, aaaaah!) so I will just tackle a short one.

Do I have to clean my house? How perfect does it have to be?

Okay, this for some reason is a bit of an anxiety for some people. I personally like to clean my house quite thoroughly before I go away anyway, because it's much nicer to come home to than otherwise. Also we often have housesitters, and we make sure everything is clean for them, or as clean as we can manage will three little kids! If you've ever house-sat for me, you won't bust me, right? The house is always super clean, right? Ha ha.

Naturally, people imagine that to exchange homes you have to make it absolutely sparkle. I would certainly err on that side rather than on the side of *ick*. You want your guest to have a pleasant experience, and you expect the same when you are at their place. So here is how it breaks down:

Option A) Elbow Grease. Clean that house top to bottom by the sweat of your brow. And, er, the grease of your elbows. Side benefits: it's character building, it costs nothing, and you will come home to a house that is unusually shiny even after your guest has been there. I mean, you might even finally clean your oven and that grim area between the fridge and the other thing.

Option B) Hire Someone. Yes, for some of us, this is unthinkable, but you need to consider some factors: How busy are you? What is your time worth? How important is it to present your house well? If it is important, and your time is worth more to you than whatever a cleaner makes per hour, then it might make sense to get help. You will still come out way ahead not paying hotel costs.

Option C) Negotiate. Now, this is a bit risky, and I would suggest it only if you and your exchanging partners have kids and therefore 'understand' one another -- but you could have an "I won't kill myself cleaning if you don't" type of arrangement. You should still have the place clean and tidy, but maybe the oven can wait.

Our Church Camp Chapel at Seven Springs, Vancouver Island

2008-07-19T23:08:00.000-07:00

Well, this doesn't have much to do with Egeria, (or does it!) but I thought our camp chapel was beautiful. I didn't get a night shot this year -- with those fairy lights shining, mingling with stars and sparks from the campfire -- but I'm sure someone has some . . .My youngest daughter Bridget (now 13 months) was baptized here in the summer of 2007 by our dear friend and fellow Victoria priest, Fr Kosta Kaltsides. According to the laws of My Big Fat Greek Wedding, that makes Bridget Greek. Ha ha. Well, her middle name is Antigone, so that works out.

I have a photo of her nearly getting offed my those bells in the left corner. I was so focussed on getting a nice picture of her with the bells (than which she is not larger, and between two of which she was) that I didn't notice that they had begun to swing more and more, and those things are heavy. I suddenly realized what was happening, dropped the camera and nabbed her at the last second. Oops.

Okay, here's an amazing passage from Egeria's Travels. Straightforward -- she apparently was not much of a stylist-- but what she says is just amazing.

. . .in Capernaum the house of the prince of the apostles has been made into a church, with its original walls still standing. It is where the Lord healed the paralytic. There is also the synagogue where the Lord cured a man possessed by the devil. The way in is up many stairs, and it is made of dressed stone.

Not far away from there are some stone steps where the Lord stood.

And in the same place by the sea is a grassy field with plenty of hay and many palm trees. By them are seven springs, each flowing strongly. And this is the field where the Lord fed the people with the five loaves and the two fishes. In fact the stone on which the Lord placed the bread has now been made into an altar.

The footnote, citing Prof. Schneider, says that this stone is 'probably the one presently under the altar in the fifth-century Church of the Multiplying '. It also notes that six of the seven springs exist today but are now dry.

That bird again, and What is Hospitality Exchange?

2008-07-15T21:28:00.000-07:00

Right, more behind the scenes stuff. I love pictures of desk chaos, and this is one of my favourites. I bought this book on the Fayum portraits at the Art Institute of Chicago a couple of years ago when I was in town for a liturgical music conference (PSALM -- the Pan Orthodox Society for the Advancement of Litugical Music -- yep, it's a mouthful). The Art Institute was terrific, and I had the absolute bliss of arriving there alone on a very quiet day, accountable to no one but God for over five hours. Aaaaaaaah. Anyway, you can spot that Egeria bird (falcon? parakeet?) both in the portrait and in my fumbling beginnings of a design. I love the thing Kandinsky says, something like "Glory to the palette for the delight it brings, more beautiful a work indeed than many a work of art".

I would like to take this opportunity to mention, mercenary that I am, that I paid no money to stay in Chicago because I was staying with friends. Hmmm -- remind you of anything? Orthodox home exchange, for example? Enjoying the company of old (or perhaps brand new) friends, glasses of wine, exchanging news, tucking into a hearty meal, prepared with love and plenty of feta?

