Boston Woman To Swap Homes With Woman In England After Viral TikTok
BOSTON (CBS) -- Her suitcases are packed and her passport is ready. Grace Gagnon is embarking on a two-week trip to England.
"I leave in less than 48 hours and I'm so excited," said Gagnon.
It all started with a simple question on TikTok inspired by the movie 'The Holiday' asking if anyone in England wanted to swap places.
"I had watched The Holiday with my mom on Thanksgiving so it was fresh in my mind," said Gagnon.
The post went viral, getting millions of views and lots of interest.
"I was getting flooded with responses. It got to be a little bit overwhelming at one point," said Gagnon.
One of those responses came from Flo Patterson from Bath, England and ultimately the two women decided to swap apartments with the company "HomeExchange" helping facilitate the short-term trade. Gagnon lives in a studio apartment in Boston.
"I DM'd her straight away. It was sort of a whim for both of us but I just thought, why not. I think we've been stuck inside for so long that why not grab life and just do it," said Patterson.
The two may live on opposite sides of the pond, one in Boston and one in Bath, but they share a common love for adventure.
"Just a different type of city I think will be amazing. So sort of high rise and things like that is just fascinating. And for Grace I think it will be great to sort of see like really, really amazing history of Bath," said Patterson.
"I get to meet her family and I get to meet her friends and I get to stay in her lovely flat in Bath and I get to experience what life is like for Flo and I think that's the coolest part," said Gagnon.
Grace is putting together a list of fun things to do in Boston and in turn, taking advice for her trip to England, and as you can imagine she's receiving lots of input from people on social media.
"It's insane. It's really crazy. The trip hasn't even started yet and it's already been a wild ride that I never expected," said Gagnon.
Gagnon says she will be posting trip updates on her TikTok page: @grace_gagnon.
