In 2014 I took a 3-month break from my job. I went to Borneo, and discovered what I secretly already knew: travelling is my passion. So I quit my job, and went on full-time travelling in january 2015, and I'm still going on.

All the years before I did some short trips, usually with my daughter, who at that time still went to school, so travelling was limited to school-holidays. The thing I love most is to see amazing nature, that can be water, woods, wilderness, wetlands and whatelse. But city-life also has many attractions for me, although I'm not really a party-animal. More of a lazy-sitting-in-the-park-drinking-wine kind of person. Or a strolling-along-a-market-and-find-strange-things-to-eat woman.

Yes, food is also one of my addictions. Or better: discover food and drinks I never had before, so that comes along with travelling, I suppose. And learn how to cook these new flavors!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I like to meet people from the country I'm travelling in. Couchsurfing is a good way to learn the language, the habits of the locals, to learn to cook the local food, and learn about the good places to go. And with some luck, maybe some longer lasting friendships will come out of it!

Interests

Everything that has to do with nature: walking in it, lying in the grass to watch the clouds or the stars, birdwatching (but not too fanatically), watch beautifull shores from a boat and so on.

Food: discovering, eating, cooking, drinking, and chocolate.

Reading: from Gabriel Garcia Marquez to Bill Bryson, from Mario Vargas Llosa to Umberto Eco, from easy-reading to something that will occupy your mind for a long time. And what I truly like: to read a novel about a place where I am at that moment (for instance: I recently read John Grisham's 'The Testament' when I was in the Pantanal, Brazil).

• animals
• books
• dining
• cooking
• chocolate
• wine
• walking
• partying
• drinking
• boating
• reading
• traveling
• socializing
• blogging
• volunteering

Music, Movies, and Books

That is a difficult one, and it usually depends on my mood. Let's talk about that when we meet.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I have worked as a volunteer with Sunbears in Borneo (BSBCC), that was an amazing and truly rewarding experience. And there my opinion on life changed big time. If you want to know more about that, read: http://www.bsbcc.org.my/bear-talk-blog/6-weeks-voluntary-work-at-the-bsbcc

Teach, Learn, Share

Well, everything I want to learn (your language, your food, your local habits etc.) I can teach you back, but than the Dutch way :)

What I Can Share with Hosts

Ehm, I will tell you when I'm back in Amsterdam, which hopefully will take a long time.

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Belgium, Brazil, England, France, French Guiana, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, Morocco, Paraguay, Russian Federation, Scotland, Spain, Suriname, Sweden, Turkey, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Netherlands