Hi! My name is Jarrad and I'm from Townsville, Australia. I am a student at Monash University in Melbourne and am currently finishing my semester abroad in Lyon, France. I love experiencing new things, things that are not familiar to me, and I express this through my passion for cooking, languages and travel. I also love to read for the same reason.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I beleive that I can get more out of travel by meeting people. That's the main reason. And that's why I feel like Couchsurfing is superior in its insight into local life than hotels, hostels and the like.

Interests

Cooking is a big one! I love the fact that something so necessary and inately a part of all life can be taken and made into an art form. Yet it's also so much a science too and a way of bringing people together. It's great.
I also love to play Australian Rules Football. To the uninitiated, it's a sport kind of half way between Gaellic and rugby and one that I've been playing for over 10 years now.

• arts
• culture
• cooking
• wine
• traveling
• socializing
• sports
• soccer
• rugby
• languages
• science

Music, Movies, and Books

I love music in general. I believe that discounting the integrity of one genre limits the experiences we can have through music. However! My first love was pop punk and now I still appreciate that as well as folk, indie, pop and house.
In terms of movies, I am sort of the same. Movies and music all make us feel different ways so choosing specifics is like choosing to live life without certain emotions (in my opinion!). I love them all!
As far as books are concerned, I love ones that force you to think. Whether they be fiction, autobiographical or otherwise, if I can get a lasting effect after reading it, I'm happy!

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Perhaps the one that is currently most potent in my mind is playing Australian rules football in France. Aussie rules is extremely non-existant outside of Australia, and to get the opportunity to play it in France was surreal. To experience the French translations for Aussie lingo, to play for Lyon against Paris, to simply be able to share something so important to Australian and Melbourne culture as Aussie rules with another culture that I am passionate about was truly an experience I won't forget.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Well I believe that we all travel to live differently for a short period of time. So given that, I can offer a little slice of myself, my country and my story; hopefully a little insight into something different. And a bottle of wine to share it all over of course!

Countries I’ve Visited

Belgium, France, Japan, Portugal

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, France