My name is Kelsey Miltenberger. I graduated from university in 2021 after studying International Relations and Spanish. Since then I have spent time living in Hawaii and Italy but have mainly spent the last two years traveling. I walked over 800 kilometers of the Camino de Santiago in Spain, worked brewing beer in the south of France, roadtripped around the Balkans, and hiked in Patagonia as just some of my backpacking trips.

I am always trying to keep busy and find new hobbies so I always have something to work on. I play ukulele and guitar, read, make art, journal, attempt to learn new language. After watching Gilmore Girls as a teenager I started to always keep a book with me no matter what my plans are for the day. I am slowly working my way through some classics (I get really curious about why the books are famous and what elements have remained part of pop culture). I also like to read history and science books that focus on niche topics, but make them interesting (like I once read a book on the history of wool and really enjoyed it, haha). When I travel I really like just walking around. Sometimes I will look up how to get somewhere and see that it says 2 hours but decide to walk anyway. It's nice to see what you come across or things that you might have missed in a car or bus.

Since I have been traveling for a while I have met so many different people. I would say that I can be quiet at first, but anyone who has got to know me will say that I am not a quiet/shy person. Also as a backpacker you have to be pretty easygoing and adaptable so I have learned to be quite go with the flow.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I love the idea of being able to meet people while you travel. It is great to get the perspective of someone local and hopefully make a good connection! While you visit a place, you might not actually meet many people from there and even at a hostel you will probably meet other travelers/backpackers. Over the years I have met so many new people and keep in contact with some of them still and couchsurfing is another way to do that.

Music, Movies, and Books

Music:
It is hard to say if I have a particular style or genre that I like because I listen to a lot of different music. I have a playlist on Spotify where I add any song regardless of genre/mood/language, the song just has to be a vibe. I go to that playlist a lot. Otherwise, I listen to music in languages I'm learning so that I'm always improving even if it's subconscious. Some artists I like are Still Woozy, Tierra Whack, El Cuarteto de Nos, Jorge Drexler, Neffa, Fabri Fibra.

Movie:
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
I watch a lot of movies and usually prefer to watch bad ones. I don't always feel emotionally ready to watch a heavy or dramatic movie so I have to spread them out. I think it is really fun to watch a bad movie and laugh at it or pick it apart.

Books:
Honestly I like most books that I read. I think I have figured out my taste and usually pick books that are interesting to me. I am a big believer in judging a book by its cover because I find a lot of books from secondhand stores and the cover can say a lot. Basically, if a book is about history, geography, or science, I am interested.

What I Can Share with Hosts

company, conversation, a coffee

Countries I’ve Visited

Albania, Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Kenya, Kosovo, Macedonia, Mexico, Montenegro, Netherlands, Spain, Taiwan, Uganda, Uruguay

Countries I’ve Lived In

Italy, United States