Which leads me quite nicely to a discussion of hospitality exchange, another feature of our soon-to-be home exchange club. There are a couple of ways this can work. One, straightforward hospitality exchange, where you want to go to say, Paris. You log in to Egeria and ask members in Paris if you can come and stay with them. They say sure, bonjour and bienvenue. Then in exchange they get to come and stay with you sometime. Or their friend does, or student-age kid, or whatever. That's hospitality exchange. The other type is sometimes called B&B, which is very much like it sounds. You can offer B&B to other members not in exchange for hospitality from them, but simply for a donation, or just to be a swell person. Most likely you will charge, since you have after all paid for your membership. But it's a nice way to share your community, country, neighbourhood and parish with other Orthodox who want or need to travel to where you are.

So when you become a member of Egeria you will have many choices: simultaneous home exchange, hospitality exchange, B&B, or nonsimultaneous exchange, which simply means that you and your exchanging partner have somewhere else to be -- a second home, vacation home, other plans, etc while your home is used by a member. We are considering whether to include holiday rentals, which is a little more full-on commercial, probably more than we are entirely happy with. We don't want the site overwhelmed with posts that just charge for accommodation, since that is pretty much the opposite of the spirit of home exchange, which is about trading, sharing and building community. On the other hand, maybe you want to be able to see what is out there and available to rent in your dream location? Share your thoughts and comments!

logo scraps and other things

2008-06-28T21:59:00.000-07:00

Something a little different. I like to see 'behind the scenes' of things , and so I thought I would show you the work in progress of the Egeria logo. The ship image is pretty much done; I'm still working on the lettering a bit. The bird was too close to the letters and too dark, so it affected the legibility, which is never good. So I took the colour out of the bird and gave the final A more of a swoosh to move the bird further away. The tapey looking bits you see are -- tape. I like that too.
Oh, and the bird is from a Fayum portrait; I will put some images of them on here at some point -- I love them. If you haven't seen any yet you are in for a treat. Anyway, I love to plunder ancient art for ideas (as did the ancients themselves) and decided to steal that bird. I'm pretty sure there is a hieroglyph that looks like that -- it's a falcon or something. To me it's: a bird.
Aside from looking cool it suggests a) flight an b) rest, with the negative space in the A suggesting a doorway and home. Aaah yes, all intentional, my pretties!

The ship is also stolen from ancient art -- this time a mosaic depicting byzantine er -- maritime stuff? I don't know, it's on the cover of a book I bought a while back called Sailing From Byzantium, about the Byzantine heritage in western history that goes unsung. Pretty cool; I must finish reading it. Anyway, nice boat. This is a watercolour version with a bunch of stars. I seem unable to escape piling stars on everything I paint. Some icons are even supposed to be loaded with stars, which is great for me. I love them, both in art and in life. But then there are those exquisite lines from Wounded by Love, the wisdom of Elder Porphyrius:

Whoever wants to become a Christian must first become a poet. The soul of the Christian needs to be refined and sensitive, to have sensibility and wings, to be constantly in flight and to live in dreams, to fly through infinity, among the stars, amidst the greatness of God, amid silence.

And now, something from Egeria's Travels itself:

The holy monks were good enough to receive us very hospitably, and welcomed us indoors. Going in with them we joined them in prayer, and then they very kindly gave us the 'blessings' which it is normal for them to give those whom they entertain. Between the Church and the cells was a plentiful spring which flowed from a rock, beautifully clear and with an excellent taste, and we asked the monks who lived there about this water which tasted so remarkably good. "This", they told us. "is the water which Holy Moses gave the children of Israel in the desert." As usual we had there a prayer, a reading from the Book of Moses, and one psalm.
(John Wilkinson, trans.)

Mar Saba

2008-06-21T23:59:00.000-07:00

Hello Chums. Well, I've been trying to post here for a few days but it's been another very busy week chez Hainsworth. I did find my copy of Egeria's Travels and I'm enjoying reading it. It is an astonishing document. If you don't know, Egeria was a fourth century woman -- fourth century! -- from Spain (or Gaul; there is some uncertainty) who went on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land and sent back detailed descriptions of the monasteries and holy sites she visited. It is completely fascinating, especially when you realize that in a way it could have been written today, such is the continuity of Orthodox worship and piety.

Anyway, that is who the home exchange club is named after. I'll post some excerpts in the next little while. Right now my eyes are blurring from fatigue! Too much swing dancing last night, two minutes from my house here in lovely James Bay, Victoria. Anyone wanna trade?

Home Exchange FAQs and stuff

2008-06-19T13:34:00.000-07:00

Hello friends! New post time. I wish I could tell you what this picture is but -- er -- I don't know. Looks great though, doesn't it?

