CURRENT MISSION

Learn by travel, stay open, be able to speak to others in their language

ABOUT ME

Serious, but fun-loving too. I value friendship and try to be a good, caring friend. I enjoy meeting new people and sharing ideas and experiences. Open to new things. I enjoy time with my son and traveling and sharing with my husband, Jim. I enjoy the work I do for pay (mental health counselling and teaching--English and Second Language English) and the work I do to be involved in things I believe in (e.g. immigrant rights in the U. S.)

PHILOSOPHY

Life is short, so enjoy, but be there for others. I want to be a good friend, and to have good friends. It´s important to develop a feeling of community where you live and with the people who are important to you.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

Making new friends through Couchsurfing and staying in touch with them. Hope to develop a more world-wide network of friends by visiting new people on my travels and hosting visitors to Berkeley and San Francisco, California.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Just starting CouchSurfing, but I have caught the enthusiasm of the people who have hosted me on this South America trip. They have welcomed Jim and I as family and friends. They have shared what CouchSurfing has meant to them and now I am excited to participate fully and begin to host CouchSurfers when we return home from this trip.

Interests

I love to study Spanish and would love to learn Portuguese and visit Brazil. I like to go out with friends to hear live music, have nice meals, travel to meet people from different cultures. I like to read, see movies (especially foreign films) and go to theater and museums. I enjoy camping and hiking and spending time in the mountains at our cabin in the California Sierras.

• theater
• movies
• traveling
• socializing
• music
• live music
• hiking
• camping
• mountains

Music, Movies, and Books

I play a variety of instruments (though none really well) and love to listen to live music in small clubs. I like many kinds of music from folk to blues to jazz to world music, etc. I have been reading many books in Spanish to improve my language ability and because there are so many wonderful Latin American writers. Movies are great, but I usually prefer foreign films to American films.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Travelled alone in South America when I was young and gained self-confidence from that experience that has never left me. None of my friends or acquaintances had ever done something like that.

Teach, Learn, Share

Since I am older than many other Couchsurfers I have life experience to share, such as the importance of taking on only work that you value and enjoy and in which you find meaning. I have been able to include my son in my activities such as travel and he has gained an appreciation of other countries and people and as a result enjoyed being in the Peace Corps in Guatemala.

Countries I’ve Visited

Cambodia, China, France, Greece, India, Indonesia, Italy, Laos, Malaysia, Mexico, Nepal, Netherlands, Spain, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States

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