Hi! I’m Ilia, and this is my wife Natalie. We’ve been together for over 10 years, and for the last two years we’ve been on the road, exploring the U.S. while studying in American college. We were born and raised in Belarus, where we earned our degrees in engineering and worked for a couple of years in the field. Then we made a bold shift — taught ourselves programming, switched careers, and spent 5 years working as software developers in big banks.

But a year ago, we felt the need for something more. We left our stable jobs, moved to the U.S., and started a new chapter from scratch — learning, traveling, growing, and trying to understand what truly makes us happy.

We genuinely love nature, road trips, and quiet magical places — sunrise hikes, national parks, evenings around a campfire, sleeping in a tent under the stars. We try to spend more time in nature than in cities, although we also appreciate culture, architecture, and local life.

And yes — we absolutely adore animals. Cats, dogs, chickens, cows, horses… we’ve cared for them all. We’ve been housesitters many times and always treat animals with love and responsibility. Some of our happiest moments on the road were spent walking a dog, petting a cat, or simply being around animals — they give us so much warmth.

Couchsurfing to us is not just about a place to sleep — it’s about people. Stories, spontaneous dinners, unexpected kindness, deep talks and cultural exchange. We believe in the spirit of this platform, and we try to contribute to it with honesty, curiosity, and good energy.

At the moment, because we’re on the road, we’re not hosting anyone — but we miss it and hope to start hosting again as soon as we settle down. We really look forward to giving back and welcoming people into our home one day — just like we’ve been welcomed by so many kind souls on the road.

If we stay with you, we’ll respect your space and your rules. We keep things clean, we’re quiet at night, and we’re always happy to help out if needed. We’re friendly, respectful, and easygoing people. We love meaningful conversations, but we also respect boundaries and personal space. If you like to chat — awesome! And if you’re up for a chat — we have a bunch of stories from Belarus, the U.S., and everything in between 🌍

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

For us, Couchsurfing about people, stories, and those rare moments when strangers feel like old friends.

A quiet evening talk in someone’s kitchen, a shared breakfast, a walk around the neighborhood with a host — these small moments often become the most vivid memories of the trip.

We believe that the world is best explored not only through landscapes and cities, but through the people who live in them. Every person carries their own universe inside — and through conversations, we get to peek into that universe. Sometimes a short meeting can shift your perspective more than a thousand miles of road.

Couchsurfing gives us a way to meet people we would never meet otherwise — people with different beliefs, experiences, lifestyles. And that’s beautiful. We don’t have to be the same to connect. We just need a bit of openness and kindness.

This is what draws us to this community again and again — the magic of trust between strangers, the kindness of a host who opens their door, the joy of shared moments with no expectations.

Interests

We love active days and deep talks. Tennis, pickleball, ping pong, road trips, hiking, photography — these things energize us. We enjoy traveling slowly, noticing the small details, and capturing stories along the way.

Ilia is into tech, video editing, and storytelling. Natalie is passionate about psychology, self-discovery, and investing. We both care about personal growth and living with intention.

We find joy in simplicity, nature, animals, and meaningful human connection.

• animals
• culture
• books
• photography
• meditation
• technology
• traveling
• coding
• music
• hiking
• sports
• languages
• psychology
• hitchhiking
• road trips
• adventure travel
• mountains
• travel
• nature
• storytelling
• sea
• couchsurfing
• kindness
• learning
• video editing
• simplicity
• personal growth
• meaningful conversations
• wild places
• campaign

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

We quit our stable jobs, left everything behind, and moved across the world to start over — not knowing exactly what would happen, but trusting the journey.
Now we’re two years into traveling full-time through the U.S., learning, growing, and discovering what really matters to us.

Teach, Learn, Share

We love the idea of exchange — not just things, but thoughts, skills, and little pieces of culture.

We can teach:
– how to cook simple Belarusian meals
– Russian or Belarusian language basics
– photo and video editing
– what it’s like to live and travel full-time as a couple

We’d love to learn:
– local recipes and traditions
– your favorite hobbies
– stories from your life and culture
– new sports or creative skills
– anything that feels meaningful to you

What I Can Share with Hosts

We’re always happy to help — whether it’s doing the dishes, walking the dog, cooking together, playing with kids, or simply being quiet and respectful guests.

We can share stories from Belarus, our journey through the U.S., and what it’s like to start over in a new country — as well as moments from our travels around the world.

The best thing we can offer is warm company and a good conversation at the end of a long day.
But we’re also very adaptable — if you just want to stay in your routine and have your own space, we fully respect that. We always try to match the vibe of our host and not intrude.

Countries I’ve Visited

Armenia, Belarus, Czech Republic, Egypt, France, Georgia, Germany, Lithuania, Poland, Russian Federation, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Belarus, Georgia, Russian Federation, United States