Hey future buddies!

Portuguese student on a gap year here! On a short summary of my life, I grew up mostly in Porto Portugal, where the sun shines and the wine is amazing. However, I left home at 16, when a scholarship brought me to finish my two last years of highschool in Thailand. There I got the chance to live with people from over 60 nationalities and break my bias of other cultures. I also got to eat a lot of great food which I dearly miss.

However all things come to an end, and in May of 2018 I graduated (thank god!). Since then I have been on a gap year, expanding my experiences and knowledge on matters that I love, and trying new things such as Pole Sport!

I am avid reader, and enjoy keeping myself informed on current matters, so that I can form my own opinions. Nonetheless, whenever possible, I prefer to put my hands into action and jump from discussions into practical solutions. I also love drawing, and I tend to keep this interest alive by sketching the scenery of the news places I go, or when I am having a nice moment, so that I can look back to my own memories.

I feel that is a far introduction? Hope I can get to share more in person!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Since I went to Thailand, I have had friends living all over the world - such that every time I travel, I tend to stay at one of their homes (and vice-versa). I believe that like many of people here on CS, after experiencing a city through the eyes of a local, I just never want to go back to a hotel (and at times even an hostel), if I have the chance to live and explore a new place with someone from there.

I also believe that there is never too many friends to have, so if I have the chance to meet someone new and share some joy - I am down!

Interests

• design
• fashion
• vegetarian
• art
• sustainability
• dance
• entrepeneurship

Music, Movies, and Books

I can't pin point a type of music I listen to, for I feel that each moment calls for a different vibe. However, in a music related topic, I must admit that I am a sucker for Eurovision - I just love it.

In relation to movies, I do not watch that many, however, from the times I do, I love comedies (Braidsmaids is definitely one) as much as I love dystopian realities (Specially if everyone wears really cool futuristic clothes).

Books are more of my thing! I read anything from novels to biographies. A book that marked me would have to be 'Textures of Struggle' - this book portrayed the garment industry in Thailand, through the perspective of those that saw themselves forced to work there. Having grown up in a western society, I believe I grew accustomed to pity those with lifestyles seen as precarious. In this book, those depicted were mostly 'uneducated' females, that worked over 100 hours week in poor conditions, and that still found ways of understanding the exploitation they were suffering, and finding means to work together to improve their own conditions - even when it meant risking their only source of income and their own physical and mental well being. This book definitely changed the way I see the world .

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I won't tell the full story here, but I once had a dinner with a leading member of royal family.

Teach, Learn, Share

I can definitely share some advice in drawing, photography (for beginners), photoshop and some fashion (also I have some cool clothes if you wanna dress up ;) ).

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Cambodia, China, Egypt, England, France, Germany, Japan, Malaysia, Morocco, Nepal, Netherlands, Singapore, Slovakia, Spain, United Arab Emirates, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

Portugal, Thailand