So, I'm french, born in Nice (East South of France) and I've been living in Paris for 6-7 years.

I'm 36 years old, single, and I work as a "Patent Engineer" (you don't really have this job title in UK or USA, it's quite similar to Patent Attorney). Before that I studied Biology (PhD), did some scientific research for a while, worked as a teacher too, especially for students in medical schools. Before I settled in Paris, I lived one year and half in Saint-Petersburg (Russia), working at the french school.

I already traveled quite a lot (see below) and I'm counting on keep going this way! I love meeting people from other countries, and I think that hosting people will just bring holidays to my house even when I'm working ! I especially enjoy the access it gaves me to a variety of points of view, different cultures...

I'm living in a 45 m2 flat, which is good considering it's Paris!

Keep reading, you will learn more about me in the other sections!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

A bout one year ago, I was doing 'conversation-exchange', which consists in meeting English native speakers who want to learn French and live in Paris for few months, a year, or more... I really enjoyed it, not only because I was practicing my English, but also because I was metting all kinds of people that I would have probably never get a chance to meet otherwise.

And then I heard about CS, tried it and love it! I've begun a little bit addicted to it, meeting new people, get surprised!

Interests

For Books, movies, music and travelling (see bellow).

I'm also a runner, I do half-marathons for example but, what I really like and unfortunately can't do in Paris, it's running in mountains... I also miss winter ice running in Russia (kidding, still, it was fun).

I love to go for walks, as well in towns as in the countryside.

Even if it's mostly job-related to me, I do like sciences.

I enjoy going to exhibits, museums, concerts, theaters, and all the cultural events you can access in a big city (I guess it's a compensation for the lack of mountains...)

I also like to cook, going out with friends, cafes, restaurants...

As I said before, meeting new people!

• books
• concerts
• cooking
• cheese
• running
• walking
• movies
• reading
• traveling
• socializing
• music
• skiing
• biology
• teaching
• engineering
• law
• mountains

Music, Movies, and Books

Favorite books (among many others) :
- "Absalom, Absalom !" William Faulkner, red mostly on a boot between Corsica and Nice, such a great memory.
- "The book of disquiet", Fernando Pessoa.
- "The Caslte", Franz Kafka.
- "And never shall we be separated", Jon Fosse.

Favorite movies (I don't know why, but I'm stuck with the three same movies for a while) :
- "In the mood for love", Wong Kar Way.
- "Mulholand drive", David Lynch.
- "Tropical Malady", Apichatpong Weerasethakul.

More recently, I really enjoyed "Under the Skin" from Jonathan Glazer because it was quite unexpected (and weird!).

Favorite music :
Very hard to tell, at home I'm listening mostly classical music (from Baroque to Contemporary) and Jazz but I can also listen to rock/pop/traditional/world/french music too. I really enjoy going to Opera (even if it's quite rare) or other live music events, last summer I went to the "Rock-en-Seine" festival and it was great!

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

It's hard to choose, maybe I have not yet done "the" amazing thing I will remember forever (if there is such a thing) ?

Meeting the Dalaï-Lama in the tibetan community in India when I was 11, was pretty nice.

Traveling all around east Europe almost without getting out of the train during 3 weeks, it was so cool (a lot of people don't get it but, indeed, it was) !

I did a lot of running, walking, skiing amazing trips with friends in the mountains around Nice (yes, there's not only the seaside in Nice!).

Just walking in Crete, Saint-Petursburg, Morroco Atlas Mountains or in Paris...

Teach, Learn, Share

Well, I can teach you Biology or European patent low, if you really insist!

I guess I can teach you some French, I'm not a Professional French teacher but I'm used to help foreign people with their French, even beginers, thanks to French/English conversation-exchanges that I do in Paris.

Learn ? I would be very please to hear some English. Besides, I guess, it's up to you, I'm curious whatever your interests are, even if they seem to be very different or even opposite to mine.

Share ? It looks quite redundant with "What I can share With Hosts" and "What I can Share with guests" topics...

What I Can Share with Hosts

Well, I can share my French (see above), my English too. Even if don't exactly speak as a native speaker (maybe some day...), we can still have a great conversation in English...

I would be glad to share my time, experiences or some French cheese, if I can get through customs!

I can also share my French spirit, I'm not exactly sure of what it is, but, apparently, evrybody is expecting French people to have one!

Countries I’ve Visited

Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Egypt, England, Estonia, France, French Guiana, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Monaco, Morocco, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russian Federation, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Tunisia, Turkey, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

France, Russian Federation