還是窮學生的我們，繼續從airbnb上尋找住宿。這次的屋主是位年輕帥哥，是停車位網站SpotHero的創辦人之一。不像之前屋主有多餘房間出租，這位帥哥根本就是把他的房間出租給我們，至於這幾晚他都睡那？大概是他公司吧！公寓就在芝加哥著名的同志區附近，附近有許多餐廳酒吧，非常熱鬧。我在這兒看到穿著小褲褲的同志酒吧門口保鏢，身材超好讓我超羨慕的。公寓本身不大，但是是木頭地板，我相當喜歡。裝潢算是比較現代的風格，廚房和浴室讓我印象深刻；客廳還有一面磚牆，增加了視覺與氣氛上的變化。至於停車位，嘿嘿，屋主也把他的停車位免費讓給我們啦！真是太開心了！況且他是spot hero，也是相當有辦法滴。
這幾天除了和朋友碰面走既定行程外，還從屋主那兒得知好吃的越南餐廳Tank Noodle Restaurant，口味好道地吃得我好感動，馬克也很喜歡！附近捷運站有一條街，街上都是酒吧，節日當天那條街從早上就開始封街了，到了傍晚更是擠得水洩不通，超嗨的。後來我們也向屋主問到附近的二手書店，馬克在那兒用了美金25元買了四本精裝本的機械工程相關書籍，真是大豐收啊。當然也有許多美食上的驚喜。The Flower Flat是一個結合花與咖啡的小店，外表相當不起眼，內裝也很樸實；但，真的，他們的綜合燕麥榖片（granola好像沒有中文翻譯，我就隨意翻喏）馬克也是吃了第一口就驚為天人，也是我目前吃過最美味的！還有附近的Wholefoods有超好吃的涼拌花椰菜沙拉，Columbus的Wholefoods就是沒有這一道，網路上也查不到滿意的食譜。總之我倆現在提到芝加哥，一定會提到這道涼拌菜。
接下來就是今年五月我們又去了一次芝加哥。這是繼上次的芝加哥之旅後，隔了一年多，第一次我倆共同擁有的假期。我本想馬克開始工作，經濟上稍微寬裕些，或許這次從priceline來找便宜旅館；沒想到馬克主動跟我提去airbnb上找住宿！那當然沒有問題啊！由於這次沒有要走觀光購物行程，不需要進市中心，加上芝加哥大學周遭我們也沒去過，就選定大學附近區域的住宿。這次住宿地區完全是住宅區，所以停車位相當好找，也是免費！走約十來個路口可以抵達芝加哥大學商學院。由於臨近大學校區，附近有幾家書店，我們抵達第一天就迫不及待去拜訪這些書店們。
再來說說這次住的公寓。這是我們住過的公寓中，目前為止最喜歡的一個！公寓位於一個擁有六個住戶的舊式建築物的三樓，從暖氣或浴室的設計可以感覺得出來是早期的建築物。整個公寓採開放式設計（我們倆都很愛），全部是木頭地板（我超愛），走起路來感覺特別舒服。廚房採用中島式設計，除了烤箱瓦斯爐外，還保留有一大片木頭的工作檯，某天晚餐男主人就在木頭檯面上桿麵團做義大利麵，看得我倆心癢癢的。廚房的櫥櫃也整個都是開放式設計（馬克最愛）。我們的客房也是簡潔風格，還有自己的浴室，雖然是舊式設計，但整理得非常乾淨。公寓還有一個小陽台，種了花花草草，相當漂亮。可惜那幾天天氣太冷，沒有機會享受。
至於這次的屋主，猜測兩人應有60歲？男主人是作家，女主人是攝影師。兩個小孩都大了不住一起，但我們在的這幾天剛好他們女兒回來小住幾天，就使用另外一個比較小的房間。從廚房的設計，可以感覺得出屋主很喜歡做菜，除了那天他們自己做義大利麵外，平時男主人也會做麵包。某天早上我們就在家裡享用他們提供的早餐，包含男主人自己做的麵包、新鮮咖啡、果汁、優格與水果，相當豐盛又健康。馬克深受啓發，旅行結束回到密西根後一直想著有機會要來自己做義大利麵，隔天還指定晚餐菜色要手工比薩！
以上就是我四次的airbnb經驗分享。對我而言，出去旅遊是否住宿五星級旅館並不是最重要的，而是旅程中遇見不同的人獲得不同的經驗，或是意外的小驚喜，反而更增添旅途趣味，讓人難以忘懷。一個人旅遊，我覺得青年旅館是最佳選擇，可以結識其他國家的遊客，有機會可以結伴造訪各個景點。兩個人的旅行，airbnb則有另一番趣味。屋主總能提供在地的建議，讓我們發現各地區日常生活中美麗的小風景。而馬克則認為，airbnb讓他能夠接觸不同人們的生活風格與方式，是最有趣的地方。或許這也將使我們更清楚明瞭我們想要的生活。
March 17th is St. Patrick's Day. Chicago always has big celebration on the weekend prior to it - there will be parade, and the city will dye the river green. I didn't believe the green river when Mark first told me, even though he googled and showed me the picture. Since St. Patrick's Day was during our spring break, of course we had to grab the chance to see the green river on our own!
