I'm the official Couchsurfing Ambassador for Seattle. I'm a World Traveler and official member of the Traveler's Century Club (http://travelerscenturyclub.org/ ) a club for those who have visited 100+ countries/territories. Paragliding and Hang-Gliding pilot (P3/H2). Adventurer. Motorcyclist. Former Salsa teacher/dancer. Avid movie watcher and video game connoisseur (although not as much these days) . I'm originally from Brooklyn, New York, currently living on Bainbridge Island near Seattle. I've lived in many places, including New York, Ohio, Germany, San Francisco, Mexico, Puerto Rico, New Zealand and San Diego.

If you are new to CS or haven't been hosted on CS, please read this link first, as it will be helpful for any host to whom you reach out: https://support.couchsurfing.org/hc/en-us/articles/200640010-How-do-I-write-a-good-couch-request-
PLEASE NOTE: Due to the large number of copy-n-paste and non-personalized requests received, any such requests will be declined automatically without explanation. An example of such a request: "Hi, I need a place for 2 nights, can you host me?". Please take the time to point out why you'd like to stay (beyond a free room) to ensure a positive experience for both hosts and surfers on CS. If you use the word "Coqui" in your request, I will know you have at least read the first 2 paragraphs of my bio. (Coqui is the native frog of Puerto Rico)

Sometimes you will find my mini golden-doodle and Cavapoo at home. https://www.instagram.com/dashidoodle/
https://www.instagram.com/ebicavapoo/

You can find me on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter:
https://www.instagram.com/rich_velazquez/
https://www.facebook.com/velazquez.richard
https://twitter.com/Rich_Velazquez

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

At first Couchsurfing was an experiment for me. After meeting and hosting some of the most interesting and wonderful human beings on the planet, I realized that CS can also be life-changing.

Most of my Couchsurfing experience has been as a host. However, I travel a lot and would prefer to stay with locals instead of chain hotels to get a true feel for the place and culture. I surfed in Chicago, DC, Argentina, and Paraguay with truly fantastic hosts and would like to do this more.

I live on Bainbridge Island, a 35 minute ferry-ride away from Seattle. My home is on the water in the Agate Pass, and I have paddleboards and kayaks to enjoy the beach and Puget Sound. I have a separate room and bathroom for guests. My home is a gateway to Western Washington and isn't super-convenient to quick trips to downtown Seattle (15 minute ride to the ferry, 35 minute Ferry to Seattle, plus wait times means any trip to Seattle by car requires at least an hour). My mini-golden doodle may or may not be at home, as she splits her time between Seattle and San Francisco (she's quite the traveling puppy).

I used to get many daily requests from CS when I hosted in NYC. Most of them were cut-n-paste generic requests or one-liners just looking for a place to crash. If you are new to CS or haven't been hosted on CS, please read this link first, as it will be helpful for any host to whom you reach out: https://support.couchsurfing.org/hc/en-us/articles/200640010-How-do-I-write-a-good-couch-request-

Interests

Outdoors
Paragliding
Motorcycling
Dancing (mostly salsa, bachata, cha-cha, merengue)
Hiking
Movies
Video Games
Travel / Sight-Seeing

• dogs
• dancing
• motorcycles
• movies
• video games
• hiking
• kayaking
• camping
• hang gliding
• paragliding
• road trips
• sightseeing
• salsa
• stand up paddle
• salsa dance

Music, Movies, and Books

My favorite book genre is Sci-Fi/Fantasy. Some of my favorite authors include R.A. Salvatore, Anne McCaffrey, J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, J.K. Rowling.
- The Legend of Drizzt Do'Urden
- The Dragonriders of Pern
- The Moonshae Trilogy
- The Lord of the Rings
- The Chronicles of Narnia
- Harry Potter
- Artemis Fowl
- Encyclopedia Brown
- Sherlock Holmes

My taste in movies are broad, ranging from cerebral indie movies to Action/Adventure and superhero movies (love most Marvel movies)
- Avengers, X-Men, Iron-Man, Captain America: Civil War, Spider-man (Tobey version), Kick-Ass 1&2, Deadpool, The Dark Knight Trilogy (almost any comic book movie)
- UP, Toy Story Trilogy, The Incredibles (almost any Pixar movie)
- Star Trek
- B13 (District 13)
- Star Wars
- Avatar
- The Princess Bride
- Big Hero 6
- Inception
- Alien and Aliens
- Terminator and Terminator 2
- Back to the Future
- The Breakfast Club
- Planet of the Apes (reboot)
- Ferris Bueller's Day Off
- Mongolian Ping Pong
- 12 Monkeys
- Predator
- The Cove
- The Chronicles of Narnia
- Lost Boys
- The Goonies
- Independence Day
- True Lies
- list goes on and on

I also enjoy most types of music, namely folk, rock, Latin, pop, and classical.
- U2
- Simon and Garfunkel
- Guns 'n Roses
- Poison
- Neil Diamond
- Johnny Cash
- Elvis Presley
- Aventura
- Imagine Dragons
- Enya
- Pink
- Victor Manuelle
- Hootie and the Blowfish
- Alan Parsons
- The Beach Boys
- Ben E. King
- Bon Jovi
- Bruno Mars
- Chris Isaak
- Sting and the Police
- Dan Fogelberg
- Dire Straits
- The Eagles
- Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons
- Ricky Martin
- Whitesnake
-"Silent Lucidity" - Queensryche
- "Cat's in the Cradle" - Harry Chapin
- list goes on and on

Finally, while this category doesn't call for it, I would be remiss for not listing my favorite video games:
- King's Quest Series
- The Secret of Monkey Island Series
- Castle Wolfenstein and Doom (originals)
- Pacman (original) and pretty much the whole Atari 2600 era of classic games
- Super Mario Bros (and pretty much the whole NES era of classic games)
- Halo, Gears of War, and Crackdown
- Warcraft and Starcraft
- Oblivion, Skyrim, and Elder Scrolls Online
- Mass Effect
- Diablo, Diablo II, Diablo III
- Ori and The Blind Forest, Ori and the Will o the Wisps
- Portal
- Braid
- Limbo

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Hard to pick just one:
- Paragliding over Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany
- Dog-sledding with Iditarod Jr. Champion on Glacier in Alaska.
- Hang-gliding in Brazil
- Bungee Jumping in Austria
- Sky-diving in the US
- Riding my motorcycle across the USA

Teach, Learn, Share

Former Salsa dancing instructor and team member of Salsa Salvaje in Seattle, a competitive salsa dancing team.
I also give lectures at local universities on Marketing and New Product Development.

What I Can Share with Hosts

A lifetime of travel experiences.
Quiet/Serenity.
Dancing.
Chess.
Video games.
Books.
Movies.

Countries I’ve Visited

Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Aruba, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Cayman Islands, Chile, China, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Curaçao, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Egypt, El Salvador, England, Estonia, France, French Polynesia, Gibraltar, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Macao, Maldives, Morocco, Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Oman, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Russian Federation, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Scotland, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, Turks and Caicos Islands, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay, Vatican City State, Viet Nam, Virgin Islands, British, Virgin Islands, U.S., Western Sahara

Countries I’ve Lived In

Germany, Mexico, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, United States