Update 2019/20

Hello, hello! My name is Olalla and I come from a tiny village in Galicia, in North West Spain. Since I was a kid my dream has always been to travel the world and discover the incredible cultures and languages of the globe. During and right after my University degree in Translation I spent two great years living in France (Strasbourg and Clermont-Ferrand) and during my early 20's I travelled the whole of Europe and a bit of Canada and the States.

At the end of 2015 my life totally changed when I discovered the Erasmus+, youth work and non formal education worlds. In early 2017 I moved to Tallinn, Estonia with my partner and for over 3 years now I have been working in the field of youth work through our network of youth organizations Shokkin Group International.

We work and live on the go, implementing projects for youth and youth workers all over Europe. In early 2018 we decided that we would take a break and travel around the world for as much as work could give us. The result? Almost 3 months backpacking through Cuba,México, the US, Hong Kong, Japan and South East Asia which became a reality in December 2018!

We are outgoing people, we are used to work with and for international team. Pavel speaks English, Russian and Estonian, and me, Galician, Spanish, French and English. The language combination allows us to communicate smoothly almost everywhere in the world, which we enjoy.

Pavel loves cooking (specially Mexican, Indian and Thai dishes) and I love dogs and maps! :) With that trip we wanted to proof ourselves that it is possible to travel around the world without being rich, by taking only our small backpacks and moving around in a tight budget. We met and shared time with incredible people, mostly locals, and we are looking forward to doing the same with you!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

When I was younger I used to be kind of shy, but when I started to travel with a small budget and, therefore, to use alternatives to hostels, I discovered that there is so much fun in getting to know new people and different points of view and that I think it is really interesting to stay with locals and share experiences. =)

Interests

I love languages, trying new food (you can really make my day with new food) and getting to know new cultures and interests; pushing myself out of my comfort zone and of course, as any other person in Couchsurfing: Travelling! ^^

• culture
• graphic design
• cooking
• traveling
• hiking
• emergency services
• languages
• youth work
• graphic facilitation

Music, Movies, and Books

I get totally boost up with metalcore bands such as Stick to Your Guns, Architects, Bury Tomorrow, etc., but I do love it when people show me other things and make get out of my "musical comfort zone". I've made great discoverings thanks to that. In general, I think any kind of music is great when it's played live.

When it comes to books, I am a super fan of the Catalan author Carlos Ruiz Zafón and his colection "The shadow of the wind", totally incredible!

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Uf! So many amazing things have happened in the last few years! Hitchiking, living in Georgia (Caucasus), implementing my own youth projects, learning Russian, become a God-mother and the most recent: travel for 3 months with a 6 kg backpack and with no laptop! (I love what I do, so I've turned into a bit of an workaholic!).

In general, the most amazing thing that a person can ever do is enjoy life.

Teach, Learn, Share

I love to do the three of them.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Together with Pavel, my partner, we can talk for hours about our work in the Erasmus+ world, non formal education, youth work and the kind. We have a thousand anecdotes and stories from our work and trips!

Pavel has lived in the UK and Sweden, and travelling in SE Asia and South America, while I have been living in France and travel also in Canada for a longer time.

As we love cooking, we can for sure prepare some good recipes and enjoy together! :)

Countries I’ve Visited

Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cuba, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macao, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russian Federation, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, Vatican City State

Countries I’ve Lived In

Estonia, France, Georgia, Hungary, Spain