CURRENT MISSION

To be wherever I go.

ABOUT ME

My desire to find happiness living and being in this world has taken me from my small town in Eastern Washington, USA, to Seattle, to India, across the expanse of the USA, to the Netherlands and back again.

After finishing grad school in 2012, I embarked on a solo cross-country adventure. On that adventure, I saw captivating, awe-inspiring places and met equally inspiring and interesting people (mostly through hostels and the CS community). Once I returned home, I didn't want to stop traveling, so I picked up and moved to the Netherlands, where I worked as an au pair for a year. Now I'm back in my hometown working as an English teacher at a high school serving a low-income, mostly migrant population.

Though I haven't done much ramblin' these past couple years, I'm still that gypsy, wandering spirit I've always been; my car is always packed with my tent and map in case I need to pick up and go on another adventure...

PHILOSOPHY

Live life with heart and soul. Be happy. Believe that the world is magical and that life is an adventure. Don't forget to stop and smell the roses (or lilacs, or lavender, or pansies, whatever floats your boat).

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I first became a part of this community when I visited Asheville, North Carolina three years ago. The story begins in Nashville though...

While staying at a hostel in Nashville, I met two really cool Dutch guys who were also traveling to Asheville but were couch surfing rather than hosteling. Once in Asheville, I met up with them and their surfing hosts to explore the city for a bit. They kindly invited me back to their house and once there I couldn't leave. They offered me a bed, and I abandoned the hostel I had planned to stay at. That was the best decision I made on that trip. I spent two extra days there, made some dear friends, and explored a part of Asheville that I would not have been able to had I not come into contact with these amazing people and this awesome community. Oh, and one of those really cool Dutch guys is now my boyfriend. Thanks, CS!

After this experience, I couchsurfed my way up Florida, across the south to New Orleans, up California, and back to Washington state.

Interests

I enjoy being outside, marveling at nature. Where I really find my joy is in learning about the history of a place--whether that's the geologic history or the social history. I like to walk around and stare at things. I think about what each little moment has to teach me. And I long to hear the stories people have to tell.

• boating
• traveling
• surfing
• teaching
• history
• au-pair

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

One moment that stands out in my mind is the drive I made across the Badlands of South Dakota. The scenery was stark and a bit jarring, but oddly beautiful. I felt as if I were on a different planet. It is clear in the place how the land came to be formed that way, which I find quite fascinating, but it is also quite miraculous that people were able to traverse that land in order to make a life in, around, and beyond that very inhospitable terrain. I will definitely be returning.

Countries I’ve Visited

France, Hungary, India, Netherlands, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Netherlands, United States