CURRENT MISSION

To share and celebrate more joy and love

ABOUT ME

I'm pretty down-to-earth, easy-going and I like to make the most of life, right down to the simple things like having a good laugh and a great dance.

To make life more interesting (and meaningful) I became a social worker halfway through my law degree, and later became a Wellbeing Therapist... there's been an infusion of different flavours in my life & I am whole from it. Melbourne's been home for more than 20 years now.

I have the flavour of Singapore and Melbourne in me. These are the places I grew up. I've also travelled lots in Asia, Europe and the Middle East.

I'm a great & spontaneous cook. Dishes are fun to wash when I'm at someone else's home. I like that there are trees outside my window; Life is magic and we are so privileged to be living in a developed world; I'm comfortable in my own company and also value my community.

PHILOSOPHY

To bring a little magic,to share the joy and hold space for the shadow. To make a positive contribution to my community.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I create a sense of community wherever I go. It's all connected anyway: people, our environment...

From this sense of belonging, it flows that we treat one another the way we'd like to be treated (or even better). It flows that we are considerate of our impact and our custodianship on our surroundings.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I'm new to online couchsurfing. But it reminds me of the heartwarming experiences on the road.

Like in Turkey, where a local family took me in after I spent some time talking to them.

And random experiences in Athens, where I started chatting with a German couple at the airport during a bus strike. The 3 of us hitched a ride together into the city. We shared a meal and a month later I slept on their couch in Berlin, met their friends and had instant community.

Connections make travel so much richer.

Even though I've been on the site for a year, I'm yet to officially host or to surf... sad really. But this year, I've hosted 6 people from personal networks (not online) and offered my couch to many more. Does that count?

Interests

Dance and movement, social entrepreneurship, Yoshitomo Nara, Grandfather Stalking Wolf, cooking with organic vegies, the flavour of people and the way we grow, and the beautiful things that people make.

• dancing
• environment
• cooking
• traveling
• magic
• entrepreneurship
• law
• social work

Music, Movies, and Books

So much of world music, classical, Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, PJ Harvey, Lamb, Bjork, Gorecki, Arvo Part, local crew Amphibian, Mum, Feist, Coco Rosie, Matisyahu, M.I.A., Yahadanai, Gnarls Barkley.... basically, good music from any genre.

Memorable fiction: The Life of Pi, Miyazaki's Nausicaa graphic novels, Shantaram, The Joy Luck Club, The Kite Runner, Perfume. Preference for Middle-Eastern, Indian & Asian authors. Malcolm Gladwell.

I like a lot of arthouse & independent movies, and sometimes the sheer entertainment value of special effects, martial arts choreography or lush design aesthetics. Hero (by Zhang Yimou) had it all.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Sitting by the Mekong River at Luang Prabang, watching leaves fall in a winding, unpredictable path. Training and performing with a circus. Firewalking. And watching my clients have breakthroughs always puts me in awe of the capacity of human nature to soar.

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Cambodia, China, France, Germany, Greece, Indonesia, Italy, Laos, Malaysia, Nepal, Portugal, Spain, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, Singapore