Heya I’m Elly, I’m born and raised in the region (originally from Stawell). I live in Horsham which is about 3.5 hours northwest of Melbourne and 4.5 hours south east from Adelaide. I work full time as an Occupational therapist, I love all things food (growing, cooking, eating, photographing), making efforts to reduce my impact on the environment, exercise (running, yoga, walking my beagle), meeting new people from different countries/cultures/backgrounds and exploring nature. This part of Victoria has so many hidden gems that I’ve only come to appreciate in the last few years and I would love to share these with you.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I went couchsurfing just recently (my sisters account) through Scandinavia and have found it to be the most incredible and meaningful experience. Travel is about meeting the local people to gain new perspective on the culture and way of living - something you cannot achieve in a hostel or Airbnb. Connecting and trusting another human is awesome!

Interests

Nature (equally love beaches and mountains), hiking mountains, camping, zero waste principles, vegan food (especially Japanese or Thai), meditation, running, yoga, beer (love Coopers or IPA), herbal teas (licorice root, peppermint are my fave), cappuccinos, thrift shopping, upcycling clothing or random items from tips, holistic health (mental, emotional, physical), travelling, dogs, pigs (wanting to adopt one as a pet), love autumn and spring, I can speak a little bit of German and fluent in bogan Australian. I have an identical twin who lives in London who I’m very close to.

• vegan
• gardening
• thrifting
• queer
• tiny houses
• disability rights
• zero waste
• lgbtq+

Music, Movies, and Books

Music.
Jazz, mixture of techno/soul/funk/electronic.
Books.
Have just recently got back into reading. Sally Hepworth, Leanne Moriarty, Jodi picoult, non-fictional books on the environment, self improvement, animal welfare and holistic health. Love a good docco on these topics aswell. Would love to hear your favourite books!
Movies.
Rom-coms and all genres except thrillers, all time favourites include ace Ventura, white chicks. I don’t consider myself a movie person - if it goes for too long it’s a chore haha.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Recent road trip through Norway - most spectacular everything! (Trees, waterways, mountains, greenery, fjords, architecture)

Teach, Learn, Share

I’m passionate about health, the environment, helping others through my job and exploring my own country and abroad. I’ve been vegan for 4 years and try to reduce my impact on the environment by growing as much food as I can, reducing plastic and eating a plant based diet. I own the house and please ask that you don’t bring any meat products into the house when you stay. I could talk food for hours and would be more than happy to chat about vegan/vego alternatives - there are heaps of options here in Horsham we are quite lucky.
I want to learn from other’s experiences and hear your travel stories over a tea or a beer.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Great hikes in the area (hallsgap and arapalies), large tea range, best places to eat in the region, sharing delicious food and chatting garden things, comfy and cosy space.

Countries I’ve Visited

Albania, Australia, Austria, Barbados, Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Morocco, Netherlands, New Caledonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Saint Lucia, Scotland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, Germany