I am about to become a teacher of English and Italian. Being Australian, English is great, but with Italian, there is only so much I can learn from a textbook. I am traveling to Italy in November for two months so that I can learn the language better in an immersive environment. I have worked in offices, building sites and as a landscaper. I am also an artist and musician. I want to continue my postgraduate studies mainly around socio-linguistics and to meet new people. I have an 8-year-old son, Nino, who lives with his father this year and next year, while I have a chance to follow my passions and build my cultural and linguistic knowledge. I am funny and smart, I'm easy to talk to, and I'm a hard worker who loves to be doing creative and constructive projects of nearly any kind.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I'm on Couchsurfing because I booked a flight to Italy and have not had time to finalise arrangements with any au pair agencies or English tuition agencies for my stay in Italy. I have been so busy with my practicum placement at high school and developing lessons for the students that time has passed so quickly and I have no idea where I will go when I arrive in Italy. I don't have much money at all, but I have so much to give in the way of kindness, hard work, stories and conversations, flexible, adaptable and generous. I'm a bit scared really, now that I am going overseas by myself and I haven't really made any arrangements. But, since my main reason for travel is to learn the language firsthand, I am open to any experience that will allow that to happen in a positive way.

Interests

I love gardening, soccer/football/il calcio, yoga, cooking, singing, good conversation, being inventive. I particularly enjoy people-watching, speaking and thinking philosophically and I am interested in life-long learning and education. I crochet things - dresses, bags, bikinis, beanies etc. Politically, I'm a bit left-wing and liberal but I'm not a hardcore political follower. I dabble in many things.

• books
• singing
• education
• environment
• cooking
• yoga
• gardening
• traveling
• crochet
• music
• soccer
• teaching
• au-pair

Music, Movies, and Books

Music: Blues, Folk, some rock, some hip hop, some dance music (particularly from UK), Tom Waits, Dave Matthews Band, Ricki Lee Jones, Modest Mouse, Butterfingers, Ghostpoet, Little Dragon, the Waifs, James Blake, Four Tet, live music.
Movies: most Quentin Tarantino films (Kill Bill), Eternal sunshine of a spotless mind, Lagaan, the French series - 'Spiral', any foreign series or films, documentaries.
Books: too many to list

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I built a steel house with just my dad.

Teach, Learn, Share

I don't understand what this section is asking - but yes, I like to teach, learn and share. I do all of these things all of the time - it is what makes me happy and human and alive

What I Can Share with Hosts

I can share conversation, creative ideas, a lot of energy and effort to get things done, hard working and skilled hands and a sharp mind, and generosity.

Countries I’ve Visited

Denmark, Italy, Japan

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia