CURRENT MISSION

To attend as many of the nice summer festivals in Belgium.

ABOUT ME

I'm 27 (although I've decided to stay 25 all my life) and I live in the Flemish speaking part in a small town 35 km of Antwerp. I'm an English teacher in a secondary school so I have a lot of spare time on my hands to travel. As Belgium is quite small and doesn't have such an exotic climate I must go abroad every summer or I'll go crazy!
Besides travelling I like speaking different languages (especially Spanish), playing volleyball, ping pong, poker, salsa dancing and all kinds of exotic rhythms (the biggest Caribbean festival in the world takes place in my hometown yearly every second weekend of August!), bar hopping, sleeping in and eating (especially eating out in pizzerias and tapas bars!).
We have a spare room and although we don't live in Antwerp city, it's easy to reach by train (23 min). We live close to the border with Holland so it's a good location if you want to visit The Netherlands and Belgium in one day!

PHILOSOPHY

It's better to regret something you did than something you didn't do.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

Offering my couch and company to people who want to get to know and understand the complexity of a small country called Belgium (and its excellent national dish : mussels with fries accompanied by a bottle of excellent Belgian beer ...mmmmmm)

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

During my trip through Cuba I always spent the night with the local people which I find very interesting because you can really get to know the culture and habits of the locals and get to know the best places in that country or town to visit. Staying with and talking to the local people always gives me the feeling I'm not missing out on anything and instead getting to know a place well. Hotels (definitely all-in places) give me the creeps (too many touristy people who have no respect for their holiday destination)and I intend never to stay in these horrible mass tourist accommodations unless there is no other option.

Interests

• culture
• festivals
• dancing
• salsa dancing
• beer
• traveling
• eating out
• poker
• volleyball
• table tennis
• teaching
• languages

Music, Movies, and Books

I especially like salsa and all kinds of latin music (Buena Vista Social Club, Orishas, Manu Chao, Tattoo del Tigre, Gabriel Rios...) but I listen to a lot of 'black' music (Lauren Hill, Fugees, Seal, John Legend, De La Soul, Postmen, Ella Fitzgerald...)and alternative Belgian bands (Admiral Freebee, dEUS, Novastar, Sara Bettens...)and international (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Eels, Coldplay...).
Some of my favourite movies are Amélie Poulain, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Dancer in The Dark and Monthy Python's The Quest For The Holy Grail/Life of Brian. I'm a huge fan of American series such as Friends, Desperate Housewives and Sex in The City.

Teach, Learn, Share

My knowledge about my country and culture and my travelling experiences so far.
I would really like to improve my salsa dancing skills but my husband is really fed up with it (which is inherent to the male race- or at least the Belgian males I'm afraid...)

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, Cuba, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, Spain, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

Belgium, Spain