I'm an American university student at Williams College, studying art and math, but am currently studying math in Budapest. I know; art and math. It's a weird combination—but I think I like the two subjects for similar reasons. I have an academic idealism that pure and theoretical concepts cater to, and art and math are both intrinsically beautiful and powerful. This semester has been exclusively math-focused, and I've been having a wonderful time.

I am also a runner and an avid rock climber, and would love to be able to travel purely to climb someday.

I am a quiet and considerate person, and I am friendly and excited to try new things. I've spent a good amount of time traveling alone, and have found the most rewarding part about discovering a new place is meeting interesting people there.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Last summer, (June 1st - July 30th) I stayed as a visiting artist at the Institute for Queer Theory in Berlin. I didn't have secure housing when I arrived, and initially made my CS account in order to find my footing. I ended up using CS to travel elsewhere, and found the CS community to be warmer and more inspiring than I could possibly have anticipated. The beautiful, thoughtful, interesting people I met changed the way I approach both travel and new acquaintances, and I want to continue building this web of good-will. I'm now really looking forward to having a place that I can open up to others, when I finish school.

Additionally, I plan to spend April 7-13 on my first bike tour, and am really looking forward to being near the ocean, seeing the countryside along Denmark and Germany, being exhausted by the end of each day, and hopefully meeting some new people.

Interests

My interests are all over the place. I love being in the city, but enjoy climbing, hiking, and camping very much as well. I've spent about ten years playing the violin. It's a beautiful instrument that I really love, and am pretty dismal at—but I've had a lot of fun playing and being around other musicians. If you have any interest in math, I will happily talk with you for hours. I will also be grateful wenn du kannst auf Deutch mit mir sprichst (for anyone willing to practice German with me).

• arts
• contemporary art
• running
• reading
• bouldering
• violin
• hiking
• camping
• rock climbing
• art history
• languages
• mathematics
• climbing
• tree climbing
• math

Music, Movies, and Books

I love reading. I wish I had more time to read. I'd have trouble choosing a favorite, though—The Sun Also Rises, Catch 22, The Things They Carried, The God of Small Things....

My two favorite movies are The Sound of Music and Fight Club, and I like a lot of different music. I love LP and Fiona Apple, but also things like Arctic Monkeys and Red Hot Chili Peppers. I also really love the cheesy hits from the 70s and 80s.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Two summers ago, I was studying Japanese in the northern island of Japan. I made friends with a bunch of the locals at the climbing gym, and they took me climbing on the mountain that the little town, Hakodate, sat on. We were surrounded by water, on a small peninsula, so once I reached the top of the pitch I could see the ocean stretching out for 180 degrees.

Teach, Learn, Share

Not sure what to write here. I think biology is really cool, so I'll just include one of my favorite things I learned in a bio class once. Humans have two eyes, which give us depth perception—we also have two ears, and we use these to triangulate the source of a sound. Snakes have forked tongues, which they can use to taste chemical concentrations. The two prongs of their tongues allow them to triangulate the source of those chemicals, and literally track their prey through taste. Thus scavenging snakes have a far less pronounced fork in their tongues.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I really love to learn, and I think I've collected a really excellent array of facts and stories. I can tell you more about biology, ecology, or math, but I've also spent a lot of time studying and reading about art history. I grew up in New York, but later moved to a really rural part of New Hampshire, which I think has balanced my perspective. I can tell you stories about the strange high school I attended, or my time in Japan, or places I've gone for rock climbing, and all the things I've learned/loved about language learning. I would also love to hear about other people's stories and adventures

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Hungary, Japan

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States