CURRENT MISSION

Kickin' it in Madison.. explore the US. Then take on some more adventures abroad.

ABOUT ME

Right now I'm living in Madison, Wisconsin.. never thought I'd end up here. Born and raised from Minnesota, didn't think I'd end up in a rival state :) I majored in French and Asian Studies, and hope eventually that my interests lead me to living and working abroad.
I spent last fall semester in Rabat, living with a host family. I also spent a wonderful semester in China in '09 where I studied Mandarin Chinese, as well as Chinese history & culture. I love studying foreign languages and using my language skills in every day life. Meeting new people and using my (sometimes pitiful) language skills are my favorite parts about traveling.

I love talking, philosophizing, and sharing adventures. I like climbing mountains, and I like drinking coffee. I like seeing all the sites, and I like visiting the small market scenes. I like walking through the mud and I like wearing cute dresses. I like hugging and I like a firm handshake. There isn't much about life that I don't like. I even like being pensive and thinking about the more gloomy aspects of life. It's not that I take joy in the negative, but analyzing it gives me a better understanding of my surroundings as well as what I can do to make things better. I like doing 'weird' things and having 'weird' conversations. All the better!

Check out my travel blog at Thoughts.com (it's about the only blog service that hasn't been blocked by China's censorship of online free speech). My profile name is sarschilover1.

PHILOSOPHY

I philosophize a lot when I'm by myself, or when I want to analyze a person, situation or event.. Though truly up until this point I haven't ever been asked what my *personal* philosophy is. I guess that means I'm somewhere along the lines of 'let life happen. know what you want, but be open to what may come.' I like Eleanor Roosevelt's take on it... "The purpose of life, after all, is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experiences.” I also like this one, and agree with it 100%: "Happiness is not a goal; it is a by-product". That is a perfect description of my life. When I don't doggedly seek out happiness, I end up finding it ... when I just loosen my grip on life. Life is crazy and can throw major sticks in your wheels, but you just have to take it for what it is and keep going. :)

I am a very introverted person as well as extremely extroverted. Contradictory, perhaps, as well. :P I am pensive, and when alone think myself into melancholy. I think about my life, and I think about the world. I think about what I can do about it, and about how little power I really have. I have a lot of worries, and a lot of fears for the future, especially for the elusive nature of happiness. Why is one euphoric at one moment, and then intensely lonely and isolated at another? If I could press the "PAUSE" button on my life right now, to keep myself at my (albeit sometimes "emo") current level of happiness, I would do it in a heartbeat. I have had many a conversation about this, and my favorite answer so far has been from my boyfriend - We both agree that for some people, it isn't possible to be happy all the time, but is it important to feel contentment and to take life one day at a time. Why I worry that maybe my happiness level will change is beyond me. I feel that living in the moment is the best way to sustain the same, upbeat lifestyle. I guess we all have our own quirks. :P My wonderful friend Morgan described me once as an 'old soul,' and I love the term. It fits :)

My extroverted side is obviously the most visible, and is just as real as my introverted side as well as is more present. I have the most amazing friends, and love doing things with them. I live my life around people. When I have close personal interactions I feel the most fulfilled. I love talking (go figure). I love discussion. I love analyzing just about anything, especially going out and doing things I never thought I was capable of on a whim. Living abroad so far is more like a fantasy than reality, and it has been an interesting an opening experience.. I hope for any more!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

Right now I might be able to offer you my couch. I'm on the west side of Madison in a cute little apartment with my roommate from work. As for other participation with couch surfing, I went to a few couchsurfing meetings at the Bell Bar in Shanghai, and that's how I got involved. I was able to couch surf in Asia and I really enjoyed it. 2 of my friends and I went on a wooonderful trip to Korea, and stayed with two different couchsurfers. In Morocco couchsurfing wasn't a possibility.. culturally couchsurfing takes a whole different meaning there. :)

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Drinks:
I was introduced to the experience by my couchsurfing friends in Shanghai. I met with other couch surfers in the area after arriving in Shanghai, usually going out for drinks. The Bell Bar is a great place to go on Tuesday nights to meet other CSers!
Surfing:
I went on a trip to Korea with my friends Roxane and Flo (both on couchurfing), and we stayed with Tony and Heeny Medina as well as Hank Chay. Both wonderful experiences. We also met 2 new friends who were surfing, Boris and Manus, whom we hosted when they came to Shanghai!

Interests

I was a competitive Alpine skier throughout all of highschool and the first 2 years of college. I also am a softball player, was on the college team for a while and love playing beer league at home. I love being active and doing outdoor activities like camping, fishing, and exploring new places. I also love art and work mainly with acrylic on canvas. I have a website (www.mnartists.org/Sarah_Bottjen) that has descriptions of most of my paintings. I also love scrapbooking. Hah. It's a bit of an obsession. I have often described myself as an old person stuffed into a young person's body.. I like card games like bridge and canasta.
Another passion I have recently discovered is cooking. Travel channel is my favorite TV show; go figure.. but I like the cooking shows, too.
I've studied French for about the past 10 years. I still speak with a Canadian accent, but it fits me well. I am a French major, but also am majoring in Asian Studies, and have studied Chinese for a bit over 3 years. cultures.

• arts
• culture
• cooking
• beer
• coffee
• walking
• drinking
• tv
• traveling
• blogging
• scrapbooking
• outdoor activities
• fishing
• camping
• surfing
• skiing
• rock climbing
• softball
• history
• languages
• mountains

Music, Movies, and Books

Films: Everything is Illuminated, Kung Fu Hustle, Shultz gets the Blues

Music: Everything! I am an Indochine fan at heart <3.

As for books, I have been really busy the past few years with school and haven't read much more than what was required of me there. I will update this once I think about it more. I guess one that immediately comes to mind is Crime and Punishment. Love it! I also like Ovid's Metamorphosis, I can't help it, but Harry Potter as well. I've got more they're just taking a while to come to me.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I am ordinary, but have done many things that I am so grateful to have experienced.

Teach, Learn, Share

Let's get to know each other - then I will know how to answer this one! Everyone learns a different way, and everyone has different things to teach. I love questions, because I love finding out how people think. Hopefully if you meet me, you also will have something to ask.

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, China, France, Haiti, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Virgin Islands, U.S.

Countries I’ve Lived In

China, Morocco, United States

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