Olá!

I'm Iara and I'm a 23 years old portuguese girl.

I'm a small person with a big mind.

My ideals are pretty simple: making the difference and respecting the others. These two things are the support for everything that comes to our lives.
Respecting people the way they are, respecting all the forms of life equally and trying to make this world a better place is what is mandatory for me.

Kindness can be shown in the most variety of ways. If we dedicate a part of our life to others, even if it's the tiniest thing, like smiling at someone in the metro, we're giving a meaning to our lives.

Things I'm good at:

Volunteering. I'm a long term volunteer. I do it since I was a kid in the cause I relate to the most: Helping animals. I am a huge animal lover and I fight for animal rights every single day of my life.

My pets are part of the family and I am excited to meet hosts who also have pets.

Swimming is my favourite thing in the world.
My mother taught me to swim in the ocean when I was a small kid. Trust me - I'm a fish.
The feeling of floating in the cold water far from the noisy city, the stress, the routine, is the best therapy i can have. I grew up very close to the ocean thus I can say I have a very close relationship with it.

Nature is my thing. Even though I like to visit cultural attractions and big cities, I get to find myself in the nature. I relate to the birds, to the grass, to the wind and the pureness envolved in all of that.

I'm really good at drawing and that's one of the gifts I have to offer to the people i get to know.

I love music (I think we all do) but I can't relate to all kinds of music. I'm happy with Rock, Metal, Grunge, Jazz and Blues. Pearl Jam, Deftones and Frank Sinatra are music to my ears ;)

I'm passionate for cooking and baking and I LOVE to cook for people around me. The real pleasure of cooking is to see someone enjoying what I made - that is just priceless (and I'm pretty good at it, if you let me say)!

Science, gardening, reading, writing, shooting photos,...I love all of this.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I feel happier around a good company who I can have great conversations with, than in a 5 stars hotel. I really like to talk, to share ideas and to get to know new and different points of view. Couchsurfing is a great opportunity to open my mind and go beyond my borders.
To me, traveling is about two things: Seeing new things and meeting new people. And Couchsurfing allows me to do both simultaneously. Also, spending time with people from abroad means I can learn while I am also able to teach.

I'm all about simplicity - as I mentioned above. I don't need luxuries, I don't need an expensive bed witl silk sheets to be happy. As someone already said - "Happiness is only real when it's shared", and that's exactly what I'm doing here. Sharing happiness. And I guess I can't really do this in a hotel... :)
All of this comes with the bonus of meeting locals who can give us great tips and help us saving time, money and get greater experiences.

P.S - I love spreading portuguese gastronomy everywhere - if you allow me.

Interests

Biggest dream: Swim with sharks

• animals
• arts
• culture
• writing
• poetry
• photography
• concerts
• festivals
• human rights
• gardening
• movies
• reading
• traveling
• socializing
• painting
• drawing
• music
• rock music
• piano
• metal music
• blues
• swimming
• astronomy
• biology
• geology
• philosophy
• science
• volunteering
• beaches
• nature
• adventure
• plants
• ocean
• stand up comedy
• sharing
• animal rights
• rollercoasters
• jazz music
• portugal
• pearl jam
• amusement parks
• teaching english
• grunge
• cooking and baking
• sharks
• scientific research
• teaching portuguese
• deftones
• frank sinatra

Music, Movies, and Books

La La Land, Into the Wild, Pulp Fiction, Harry Potter, The Shawshank Redemption, This is England, Interstellar, Any Day Now, Frankenweenie, The Conjuring

Shark Week, Breaking Bad, Vis a Vis, Orange is the New Black, Narcos

Pearl Jam, Eddie Vedder, Deftones, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Pink Floyd, Alice in Chains, David Bowie, Louis Armstrong, Nirvana, Ben Harper, Soundgarden, Half Moon Run, Woodkid, Alt-J

The Theory of Everything, O Livro do Desassossego, 100 Years of Solitude, Into the Wild, Harry Potter, On the Road

Oscar Wilde, Paulo Leminski, Fernando Pessoa, Leo Tolstoy, Henry David Thoreau, Stephen Hawking, Florbela Espanca, José Saramago

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Swam open waters to a desert beach

Teach, Learn, Share

I'm good at teaching portuguese, so ask me and I will try my best so you can learn a few sentences!
I can do it in spanish too.
If you like arts but you feel like you're not talented...I can totally give you some tips about drawing/painting and help you to improve your skills :)

I want to learn new languages. German, Italian, Arabic are on the top of my list

What I Can Share with Hosts

I will be delighted to take care of your pets/plants in case it's needed.

I can cook/bake for my hosts (I know I've said this too many times but I really enjoy doing it) and teach some typical portuguese recipes.

Help with pretty much anything

Countries I’ve Visited

France, Spain

Countries I’ve Lived In

Portugal