Hey, I'm Kristen! I quit my job running a high-growth tech company in the U.S. and sold everything I own so I could travel the world.

I've been traveling for the last several months while working as a business consultant and freelance writer, and also building my own travel-based startup called ExchangeSpot that will help other people travel affordably by doing work exchange.

I'm calling this the "Year of the Explorer", where I hope to find myself by losing myself in the world :-)

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I'm really interested in meeting new people and learning about different countries and cultures. What better way to get to know each other than to live together, eh? :-) I've made some lasting friendships since I started traveling and connecting with people is important to me.

Interests

I'm pretty laid back and I alternate between being an extrovert and an introvert. So some days I want to explore the city, go out to a bar, or do something exciting like high speed go karting or find some games to play with friends. Other days, I just want to read a book or watch movies.

With my work, I'm online a lot. I'm also really passionate about politics and activism (I'm a liberal). I love learning new things and taking photos (you can check out my travel photos at http://www.instagram.com/findingkp).

• writing
• books
• cooking
• running
• politics
• technology
• movies
• traveling
• business
• freelancing

Music, Movies, and Books

I'm a bit all over the place when it comes to to music, movies, and books so let me try to summarize.

I really love all kinds of music and I especially like to see live music with friends. Everything from modern folk, pop, rock, hip hop, and EDM to old school classic rock, funk, blues, or even classical music. I hate American country music and don't really like metal.

For movies, I like everything except for horror.

And for books, I'm a huge epic fantasy nerd. So I loved the Harry Potter books, the Game of Thrones Series, the Wheel of Time, trilogies by Robin Hobb and Brandon Sanderson, stuff like that. Right now I'm reading the Gentlemen Bastard series.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I got to demo some of Panasonic's unreleased new holographic touch technology at their R&D center at their NJ headquarters - it was incredible.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I can help with English language practice and also with business English (or business advice in general).

I would love to continue learning and practicing Spanish if you know any.

We can share meals together (I love to cook), talk about our cultures, travel stories, or politics, or have fun experiences out in the city.

Countries I’ve Visited

Belgium, Czech Republic, England, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Monaco, Morocco, Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey

Countries I’ve Lived In

Czech Republic, France, Spain, Turkey, United States