If you need a host, please make sure you're verified on Couchsurfing before requesting to stay with me. That is a requirement for me.

As of February 2020, I have a Workaway person staying with me, so I can't take more people in right now.

As for my travel, I love adventure and meeting local people where I travel. I've been around the world twice, mostly traveling alone but often living with locals. I speak conversational Spanish and would love to pick up words or phrases of your language.

I believe I'm a pretty good houseguest, I like helping to clean up and I don't smoke, drink very little, and I'm not loud. I get on well with all animals (I have cats, dogs, and a parrot) and love hanging with young kids. I have two teenage boys (which is an adventure in itself). I would love to add getting to know you and your culture to my amazing life experiences.

I am studying for my private pilot license. I've been a rock climber, played many sports, and was a competitive volleyball player for 20 years. I'm a trained yoga instructor.

I've enjoyed climbing rocks with locals in Australia, going on flying adventures with friends in California, horseback riding with my hosts/friends, local picnics in France with yummy cheeses and wine, and working in my friend's garden in Spain. I've done mission trips to Guatemala where I've helped build playground equipment and walls for an orphanage.

In order to get braver at public speaking, I began doing open mics in 2016. I do this twice each week now, and will get up in front of a mic anywhere. I recite poetry, it's really fun to share the poems of these amazing poets with others.

I like to cook, especially with others, and learned how to make the best strudel one day from a friend's grandmother who could hardly speak English. She said I had good hands ☺.

I dance, I've done ballroom, Scottish country dancing, contra, tap, belly dance, line dancing, and most recently Balkan - music from Greece, Macedonia, Turkey, Bulgaria, Israel, etc. I've made a lot of friends this way, and its a warm community.

Enough about me. Let's talk about you!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I've traveled extensively alone, but would much rather meet someone new and see how they enjoy their area and local places of interest.

Interests

• poetry
• performing arts
• dancing
• swing dancing
• ballroom dancing
• cooking
• baking
• yoga
• flying
• gardening
• live music
• hiking
• zip-line
• nature
• comedy
• meeting new people
• botanical gardens
• improv comedy

Music, Movies, and Books

Music: Mozart, Sting, KD Lang (what a voice), Dixie Chicks for dancing, many others. My parrot likes beatboxing.
Movies: Incredible Lightness of Being, Ordinary People (ruined Pachelbel's Canon in D for me), The Piano, Phantom Thread, To Kill a Mockingbird, Blade Runner, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (give me Tennessee Williams any day, what a tortured, talented writer).
Books: Too many. Latest are OneL by Scott Turow (took me back to grad school, wound me up tight), All the Light We Cannot See (purest prose in fiction I've ever read), and Attached (attachment styles). The books I revisit most are poetry (Billy Collins, Sharon Olds, Mary Oliver, Margaret Atwood).
I don't watch TV, so I have plenty of time to read.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I did a seven-pitch climb with a guy I had just met in Australia, on a rock that was crumbly. That rock is now illegal to climb because it's dangerous. It was the longest climb I've ever done, and I faced my three greatest fears that day. It was a life event for me.

Teach, Learn, Share

I can share poetry, yoga lessons, and I've taught knitting to many people. I'm a Master Gardener and probably know what's going wrong with the leaves on your plant. I can help cook. I'm a life coach and pretty good listener. I'm always up for learning something new. I can share travel stories!

What I Can Share with Hosts

I have some fun stories, and I can *always* share poetry. I can cook or keep you entertained while you cook. :-)

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Germany, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Northern Ireland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Russian Federation, Scotland, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, Virgin Islands, U.S., Wales

Countries I’ve Lived In

Costa Rica, Spain, United States