Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I'll cut to the chase: This is a great way to save money and also not have to share a room with 5+ strangers. More than that though, Couchsurfing is a unique way to get to know new people as well as new cultures (not to mention best-kept secrets of a city!). I'm hoping that through Couchsurfing I'll be able to experience the world in aspects that differ from a group-tour of a city to hear about the architecture, history, etc. of a given building or event.

Interests

I thoroughly enjoy knowledge of all sorts, but my latest interest has been revolved around language and linguistics. I find it fascinating how the brain functions in regard to communication and learning to communicate as well as how language has formed through time and can be linked to one another.

As written above, I'm studying German and Communication Sciences and Disorders. People ask me all the time 1. what is CS&D? and 2. okayyyy so what exactly do those two have to do with each other? Well, friend, the answers are that 1. CS&D is an undergraduate major that people will associate with if they want to be a speech pathologist or an audiologist. at this point, I'm looking into speech pathology but we'll see where I end up down the road. 2. The linguistic component and the skills you "accidentally" learn through learning another language cross over into speech pathology, particularly on a phonetic level. Basically, the listening skills and ways you learn to produce and combine new sounds is the bridge between the two in my point of view.

On a slightly less nerdy note, I used to play a lot of volleyball and tennis, but unfortunately haven't played on a regular basis in a few years. In that time I've tried to stay fit with doing gymnastics with a club team at my University and have been doing yoga for 2.5 years now. Before you (maybe) get too excited and want to see me do like 4 flips in the air and twist all at the same time, it's worth mentioning that I started gymnastics at the ripe old age of 18 (almost 19) years old :p I've also curled, so if you have no idea what that actually is or don't know how it works, I'd be glad to inform you :)

• architecture
• yoga
• clubbing
• traveling
• gymnastics
• tennis
• volleyball
• history
• mathematics

Music, Movies, and Books

Although Stephen King may be my favorite author, I am currently on the bandwagon of reading (some might say slightly obsessing) the Game of Thrones books as well as watching the series. As far as television goes, I definitely have guilty pleasures, which mainly consist of bad teen dramas like 90210, Pretty Little Liars, Gossip Girl, and One Tree Hill. What can I say? I love the fictional, entirely overdramatic rendition of the lives of teenagers.

Growing up with two older brothers with their own distinct tastes in music as well as being surrounded by girls my age fawning over the mainstream, I've developed an interesting variety of tastes regarding music. For example, Punk and Folk/Alternative rock are probably my two favorite genres of music, two genres which are very, very different from one another. During my time studying abroad in Germany, I've seen Hey Rosetta!, Rise Against, and Joshua Radin in concert, and each were entirely amazing in their own unique ways.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

In the summer between my senior year of high school and freshman year of college in 2013, I had the opportunity to travel to Madurai, India with my mother and grandmother to work in a children's home. This home was affiliated with the methodist church but it wasn't necessarily a mission trip (not to me at least, especially considering I'm not a very intensely religious person myself). During my month in Madurai, I helped to teach English and math to students varying in age and ability... although I think I helped with math better than English, the language barrier was very prominent. On top of the work in-home, I was able to visit the city and surrounding villages, which altogether helped to create a very unique and memorable experience.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Dominican Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, India, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Russian Federation, Sweden, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Germany, United States