Hi! I am originally from Portland, Oregon but I am down in Redlands, California attending the University of Redlands where I am majoring in International Relations and international business. I am currently spending my summer in London taking classes at the London School of Economics. I lived in the Netherlands for a year when I was younger and spent six of those 12 months traveling around Western Europe with my family. I am currently excited to start traveling on my own. I have played baseball for 10 years, love hiking and food, play the harmonica, and remember a couple basic chords on the guitar. I love living with people from the area I am visiting because I like doing what the locals do, eating what the locals eat, seeing what the locals see, and living like the locals live. I think in doing this you really learn a lot about yourself and the world you live in. I am nearly fluent in Spanish and know a little bit of Dutch and enough French and Italian to find the bathroom or order a meal. I am excited to get out and travel the world. I look forward to meeting some of you on my adventures!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I'm on couch surfing because I want to get less of a touristy experience during my travels and more of a unique, engaged, and involved experience with locals in areas I visit.

Interests

I'm interested in learning what different cultures do for fun, what they eat, and how they live. Anything you show me will be awesome and educational and I will enjoy it to the fullest.

• culture
• dancing
• exercise
• meditation
• music
• hiking
• food
• nature
• having fun

Music, Movies, and Books

I like almost all kinds of music. From country western to rap to Hawaiian/reggae to oldies to classical or jazz I'll listen to pretty much anything. The only music I don't like is heavy metal/scremo. My top three favorite books are "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho, "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer, and "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley in no particular order. My favorite movies are "Interstellar", "Good Will Hunting", and the Harry Potter series or the Star Wars series.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

The most amazing thing I've done is study abroad in Valencia, Spain. I studied there for a month with a family who spoke hardly any English and it was one of the best experiences of my life. I got to learn about the way Spaniards live their life and their cultural norms and customs all while improving my Spanish. I am forever great full to my Spanish family for taking me in and giving me the experience of a lifetime.

Teach, Learn, Share

I love teaching, I am a camp counselor at a statewide leadership camp for high school students. Most of the high schools in the state send their leadership kids to us for them to learn leadership skills and techniques to both use in their schools, communities, and lives. I also love learning not only in school but in the real world, I like learning from my mistakes and reflecting on how I could do something different at times.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I can share a friendly personality, someone to share travel stories with, and someone who will cook while staying with you.

Countries I’ve Visited

Belgium, Canada, China, Croatia, England, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States, Vatican City State

Countries I’ve Lived In

Netherlands, Spain, United States