Okay, on my other blog (owllightstudio.blogspot.com/ )I posted some stuff about the whole concept of home exchange, but I couldn't quite manage to transfer the text over here, so I will just attempt to reconstruct it. Shouldn't be too difficult, but I'm not sure how long I have before Bridget (one year old on Sunday June 22) wakes up. She is not very tolerant of any time I spend on the computer in her presence. No, not tolerant at all.

Anyway, the Egeria logo is now complete, painted with my own little hands, and if I do say so it looks pretty groovy. I was in a fantastic state of mind doing it because I was listening to one of my very favourite online radio shows, Our Life in Christ. There is a link to it from Ancient Faith Radio, and unless I am mistaken, from this very blog. I was listening in particular to the show about Proskimede (the preparation of the Gifts before the Liturgy) -- it was fascinating and actually very moving to hear the prayers read out as I worked. I love this faith so much. There is such astonishing richness it is still arresting after 20 years or so, and it will never stop being that way.

On to home exchange chat! Okay, there are lots of places on the web to go for FAQs about home exchange, but our Orthodox version will be a little different, hence the reason to go with Egeria as well as/ instead of another club. I guess the first question would be:

What is Home Exchange?

The basic idea is that you sign on as a member at our website when it is up and running (we project that will be September, perhaps a tad earlier). The cost will be low compared to many other clubs but it can't be free for reasons I will list below.

So, when you sign up you pay your fee (probably 50 dollars Cdn or so), and this makes you a member for one or two years depending which option you choose. NB: We will do a promotion to ramp up the number of listings (since the whole thing sort of depends on having lots of members!) so that if you are among the first, say, hundred people to sign on your membership will be good for a lot longer, plus we will offer any other perks we can think of.

Anyway, once the club 'matures', the idea is that you have your pick of listings by other Orthodox Christians (and their friends) with whom you can exchange homes according to what is mutually agreeable in terms of time and duration. These will be from around the globe -- we already have some interested parties in Oxford, Devonshire, New York, Victoria and Romania! We will work hard toward getting as many listings in as many diverse places as possible, so that your membership will be really useful. Keep in mind that every membership will also generate funds for IOCC -- International Orthodox Christian Charities, who do amazing work in many countries in the name of Christ, not only for our Orthodox brothers and sisters in crisis, others as well.

When you have contacted another member in the club whose home you wish to visit, the two of you simply begin to correspond about your plans. One great thing about home exchange is that if it suits both parties you can stay much longer than the typical two weeks, because you aren't worried about the crazy cost of accommodation -- it is free! Some people even arrange to exchange for several months. And if you have pets or plants that need care, that is something you can work out together too. Also your house-sitting and mail collection are automatically taken care of. In your host country, you get to "live as a local, not a tourist" as the home exchange literature points out, which is really delightful. You get a whole house or apartment instead of just a room, you have the option of cooking your own meals, and you may have access to other amenities such as a car, bicycles, even a boat! Whatever the two members decide to exchange they can exchange -- it's all open for discussion. (It is usually recommended for the sake of clarity that the members draw up an exchange contract, or guidelines. On our official website we will have printable samples.) Another typical practice is that the members arrange for friends or neighbours to drop by and welcome the guests. This provides the travelers a local contact who can advise them as to where to eat, what tourist traps to avoid, where to go to church, what sights are not to be missed, etc. Perhaps the person will even be willing to take you out as a guide and/or act as a translator if you wish. On your side, it is also is a way for you to get feedback that your guests have arrived and all is well with them and with your house.

Home exchange is also extremely child-friendly. If you exchange with another family-with-kids, both parties will have kids' rooms and toys when they arrive, allowing everyone a real home base and room to stretch out.

Well, speaking of kids, it's time I got back to mine! I will post again soon, and thanks for visiting this blog! Spread the word and look out for the next post with the next FAQ. I will update regularly!

Welcome to the Egeria Blog!

2008-06-09T15:51:00.000-07:00

Hello my fine friends and visitors! Welcome to the Egeria Orthodox Home Exchange blog.

Just what is Egeria, what is home exchange (and even what is Orthodox!?) are topics which we will discuss here in the near future.

The Egeria website itself is presently under construction. It will be up and running this summer (2008) but in the meantime I wanted to start a blog devoted to the fantastic concept of home exchange. Just let me post this and see if it works, and I'll be back soon to get things underway. Talk to you soon!

Jenny

PS This is a picture of me in Monemvasia, Peloponnese.
It is a walled Byzantine town which is pedestrianized and which still functions as a town, with restaurants, shops, even a church. It is a little peninsula that juts out into the spellbinding blue Aegean, and if you climb a little you reach the beautiful church ruins on the top of the hill. I'll get some more photos on here in a little bit. Wanna go? Keep checking back here and you just might!