Unfortunately, I don’t have an opportunity to host in Moscow as I live in a dorm that only students with IDs can enter.

My name means “hospitality” in Greek and I chose hospitality as my major without realizing it😅

I am originally from a small countryside called Grafskaya (Voronezh, Russia) but I moved to Moscow at the age of 17 and experienced a completely different lifestyle in a megapolis. I would love to share what it is really like to live in Russia and how lifestyles vary in different places here.

I graduated Arts school in Arts and Crafts and Russian folk dancing, but my biggest passion has always been theatre. I performed in school plays, was part of jury of an international theatre festival, got an award for being the most loyal spectator when I was 14, worked in the Maly theatre in Moscow and went to see “The Phantom of the Opera” on Broadway.

In university I got into KVN which is a unique style of performing short humorous sketches. We wrote them from scratch and then performed on stage competing with other teams. My university in Russia has its own league where I am an administrator helping to organize all these events and supporting more advanced teams which perform on TV, it’s a lot of fun.

In 2022 I became the finalist of “Year of Exchange in America for Russians” program and spent 9 months studying in Fox Valley Technical College in Wisconsin and traveling around the US. I’ve visited 13 states, returned to some of the cities numerous times and at the same time graduated with honors and competed at international collegiate DECA conference ;))

Now I’m back in the US as a scholarship receipt for Bridge USA Summer Work&travel program and I am currently working at Morey’s Piers Adventure Park as a ride operator, sharing this experience with hundreds of students from all over the world.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I came to the US as a cultural ambassador and my aim is not only to represent my culture, but also to get to know American culture. And of course, you won't immerse yourself in the culture by staying in hotels and visiting only tourist spots.

It seems to me that Couchsurfing can give me a unique opportunity to get a more "real" experience of living in this country and meet many outstanding people.

So far I got tons of motivation and inspiration from all the people I’ve been lucky enough to stay with and I’m so grateful for all of my Couchsurfing experiences.

Interests

Theatre, arts and crafts, social media marketing, dancing, literature, cultures, psychology, linguistics, tourism and event planning. Want to get more into playing piano, had classes when I was in Elementary school but forgot almost everything (would love to get back on that)

• culture
• literature
• theater
• dancing
• folk dancing
• business
• languages
• psychology
• tourism
• museums
• comedy
• drama
• hospitality
• arts and crafts
• social media marketing
• friends tv show

Music, Movies, and Books

music: Sirotkin, Imagine Dragons, The Lumineers, Måneskin, Macklemore, Harry Styles, Lana del Rey
books: "Flowers for Algernon" D. Keyes, "1984" G. Orwell, "The Catcher in the Rye" J.D. Salinger
movies: "The boy in the Stripped Pajamas", "Forrest Gump"

“Friends” is my all time favorite tv show

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I've seen more than 100 shows in different theatres! (and I really counted them)

Performed on Russian TV dressed up as Marge Simpson

What I Can Share with Hosts

I want to share what life in Russia is like because it is so much more than the politics.

Can teach you some Russian folk dancing moves, cook national dishes (not a profi but still) and discuss Russian literature

Countries I’ve Visited

Armenia, Turkey

Countries I’ve Lived In

Russian Federation, United States