CURRENT MISSION

Experience as many awe-inspiring things as I can before I kick it.

ABOUT ME

I've been living around the world for the past four years and moved to San Francisco from New Zealand in December 2012 to work for a kick ass travel company. Two years later I found myself married and in Germany on a new adventure.

Before Auckland I lived for 2 years in London, a city that stole my heart and inspired my love of travel. I discovered CS when I went to Australia and surfed for 5 weeks with a huge range of fantastic hosts.

PHILOSOPHY

Feel passionate about the things you do every day. Whether it's your job, the place you live, the people who surround you. If you have that, you have everything.

Get out of your comfort zone. Couchsurfing scared the crap out of me at first. As did leaving my life in NZ to travel through Australia. But I know the scarier something is - the more uncomfortable - the more important it is you do it.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I can't get enough! I've met some amazing people, saw and did things I would never have done otherwise and was an active member of the Auckland Couchsurfing community.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I adored each and every one of my hosts and adventures with other Couchsurfers.

I went to the weekly drinks in Auckland, hiked Tongariro, practiced my Spanish, took an art tour of K Rd... all with the fabulous people of Couchsurfing.

Interests

Food, cake, food, books, writing, blogging, travel (duh), photography, yoga, music, hiking, the outdoors... food.

I love to cook, it's one of my all-time favorite things. I bake a lot of cake.

I obviously love to travel, and spent one month backpacking through Europe and another two months doing Australia and the South Island of NZ. I've lived in England, Spain, New Zealand, San Francisco and now Germany.

• fish
• arts
• writing
• books
• photography
• dining
• cooking
• cheese
• yoga
• instructor
• drinking
• traveling
• blogging
• music
• outdoor activities
• fishing
• hiking
• backpacking
• kayaking
• windsurfing
• sports
• rock climbing
• mountains

Music, Movies, and Books

Everything - non fiction, cooking and travel memoirs, YA fiction (because, well, why not?), trashy books, bestsellers. I've been known to obsess over Harry Potter a little bit.

I listen to bands you've probably heard of. I listen to podcasts about baking and run while listening to AC/DC. I try and read everything on the Amazon bestseller list. I will not apologize for my tastes or pretend like I have a well-worn copy of Catcher in the Rye. (I preferred The Help.)

The movie Amelie warmed my soul. As does Love Actually, Little Children, Dogma, Frida, and I've seen Titanic 11 times. Yes. Eleven. When I was a kid I watched Sleepless in Seattle every weekend.

I always have a book and music in my purse as I feel like there's always something good to read or hear.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

The first time I went backpacking solo was one of the rewarding, difficult and humbling experiences of my life.

I will always fondly remember:
1. The cheese in France, the gelato in Italy, the fish in Croatia, the poutine in Canada
2. A fire circus in the middle of New Zealand's forest
3. Hiking the Tongariro crossing
4. Spotting wild kangaroos in the mountains of Southeast Australia
5. A pirate-themed island off the coast of Nainamo, BC
6. Bald eagles in the wild on Vancouver Island
7. Kayaking on my honeymoon in Halong Bay, Vietnam

Teach, Learn, Share

I can teach you yoga (I'm a certified instructor) or how to bake a killer pumpkin pie! I can also talk about writing and creativity all day.

I'm dying to practice my Spanish and love learning new sports like windsurfing and rock climbing. I am not very coordinated but that usually doesn't stop me.

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Croatia, France, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

New Zealand, Spain, United Kingdom, United States

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