Giving heart, solid roots and curious wings.

My aim in life is to leave things a little better than I found them, always, everywhere and in every respect (quite ambitious, I know hahaha; but it's a direction, not a deadline). My favourite 'things' in life are my family, people, learning, and sharing what I've learnt. I love all forms of expression, from writing to public speaking as well as certain forms of art, acting and playing.

I am yet to find a satisfactory way to introduce myself while respecting my love for essentiality, but I'm working on it and meanwhile you might find it useful to check these collections of words I've put on screen:
- my blog fruitfulpinecones.com on Arabic, the Middle East, calligraphy and all things slightly related
- my let's-call-it-portfolio irenenegri.wordpress.com, where I collect articles I've published.

Fun fact: I'm a serial international bridesmaid. Oh yeah B)
Other fun fact: I bet you could never guess what my latest volunteering enterprise was about...

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Because why wouldn't I be? You know it, I know it, we all know it- it's awesome!!

Interests

• writing
• baking
• reading
• piano
• cycling
• hiking
• calligraphy
• volunteering
• travelling
• cinema
• learning languages
• theatre
• living abroad
• family
• acroyoga
• climbing trees
• table football
• nature walks
• scouts
• zen doodling
• talking talking talking
• trying out new sports

Music, Movies, and Books

I listen to bad music, or so say people out there (freedom of speech at its finest - I can't really get offended!).

Then with movies I could watch pretty much anything except for horror - with a special predilection for action movies, animation and romantic comedy (it's silly, I know), and an insane obsession for Bollywood. I'd rather watch all movies in their original language, but special kinds of awkward dubbing can be fun too!

My super favourite book is "Someone to run with" by David Grossman and I generally enjoy non-fiction, but also other stuff. Oh wait, "Three cups of tea" by Greg Mortenson and "Ciò che inferno non è" by Alessandro D'Avenia also definitely make the top three. I read less than I'd like; and fantasize about reading way more than is realistic.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I'll write the first that comes to mind- dug a snow cave and slept in it on Mount Cook, New Zealand.

But that was just the beginning of the most amazing part of my life :)

Teach, Learn, Share

Depending on who you are and what you like, I could maybe teach you some Italian, English, or how to make pretty birthday/thank you/ greeting cards.

I'd like to learn new fairy tales, dance moves, how to whistle, play different sports and build stuff. I'm also always happy to learn fun idioms and proverbs in different languages, and traditions from different cultures.

I'll share my best recipes (and make yummy cake!), funny anecdotes, terrible jokes; and my take on life, the universe and everything.

What I Can Share with Hosts

My possessions, my ideas, and a set of working helping hands

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Belgium, Burkina Faso, Croatia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Israel, Lebanon, Malta, Netherlands, Palestine, Poland, San Marino, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Canada, Italy, Jordan, New Zealand, Turkey, United Kingdom

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