CURRENT MISSION

To make the most of the city I am living in; to challenge and be challenged in new ideas, thoughts and activities with those I meet; and most importantly, to be a contributor and not a consumer in society!!

ABOUT ME

I get nicknames like 'Smiley' 'The girl with the hats and big smiles' and 'a buzzing ball of positive energy' - I guess they're all pretty true :) All I can say is I'm a free-spirited 'loves-life-and-loves-people' sort of person.. a "global citizen" - so if you had to put me in a category, that's where I'd belong!

My last big travels were in 08/09; I volunteered for almost a year in the townships in Durban in South Africa, backpacked and volunteered around South America for 6 months, stopped over in Hong Kong on my way back home to Melbourne and ended up working there the last 4 years working initially as a drama teacher for a creative whole-brain Japanese organisation teaching the Shichida method (google it, it's fascinating stuff) but ended back in my field as a production manager in video/TVC production, producing corporate videos, TVCs and documentaries over Asia Pacific. Whilst I was there I also worked in Singapore, travelled to Beijing, Taipei, several trips back to South Africa (it's my second home), and just recently last year, went to Nepal, New York City and Germany. Met some incredible people and can't wait to meet more!

Update May 2018 - Currently in Melbourne, been back for about 1.5 years now post-working in Asia. Working for an independent ad agency, and doing lots of creative/film/event things on the side. Checking out London/Paris/Amsterdam/Barcelona in June, looking forward to meeting some new friends!

PHILOSOPHY

"Strangers are just friends you haven't met".

"Be the change you want to see in the world."

"Imagination is more important than knowledge."

"Humanity is a quality we owe to each other. We create each other and need to sustain this otherness creation. And if we belong to each other, we participate in our creations: we are because you are, and since you are, definitely I am. This is Ubuntu."

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I surfed a lot when I was in South Africa and South America back in 08/09, hosted quite a few visitors in Hong Kong the past few years (although they were mostly random people I met, not necessarily through CS) but I love meeting new people, whether I'm in my home city or travelling - love sharing new ideas, exchanging new music and recipes, world views and thinkings… especially love showing the people the city I live in (although now I'm travelling!) and love seeing a new city through locals who live there rather than the touristic view.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I joined couchsurfing in 2008 and my first couchsurfing experience was in Cape Town in South Africa and it was definitely an experience to remember (ask me about this story when we meet!) When I traveled around South America I really got into CS, meeting heaps of awesome people through CS events and surfing people's couches especially in La Paz and Buenos Aires, and I can't say enough good things about it!

Such a great community, and so nice to have people who welcome you when you visit a new country and make you feel like home - it's really wonderful.

Interests

Creativity - meeting creative people, seeing their craft and wondering how I can promote it. Love connecting people together in some shape or form, especially if they can collaborate together.
Film, live music, the arts.
Festivals - arts & culture, music festivals are the best thing in summer.
Food - cooking and eating lots of it. The best thing about travelling is trying the different foods. FOOD MARKETS!!
Running (although I'm no marathon runner! but love getting to know a city by going for walks/runs/cycling) rather than just driving
Love getting outdoors - hiking has been a big thing the last few years, also love going for walks, rollerblading, don't mind a bit of bouldering and rock climbing (again not brilliant at it but love it)

• dogs
• arts
• culture
• documentaries
• music festivals
• festivals
• dining
• cooking
• recipes
• desserts
• marathon
• running
• traveling
• bouldering
• music
• live music
• outdoor activities
• cycling
• hiking
• surfing
• rock climbing
• teaching
• beaches

Music, Movies, and Books

Books: Long Walk to Freedom, The Book Thief, Perfume, Shantaram, The Writer's Journey, Disgrace, The Picture of Dorian Gray...

Music: Lauryn Hill, Aloe Blacc, Bob Marley, Cinematic Orchestra, Bonobo, Bon Iver, Stevie Wonder, Phoenix, Lee Fields, The Fugees, Coldplay, Feist, Bobby Brown, Mano Chao, Brand New Heavies, Tracy Chapman, Simphiwe Dana, Hugh Masekela, Sade, Rodrigo y Gabriela... there's too many.

Movies: Too many to choose from. Genre would include foreign films, art house, films based on true stories

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

That's a hard one, I've only travelled a little bit, still have so many places I want to visit! I've almost gotten kidnapped in South Africa, bitten by a monkey, slept on the beach for 2 weeks in Montevideo, trekked the Annapurna circuit, almost got raped by a German sausage dog and a Colombian jungle man in Nepal and loads of crazy adventures!!
I've been blessed to see so many beautiful places around the world, which words nor pictures can describe the scene...
But just meeting amazing spirits around the globe - that's probably the best thing!

Teach, Learn, Share

Desserts. If you have a sweet tooth like me, you've just found yourself a cake date. If you have an oven I can bake pretty much any cake to your delight.

Stories. Plenty of storytelling from my travels abroad.. I seem to get myself into odd and sticky situations a lot of the time so have quite a few up my sleeve! Ask me about the sausage dog from Cape Town and the crazy Colombian jungle man from Nepal :)

Coaching. I'm passionate about helping people get to their dreams/goals and can help with the process by asking powerful questions and doing some mind-mapping and goal-setting with you. For anyone who is going through some big decisioning making in certain areas of your life or even if you're trying to figure out what you want - just ask and you will see my eyes light up with excitement!

What I Can Share with Hosts

Cooking
Ideation
Interpersonal coaching
Exploring new places

Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Bolivia, China, Colombia, Germany, Japan, Mauritius, Mozambique, Nepal, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Taiwan, Thailand, United States, Uruguay

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, China, Germany, Singapore, South Africa

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