CURRENT MISSION

Smile, thank God and find happiness in the little things

ABOUT ME

I was born and raised in Uruguay, but right now I am studying in California.

I studied Political Science and International Relations, focusing on Latin America, and I am a happy nerd. :) I love everything that has to do with politics and the world, different cultures, religions, ways of life... I don´t think there is anything I am not curious about, I could talk hours about anything under the sun!

I can´t spend a day without thinking about travels. My backpack - La Galleguiña - is always by my side, waiting for the next adventure! When I spend a few months without traveling I start to feel a bit claustrophobic which sometimes results in me doing spontaneous trips to Mexico or Croatia, or simply not being able to concentrate on anything else until I set the departure date on my calendar.

Countdowns to travels are my friends. They just make everything more exciting, motivate me while I wait to leave and make the trip that much more fun.
I work to travel, and plan to do so for the rest of my life. It´s a cliché, but it is true that there is no better way to spend money than to travel. I wholeheartedly refute the saying that "traveling is only for the rich"

I am not a fan of touristy places full of souvenirs, crowds and people taking pictures of things "because they are famous" without knowing the meaning behind them, and prefer to avoid hotels and places that look exactly the same in every other part of the world. I like to travel and learn from the people that live there, eat what they eat, go to the places they go to, and do what they do.... which I why I love the idea of CS!

PHILOSOPHY

"No tenemos en nuestras manos las soluciones para los problemas del mundo. Pero frente a los problemas del mundo, tenemos nuestras manos. Cuando el Dios de la historia venga, nos mirará las manos.

El hombre de la tierra no tiene el poder de suscitar la primavera. Pero tiene la oportunidad de comprometer sus manos con la primavera. Y así que la primavera lo encuentra sembrando. Pero no sembrando la primavera; sino sembrando la tierra para la primavera. Porque cada semilla, cada vida que en el tiempo de invierno se entrega a la tierra, es un regalo que se hace a la primavera. Es un comprometer las manos con la historia.

Sólo el hombre en quien el invierno no ha asesinado la esperanza, es un hombre con capacidad de sembrar. El contacto con la tierra engendra en el hombre la esperanza. Porque la tierra es fundamentalmente el ser que espera. Es profundamente intuitiva en su espera de la primavera, porque en ella anida la experiencia de los ciclos de la historia que ha ido haciendo avanzar la vida en sucesivas primaveras parciales.

El sembrador sabe que ese puñado de trigo ha avanzado hasta sus mansos de primavera en primavera, de generación en generación, superando los yuyales, dejándolos atrás. Una cadena ininterrumpida de manos comprometidas ha hecho llegar hasta sus manos comprometidas, esa vida que ha de ser pan.

En este momento de salida del invierno latinoamericano es fundamental el compromiso de siembra. Lo que ahora se siembra, se hunde, se entrega, eso será lo que verdeará en la primavera que viene. Si comprometemos nuestras manos con el odio, el miedo, la violencia vengadora, el incendio de los pajonales, el pueblo nuevo sólo tendrá cenizas para alimentarse. Será una primavera de tierras arrasadas donde sólo sobrevivirán los yuyos más fuertes o las semillas invasoras de afueras.

Tenemos que comprometer nuestras manos en la siembras. Que la madrugada nos encuentre sembrando. Crear pequeños tablones sembrados con cariño, con verdad, con desinterés, jugándonos limpiamente por la luz en la penumbra del amanecer. Trabajo simple que nadie verá y que no será noticia. Porque la única noticia auténtica de la siembra la da sólo la tierra y su historia, y se llama cosecha. En las mesas se llama pan.

Si en cada tablón de nuestro pueblo cuatro hombres o mujeres se comprometen en esa siembra humilde, para cuando amanezca tendremos pan para todos. Porque nuestra tierra es fértil. Tendremos pan y pan para regalar a todos los hombres del mundo que quieran habitar en nuestro suelo.

Si amamos nuestra tierra, que la mañana nos pille sembrando."

-Mamerto Menapace

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

Right now I am studying and cannot host, but hopefully soon I will be able to!!!

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

ABSOLUTELY IN LOVE!!! HIGHLY recommend it to all my friends!! It opened a whole new world for me and completely changed my trips! Thank you, thank you Couchsurfing!!

Interests

Photography - because it makes me happy and it changes the way I see the world. Since I bought my first camera I pay attention to details that otherwise I would not see and appreciate the places I travel to in a different light. (http://magdafitipaldi.wix.com/relatos-andantes)

MUSIC - always, everyday, any kind, it´s essential.

Travel - obviously... :)

I love spending time with friends and big, loud, crazy family reunions are the best things on the planet... but I am perfectly content being in silence, sitting alone, thinking, writing, preferably by the water and with the sun shining... that just makes me happy.

Sunsets - I have a serious obsession with them.

Politics - will talk, read, listen to and watch politics all day, every day.

Religion - I am Catholic and my faith is a fundamental part of my life. But I find other religions fascinating and love to learn about the religious practices of others, in fact I believe that in order to truly understand one´s own beliefs, we have to know what other religions teach, because when you really sit down and look at there world´s religions, there is more that they share than what differentiate them.

• animals
• birds
• writing
• photography
• boating
• politics
• traveling
• music
• backpacking
• international relations
• political science
• religion
• science

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I spent my 20th birthday in a litte boat on the Nile River, under Murchison Falls, with crocodiles a few meters away and elephants, waterbuffalos, giraffes, colorful birds and a whole jungle full of animals on shore.

Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Chile, Croatia, Cuba, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Uganda, United Kingdom, Uruguay

Countries I’ve Lived In

Spain, United States, Uruguay