''Rebellious dreamer with a Peter Pan like personality and enthusiasm of Home Alone (the movie) guy'' is one of the most accurate labels I've ever gotten. Hey, it's me, Romano, the adventurous, energetic guy coming from the sunniest spot in Europe, island of Hvar.
Currently on my gap year. UPDATE; it’s been five now (blame it on covid).

Having grown up on the island, it played a huge role in shaping me who I am today. However, once i grew up the small mediterranean island perhaps became too small for me, and i felt the need to escape into a big world. Occasionally, the big world gets too big, so sometimes i find myself running back to the small island. And ever since, that’s been my life; feels like i live trapped somewhere in between, as i don’t belong anywhere anymore, just because I belong(ed) everywhere, if it makes sense.

I love being by the water or in the water. Just take me to the beach, that’s where i feel the most “at home” at. Or to a “rave”, festival… That’s my love language.

My friends say I'm “ecstasy in a person”, “extroverted extrovert”, open-minded, optimistic, emphatic, sometimes way too adventurous, ''crazy'' (in a good way, hopefully) and talkative. I suppose they're right, you tell me once we get to meet.

If I would have to list some of my hobbies, photography, videography, dancing, partying and swimming would make the list for sure. When it comes to food, I’m not that picky, I like all kinds of food, but my favourite cuisine must be mediterranean (seafood and vegetables). And banana bread.

Oh, and one time Taylor Swift invited me over to her house and the other time... I was Owen Wilson's double for a movie.

IG: romanomalecic

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Travelling is my huge passion and I think that there's really nothing more authentic than an actual local taking you around the town to all of his favourite places while telling you the stories you cannot find on the internet or the ones you won't hear from your guide.

Interests

• photography
• acting
• festivals
• dancing
• running
• partying
• clubbing
• traveling
• hiking
• camping
• swimming
• hitchhiking
• road trips
• nature
• adventures
• videography
• house music
• techno
• adrenaline
• roller skating
• hanging out

Music, Movies, and Books

I'm really not that into reading books but i liked “The Catcher in the Rye" by J. D. Salinger. I’m not a huge fan of the movies either, but I like to watch some ocassionally especially if it's Home Alone, Mamma Mia, Harry Potter (Gryffindor here) or that “One Day” movie.

When it comes to TV shows, my favourite without a doubt is ''Friends''. I lost the count of how many times i rewatched it.

I listen to a variety of music genres, but I absolutely love house and techno … and groove, disco, blues, a bit of alternative/rock and some old school as well as some pop music. But honestly, Taylor Swift is my favourite genre, not even kidding.
(Taylor Swift, Lorde, Abba, Queen, Frank Ocean, Fran Sinatra, Fred Again, Disclosure, Kygo, Peggy Gou, Avicii, George Ezra, Vance Joy, Post Malone, Khalid, Cigarettes After Sex, Hozier, The 1975, OneRepublic, Imagine Dragons, Coldplay are some of my favourites.)

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

BUILT A SCHOOL IN TANZANIA
When I bought a one-way ticket to Tanzania a week before departure, went with no plan at all cause I really had no time to plan, I just wanted to leave because I wanted to escape the European lockdown, and then... I spent the whole year there volunteering. I was teaching English and started the fundraising with no expectations at all, but eventually, with the help of kind people I raised enough to BUILD A NEW SCHOOL in Arusha. Once it was built, a year later, i returned back home.

HITCHHIKED A SAILBOAT ACROSS THE INDIAN OCEAN
When i found myself with no money but eager to keep travelling and somehow make it to the other continent, I spent months in ports looking for someone who’d be willing to take me across the ocean. And i did. Unfortunately a captain who later on, once we found ourselves in the middle of the ocean, middle of nowhere, turned out to be schizophrenic with multiple personalities. But 4000 miles and 32 days later, despite the broken steering, we made it to the land, Thailand and SURVIVED.

WILD-CAMPED ALONG AND HITCHIKED ALL OF THE RING ROAD, ICELAND
Back in October, 2022 me and my cousin Anja decided to do the ring road on a budget. Hitchiking along while sleeping in a tent trying to catch a glimpse of northern lights. Long story short, we not only survived the freezing cold and hurricane, but made it in one piece and saw the polar lights.

TAYLOR SWIFT INVITED ME OVER TO HER HOUSE
Ask Taylor Swift. She’s gonna tell you the story. Or i might do once we meet.

DROVE THE HA GIANG LOOP, VIETNAM
I’ve never ridden a manual bike before, but there’s a first time for everything, right? “Ha Giang Loop” up in the North Vietnam was that, i guess, for me. 3 days, up in the mountains, riding along the cliffs through remote villages and rice fields… And even though i’ve done a wheelie (and almost fell over the mountain) and my bike later caught fire, I MADE IT.

HITCHHIKING TO BALI
Indonesia is such a huge country to just fly from Jakarta straight to Bali and skip all that’s in between. No way. That’s why i found myself outside of Jakarta with a few more people along the road… Willing to get all the way down from Jakarta to Bali. And we did. Through volcanoes, villages, waterfalls, and countless cities… It took us 2 weeks, but we made it.

USA ROADTRIP
Having made few friends along the way, we all decided to rent a campervan and go on a road trip around USA. for a few months. We also made it to Hawaii where we did ''stairway to heaven''. Later on to Alaska as it's been a dream of ours and ultimately to NYC where we ended up being homeles for Christmas and New Year, but at least we saw ball drop at Times Square (kinda cliche, right?)

INTERRAIL
Having returned from USA, I was lucky enough to win a free interrail pass and travel around Europe for the next 3 months. We were pretty homeless, but at least i wasn’t on my own, and it was summer. Wouldn’t change a thing.

HITCHHIKING /WILD CAMPING ALONG CROATIAN COAST BACK IN 2020
When covid hit, there was nowhere to go to, and not much money to spend, so I decided to explore my own country on a budget.

Teach, Learn, Share

“Whatever is mine is yours”.
I could teach you the basics of Croatian language, how to pilot a boat or even how to swim in case you don't know.

I can’t give you recommendations on museums or galleries, but i can give you a list of great clubs/festivals if you’re going to a country i’ve been to.
As well as good hitchhiking and camping spots.

What I Can Share with Hosts

My time, my company, my personality.
I think that time is the most valuable thing we have/don’t have. To choose to spend your time which is the only thing we can never get back, with someone, is the greatest gift.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Cambodia, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, England, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Kenya, Laos, Latvia, Lithuania, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Montenegro, Morocco, Netherlands, Philippines, Portugal, Scotland, Serbia, Seychelles, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey, United States, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

Croatia, Indonesia, Kenya, Tanzania, Thailand, United States, Viet Nam