Hi, my name is Mary Kate (yes, like the Olsen twin). I just graduated from college in Texas and decided to take some time to see the world before I start working and travel gets difficult. I would also love to live abroad full-time, but so far it hasn't panned out with my job search.

I'm originally from a small town in Midwest USA. We had a lot of cornfields and not much else. I spent a lot of years working in that corn to save up. I went to a boarding school for nerds for high school, and after graduation headed down to Dallas, Texas to study Marketing and German at university.

I've been pretty lucky so far with traveling. I spent a semester in Austria and a summer interning in South Africa. While living both places I was able to take a lot of side trips to other countries in Europe and Africa, which was amazing.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I heard about this website from a friend, and I thought I would try it out since I'll be doing some traveling soon. It seems like a really awesome way to meet locals who are interested in meeting travelers. I like to travel by myself, but the best part of traveling is the people you meet because they are what make the visit authentic.

Interests

• reading
• hiking
• kayaking
• swimming
• eating
• beach volleyball
• dancing (poorly)

Music, Movies, and Books

When it comes to music, I'm really not up to date. I like Pat Benatar, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Toto, Outfield, Goo Goo Dolls, Phil Collins, Beach Boys, etc. Basically, my favorite Pandora station is "80s Throwback, 90s Comeback."

I love to read. I used to read a book a day when I was little, and since I've had the time recently, I've been reading almost as much. My favorites are fantasy/sci-fi series. Harry Potter of course, recently the Jackaby series, books by Tamora Pierce, Percy Jackson, and I still love Artemis Fowl and the Ranger's Apprentice (even if I've aged out of them a little bit). Brandon Sanderson and Joe Abercrombie are also favorites.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Botswana, Canada, Cayman Islands, Croatia, England, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Mexico, Norway, Scotland, South Africa, Sweden, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Countries I’ve Lived In

Austria, United States