Hi, I'm Cathy. I come from the northeast part of China and have stayed in UK for two years, this year is my third year. :) I lived and studied in the University of Manchester for my bachelor's degree and moved to Edinburgh last year to do my master's degree in language evolution.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I like to travel a lot, solely, or just with one or two best friends. Digging up the cultural elements inside a city is very fascinating, so I would like to stay in the locals and have conversation about anything I have discovered in the day. It would be even better if we discover the city together!

I can be very quiet, very, very quiet. I even can be in my zone for couple of hours. Feel free to pull me out (if you can!) ! :P

Interests

I was a school volleyball team member when I was in Beijing Languages and Culture University. I was a spiker in the team. I also love ski and photography. I am also a big fan of calligraphy! I can do Old English font and different Chinese Calligraphy styles.

I love to read books and writing things. I love to copy down all the sentences I love in the notebook, and this habit has lasted for years. I write poems, either in traditional or contemporary way. I also like to go to theatres and museums. Being a volunteer in the University of Manchester museum for half a year was the best thing in my life.

I can cook and bake well! If I'm not doing linguistic right now, I might have go to France to study desserts making! I am very good at baking cookies and Chinese traditional dimsum.

• skiing

Music, Movies, and Books

I listen to music I like, and I really don't mind what kind of music I am listening to. I play piano, guitar, ukulele and Guzheng.

I love classical music. My favourite violinists are Maxim Vengrov and Itzhak Perlman. I love Brahms, Dvorak and Mendelssohn. If you have the same taste, I guess we can talk for hours!

I also love Tommy Emmanuel. I went to his solo in Glasgow and I will never forget that day in the rest of my life. When he was playing "Somewhere over the Rainbow", I almost burst into tears. It was so beautiful!

I also listen to pop music. I am a big fan of JJ Lin, Jason Mraz and Eason Chan. If you like Cantonese, you won't miss H3M (by Eason) album. As for rock, I like Adam Lambert, Pink Floyd and Turnover. Green day and Radiohead is also good! I also listen to jazz. Norah Jones is my favourite.

As for books, I love Keigo Higashino and Haruki Murakami. Science-fiction and postmodern literature are my favourite. I love Chinese historical literature. Geling Yan is my favourite contemporary literature author.

I am not a big fan of movies but I still like to watch them when I'm boring (?). It's very hard to pick my favourite movie but I like La Grande Bellezza, Spirited Away, Interception and Shutter Island.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Being a volunteer in different activities and get to know many best friends. :)

Teach, Learn, Share

I can teach you how to write Old English Font, and can also teach you Chomskyan syntax! If you also like to know more about the origins of language, how about starting with Homo Erectus? :D

If you are also interested in MBTI personality tests, I'm an INTP. If you're ENTJ, ENTP or INTJ, I'll buy you a beer! :)

What I Can Share with Hosts

My experiences, my thoughts and how to staring blankly (and enter your zone in a blink).

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, China, Czech Republic, Germany, Netherlands, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

China, United Kingdom