I'm an easy going, free spirited, fun loving adventure seeker. A Canadian I met in Barbados just said that it's not easy to be a pessimist around me since I even tend to turn bad experiences and mishaps into exciting adventures, and I guess that's me alright! I love to travel (well duh), meet new people and share ideas, opinions and experiences. I've got a bubbly personality, I'm an avid storyteller and I talk for a living so just try to keep up. I work as a radio host and as a circus instructor / performer.

My interests while traveling include outdoor activities, indoor festivities and just lollygagging around breathing in some new air. I'm an outdoorsy-kinda gal, I enjoy a good hike, bike ride or boat trip when the scenery and company's right. Circus acrobatics and aerial dance is my biggest passion in life right now. I try to be a friend to Mother Earth and all it's creatures as much as I can, so a peace-loving lifestyle is my cup of tea. Oh, and I really do enjoy a good cup of tea. Or a good pint of beer, and that's why I'm eager to always try out what the local breweries have cooked up. I usually also try to catch a theatre play or an art gallery wherever I roam.

Instagram: @elsaerial / @elsakalervo
Facebook: https://facebook.com/elsa.kalervo

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I like to see things deeper and peek behind the scenes. The first time I couchsurfed was in 2008 while I was spending the summer in The States. The experience was so good, I got to meet amazing people and got to know the cities in a whole different way than I would if I had stayed in hotels.

I'm a true believer of the pay it forward -philosophy, and I think that whatever we give to other people, be it a place to stay, a new perspective on life through conversation or just a few good laughs, will be waiting for us when we turn the corner.

Interests

• arts
• culture
• literature
• photography
• beer
• yoga
• movies
• music
• hiking
• martial arts
• nature
• dance
• theatre
• aerial acrobatics

Music, Movies, and Books

I owe my life to music. No, seriously I do. We'll talk about that when we meet, but music is a constant in my life, whatever I do and wherever I go. I love listening to it but I adore creating it myself. My secret passion and guilty pleasure is country music. I love stetsons, fiddles and steel guitar. Don't tell anyone.

I try to watch at least two movies a week. I love a good scifi flick, a fantasy adventure, a deep relationship drama, a tear-jerker about getting through hardships in life, a weird indie movie, a quality documentary, a scary thriller and occasionally I'll enjoy a film that's all about fart humour or blowing stuff up. You know, just to balance it out.

And then about books. I like fantasy and scifi, since I believe that fantasies are the best mirror to our own society and to the whole of humanity, but I read all genres. My mom read me Tolkien as bed time stories when I was four and I grew up just weird - FINE! I mean fine. I'd like to give a whole lecture about how important reading and literacy is, but I'll just leave you with these quotes by writers I admire:

“Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.” - Neil Gaiman

“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one.” - George RR Martin

“Fiction is the truth inside the lie.” - Stephen King

“You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.” - Ray Bradbury

"Reading begets reading." - Nick Hornby

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Just one? I might say something like skydiving, sailing in a northern storm or saving a little boy from drowning, but working in performing arts is the most amazing and thrilling thing in life for me. The sheer extacy you get from a standing ovation and just the mere thrill of being on stage in front of a full house - that really can't be topped for me. Learning a new skill while doing aerial acrobatics is pretty neat too. But I must say that hitching a ride on a sailboat in the Florida Keys and sailing with a big group of dolphins playing around the boat was certainly uh-mazing too!

Teach, Learn, Share

You might have heard stories about Scandinavian people. You might have heard about the stereotypical Finn - shy, quiet and cold. Well, I'm here to show you what we mystical Northern people are really all about. I can also teach you how to be upside down and to climb a rope, pole or your curtains. Seriously, it's not hard at all.

What I Can Share with Hosts

If you're into music, I'd love to jam. I mainly sing, but I play some ukulele too, or at least I'm learning to. I can also bake the best piña colada cupcakes you have never tasted (yet). Mostly I'd just like to swap stories, dive head first into a stranger's life and get to know the real deal of each place I visit.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Bahamas, Barbados, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominica, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Martinique, Netherlands, Northern Ireland, Poland, Puerto Rico, Russian Federation, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Finland, Northern Ireland