Alyosha RobillosJetsetters and frequent fliers may now trade window seats for pretty window views online. They’re virus-proof, plus they take you around the world, too.
Screenshot taken from WindowSwap, with a view from a window in Austria.
With COVID-19 still posting a threat, many of us remain indoors. But weary travellers need not be deprived of their wanderlust; technology and the Internet afford us virtual travel experiences with just a few clicks or taps.
Also read: Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic, We Still Believe in Travel
Leave it to travel-deprived adventurers to find ways of exploring without ever having to leave the house. Perhaps the newest offering out there is WindowSwap, a website that lets users take in the window views of various people across the globe.
A Singapore couple’s quarantine project
Screenshot taken from WindowSwap, with a view from a window in Singapore.
As soon as news of a pandemic broke earlier this year, countries shut borders. Lockdowns and quarantine measures assured that no one gets out, much to the dismay of wanderers worldwide. For travel-loving folk, prolonged house arrest quickly led to bouts of the COVID-19 blues.
Singapore-based creatives and couple Sonali Ranjit and Vaishnav Balasubramaniam knew this feeling all too well. According to a report by CNN, the husband and wife worked on WindowSwap as a means of “beat[ing] quarantine blues”.
Screenshot taken from WindowSwap, with a view from a window in Israel.
The idea was simple: To connect people through daily experiences amid quarantine. By allowing glimpses of what others were going through during the pandemic, perhaps it would make WindowSwap users a little less lonely, even in isolation. And for many people, this simple act of looking into someone else’s version of everyday life proved a journey of self-reflection. It was indeed a way of travelling, all while being responsible citizens and staying put indoors.
Screenshot taken from WindowSwap, with a view from a window in India.
Ranjit summed it up perfectly in a statement, “Because, let’s face it, it’s going to be a while before we travel again and wake up to a new view outside our windows. So until then, why not voyeuristically travel by looking out of somebody else’s window for a while?”
Window views as a cure for quarantine blues
Screenshot taken from WindowSwap, with a view from a window in Hawaii.
And so, WindowSwap was born. The name alone explains what it is. The website allows users to get a peek at other’s window views in all parts of the world for free. In turn, you can spread the joy and submit your own window view. In short, swap your everyday view for another’s.
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Of course, aside from the (somewhat romanticised) journey we all experience when given the chance to see others’ realities amid quarantine, there is the basic concept of getting to travel virtually. These window views from different destinations truly serve as a cure for bouts of the quarantine blues.
Screenshot taken from WindowSwap, with a view from a window in New York.
If you’re not in it to reflect on the pandemic, simply sit back and enjoy the view. One thing’s for sure; we only hope to set foot in these places soon and make travel happen again.
