Hello! I'm Paulina and I was born and raised in Southern California (to Chinese parents) but lived in the Philippines for 13 years of my young life. It's quite the confusing cultural mix all in one person! It's great since during family dinners, we speak at least 3 different languages (Tagalog, English, Fukien- which is a dialect of Chinese) all mixed together.

I'm currently a graduate student and a recent Milwaukee transplant.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Couchsurfing connects me with locals and locals usually know the best places to eat. Food brings people together so Couchsurfing is basically a way to make friends and find amazing eats at the same time.

Interests

My interests include:
coffee, chocolate, and desserts,
skyscanner.net,
learning new languages (currently learning Spanish and Mandarin),
hiking,
having deep conversations,
eating local food,
traveling.

• dining
• chocolate
• beer
• coffee
• desserts
• drinking
• traveling
• hiking
• backpacking
• languages

Music, Movies, and Books

I'm a proud Potterhead and I'm a Lord of the Rings fan! But if a movie can make me laugh, cry, or reflect about existencial thoughts, it's pretty much a good movie.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Studying abroad and traveling solo.

I've backpacked across Spain for 25 days with all my things shoved into a 20 pound backpack, catching rides with locals, couchsurfing, and of course, sharing a drink or 2 at the local bars.

I spent 2 weeks in Testerazo, Mexico when I was 15, building houses and teaching the kids how to speak English. Now that I think about it, they probably taught me more Spanish than I did English.

I moved to a completely different country at the age of 13. I moved from the Philippines to California with raging hormones, a teenage attitude, and well, with everything that comes at you at that age, I'd say it pretty amazing that I've lived through that.

Teach, Learn, Share

Teach how to love
Learn about other cultures
Share laughter

What I Can Share with Hosts

We can share lots of laughters (we'll work through the awkward moments), a cup of coffee or perhaps a glass of beer and a multilingual conversation.

Countries I’ve Visited

Belgium, Canada, Hong Kong, Mexico, Morocco, Philippines, Portugal, Spain

Countries I’ve Lived In

Philippines, Spain, United States