Hi, I'm Vanessa. I'm an Australian woman based in Iraq, Egypt, and Australia. I currently work on an oilfield in the south of Iraq, where I work as a training and assessment consultant. At the moment I don't really have a permanent home as I travel so much and stay on the oilfield for two months at a time.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

To meet people and experience the normal, everyday life when I'm in a new city. Make new friends and get to know other like-minded people with similar people.

Interests

My interests are mixed, and I like different things. I like the arts. I like to play around with photography. When in a new place, my first stop is the museum to find out about the history of a place. Also, I like getting closer to nature, hiking, mountains, rivers, etc. I like dining in restaurants, nice drinks, beautiful scenery, shopping, and visiting historic places. My interests are diverse.

• performing arts
• fashion
• modern art
• dining
• red wine
• white wine
• fine dining
• yoga
• shopping
• politics
• traveling
• socializing
• hiking
• sports
• history
• political science
• public policy
• rivers
• mountains
• travel
• gym
• aerobics
• media

Music, Movies, and Books

I read a lot, watch many movies and listen to music. I enjoy watching biopics and documentaries. Some recent movies I've watched are Maria, about the opera singer Maria Callas, and The Apprentice, about how Donald Trump got his start in Manhattan being mentored by Roy Cohn. As for books, I like to read 50 pages per day. I'm currently reading Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands. I read a variety of fiction, non-fiction and memoirs. I read the Constance Wu memoir recently, which was really good, too, and popular fiction books like Slow Dance and Yellowface

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I do amazing things every day! Too much to recount here.

I've worked as an English teacher in schools and universities in different countries. I think I have been to like 30 different countries I lost count.

I've worked as a freelance journalist and photographer and like to publish my photos where ever I can.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Just some nice company for a few days. Sometimes, I don't mind going out and doing something; other times, I prefer to hang out alone. I don't smoke and rarely drink. I like to go to bed early as I have a full-time job and am used to the routine of getting up and going to work.

Countries I’ve Visited

Cyprus, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Pakistan, Qatar, Timor-Leste (East Timor), Turkey, United Arab Emirates

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, Egypt, Iraq, Turkey