CURRENT MISSION

Be a student of cultures and people. Forget the bad, and focus on the good. Love the people who treat you right, pray for the ones who don't. Life is too short to be anything but happy. Falling down is a part of life, getting back up is living.

ABOUT ME

My name is Abhijit (friends call me Avi). I completed my 3-year PhD in France in Nov 2011 and moved to Stamford, CT for work. I’m originally from India, lived in the US for over 5 years till 208 and in France a little over 3 years. Career has been the center of focus for me for many years. These days I try harder to find a balance between professional and personal life. I’m probably a workaholic, but I often regret that. Other than that, I have no addiction.I am not demanding, very conscious of not causing inconvenience to others, simple and friendly. I believe a down-to-earth personality is a treasure.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

During my first year as a CS member, I hosted more often than I surfed. I love the cultural exchange, and for me that’s the main motivation for couchsurfing. It's important for me to connect to the person I am meeting through CS, so I find it important to take my time to search and find a compatible profile before requesting for a couch. I expect others to do the same before they contact me, although I know not everybody has the same philosophy. I have been looking forward to be a "vouched for" member one day, a wish that recently got fulfilled thanks to my CS friend Arthur from Lyon, France :)

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Whenever I host, I love when the guest is not just looking for a place to sleep, but is also interested in a conversation with me, and getting to know me a little, offers help in cooking or doing the dishes, and does not take my flexibility/adjustment for granted.
When I surf, I love if the host takes time to converse with me, help me see their city/town through their eyes, goes out with me to show a thing or two, even if just for a little while.

Interests

I assume I'm not supposed to talk about my research. If so - learning about other cultures, cuisine, cheese and wine, salsa, nightlife, nature, people-watching, painting.

Travel around the world:

visited 13 states (5.77%)Create your own visited map of The World

• culture
• dancing
• salsa dancing
• cooking
• wine
• cheese
• nightlife
• traveling
• painting

Music, Movies, and Books

I love different kinds of music, but not generally hard rock or metal. Music with nice lyrics. Vienna Teng, Sheryl Crow, Norah Jones and many others. These days I am enjoying salsa and latin american music, something new for me!
For movies and books, I will come back to update...

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Cross-country drive in the US, from upstate New York to midwest, Arizona.
Coming to live in France for three years knowing not much more than "bonjour" and "merci".
Realizing how few experiences I have had worthy to be called "amazing"!!!

Teach, Learn, Share

I would like to share my experience of living in the three continents. I don't believe you can understand a culture during 2-3 weeks of vacation trip, a mistake people often make, resulting in a prejudiced and biased opinion about a country, its people and the culture. I am sincere about making an attempt to understand other cultures and learning from them.
If you can teach me how to become proficient in salsa dancing, I will do anything in my power to pay back :)
I love to cook for friends, and would love to learn some new dishes.

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Finland, Norway, Romania, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

France, India, United States

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