Hi, there! I am Josiele, but most people call me Josi. I worked as an English teacher at a language school of my city Venâncio Aires – a small town in the South of Brazil - for many years. I was born in a small family, I have only a brother, but my parents’ families are big, so I spent a great part of my childhood playing on the streets with my cousins and the neighbors’ kids. Since then I have always loved the outdoor activities and being around people, and nowadays I spend my free time cycling or in-line-skating with a group of friends who share those passions, but you can also find me at a café with a book.

Since I can remember, I have been a positive person, for me, the glass is always half-full. I know sometimes we don’t get to see it clear, but all experiences we have are going to teach us something new. And that is something I try to pass on to my students! If you really find your passion in life, sooner or later, you will find a way to it.

So, after working 10 years as a teacher at the same school - which is something that I love, don’t get me wrong - I finally decided to give it a try to an old dream and go out to the world.

Alongside my best friend Ana, I am planning to visit North and South Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Oceania. We imagine this journey will take around 2 years and we decided to keep records of it and let people know how great our world is. Since we are turning 30 in the next years, actually I am 30 now :D , we decided to create a media project called “30 on the road” that is a kind of a digital diary where we keep people updated on our adventures through Instagram, Facebook and Youtube. You can find us online under the name @30ontheroad!
I’m really excited to meet you all on the road!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I've been planning this gap years trip for a while now, and since the beginning , my friend Ana and I were looking for ways to travel around and really meet people, and 'live' in the place as much as we can!
We are going to do some Volunteer and House-Sitting during our journey, but we still have some gaps on our schedule.
While looking for some ideas to fill this gaps we heard about Couchsurfing and we couldn't have asked for a better option! It is so amazing to see how people trust and help each other in this community, and how much we can learn from this experience!

Interests

• animals
• books
• theater
• coffee
• movies
• traveling
• music
• cycling
• hiking
• languages
• musicals
• nature walks
• inlineskating

Music, Movies, and Books

This is always a hard question since Music, Movies and Books have been my greatest passion for so many years that the shelves back home are all completely filled. Yeah, guys... I do love collecting them, and not the digital version...
I can say that I am pretty eclectic, since there isn't a kind of music/movie/book i can't stand, but I do have my favorite ones. I am absolutely a big fan of Joss Stone and John Mayer, so if you name one of their songs I'd probably say that I love it :D I can't choose only one, it is so hard to say it! But I also enjoy listening to Rock, Folk, Pop, and Country!
As a moviegoer you can imagine how many hours I can spend watching a good film. I really love the big screen, and as long as there is a good plot, I'm definitely gonna love it! I am also a huge fan of Fantasy and Animation, so it is inevitable that one of my favorite movies (and books) is Harry Potter! I just love all of them.
Reading is one of my favorite things to do in my free time! And when I say that I read all kinds of books I really mean that! From academic to Fantasy ones, once I start reading, I can't put it down. At the moment, I am totally in love with 'Wild' by Cheryl Strayed!

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I really believe that every day is special, and I love to think that I did my best to enjoy it as much as possible! I actually feel proud of many things I've done, and they surely are not that amazing! Graduating at a major I like, working for so many years in something I love - and being able to share some knowledge with my students- , having a group of friends and a family that give me all the support I need. I basically feel blessed with the amazing life I get to live!
However, It is inevitably to say that this project '30 on the road' is something that I am super proud of! As I said before, I had a life that I loved back in Brazil, but I still had that dream of going to the world. So, finally embracing this idea and giving it a try, is pretty awesome! The people I met so far, and the things that I learned on the road reassured myself that this is the best thing I could have done!

Teach, Learn, Share

I am a language and culture enthusiastic so I'd be glad to share about my own Brazilian culture and I can even teach a bit of our language, Portuguese, and our Literature if you'd like to. As for learning, since I've started this trip I've been learning new things every day :D
I love to learn about the cities and their history and tradition :D
You can also count on me for a chatting about books, movies and music. I love to learn about news artists and what people have been up to.

Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Canada, Paraguay, United States, Uruguay

Countries I’ve Lived In

Brazil