Hey everyone! My name is Marleen, i'm 36 years old and from The Netherlands. Back home i'm a teacher education in Dutch which means that i teach Dutch language to high school students. In 2008 i started to explore different countries. What i like about travelling is the opportunity to meet so much fun and good people in every country. Since March 2021 i'm travelling around the world for undetermined time. I started in the USA, bought a car and traveled around the states for half a year. Then i sold the car and went to Brazil for almost three months.

Since December 2021 i was in Cape Town and prepared a roadtrip through South Africa, East Africa and the Middle East in my own 4x4 vehicle. I ended up driving for 27.000 kilometer all the way to Greece, sold my truck there and continued travelling with a backpack. In April 2023 i flew from Athens to Colombo. After one month in Sri Lanka i went to Indonesia and the Philippines and lived in Bali for eight months. Currently travelling in Morocco, which is my last destination before going back home, after three years on a trip around the world.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

To meet people from all over the world. Get a better and deeper understanding of different cultures, religions, character and habits of locals.

After travelling for two years non stop, i started to realise that i'm still on the road because of all the wonderful people who hosted me. This would never have been possible or enjoyable if people weren't this welcoming and hospitable. My trip is not over yet and i hope to connect with even more people. It makes the world a better place, where people with different backgrounds meet. I'm very grateful that already so many hosts offered a place to stay and that they trusted me, even before we met. It's not something that should be taken for granted. At the end people let a stranger in their personal life and space, this requires a lot of courage and self confidence.

Interests

Music, movies, cooking, coffee, cocktails, backpacking, festivals, running, hiking, snorkeling, diving, horseback riding, the beach and sea, wildlife, landscapes, photography, overlanding.

Music, Movies, and Books

The Revenant, Django Unchained, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Inglourious Bastards, Snatch, Fight Club, Killing Them Softly, The Shawshank Redemption, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Troy, Meet Joe Black, What's Eating Gilbert Grape, Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, Legends of the Fall, Ocean's Eleven, The Bodyguard, Seven years in Tibet, Touching the Void, Braveheart, Gladiator, Titanic, The Beach, The Wolf of Wall Street, Kalifornia, The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, Conquest of Paradise.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Driving for 27.000 kilometer in my own 4x4 truck through South Africa, East Africa and the Middle East. 🛻

Swimming in bioluminescent plankton waters in Jamaica. 💫

Watching a herd of bison crossing the road in Yellowstone national park. 🦬

Having a close encounter with a proud mother dolphin and her baby in the wild.🐬

Hanging out with a mother jaguar and her two cubs near a river bank in Pantanal national park.🐆

Visiting the magical nursing home from the movie 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button' in New Orleans. 🏫

Going on a guided tour at the Ohio State Reformatory where the movie 'The Shawshank Redemption' was filmed. 🏰 🗝

Waking up in the morning in the back of my truck, three meters from a Zambian river, surrounded by elephants, hippos and crocs. 🐘

Visiting Caño Cristales, a Colombian river in the Meta province. The river is commonly called the 'River of Five Colors' or the 'Liquid Rainbow' and is noted for its striking colors. Nowhere else on earth you can find this natural phenomenon. 🌈

Joining a jelly wrestling party in Australia. A video of this hilarious competition of me wrestling with a girl from England is on YouTube. After wrestling with four different girls, each two rounds, i won the jelly wrestling competition. The winner's prize was a tour wildwater rafting and $100 cash 😉

What I Can Share with Hosts

Share travel experiences and inspire each other, laugh about funny stories that happened in the past, cook a healthy meal, drink coffee and eat desert together, watch a movie or serie we both like, take care of your pet if you have one, guard the house when you're out, tell about my home country and it's language. Listen to anything you would like to share with me.

Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Curaçao, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, England, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, Laos, Lesotho, Malawi, Mexico, Morocco, Myanmar, Namibia, Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles, New Zealand, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey, United States, Viet Nam, Zambia

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, Curaçao, Indonesia, Netherlands, South Africa