Hey ! I'm an 18 year old Liberal Arts student in Montreal looking to meet new people while abroad and make some new experiences! In my pictures are my two best friends Thomas and Bianca who I will be travelling with this summer.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Emily: We believe that the best way to travel is to live as the locals do. We're not interested in guided tours, or itineraries-- we want to explore each city we visit and experience the culture with different people we meet along the way. Couch surfing offers the best way to do this, and to meet new cool, open minded friends!

Thomas: We could go and find a hotel in every city and pamper ourselves, but honestly, we wouldn't have as fulfilling a travel experience as we would if we couchsurfed. Not to mention, we're also broke college students who can't afford hotels. Who better to host us, than open minded locals who probably know the city better than any guide ever could.

Bianca: I've been lucky enough to travel quite a bit in my short 18 years, but it's always been with guided tours and school trips. Although they were amazing trips, what I've learnt is that this probably isn't the best way to experience the cities. We want to meet locals and live as locals do! Couchsurfing is an amazing community with many people like us-- people seeking to broaden their cultural horizons. So, let's go to a local bar, or maybe a cool cafe, that would be cool.

Interests

Emily: I have a wide range of interests and I've never really honed in on one in particular, I'm always looking for something new. The most prominent and consistent interest however would be music, one that stems from my childhood. My parents are both musicians so I grew up surrounded by it. I love to both play, and listen to all sorts of it. Other than that, speaking vaguely, I'm super into post-modern art and literature, and any kind of philosophy, really.

Thomas: Music, mostly. Been playing drums for about 10 years, and have been tacking on new instruments ever since. Kind of a tech geek, always excited about the new up and coming technologies, even if they turn out to be absurdly useless. I also like to talk about current events, anything from politics, tech, conflicts, or even some crazy shit some guy did that one time.

Bianca: One of my biggest interests is food -- I love cooking and trying out various vegetarian recipes and restaurants. I'm never cooking without a glass of wine in hand, preferably red, but I'm not opposed to any, really. I'm super into going to various shows in Montreal and would be interested in maybe catching some whilst in Europe. Any show, I'm down for it. I love the energy people bring to shows, probably one of my favourite things ever.

• fish
• arts
• culture
• literature
• modern art
• dining
• cooking
• recipes
• wine
• vegetarian
• politics
• technology
• traveling
• music
• drums
• fishing
• hiking
• kayaking
• surfing
• tourism
• tours
• beaches
• mountains

Music, Movies, and Books

Emily: Hard to say what my favourite music is because I'm always looking for new stuff and checking out different shows. Recently I've been really into Frankie Cosmos and Radiator Hospital, however, I would have to say my all-time favourite artists are Bombay Bicycle Club as well as Bon Iver (anything affiliated with Justin Vernon for that matter, he's a genius). Favourite movie is definitely Donnie Darko, but I love anything by Wes Anderson, also a huge fan of the Coppolas. I would never be able to choose a favourite book, but my favourite author is Haruki Murakami.

Thomas: My favourite music changes on a weekly basis, so its hard to pin down. The Foals and Bombay Bicycle Club always seem to find their way into my monthly playlists though. My favourite movie hands down has to be School of Rock. And my favourite book right now would have to be The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski.

Bianca: My favourite artists are Fifth Harmony, yes I admit to being super into pop music. However, when I'm alone in my room you'll find me listening to stuff like Keaton Henson, Ben Howard, Bright Eyes and Bon Iver (the kinda songs that make you cry) or dancing alone to Troye Sivan and Chet Faker. I'm not the biggest reader but my favourite book would have to be Looking For Alaska by John Green. Movies on the other hand-- Netflix changed my life, to put it simply. I'm watching a different movie every night, sometimes several. I'm a sucker for a good RomCom, but my favourite is the Devil Wears Prada.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Emily: I spent the past summer in a small Indian village in the Himalayan mountains working on various sustainability projects with some friends. One super hot afternoon we got lost while hiking. While trying to find our way back we came across this beautiful waterfall where we found some of the village kids trying to catch fish in a body of water beside it. We spent the afternoon playing with the kids and cooling off under the waterfall. Sounds rather underwhelming, but it was probably the happiest and most carefree I've ever felt.

Thomas: Lost myself on the waters of Lagos on kayak, only to find a small opening in a large rock face which led to a small little secluded and untouched beach. The mountain opened up directly above the beach, allowing you to see the sky from within it. One of the most lucky and amazing things I've done.

Bianca: I like to think that the most amazing thing I've done hasn't happened yet. I've been fortunate enough to have such incredible experiences in my life, both while abroad and in my own city. Honestly, I'm hoping this trip to Europe will BE that one amazing thing, I'm anxious to find out.

Countries I’ve Visited

Barbados, China, England, France, India, Portugal, Spain, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Canada