CURRENT MISSION

Prepare myself to be an inspiring and effective language teacher! Overcome all trials and obstacles and live it up!

ABOUT ME

Was born in Sao Paulo then brought up in Taipei before graduating from college and going to Europe. Have pretty much been sort of a nomad for the past 10 years (!), living in the UK, Spain, Singapore, China, and now in the US. I speak Mandarin, English, Spanish, Portuguese, and a little bit of French.

After studying in Europe and a stint as a project executive for a German-Taiwanese events management company, I worked in customer service for a couple of American MNCs in Singapore, then in hotel management in China. Now studying in NYC to get my certificates in TESOL and TCSOL (Teaching Chinese to Speakers of Other Languages).

Grew up as a right-brained person but through the years have learned the importance of the left-brain as well. :-p

Non-smoker (except for the occasional hookah/shisha or a good cigar) who enjoys a social drink once in a while. I try to lead a healthier life-style (less clubbing less alcohol) and stay vegetarian as much as possible but do not try to impose my beliefs or actions upon others, as I believe change would only come from within.

PHILOSOPHY

Change is the only constant, appearances fool.

What goes around comes around.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

My boyfriend and me have rented a humble and older but fairly clean flat in Midwood, Brooklyn (mainly a Jewish-Russian neighborhood) until at least end of Jan 2012 (with the possibility of continuing until July 2012).

We have 2 large rooms (for NYC standards) and love to make new friends. Obviously it's nothing luxurious but we try to make it comfortable. We have both traveled a bit so we do understand how wonderful it is to be received warmly away from home. He is a brewer and my specialization is in languages with an interest in cooking. We'd be more than happy to share! (a small note though, since we're using the landlords' utensils, everything has to be kosher.)

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Hmmm... I'm a newbie to this CouchSurf thing; but got into it cuz some of my friends have been using it.

Unless you count crashing in friends' couches as well?

Interests

Love traveling, the arts (especially visual arts), good food, a good walk in the woods, learning about different cultural practices and different points of view (Intercultural exchange/communication), especially about topics I'm not familiar with. Also learning more about beer brewing, cooking, spirituality and the practices involved (Yoga, meditation, different religions).

I do some drawing/painting once in a while; should definitely go back to singing, and am picking up a little bit on knitting.

• arts
• singing
• dining
• cooking
• beer
• vegetarian
• yoga
• running
• meditation
• drinking
• clubbing
• traveling
• knitting
• painting
• drawing
• camping
• teaching
• languages
• religion
• visual arts

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies: anything but horror movies. Sorry I don't see the point of scaring the sxxt out of myself when there are already so many scary things and people out there in the real world to worry about! :-D (just joking)
I prefer movies that can touch me or make me think about the complexity of human nature. Comedies and sugar-coated chick-flicks are ok if I wanna destress or don't have anything else more important to do and just wanna freeze my brain off for 2 hrs.

Music: classical, blues, rock (still learning), pop, oldies, world music... anything really. It's more about the mood and ambiance.

Books: History, humanities, linguistics, self-help (healthy living), psychology, crafts and skills. I rarely read novels (the last one I read was "Eat, Pray, Love" but it was more because of my growing interest in spirituality.)

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Hmmm, this is a tough one for me, because most of the things I consider amazing were not accomplished solely due to my own efforts (e.g. running 2 marathons in a day).

I guess it would be-- having taken care of mentally/physically challenged guests in a charity camp in Lebanon for one month back in the Summer of 2004.

Teach, Learn, Share

Teach: probably languages, especially Mandarin Chinese and English. I speak Spanish and Portuguese but have never really taught them in more formal settings.

Learn: teach me how to cook your special dish! Or anything I don't know, I'm a curious person (and easily impressed, or at least I'll pretend I am, ha ha ha!)

Share: if you'd like to know what it's like working in Taiwan, Singapore, and China. Or what it's like growing up with parents from different cultures. Or... hmmm... anything I could, really.