Interview with our volunteers: mountx
Written by amnesiac84 8 years agoWe would like to introduce you to some of our volunteers. Every one of them decided at one point to spend a little bit of time to help BeWelcome, making this the greatest non-profit, volunteer driven hospitality network out there!
Our sixth interview is with mountx who is volunteering in the Forum Moderators Team.
Why did you join BeWelcome?
Like most people, probably, I joined by accident. I first started hosting back in the mists of time, using a website – really little more than a bulletin board – called Travelhoo. When that disappeared, I found Couchsurfing. When CS began to change, a guest told me about BeWelcome and I thought I would give it a try. I am still a member of CS but prefer it here. Sometimes BW is a bit ‘clunky’ because everything is done by volunteers, but I find this more honest than being slick, commercial and soulless.
Why did you start volunteering? and in which teams are you active?
I have been part of the team of Forum Moderators since 2013. I was ‘blackmailed’ into it by one of the then moderators, using a combination of guilt (You don’t want to be a freeloader, do you?) flattery (We need YOU) and puppy-dog eyes.
The mod team is not always popular – no-one likes being told to change their post – but, like football referees, they are necessary. The team does its best to ensure that the BW Forum is a welcoming place, where different opinions are tolerated – and that means valuing differences of opinion within the mod team itself. Often decisions are not clear-cut, so they need to be discussed and debated amongst the mods, which produces a real sense of being part of a team.
What kind of traveller are you?
I guess I am mostly a ‘holiday’ traveller, but I do like feeling some connection with the places I visit and trying to understand what it is like to live there. This is also one of the reasons that I host, as hosting brings the people and places to me.
How many countries have you visited? What is your favourite country or place?
I grew up in Liverpool (which, as all good scousers will tell you, is a ‘country’ of its own) and I live in Scotland. I tried to count up and I think I have visited 24 countries, though most of them are in Europe. I am not sure that I have a favourite but Andalucia was my first experience of being abroad and still has a special place in my memories.
What is your favourite / coolest BeWelcome experience?
Being given a jar of marmite for my birthday, at the BV Assembly in Düsseldorf.
Because marmite is cool, isn’t it?