CURRENT MISSION

Seeing the World! Experiencing Life!

ABOUT ME

Hi everyone!My name is Francesca, and I'm an American from Orlando/New York City, MBA & MSc graduate, well-educated and extremely well-traveled. I am open-minded and love to explore new places. I have a passion for finding interesting, unique, (and even strange!) new things to do in the city, yet I am laid back enough to relax with a day in the park or a night with popcorn and movies.I absolutely love to travel and have spent 15 months on the road throughout Oceania, South-east Asia, and Asia proper. I've also lived a year in London, and worked in the financial sector there. If you have visited any of these places, we'll have much to talk about. Even if you haven't I'm totally open to learning about where you have visited! Personality-wise, I am strong and confident, sweet, and caring; I really have a passion for noticing the little things that make a person special.

PHILOSOPHY

I try to make the most of life, whether it be my studies or travel. I always want to learn more about people's cultures and histories. I feel this will teach me the most about their country.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I spent 15 months traveling around Oceania and SE Asia backpacking and couch surfed a BUNCH! I also spent 26 months traveling around South America, couch surfing as much as possible!

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

It's been absolutely wonderful so far! I've met some amazing local families in places I've traveled. Here's just a few of the experiences:

* Watching strange movies and listening to Indie music with Prue (Perth, Australia)

* Going out with Anne, Andrew, and their friends for dinner and ice-cream and talks about Filipino life (Cebu, Philippines)

* Celebrating 4th of July with a BBQ in China with CS-ers Biju, Chris, plus other expats and locals (Xiamen, China)

* Exploring the Shanghai Expo with Ugis (Shanghai, China)

* Learning all about the Chinese and Korean school systems from P & J (Shanghai, China)

* Hearing about the China milk scare from expats Beppie and Gert (Nanjing, China)

* Eating delicious Brazilian Churrasco (BBQ meats!) cooked by Ana and her mom Rita (Porto Alegre, Brazil)

* Collecting mussels on the beach, then eating them for dinner with Anibal and Mia (Punta Del Este, Uruguay)

* Seeing the dances and rhythms of Uruguayan candombe drums with Carla (Montevideo, Uruguay)

Interests

Traveling, travelers, non-travelers, local people, expats, all things purple. I also love learning new things about culture, history, astronomy, economics and local movies and music!

• fish
• culture
• festivals
• dining
• cooking
• bbq
• partying
• movies
• traveling
• music
• drums
• fishing
• backpacking
• camping
• surfing
• bungee jumping
• boxing
• astronomy
• economics
• history
• languages
• beaches

Music, Movies, and Books

Books: Sophie's World.

I like to try reading any book on historical events in the countries I visit. ('First They Killed My Father' about the Khmer Rouge's regime was so powerful!)

Music: Gaslight Anthem, 3 Doors Down, Lifehouse.

TV: Big Bang Theory, Top Chef.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

During my travels I have...

* Hiked Tongariro Crossing during winter in New Zealand

* Skydived and bungee-jumped in Taupo, New Zealand

* Crashed a company party, then went out with the employees for kangaroo pizza in Sydney, Australia

* Freaked out Singaporean kids by wearing costumes on Halloween night at the Singapore Zoo

* Sat near a proboscis monkey troupe for over 40 minutes while they groomed in Borneo, Malaysia

* Rode a horse up to the active volcano Mt. Bromo on Java, Indonesia

* Ate, drank, and danced with the local Lahu chieftain and his people in Northern Thailand for Lahu New Years

* Spent 3 days in a tuk-tuk exploring every last temple in the Angkor Wat complex in Siem Reap, Cambodia

* Learned about the Vietnam War first from a veteran while in the south, then again from a veteran while in the north

* Swam with 30 foot whale sharks in Donsul, Philippines

* Got chased by a Chinese farmer wielding a machete (Everyone ended up fine! Just a misunderstanding...)

* Drank yak's milk with Tibetan nomads in their tent

* Saw the 'Jewel Box' stars through high-powered telescopes in the Atacama Desert, Chile

* Celebrated the Beltane pagan fire festival in Edinburgh, Scotland

* Trained for the zombie apocalypse at a zombie boot camp in London, England

* Got served sushi by robot waiters in Bangkok, Thailand

* Learned some Muay Thai with ex-professionals on Koh Yao Noi, Thailand

* Swam with baby lemon sharks on Fernando De Noronha, Brazil

* Snorkeled with a 15 foot anaconda in Bonito, Brazil

* Watched a seagull steal a piece of fish from massive sea-lions in Punta Del Este, Uruguay

Teach, Learn, Share

I would love to learn more about other cultures and languages. Show me around your city if you can!

Food is also a great passion of mine. I can cook some basic dishes, but I want to expand my knowledge and taste buds!

I can teach you all about American culture and give you English language tips, if this interests you! ;)

Countries I’ve Visited

Antarctica, Argentina, Australia, Bahamas, Belgium, Brazil, Cambodia, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Denmark, Ecuador, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Laos, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mexico, Mongolia, Morocco, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Singapore, Spain, Thailand, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Vatican City State, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

United Kingdom, United States