CURRENT MISSION

Live!

ABOUT ME

I love....friends, the ocean, literature, chocolate chip cookies, The Strokes, Harry Potter, writing my blog, boots, hiking, finding new places that no one has ever been before, sleeping in the cold with a really big warm blanket, heights, swimming, campfires, speaking italian, drinking coffee and so many more things.
There aren't a lot of things that I dislike.

PHILOSOPHY

I think I may still be trying to figure this one out. I'm studying abroad for the year in Italy and after only two months I can already tell that the experience is changing me. Two months ago I probably would have wrote here that you should experience everything! But know I'm realizing the importance of reflection. There's always such an emphasis in America on studying abroad to "find yourself". Who knows, maybe some switch will click this year and I'll realize my exact purpose in live, but for right know I'm just really trying a little bit of everything.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I like to do things. Not just watch. I'm not the person that is going to talk it to death. I make a decision and go for it. If it turns out badly...oh well! At least I have a story then!

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I'm brand new to CouchSurfing, but I'm really excited to become a part of the community. I've had a lot of friends who have told me good things about it and I think it seems like one of the best ways to travel and really see a place.

Interests

Everything!
I absolutely love to read and write. (I'm and English major so that's probably implied)
I love to eat, but I have absolutely no clue how to cook. This has been a become a slight problem, since I now live in Italy, where everyone knows how to cook at least one dish. I'm slowly trying to learn.
I love coffee! And the uniqueness of it's culture in every county! And can tell you that Costa Ricans definitely think of their coffee very differently than Italians do.
I love outdoorsy things. Camping in the Rocky Mountains in Colorado is one of my favorite things to do during the summer. So if there is some kind of hiking, climbing, or scaling a waterfall involved. I'm in!

• culture
• writing
• books
• literature
• cooking
• chocolate
• coffee
• drinking
• reading
• traveling
• blogging
• hiking
• camping
• rock climbing
• swimming
• mountains

Music, Movies, and Books

Books:
Dante
Harry Potter
Anything Toni Morrison
Shakespeare
Anything under the category of British Lit really
The Alchemist
Life of Pi
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
Blindness (such a heartwrenching book)
so many others...

Bands:
The Strokes
Radiohead
Yeasayer
The Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Tallest Man on Earth
LCD Soundsystem
Animal Collective
The Decemberists
Tame Impala
Deerhunter
Fleet Foxes
Hot Chip
again so many others...

Movies:
Lord of the Riiings
Royal Tenenbaums (and everything Wes Anderson)

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Ziplining through the Costa Rican Rainforests!
Hiking the entire island of Capri.
The Palio in Siena
Hiking up Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh for sun rise.
Swimming right next to an 80 foot water fall.
The Isle of Skye in Scotland

Teach, Learn, Share

I think I can share a perspective on American culture that is really different from a lot of normal US travelers. I come from Kansas, which is the state in the dead center. It's really a completely different world from the east coast or California.
I also could talk about literature for hours on end. I'm a firm believe that the power of reading can actually break down cultural barriers. A book gives you a little window into another way of seeing the world. And with that window, you can slowly expand your own perceptions.

I would love to learn how to cook something from someone! I'm pretty miserable in the kitchen. I just learned a couple months ago what garlic looks like...

Countries I’ve Visited

Hungary, Slovenia, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

Italy