Hello! My name is Megan and I am twenty years old. I go to University in Nottingham, England; grew up on the fringes of the Cairngorms in Scotland and lived in Canada and the US from the age of 2-8 years old. I am currently just finishing my third year abroad in Malaysia and am looking to travel around SE Asia in summer.

I am extroverted and love meeting new people and experiencing new things.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I am currently on a year abroad in Malaysia and am lucky enough to have travelled round the world and met a hugely diverse number of people. This has made me appreciate how many more there are to meet and how many places there are to see. I am also one of those annoying people who are actually thoroughly enjoying their degree and don’t ever want to stop learning about it think that travelling is an integral part of social education and I love to travel and meet new people.

I have just started a blog which I am always looking for new material for be it an anecdotal story or an important issue! It's my dream to make a living off of writing someday.http://prolificpondering.com/

Interests

I love adventures. My bucket list is ever growing I'd say I am up for anything fun - no matter how obscure. I am always up for a fun night out. I think cultural exchange is the best way to learn about and see as much of the world as possible. I love the great outdoors and have done quite a lot of trekking in the past. I love animals and have two dogs at home. A fox-red Labrador and an Irish Wolfhound!

• animals
• dogs
• writing
• education
• running
• partying
• traveling
• eating out
• blogging
• outdoor activities
• teaching
• tourism

Music, Movies, and Books

My family all love classical music and we have mini concerts in our house a couple times a year. Throughout my teenage years I was a self proclaimed indie kid for life. Since I have come to uni I have listened to a lot more house, drum and bass and I've even been persuaded to techno and grime on occasion. Day to day I prefer some feel good jazz or soul and sometimes nothing can beat a generic Great British Breakfast playlist.
My music taste is always changing so its very hard to pick a few but I have a couple of songs which are consistently my favourites. They include:
My love my love - Nneka
Muy Tranquilo - Grammatik
Blood Bank - Bon Iver
Send Me On My Way - Rusted Root
Nefeli - Ludvico Einaudi

For anyone who has Spotify this is my profile!
https://open.spotify.com/user/116292486

I have just finished reading 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami which was interesting and weird and wonderful all at the same time. I now have my teeth thoroughly buried into 'The Glass Palace' by Amir Ghosh which tells the history of Burma/Myanmar through the lives of its two protagonists.

Here are a couple of my favourite books/book that have impacted my life:
Grimm's Fairy Tales by the Brothers Grimm: my Dad used to read these to me when I was little before bedtime as well as Hans Christain Anderson. I love fairytales and stories - fantasy or non-fiction.
The Opposite of Loneliness - Marina Keegan
Bird by Bird by Anne Lamont: this is the book that inpsired me to start writing again after much neglect in my teenage years.
Fire Bringer by David Clement Davis: This was my favourite book when I was at school, I must have read it about fifteen times!

On a weekly basis I probably watch more TV shows then Films. A couple of which I follow religiously. I also believe that TED talks are one of the best inventions in recent years and spend a few hours a week browsing through them!

Here are a couple of my favourite of each:
Movies: Harold and Maud, The Jungle Book, Shutter Island, The Bourne Trilogy
TV: Black Sails, Game of Thrones, Sherlock
TED talks:

The danger of a single story - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie https://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story

A Journey through the mind of an Artist - Dustin Yellin
https://www.ted.com/talks/dustin_yellin_a_journey_through_the_mind_of_an_artist

Teach girls bravery, not perfectionism - Reshma Saujani
https://www.ted.com/talks/reshma_saujani_teach_girls_bravery_not_perfection

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

At university I have been very active in the student run charity organisation - Karnival. As part of it I took part in a charity trek in Guatemala - where we climbed 6 volcanoes in a week and raised over £3,000 for a charity called Hope for Children! I went with a group of people I had never met before, to a region I barely know anything about - and had the best time. I think some of the best experiences are those that you least expect!

Teach, Learn, Share

I try my best to keep up with foreign affairs and I have a blog about things that I think are interesting and important. I am always looking for stories/places/people to write about in my blog - from activism to an amusing anecdote. I suppose I have quite good general knowledge on a day to day basis. I am desperate to learn another language but haven't managed to pin one down yet.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I am very talkative and outgoing and I am always up for an adventure, where ever it may be. On the other hand sometimes my favourite thing to do is sit with a cup of tea and have a long chat.

I am Scotland's biggest advocate. I don't think people know that much about it - or that it gets nearly as much tourism as it deserves! I really do live in a very beautiful part of the world. There are some quite distinctive traditions and cultural things I could share with you. For example we have these amazing parties for special occasions like weddings and New Year called ceilidh's. They have a live band and there are Scottish country dances I could show you the steps to so if you visit you'll already be a pro! They're a really good laugh.

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Canada, Denmark, Egypt, England, France, Germany, Guatemala, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, Myanmar, Northern Ireland, Portugal, Romania, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Canada, England, Malaysia, Scotland, United States