At the moment I'm studying international studies at Leiden University in Den Haag in the Netherlands. I want to make the most of my summer and winter break and travel the world.

I grew up in Switzerland but Chicago is still like a second home to me because I spend my high school exchange year there. After that I volunteered for AFS, the organization I went on exchange with. I mad so many amazing experiences during my time as an AFS volunteer, especially during the numerous camps I led. Until this day I continue being active by organizing the yearly snow-camp where we teach exchange students from all around the world how to ski or snowboard in the Swiss Alps.

Before going to university I took a 20 month-long gap which I spend mainly in Latin America volunteering and backpacking or the Swiss Alps teaching kids how to ski. I went to Costa Rica with an AFS Scholarship where I stayed with a host family and volunteered at an NGO called TECHO. After a short trip to Nicaragua, a visit to my host family and friends in the USA, and a week in Mexico, I went back to Costa Rica and started heading south from there. On my way south I swam in fluorescent plankton in Panama, had the craziest night out in Colombia, got my camera and laptop stolen in Ecuador, met my boyfriend in Peru, and crawled through a silver mine in Bolivia. Of course, there are many many more things I experienced on my trip and I'm more than happy to share some travel stories with you.
I'm very grateful to all the amazing Couchsurfing hosts that opened their homes for me and sometimes showed me their favorite places. I'm still in contact with some of them and hope to cross paths with them again at some point in the future.

I'm addicted to traveling (and chocolate) and I constantly daydreaming about the next places I want to visit. I enjoy laughing and having fun with my friends and some might say that I'm a little crazy.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I want to make new friends while traveling and most importantly, I don't just want to go places and do all the touristy stuff, but get to see the place like the locals do. I want to learn more about the culture and also share mine with them. And of course, I'd also welcome somebody into my home once I get my own place. Currently, I can't host anybody because my roommates would not be ok with that.

Interests

Like a stereotypical Swiss person, I love skiing and the mountains and I'm also addicted to chocolate.
Other than that I like dancing Salsa, Bachata, Merengue etc. and play the Cello. I've recently gotten into yoga and graphic design. I used to do old school black and white analog photography but now mostly do digital photography. I really enjoy listening to music and going to festivals. I love trying all kinds of foods when I travel and also enjoy cooking and baking. I went scuba diving a few times a while back but definitely want to dive back into the beautiful underwater world as soon as I can. I'm learning how to surf and also really want to learn how to sail!

• culture
• graphic design
• photography
• festivals
• bachata
• cooking
• chocolate
• baking
• yoga
• traveling
• socializing
• music
• surfing
• scuba diving
• skiing
• volunteering
• mountains
• salsa
• cello

Music, Movies, and Books

Music:
- Chala Rasta
- The Cat Empire
- Dispatch
- Max Romero
- Miss Bolivia
- Spice
- Calle 13
- T.O.K.
- Edward Sharp and the Magentic Zeros
- Macklemore
- I can't list them all!

Movies & TV Series:
- Fight Club
- Avatar
- Her
- the Help
- Wild
- Orange is the new black
- Black Mirror
-and many more...

Books:
- Lie Down with Lions
- Hunger Games
- Amerikana
- etc.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

The most amazing thing I've done was going on my high school exchange year to Chicago, USA. Leaving my Swiss life behind to start a new life. Making new friends and becoming a family member of a host family. Till now it was the best year of my life. I took so many unforgettable memories with me and learned so many things about life. Sometimes I wish I could go back in time and do it all again.
My gap year was just as amazing and unforgettable as my exchange year! One of the craziest experiences I made during that time was taking part in Ayahuasca ceremonies in the Amazone and exploring the jungle by canoe for a week.

Teach, Learn, Share

I can teach you some Swiss-German words (and no it's not exactly the same as German. We Swiss people like to think of it as an own language) and how to cook some Swiss or other food.
I can share my travel stories with you (I have lots of funny stories about how I messed up to get from one place to the other - travel fails). And I'd love to hear yous!

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Ecuador, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Poland, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Costa Rica, Netherlands, Peru, Switzerland, United States