CURRENT MISSION

To see 17 cities in 70 days with the love of my life!

ABOUT ME

Hi! I'm currently 23 and am eagerly looking forward to completing 5 years of university study in November 2013 - I will finish my Masters of Architecture from the University of New South Wales! On the side I have been working for almost 3 years in the industry with 2 practices in Sydney CBD.

I absolutely love travelling as a way of meeting amazing people. It's also the best way to learn and grow, especially in the field of architecture and urban design. I enjoy architecture as an intellectual/aesthetic challenge but feel that I have so much more to learn in terms of fulfilling my social responsibility to the community and towards sustainable life cycle thinking.

Although I am extremely diligent, self-driven and goal-oriented, I am also probably one of the most flexible people you may meet! I am very easy to get along with because I am always honest and open, but also polite, thoughtful and tolerant. I am always ready to learn from you and I hope that I can trade over some interesting travel and life stories too! :)

PHILOSOPHY

Be the best that you can be. I believe in dreaming big and working hard with a goal in mind. I believe in being aware of your flaws and taking opportunities to challenge yourself to become a better person. I believe in always expressing gratitude for the kindness of others and looking to peers for inspiration and strength (we are surrounded by amazing people!).

I believe in treasuring family with all your heart and that a good relationship is made by trust, truth and loving them over yourself with a constant eye open to self-criticism and improvement.

Perché sono iscritto su Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

Right now I am living at home with my mum and younger sibling (8 years old!) so I find it difficult to give back to the couchsurfing community. However in two more years Jeff (my long term boyfriend of 5 years) and I aspire to move out together so I look forward to hosting in the future! :) If you have any plans to visit Sydney we will definitely have a heap of recommendations to help you experience the city as a local rather than just a tourist!

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

My first experience was with an amazing duo in Barcelona, Spain! Ignacio and Alex were so welcoming, open and fun - the Spanish sure know how to party and enjoy life everyday! It was great that they were hosting other surfers at the time so we also met friends from Japan. My friend and I are so grateful that they showed us an authentic side to their city - we have fond memories of Spanish dancing clubs and learning their home recipe for Spanish omelette!

Interessi

I love creative expression of all forms - aside from architecture, my childhood passion is life drawing. I love reading books on sunny days and have always had a soft spot for crime thrillers. I love cycling and exploring cities by bike. I have more recently discovered photography and find it the best way to form a personal relationship with cities...I still have so much to learn though, so if you're good with cameras I would love to learn from you!

• books
• architecture
• design
• photography
• dancing
• beer
• working out
• partying
• clubbing
• reading
• traveling
• drawing
• magic
• cycling

Musica, film e libri

I don't know what this says about my personality but I can never really call something my 'favourite' - there are definitely titles I enjoy but if I revisit them too often (3 times is usually the maximum), I no longer enjoy it! I find this strange and sad compared to people who enjoy something so much that they can repeat the experience dozens of times and just love it more.

Perhaps because ultimately I am a curious, creative and open-minded individual who is excited about new experiences?

Anyways examples of what I currently enjoy include movies such as Shakespeare in Love, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, UP, Wreck it Ralph; music include the smooth RnB style of Musiq Soulchild or on the other hand, The Script; books include classics like The Lord of the Flies.

Una cosa incredibile che ho fatto

One amazing moment for me may seem small to others haha. It was on my first big overseas trip to South East Asia after finishing high school and I met an elderly Italian man in the lift of where I was staying. He couldn't speak English but I could see him squinting at the elevator level buttons. I asked him in English whether I could help him. I had learnt some basic Italian in yr 5&6 (primary school) and I thought I had forgotten it all except in that moment - when I was listening to his reply in Italian - I managed to catch two words and was able to help him. 'Occhiali' - glasses (so he had forgotten them) and 'dieci' - ten (the level he wanted).

I remember feeling so happy and stunned that whilst in the foreign nation of Thailand, I would be able to use two words to help a man halfway across the world! It was my first real experience at long overseas trips and the magic of that moment is still what I look for today.

Insegna, impara, condividi

My travel tip would be: if you're staying in a shared space, don't use crinkly plastic bags in your luggage! The reason is because they make so much noise and wil annoy everyone if you're coming back/getting up at an obscure hour (learnt this the hard way after my first night in a hostel in Rome!). I think that once you work out the transportation system and a few key phrases in their language, there is nothing you can't work out in a city :)

My life tip would be to not take people for granted and that it is always good to show gratitude :) For my upcoming trip I will be staying with a number of hosts through airbnb and I plan to bring them each a gift from the previous city! When I couchsurfed for the first time, I always helped clean up and buy beer for my hosts as a small way of saying thanks.

Paesi che ho visitato

Australia, Cambodia, China, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Portugal, Spain, Thailand, United States, Viet Nam

Paesi in cui ho vissuto

China