A little nomad who is on a pursuit of purpose - on a path of heart. I'm passionate about many things such as martial arts and movement, tea, reading books, creative expression like music, dance, art, photography etc. My main job relates to tea: ceremonies, education, tourism etc. I'm always curious to learn and explore while also experiencing and sharing joy along the way with people from various cultures and backgrounds. :)

My Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/dragonsleaf/

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Expanding my perspective and worldview, immersion in new cultures, learning and exchanging skills and languages. And above it all, the beautiful feeling of genuine connection and community.

Interests

Being a bit of a jack of all trades and master of none, I have a lot of passions and a lot of things I have done so far. And yet, there's still countless more things I would love to learn.

As a kid, I used to draw and paint a lot, and went to art school. During my high school years, I played bass guitar in a rock band, sang in a choir and a vocal ensemble. I learned Chinese tea ceremony Gong Fu Cha and worked in a tea room. During the first years of university in Scotland when I studied audio engineering, I founded a flow arts and circus society where I pursued fire performance actively. When the gap year happened, I went crazy on martial arts (mainly Kung Fu), weightlifting, health, sacred plant ceremonies and my overall spiritual journey. That was a big shift in my life, so my university life had also changed significantly, and I switched to MA Music and Theology. Co-faciliated ecstatic dance events with cacao ceremonies in Glasgow. Nevertheless, all those years while studying and doing all of those things, I worked in tea shops, therefore, it became not only a passion but a lifelong pursuit and a profession. Tea is central to my life and it connects all the other things I do in a very harmonious, fluid way. I came back to Latvia and took my tea journey more seriously - tea school, more ceremonies, a lot work related to it etc. When back in Latvia, I started doing Wim Hoff method and lots of winter ice swims in the wild. Some axe throwing there and there. Learning photography. Lived in Egypt in the desert of Siwa Oasis (Western Sahara) for half a year, worked as a tour guide there driving people on motorbikes and tuktuks. There also worked in a coffee shop, co-organised retreats for women and did photography for those. Since then I have been freelancing around the world, mainly with tea, for example, the most recent and unforgettable experience was to work on a Japanese tea farm in Kyoto Prefecture (Obubu tea farms) for three months. Therefore, when describing my occupation, I usually say tea alchemist, creative storyteller and explorer.

I am deeply in love with our mother Earth. Its nature and its people and cultures. All of it fascinates me.

I would love to learn more about things like sustainable living, building houses, foraging, growing food, making things (pottery, blacksmithing, woodwork etc).

I am still figuring things out, however, I am slowly learning to trust the Universe that all the puzzle pieces will fit soon enough. What matters is to live with my heart. The rest will come.

• photography
• crafts
• reading
• traveling
• pottery
• music
• martial arts
• art
• nature
• mythology
• tea
• spirituality
• sustainability
• health
• kung fu
• theology
• foraging
• philosphy
• fire spinning
• motorbikes
• movement

Music, Movies, and Books

Music - I love everything from the classics to avant-garde. Ethnic traditional music around the world. Japanese rock. Ambient experimental soundscapes. Psychedelic rock and cheerful acoustic guitar tunes around a bonfire. Electronic and techno. Head-banging progressive metal.

Books - frequently, I would be reading books about philosophy and mysticism (Carl Jung, Alan Watts, Carlos Castaneda). However, I am a big fan of nerdy fantasy books like The Witcher and The Lord of the Rings. Frequently, I pick up Matsuo Basho haiku and seek inspiration from Miyamoto Musashi's "The Book of Five Rings". Recently, I have been exploring Japanese novelists like Osamu Dazai, Yukio Mishima, Haruki Murakami, too. One of my favourite books also is Jeff Fuchs' "The Ancient Tea Horse Road".

Movies - wildlife documentaries! My favourite movie is "Into the Wild". I can't resist a heartfelt cartoon, adventurous action movie or a funky anime either. Psychological thrillers and art cinematography. Comedy and simple sitcoms. Anything rolls in good company, to be honest!

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

- Burnt my hair during the first fire show
- Ice hole swimming in Latvian winter
- Drove 4x4 in the Western Sahara Desert in Siwa
- Fasted during Ramadan when I lived in Egypt
- recorded cactus for one of my composition pieces in university (the best percussion instrument!)
- shaved my hair to 0
- became a tea farmer in Japan for 3 months

Teach, Learn, Share

I am very open to share any of the skills, passions, languages that I have experience in. And to co-create beautiful things together. Symbiosis. :)

What I Can Share with Hosts

Helping around the house if needed. Language and skill exchange. Open minded discussions. Adventures. I always travel with my tea set and lots of different tea, therefore, I am happy to offer ceremony or simple tea degustation alongside meaningful (or silly) conversations.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Russian Federation, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

Egypt, Latvia, United Kingdom