CURRENT MISSION

Following my heart. Feeding my soul and tummy

PHILOSOPHY

Carpe diem quam minimum credula postero

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I'm looking to build lifelong connections around the world .

Interests

Exploring new places, great food, awesome company.

• cooking
• yoga
• cars
• cycling
• hiking
• volunteering
• adventure travel
• eating
• learning
• beach volleyball

Music, Movies, and Books

Music: Our Lady Peace, One Republic, Kaskade, Tiesto, Adventure Club
Movies: 500 Days of Summer, Limitless, The Shawshank Redemption
Books: The Five Love Languages, The Alchemist, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Bungee jumped off a mountain in China

Teach, Learn, Share

Jana’s Guide to a Fulfilled Traveller

Living like a local in foreign territory challenges your thinking, encourages learning, broadens perspective, builds character, and most importantly, it establishes self identity. With any investment that you make in life, travelling is definitely one that gives you one of the highest returns in value and therefore the most rewarding. Whether I was high-rolling in a five-star hotel or sharing a secondary school dorm with five other women, each experience shaped my life in a way that living at home could never match. Each destination told a different story, like adding an episode to a televised series spanning the three continents I managed to journey in the past year. Cumulatively, I discovered key strategies along the way to create the most fulfilling experiences of a lifetime. The three-steps below, if followed in its entirety, can culminate in the best decision you will ever make.

1. Prepare mentally and concretely.

Know where you want to go, what you wish to explore, set goals to accomplish, provide for contingencies and go. Conducting a thorough investigation of your destination prior to going not only means you are travelling with a purpose and peace of mind, but allows for a greater appreciation of both the touristy and non-touristy surroundings. The research you obtain online, from family, friends and elsewhere will deepen your understanding of how a particular monument was erected or why a certain restaurant is considered the best in the city and your findings will suggest a unique way of tailoring your exploration.

Take advantage of available opportunities to work, volunteer, study or vacation in a foreign place or create one that is not readily available. Studying abroad, student exchanges, volunteering, teaching overseas, internships, secondments, international placements, working abroad, scholarships, competitions and conferences all provide a means to go just about anywhere in the world. Planning to go somewhere means also planning a way out and particularly with long-term travels, always have an exit strategy to initiate when the journey no longer meets your goals.

2. Live in the moment; make new friends; globalize your network.

Execute your awesome plan during your trip but be flexible by shifting your eyes away from the map or itinerary once in a while. I bungee jumped off a mountain in China within a day of discovering the idea but I also learned much about WWII years prior to visiting a concentration camp in Germany. Both adventures made the trip extraordinary and memorable. However the trip unfolded, the most profound moments were always found in the adventures I shared with others, whether they were with familiar company, or newfound friends because it added dimension to the experience…it gave new meaning to places.

3. Follow-up and Reflect.

How you choose to share your travels will determine what you truly gained from your trip. How you think about your adventures will enable you to challenge the way you want to live and broaden your horizons. How you act will reflect on how you built character through the good experiences and the bad ones. After returning from one of my journeys, I dedicated three years to learning a new language and started a non-profit, student-led organization to motivate others to pave their own footpath across the globe. This enterprise eventually expanded nationally and subsequently led to projects that extended worldwide, creating a rippling effect. Concluding one initiative consequently introduced another.

When your trip has come full circle or even mid-way through your travels, think about how your exposure to relatively different cultural customs, ways of communicating, and lifestyles impact you as an individual and as a global citizen. Contemplating in this manner links the idea to travel in the first place to the experience and to the identity that you have come to shape, seamlessly.

What I Can Share with Hosts

The life changing lessons I learned from around the world.

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, China, Cuba, Czech Republic, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Jamaica, Nepal, Spain, Taiwan, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Canada, United Kingdom

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