My life story thus far reads like your typical small-town-girl-dreams-of-life-in-the-big city. I grew up on a farm in Appalachia, specifically Southeastern Ohio. My hometown of Athens is where hillbilly meets hippie (a fun catchphrase I just came up with). For whatever reason, perhaps because it's almost literally in my blood--my parents met as Peace Corps volunteers in what was then Zaire and is now the DRC--I have always held a fascination with other countries and cultures. As soon as I was able, I began learning my first "foreign" language--French. My love of all things international heavily influenced my choice of school. Spending the past year in D.C. solidified my interests and exposed me to new ones. I also learned that I love starting over and want to do it again, as soon as possible.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

For my required Map of the Modern World class this past semester (and possibly again next year depending on how well I did on that final), I had to memorize the locations and capitols of every country in the world, as well as climate and weather patterns, topography, history, and present day conflicts. I legitimately enjoyed this process, but my ultimate goal is to visit as many of those places I learned about in theory to gain the type of real, intimate knowledge you can't find from a 5 second Google search (as all-knowing as Google might be). From what I know of Couchsurfing, which is admittedly not much, it seems like this community is the perfect way to gain exactly the kind of travel experience I crave (at a low cost no less) and is full of exactly the type of people I've always wanted to meet. So thank you to anyone who has hosted or will host! You're the greatest. I hope to one day have a life put-together enough to join your ranks.

*my apologies if this sounds contrived*

Interests

Adventures/exploring, coffee, hiking, thrift shopping, sociology, psychology, culture, movies/TV shows, languages, satire, random facts, reading, writing, and art/design

• arts
• writing
• books
• design
• coffee
• partying
• shopping
• thrifting
• movies
• reading
• tv
• traveling
• cars
• hiking
• skiing
• history
• languages

Music, Movies, and Books

As far as music goes, I will listen to pretty much anything. This is partly because I feel that my tastes are not yet refined enough to withstand judgement (I blame a childhood almost devoid of music) and partly because I love to hear (literally) what others are listening to because I find that it is almost always interesting.

I'll also cop-out of listing favorite movies but for a different reason: I legitimately could not choose just a few without feeling like I'm cheating forgotten faves. I can enjoy pretty much every genre (with the possible exception of gross-out horror) as long as the film isn't too generic. Fun fact: I keep track of every movie I've ever seen. My list currently totals in the 800s.

Unfortunately my once voracious reading has slowed in the past ~5 years or so, since around the time I started high school. However, I come from a literary family, and I enjoy everything from The Queen's Thief series (highly recommend if you haven't read/heard of it) to Ender's Game and classics like Harry Potter. As of now, I'd say my favorite books are 1984 and Brave New World (I associate the two in my mind due to the complimentary themes and the fact that I read them back to back).

I've also recently gotten into podcasts (Stuff You Should Know, Serial, Hidden Brain, Invisibilia etc) and I've seen at least one episode of most every recent TV show.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I hope to soon have an altruistic and definitively "amazing" response to this question, but for now I'll share a memory from my past travels that I doubt I will ever forget.

So without further ado: a few summers ago I was lucky enough to be able to take a Eurail trip with my mom, stepfather, sister, and a friend. Somehow my mom managed to book a hotel in Switzerland without realizing that it was in fact an off-season ski resort located at the top of a mountain. After trekking to the top in a bus (no cars allowed) we settled in and soon discovered that we were the only guests. Given free range, the kids (myself included) set out for a stroll. We were delighted to discover patches of snow which grew larger and larger the higher we climbed. My sister turned back not long after her ice cream ran out but my friend and I continued until we reached the cliff's edge. We walked alongside the precipice for some time. Then we laid on our stomach's and watched as the sun set behind rapidly darkening clouds. We could barely hear one another over the sound of the wind and the surreal tinkle of cowbells far in the distance. Eventually, we wordlessly agreed it was time to return. By this time night had truly fallen and the storm had arrived. We joked about my mom worrying about our whereabouts. When we were approximately 5 minutes from the hotel, a figure took shape in the foggy darkness ahead of us. I let out a small yelp. It turned out to be my stepfather. In a tone more distressed than any I had ever heard him use, he told us that a search party consisting of the hotel's entire staff had been looking for us for some time and that they would have soon called a helicopter if we hadn't turned up. If my stepfather sounded less than pleased my mom, after a brief moment of relief when she saw that we were alive and unharmed, was positively irate. Once she had finished her tirade we were left unceremoniously in our room on strict orders not to leave for any reason whatsoever while she and my stepfather went down to repair relations with the staff. It was a long time before any of us spoke but when I raised my head I caught my friend's eye. We both smiled.

What I Can Share with Hosts

To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure I have anything to offer that you couldn't get from any other 18-year-old out there but I will say I am very open/flexible and would be grateful for whatever potential hosts are willing and able to provide. I have also been known to do dishes.

Countries I’ve Visited

Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Morocco, Namibia, Rwanda, Switzerland, Uganda, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

Canada, China, France, United States