Seattle man offers tours of the homeless lifestyle

SEATTLE, Oct. 4 (UPI) -- A Seattle man said his website offering three-day tours to people seeking to experience the homeless lifestyle is not a joke.

Mike Momany, 62, said he came up with the idea for "Real View Tours," his website offering the "Course in Applied Homelessness," after years of working as a freelance computer programmer and living in a recreational vehicle led to him becoming homeless two months ago, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported Friday.

Momany said his tours, which cost $2,000, allow customers to live undercover as a homeless person in Seattle for three days with a tour guide.

"You will gain a new respect for the folks that find themselves in this predicament," the website reads. "You will see the seedier side of Seattle in a new light and have an experience that you will never forget. Embrace the Experience!"

Momany, who sleeps at an International District hostel and uses Seattle's Central Library as his "office" during the day, said the website is not a joke.

"It's to bring an experience to people they can't get very easily," Momany said.

Momany said customers would stay at the same hostel where he sleeps, disqualifying female customers.

He said no customers have taken advantage of his tour yet, but he has received several inquiries from interest people.