As poor graduate students, we chose to use airbnb to find accommodation. The host was a young guy who was a founder of SpotHero. Unlike others who rent out the spare room, he basically rented out his own room. So where did he sleep while we stayed in his room? Probably his office. The apartment located within the walking distance to the famous boystown in Chicago. There were lots of restaurants and bars, a happening area. I saw my very first time a bouncer of a bar wearing nothing but underwear. I was so jealous of his great figure. The apartment wasn't big but was well designed. I liked the wooden floor and the design of the kitchen and bathroom. There was a brick wall in the living room, which created visual variety and added different atmosphere to the apartment. The host let us park our car in his spot, at no additional charge. We really appreciated that.
In addition to visiting famous places in Chicago with friends, the host introduced us a delicious vietnamese restaurant Tank Noodle Restaurant. The curry chicken was so tasty and similar to what I used to had, and Mark really enjoyed it as well. There was a street near the subway station where lots of bars were. The street was block starting from the morning on St. Patrick's Day. It got even crowdeder in the evening. We also found a used bookstore nearby, where Mark bought four how stuff works books at $25. The Flower Flat was a cute former-flower-shop-turned cafe, cozy without any fancy decoration. Mark was pleasant surprised at the first bite of their granola. It was truly the best that I've ever had so far. We also enjoyed a delicious broccoli and bell pepper salad from Wholefoods nearby, which couldn't be found in the Wholefoods in Columbus and on Internet. Ever since we always mentioned the dish when we talked about Chicago.
We went to Chicago again in May this year. It has been more than one year that we had our vacation together. I thought that we might stay in a hotel this time since Mark is working and has more budget now. However, he mentioned to me that we could find accommodation via airbnb. I delightfully accepted this task. Since we wouldn't visit any places in the loop, and we had never been to Hyde Park where the University of Chicago is, we chose accommodation is this area. Kenwood was a residential neighborhood where our accommodation located. It was fairly easy to find parking on the street without charge. The apartment was about ten blocks away from the business school of University of Chicago. There were several bookstores near the university, and we couldn't wait but visited them all on the first day of our trip.
The apartment we stayed this time was our favorite among all the places we have been to. It located on the third floor of an old building accommodating six apartments. From the design of heating system, staircases, or the bathroom, you could feel the history of the building. The apartment was open-space designed (which we both love) and all wooden floor (my favorite). The kitchen was big with a kitchen island in the middle. In addition to the stove and oven, the kitchen island also had a big wooden countertop space. One evening during our stay the host was kneading the dough and making pasta on the countertop. The cabinets in the kitchen were all open spaced as well, which was Mark's favorite. The guest room where we stayed was simple and cozy, with our own bathroom attached to it. The bathroom was a bit old, but was very clean and neat. They also had a balcony with some flowers and chairs. However the weather was cold during out stay so that we didn't have the chance to enjoy it.
As to our hosts, guess they were in their 60s? The husband was a writer, and the wife was a photographer. They had two kids who spent most of the time on the west coast. Their daughter came back visiting them durgin our stay, so she used another smaller guest room. The hosts enjoyed cooking a lot. In addition to making their own pasta, male host also made bread in the morning. We had the chance to enjoy the breakfast provided by them one morning, including homemade bread, fresh coffee and juice, greek yogurt and fruits, a healthy feast. Mark was quite inspired by them. He kept thinking about making our own paste if we have the chance, and even requested homemade pizza - making the crust from scratch - for dinner after we came back!
So, that was my four airbnb experience. It is never important to me if I stay in a five-start hotel when travelling. What matters is the people you meet, the experience you have or the pleasant surprise you discover along the journey. I think hostels are best when you travel alone - you get the chance to meet travelers from all over the world, and even can have their company visiting different places in a new city. For two people, airbnb provides another interesting choice. The hosts may not visit those famous spots with you, but they can always offer best advices regarding the city and neighborhood that may not be found on travel guide or Internet but tailored to your need. To Mark, he thinks that the most interesting part of airbnb is to know different people and their unique lifestyle. In a way, it helps us on shaping our perception of life and finding our ideal living.
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