Alex

Travel information

I am currently

Description

Hello! I'm Alex and absolutely adore travelling, cooking, gardening, activism, meeting new people, and being outside. Since graduating university, I have spent the past two years traveling in Latin America from studying permaculture in Colombia to cooking at a surf hostel in Ecuador. This past year I lived in Mexico City teaching English and working at an NGO.

I am originally from the US in Virginia near Washington DC. I lived in China for several years with my family which was where my travelling passion began. I grew up in a home that really valued learning and sharing new experiences. After school, I set off for six months travelling by myself, first to New Zealand where I worked at a sheep farm, then to Nepal where I completed the Everest Basecamp trek, and then to the Balkans where I volunteered at a music festival.

What I am most passionate is social justice, particularly food and gender justice. Since I was a kid I helped my parents in the garden, which later translated to volunteering at local community farms in the DC area where I helped with farm tasks as well as teach kids about sustainable agriculture. I want people to be reconnected to the earth, to their cultures, and to their bodies. I believe there is no better way than through food. There is nothing that brings me more happiness than learning from local communities about their practices (particularly growing and feeding ones) and how they connect with the planet. I believe we have so much to learn from one another. I am also quite active in other social justice issues, especially feminism. I helped found a feminist club at my uni where we led events that focused on an array of subjects from veganism to sexual education to the environment. We wanted to understand how everything intersects with feminism and other social justice issues.

I have done several workaways now and each one has taught me something new. The people I have met during these stays still stay with me (and I still remain very good friends with many of them to this day :) I have worked on farms, in hostels, and also on social projects. I love that you can experience a different way of living such as being on a commune and learning about alternative ways to support your community and live off the grid. I

I look forward to the future opportunities here as each place and host seems to have so much to offer. I love alternative ways of travelling and believe this is the perfect place for that!

Interests

Languages

Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Spanish: Fluent
French: Fluent

More details about my language interests
I have experience with kids teaching/tutoring English in Paris for the past several years. I am happy to help with your English. I love learning languages so a language exchange is right up my alley. Currently, I am learning Spanish as I plan on going to South America in January. I love speaking French too and am always looking for someone to practice with.

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Skills and knowledge I'd like to share or learn

I'm interested in:  

Animal Care

DIY and building projects

Art Projects

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Some knowledge of:  

Languages

Life at a Farmstay

Helping around the house

Gardening

Teaching

Eco Projects

Charity Work

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Able to teach about:  

Creating/ Cooking family meals

Babysitting and creative play

More details about your skills

I have worked on several farms and gardens. I have done work like weeding, harvesting, managing compost systems, and other labor intensive farm tasks (really whatever the farmers tell me to do). I also volunteered on an animal farm where I helped take care of geese, pigs, rabbits, horses, and chickens. I love animals and feel generally quite comfortable around them.

I love, love, love to cook so I am happy to help in the kitchen. I am mainly vegan so everything I cook is vegetable focused. I have even led a cooking class for kids, so I have some experience with teaching as well as I was a sailing instructor at a summer camp. I truly adore children and get along with them very well.

Currently, I work for an NGO overseeing their communications. I have served as the Communications Director for my university for the student body. I have experience with researching, writing, and creating content if you need help with any of those areas.

Age

25

What else ...

Let's see...in my free time I love to explore new music! I know everyone says this but I truly love all types of music (rock, psychedelic, folk, rap, electronic, samba, alternative, etc). I love finding new artists that I have never heard of. Big fan of reading. I have been on a memoir kick recently, but I love non-fiction books that are either historical or social justice related, better yet historical fiction! My favourite books would have to be Just Kids and anything by Vandana Shiva. I ride my bike everywhere and when I am at home I enjoy going hiking and camping (backpacking is even better).

Some more information

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  Smoker

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  Driver's licence

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  Allergies

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  Special dietary requirements
  Vegan