A stranger is a friend you haven't met yet!

Hello all!

My name is Ava and I am a recent college graduate that would love to take a year off and travel before I begin working. I have gotten two Bachelor's degrees in Law, Economics, and Public Policy as well as Global Studies, and have recently graduated with a Master's degree in Public Policy. I am interested in learning more about myself this next year apart from my education, and am genuinely interested in gaining real life experience through connections and experiences. I value and lead with principles of empathy, compassion, kindness, equality, and respect.

In my free time, I love to try bites of food from any culture and country, listen to music while drinking wine, go camping in the lush evergreen forests surrounding Seattle, and dance salsa and bachata. My motto is to seek discomfort, and I am constantly finding new ways to push myself out of my comfort zone by trying something new every week. I would love to help others with their passion projects, and eventually start my own one day!

Thanks for reading through my profile! I look forward to meeting you :)

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I want to meet like-minded people with a love of travel as well!

Interests

• animals
• arts
• dancing
• salsa dancing
• bachata
• human rights
• italian food
• cooking
• wine
• partying
• politics
• traveling
• socializing
• international relations
• languages
• tourism
• urban exploration
• travel
• learning languages
• social justice
• queer
• french
• iran
• advocacy
• exercising
• persian
• farsi

Music, Movies, and Books

I love all types of music but love bachata, salsa, alternative, and folk the most! I am a massive fan of Bon Iver.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

-Begin my one year backpacking trip across the world!
-Skinny dipped (once successfully, twice unsuccessfully) in Cancun, Mexico
-Stayed out all night and watched the sunrise on the Charles Bridge in Prague

Teach, Learn, Share

I would to teach you Farsi and how to cook Persian food in exchange for learning French :)

What I Can Share with Hosts

Persian and American cooking, culture, food and dancing salsa and bachata.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Bahamas, Belgium, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Iran, Malawi, Mexico, Netherlands, Poland, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Spain, Turks and Caicos Islands, United Arab Emirates, United States, Virgin Islands, U.S.

Countries I’ve Lived In

Czech Republic, Iran, United States