CURRENT MISSION

To dance as much as possible and practice all my languages

ABOUT ME

The categories below were pretty thorough, but let's see what else the world should know about me…

I'm very excited to be taking my first trip to Brazil! I've studied Portuguese for seven years, focused my undergraduate studies on contemporary Brazil, and have made many Brazilian friends, but have never been to the country itself. I'm looking forward to practicing my Portuguese and seeing all the people, places, and phenomenon I've read so much about. I think that I have more knowledge of Brazil and more realistic expectations than the average traveler, but we'll see :-)

In addition to speaking decent Portuguese, I'm fluent in Spanish and can speak basic level French.

I've lived in Southern California, the Bay Area, and Washington DC. As a child, I spent a lot of time in Baja California and have road tripped throughout California, New Mexico, Utah, Colorado, New York, Virginia, Delaware, Maryland, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Georgia. I've also traveled in the Hawaiian Islands, the Azores, mainland Portugal, Spain, Mexico, and Costa Rica.

I like to think that I am a fun person to hang out with :-) I can talk for hours about any topic imaginable, but sometimes prefer to listen and observe. As a guest, being open-minded and respectful are my top priorities. As a traveler, I try to balance preparation and good sense with a healthy dose of spontaneity. In other words… I'm game!

PHILOSOPHY

Be flexible. There's no one right way to do anything, and if I choose to stress out every time I don't get things my way, I'm just going to be stressed out all the time.

Be mindful. So often we get caught up in where we are going and what we have to do, that we don't stop to live our lives. When I travel, I don't have a big list of things to see. It's more important to me to observe, talk to people, and actually experience where I am.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

While traveling, I love to stay at people's homes. If my host is really busy, I can be as unobtrusive as possible. However, if my host is open to it, I love to have meals with people, chat, meet their friends and family, and/or explore their city.

When I'm home, either in San Francisco or Southern California, I would love to host couch surfers. I have five roommates were I live in San Francisco, so I do have to coordinate guests with them. If our house is already full, I would also be more than happy to meet up with people to show them around the city.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

No formal experience, at this time. However, the house I grew up in was always full of family members, friends, and friends of friends. I also lived in a 64-person cooperative house for three years, so I have lots of experience living in sharing with others. My current home has six occupants, and in addition to operating like a family and sharing food, we are always hosting guests.

Interests

All types of dancing (my newest interest is Brazilian forrò)
Learning how to say silly things in other languages
Environmental science, permaculture, environmental justice
Honey Badgers
Poetry
Cooperative businesses and communities, alternative communities
Anything involving the ocean
Alternative healing practices

• poetry
• dancing
• dining
• running
• boating
• traveling
• camping
• languages
• science
• beaches

Music, Movies, and Books

Music: Ojos de Brujo, Chopin, Brahms, Fleetwood Mac, Caravan Palace, Calvin Harris, Shakira

Books: Season of Migration to the North, the Poisonwood Bible, House of Leaves, Contos Negreiros,Delirio, anything by Sharon Olds or Sylvia Plath, the Hunger Games, Galilea, Gabriele Garcia Marquez's short stories, Julio Cortazar

Movies: Rachel Getting Married, Kingdom of Heaven, Ever After, L'Haine, the Hunger Games, XXY

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I've traveled to a place on the Baja Peninsula where the gray whales migrate to have their babies. You camp on the beach and then go out on small motorboats run by the local community. Out in the bay, there are hundreds of whales, and many of them come up to the boat to interact with the humans. Being sprayed by a blowhole, watching a baby play with its mom, and stroking an adult whale while staring directly into its eyes, is one of the most spiritual experiences I've had in my life.

Teach, Learn, Share

Cooperatives: I have a lot of experience living in a cooperative community. I'm skilled at running meetings with large numbers of people where decisions are made democratically, conflict resolution, and providing leadership in tough situations.

I'm good at editing resumes/CVs and cover letters, and helping people prepare for interviews

Public speaking is one of my biggest strengths, and I love to help people get over their fears, prepare for presentations, use humor, and use their bodies and voices effectively

I speak Spanish fluently, Portuguese decently, and French at a basic level

I also know how to make yogurt!