CURRENT MISSION

To get to know my new hometown of Chattanooga, TN

ABOUT ME

traveling, art and photography are my big passions. although i have actively incorporated various forms of art from music to welding into my life since i was a child, i resisted the urge to seriously create art until 2003. prior to my metamorphosis as an artist, i spent seven years working as an attorney in nashville, tennessee practicing commercial bankruptcy & litigation. despite many years and the equivalent of several small mortgages invested in that profession, i realized that it did not satisfy my inherent need to be creative. in january 2003, i terminated my legal practice and embarked on a tremendous adventure with my dream of uniting photography with my passion for travel.

i spent the first 3 months of my liberty in san miguel de allende, mexico, studying spanish, beautiful light and the art of making margaritas. upon my return to the united states, i spent the summer in missoula, montana at the rocky mountain school of photography (rmsp). there, i participated in an intensive course in photography that compressed into three months what one would study in a two-year degreed photography course. while at rmsp, i discovered a passion for creating fine art photography and have been exhibiting my work at shows all over the united states for 5 years.

in 2007, i was inspired to move beyond photography to create mixed media assemblage art which i've been showing around the country since that time. check out my new website with my latest work ...
www.beverlyhayden.com

from a travel standpoint, i spent 10 months in 2008 and 2009 traveling around southeast asia. i spent the majority of my time in vietnam and bali but also significant periods in cambodia and thailand. if you're interested to read about my travels, you can do so via my travel blog "7 months with carry-on luggage" at www.sevenmonths.com. i'm currently writing a book about my experiences driving a motorbike from hanoi to ho chi minh city. i visited india for 6 amazing weeks in early 2012.

create your own visited country map
or check our Venice travel guide

PHILOSOPHY

when you can identify what you're afraid of, you know exactly what to put at the top of your "to do" list!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

cs provided many lovely connections for me both when i was living in fort lauderdale, fl and also as a traveler through southeast asia. now that i'm settling into chattanooga, tn, i'm enjoying giving back and playing host to surfers passing through this area.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

although not officially through cs, i think this still qualifies as a couchsurfing experience ... some years ago when i was backpacking through europe, i ended up staying for 3 nights on the couch of an older couple in vernazza (cinque terre) italy. alfio & gina, who were old enough to be my grandparents, took me under their wing and spent hours each evening teaching me to speak italian. an unlikely connection; a fabulous & memorable experience!

Interests

travel, travel, travel!!! i love immersing myself in other cultures, learning new languages, engaging with interesting, open-minded people and adding to my growing collection of crazy travel experiences. i enjoy creating and experiencing art - particularly contemporary art. i love music (contemporary blues, indie rock, latin & world music), cooking, reading and playing with my cats.

• cats
• arts
• writing
• books
• contemporary art
• photography
• cooking
• reading
• traveling
• blogging
• music
• blues
• world music
• backpacking
• communications
• languages
• law
• tourism

Music, Movies, and Books

music - marcia ball, ruthie foster, delbert mcclinton, jimmy hall, etta james, cake, they might be giants, juanes

movies - english patient, philadelphia story (the old one with katherine hepburn, cary grant & jimmy stuart), casablanca

books - any books about travel or historical fiction

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

i watched my dad (who's an ob/gyn) deliver a baby once. miraculous!

Countries I’ve Visited

Belgium, Belize, Brazil, Cambodia, Costa Rica, Denmark, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Italy, Jamaica, Martinique, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, Norway, Panama, Puerto Rico, Russian Federation, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand, United Kingdom, Viet Nam, Virgin Islands, British, Virgin Islands, U.S.

Countries I’ve Lived In

Mexico, United States

• 

•