I'm a 20 year old female who needs to quench her thirst for exploring.

Born in the Philippines but migrated to the United Kingdom at the fresh age of 8 years old, since then I have lived there and considered at as my home country. However, after a few trips back to the Philippines I am still proud to say that I am Filipino by flesh and blood.

I'm not ashamed to say that I am a Law School drop out, as right now I have taken the most life changing gap year where I worked full time and managed to save up for a month long trip of travelling around Europe.

After travelling I will be returning to University in Kent to study Journalism.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

To experience different cultures, see places that was once beyond my reach. And the thought of making friends all around the world excites me.

I believe that you never really experience true culture unless you live just like the locals and that's what couchsurfing is all about! I'm very much a people person and I aim to educate myself of different lifestyles and breathe it all in with an open mind.

But in essence, the one thing why I couchsurf is to meet people!

Interests

If it wasn't obvious enough my interest and passion is Travel & Culture. My main outlet is reading and writing, so I write about my experiences and read about others. I'm currently in the process of building my website about Travel, Culture and Lifestyle.

I love animals and currently an avid supporter of many dog charities. I'm happiest when I'm surrounded by dogs! I would consider myself quite intact with nature and enjoy being surrounded by it. I enjoy hiking and running in scenic landscapes & I have a big hike planned in Scotland this coming November.

In my other spare time when I'm not writing/reading or travelling. I like to watch comedy movies or travel documentaries. At 13 years old taught myself how to play the guitar and it has become one of my favourite pass times, playing songs from the acoustics of James Taylor, U2, The Smiths & Tracy Chapman

I enjoy painting too. I love to sketch but painting gives me the liberty to play around with colours. Inspired by W. Turner's watercolour paintings of Venice.

I LOVE TO COOK. I love trying new food and bringing recipes back home to show my family. I'm open to trying different food (only if its not insects or frogs). I think food is a great way to build a community!

& lastly, I would consider myself an adrenaline junkie. From skiing, bungee jumping and hopefully sky diving.. I plan to experience a lot of activities that involve heights. (Because I'm scared of heights and I want to eliminate that).

• animals
• dogs
• insects
• culture
• writing
• singing
• documentaries
• perfumes
• dining
• cooking
• recipes
• spanish food
• running
• walking
• movies
• reading
• traveling
• socializing
• painting
• guitar
• hiking
• scuba diving
• bungee jumping
• skiing
• journalism
• law

Music, Movies, and Books

As I mentioned above I enjoy listening to acoustic music, for example my playlists consists of U2, James Taylor, Tim McGraw, Taylor Swift, The Smiths, Tracy Chapman, BON IVER etc. Then theres my all time favourite; Maroon 5.

I mostly watching comedy movies like Forgetting Sarah Marshall & White Chicks. Travel movies like Eat Pray Love, some travel documentaries about countries I want to visit. There misc choices that I love to watch over and over again are Shawnshank Redemption & Taken 1.

With books, I tend to read quite a variety from being an English and Law student.. I've learned to enjoy philosophy books such as the writings of JJ Rousseau & Mill on Freedom and Democracy. Classic english literature from Frankenstien and Much Ado About Nothing by W Shakespeare.
For chilled reading I buy a lot of travel and lifestyle magazines for inspiration for my website.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

On a short trip to Amsterdam, my friends & I spontaneously decided to busk on the streets and on the ferry back to England! I was playing my guitar and singing with others :)

I learned how to Ski in Switzerland when I was 12-13 years old and it will always be the most useful trip I've ever had.

And now I would say that pushing myself to travel solo for a month at 20 years old is a pretty good achievement for me as I have always been a wild soul but certain things in my life was preventing me to act upon that. But now I have pushed myself to do so and I can never go back!

Teach, Learn, Share

As an aspiring journalist, the process of writing is: Experience, Learn, Write & Share. This is what I am to do for whenever or wherever I go.

I have learnt that walking confidently on streets that are unfamiliar to you makes a big difference for how people treat you. Try as much as you can to blend in and don't look lost all the time otherwise you will be an easy target!

Always, always make an effort to speak the local language. Even if it's just asking 'Do you speak English' in their language, they'll be pleased with your effort and more likely to help you!

Lastly, one thing that helps me for when I'm lost or in a rut is SMILE and be KIND. Smiling makes a world of difference when you're communicating, it sends positive vibes and most of the time it is exchanged back :)

What I Can Share with Hosts

I can share my experiences in terms of lifestyle of being a Filipino living in London. About English culture as well as Filipino Culture.. I can even show you FILIPINO FOOD which is a mix of chinese and spanish food.

I can share my stories about travelling alone, about the countries I have visited, about being a law school drop out (HA!).

I can show how to complete a simple landscape painting in less than 15 minutes or a quick sketch.

Simply, I can share stories of my life such as Hosts share theirs.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, Philippines, Spain, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

Philippines, United Kingdom