LOCATION

My house is in 20 minutes north of Adelaide CBD, South Australia.

CURRENT MISSION

Life Mission? I am a community builder. I’m a comfortable-in-my-space wise woman who loves meeting with and connecting people. I have volunteered for emergency services work in Australia and overseas.

I help enrich my own local community by offering my HUGE vegetable garden and fledging fruit orchard for my friends and neighbours to use as a community garden.

ABOUT ME

I am the eldest of four girls, officially the matriarch of the family, but in reality I share that with my youngest sister, who has looked after all of us at one time or another, when someone else was missing.

I have two sensational adult Aussie sons, both of whom are in Australia at the moment (happy Mum). I have lived again in Adelaide since 2016, after a decade wandering Indonesia, West Africa, South Pacific and the Philippines.

As well as the languages listed, I speak Melanesian Pidgin and I’m learning Maori (neither recognised on Couchsurfer’s list!)

My LOVE language is definitely cooking. I also love any partner dancing - salsa, swing, bachata, rock n roll, swing,rumba - I sail (less frequently than a few years ago) and I sing - African gospel choir, karaoke, an impromptu “Soirée” at home.

I’m often share a homemade biscuit and a cuppa on the back veranda, watching the many birds bathing and flitting around my huge vege garden.

PHILOSOPHY

Re myself: I am recently diagnosed ADHD (a fascinating journey in itself). I've been an extrovert all my life - i.e. I get my energy from the outside world - but I'm starting to understand /discover more about myself.

Re others: A stranger is a friend I haven't met yet. I love people and I love meeting, getting to know and working with new teams of people. And I'm getting clearer about the importance of love. Love - in all its forms, for your lover, your children, your favourite space, your friends, the planet - is what matters. The rest is detail.

Por qué estoy en Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I have hosted travellers in Ubud, Bali, and in Honiara in the Solomon Islands. In 2019 I couchsurfed around UK, Spain and France for two months. It’s the best!

I now have two comfortable spare double bedrooms back in Australia. You can stay rent-free for two days - or longer if we get on and you are happy to help with chores and the garden.

After that, you can rent for short or long term if there's a room available and my rates are better than hostel rates in the city! Anyone interested to rent should send me a message asking for details.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

My first official COUCH was with two of the loveliest people in the world in Darwin Australia. She's an artist and he works hard in his own business. Fortunately, he loves cooking, so every night was a treat - dining on the veranda overlooking the beautiful marina and one of Darwin's spectacular sunsets. And then cooking for them, of course, which I loved too.

I also stayed with a couple of lovely people in Park City Utah a couple of years ago.

My first GUEST was an inspiring woman ten year's older than me who had traveled by herself across the Kalahari teaching her passion for weaving. My second (luckily they weren't the other way round) was AWFUL, starting his two day stay with me with the surly question, "Do you REALLY like this city!?" It went downhill from there. But he's been the exception.

Intereses

Personal: People, community engagement, learning about other cultures, cooking, salsa, rock n roll, blues and many other styles of partner dancing, entertaining, drawing, painting, karaoke and Open Mike Night!

Professional: Building an online platform for my award winning PR & Media Skills training program, encouraging effective communication in international disasters.

• culture
• singing
• dancing
• dining
• cooking
• gardening
• boating
• painting
• drawing
• ai

Música, películas y libros

I love singing, listening and partner dancing to good music. I sing in an African Gospel choir called Hot Gospel. I read voraciously, sci fi and fantasy and am excited that the best stories are coming to life through AI evolution. I enjoy autobiographies too. You learn so much from others' challenges.

Algo increíble que he hecho

Chatted with a huge turtle on the deck of a sunken ship, on the sea floor off the coast of Hawaii.

Enseña, aprende, comparte

Definitely one of the most useful things I have ever learned is an understanding of Personality Type - both to understand myself better, and to crack the code on those other people who are different from me! The single most helpful learning ever. I can teach self-confidence - or being brave when you are not - by trying something new.

Qué puedo ofrecer a los anfitriones

Stories of my humanitarian adventure in disaster zones, recipes from every country I've worked in, laughter. Washing up too.

Países que he visitado

Burkina Faso, China, England, France, Germany, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Spain, Switzerland

Países en los que he vivido

Australia, Burkina Faso, Indonesia, New Zealand, Philippines, Solomon Islands, United States

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