Hello! My name is Rachel and I was born and raised in Los Angeles, California, but have spent a large chunk of my recent life traveling, and now have been living in Aotearoa / New Zealand for 2 years with my beautiful partner. Throughout my short 27 years of life I have been to more than 50 countries-- I am an avid adventurer and photographer and am always seeking new places to do both of these :) Last but not least you should know that I am fully Deaf but am open-minded to all forms of communication, and hope that you will be too. We can all learn something from trying new things and meeting people of different backgrounds.

If you're curious about my photography work, you can check me out on Instagram: www.instagram.com/littlerachbigworld

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Throughout college I travelled as much as I could during all summer and winter breaks, and sometime during these trips I fell in love with the concept of Couchsurfing. I was never a big fan of hotels or even hostels because there are way too many people and I always much rather enjoy one-on-one conversations, so Couchsurfing has become my go-to form of accommodation.

Interests

Hiking, swimming, trying new foods, learning new things, meeting new people, photography, any kind of adventure!

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Being able to couchsurf with over 30 different hosts during my 4 month trip through Europe :) thanks to you all who made this possible!

Teach, Learn, Share

I hope to meet and stay with people that are open to learning sign language and Deaf culture- I would love to learn more about your culture in return! I also absolutely love love walking around towns, taking photographs of beautiful sights, listening to wonderful stories, and exploring new places.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I love to go out and explore untravelled routes with my hosts/surfers whenever possible, and would love to teach hosts/surfers some Sign Language, exchange backpacking and travel stories, and have a friendly discussion about politics :)

Countries I’ve Visited

Albania, Austria, Belgium, Belize, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, England, France, Germany, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Kosovo, Liechtenstein, Macao, Macedonia, Mexico, Montenegro, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Togo, Turkey, United States, Vatican City State

Countries I’ve Lived In

New Zealand, United States