CURRENT MISSION

To find a current mission

ABOUT ME

My name is Matilda. I'm half-Canadian and half-Australian, so from the day I was born I had a sense that the world was a lot bigger than what I saw every day at home.

I grew up in Adelaide but my family always travelled a lot, to see our family overseas and to help their children discover many different places, from Amsterdam to New York to Vanuatu. I learned French and German and already have plans to study any more languages which have fascinated me since I was young! I was lucky because I had those chances and I wouldn't be the same person today without the travels I've taken in my life so far.

I sometimes seem like a quiet person but I think I am still friendly and a good listener! Like everyone I like meeting people and sharing conversations and experiences with them. Learning something from someone new or being able to teach or help is definitely rewarding. What do I especially love to learn about? Teach me anything about history, culture or languages and I'll be fascinated. I like talking about more or less anything though! :)

Pendant ma vie j'ai eu plusieurs expériences qui ont fait naître en moi une passion pour la langue et la culture française. Mon français n'est pas encore parfait (et il ne le sera jamais, peut-être) mais j'aime beaucoup parler et entendre cette langue. :)

Ich habe Deutsch seit 5 Jahren gelernt und ich kann ziemlich gut lesen aber sprechen und hören sind viel härter. Jedoch werde ich immer versuchen, Deutsch zu sprechen und zu verstanden! Und vielleicht ein Tag werde ich so gut Deutsch als Englisch sprechen. ;)

PHILOSOPHY

I suppose I always try to start by being kind and understanding people, and trying to do the right thing. I like to think that I am reliable and a good listener. I hate hurting people or letting them down.

I became vegetarian in early 2010 for ethical reasons, mainly to do with mistreatment of animals and bad effects on the environment. I'm not a judgemental or evangelical vegetarian though, so I won't judge you if you eat meat! For me I've found it's a good and healthy way to live, and I feel good about my decision.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

July 2011:
Met Kevin and Cédric through Poitiers couchsurfing community and through them met a whole lot of new people both French and from other countries. A really encouraging start, it sounds silly but it was so nice to meet people I wouldn't have otherwise and experience the internationalism and sharing of Couchsurfing.

August 2011: Kulturkalaset with Maria and CS games meet with Ver, Irma, Niklas, and Ver's Slovenian couchsurfers

Interests

Language first of all! Art, dance, history, maths and biology. Crafts and people who create things that are beautiful and useful at the same time. Reading, it's brought me a lot of joy ever since I was a small child.

• animals
• arts
• culture
• dancing
• environment
• vegetarian
• running
• walking
• crafts
• reading
• socializing
• knitting
• music
• biology
• history
• languages
• mathematics

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies, well, there are lots I feel like I should have seen but I haven't! My education in cinema isn't very thorough yet, I'll say.

But here are some movies I like: The Princess Bride, Inglourious Basterds, Amadeus, O Brother Where Art Thou, The Spanish Apartment, Yellow Submarine

I don't really listen to a lot of music nowadays so it's hard to say! I don' really go by genre. For me music usually has to have a soul, like a character or story in it. If I feel like I could create a whole story or history from the lyrics and feel of a song, it's touched me in the right way.

Recent listening: Ben Folds, XTC, Cold War Kids, The Offspring

As a child I was a bookworm! When I got older it wore off a bit but I still enjoy reading a lot. These days it is generally classics/modern classics and I tend to prefer fiction to non-fiction. I've also started developing a bit of an interest in French literature which is opening up a lot of new things to me. :)

Recent readings: Ulysse from Bagdad - Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt, The God of Small Things - Arundhati Roy, Les liaisons dangereuses - Choderlos de Laclos, Sophie's World - Jostein Gaarder, The Outsiders - S. E. Hinton

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Walking the Val sans Retour in the Brocéliande Forest in Brittany in very early spring, it was magical. Makes you want to run away and live in a log cabin and live off the forest for the rest of your life. ;)

Teach, Learn, Share

Teach: English, maybe beginners' French ... could teach knitting and sewing

Learn: German, Spanish, Italian, Serbo-Croatian, Arabic ... how to play/read music

Share: Adelaide! actually quite an underrated city. And also the Côtes d'Armor in Brittany, a region I was introduced to this year and loved.

Countries I’ve Visited

Italy, Sweden

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, France

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