I‘m Maria, 23, from Berlin, Germany. I just graduated from university (fashion and designmanagement with the focus on sutainability). Before I will start my masters next September I decided to travel for 5 months mainly around South America and also to NYC. What I love about traveling is getting to know different cultures and ways of life, meeting new people, sharing experiences, opinions and to challenge myself. That’s why I prefer to travel alone. I‘m very passionate about sustainability both in my personal life but also in my career. My vision is to use fashion as a force for positive change in the world. I would like to start my own business someday. What is more I love to practice yoga and meditation. I am a real book worm, I love reading, informing myself on various topics and trying out new things. Also I really like to go out and enjoy the nightlife especially in Berlin. My main interest include art, culture, history and philosophy.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I have signed to the website a few years ago and never used it. While traveling I meet so many people who told me about their experiences therefore I really wanted to give it a try. I like the idea of staying with someone who actually lives in a city and therefore has a good knowledge about the place and the living there. I don‘t like the typical tourist stuff and prefer getting to know a city by going to local areas, visiting museums, going to second hand markets and reading in cafés instead of only going to all the popular sights. What else I think it is great to get to know and meet new people and I think that everyone can benefit from this cultural exchange.

Interests

• literature
• music festivals
• yoga
• meditation
• sustainability
• sustainable development
• art museums
• sustainable living
• history and culture

Music, Movies, and Books

Favorite authors: Hermann Hesse, Erich Fromm, Milan Kundera, Eckardt Tolle...

My music taste is pretty diverse. I really like to listen to a lot of indie music. For going out I prefer electronic music mostly house. I also like to listen to Jazz, Ambient and German Rap (Yung Hurn, Hayiti and Rin)

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Spending 4 days in silence in an old monastery.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I can teach you some German hehe. Would love to share a good talk and cook you some delicious vegan meal :)

Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Netherlands, Peru, Poland, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, United States