CURRENT MISSION

I'm a free spirit who believes in leaving the world better than I found it.

ABOUT ME

I am a dynamic figure, apt to be seen running like a banshee in the Miami Half-Marathon as well as working with orphans in Honduras. I have sung on Jamaican National Radio and dined with hookers in Indonesia. I snuck into the Great Pyramids park in Giza at 5 am to see the sunrise. I have excellent credit. I’ve chugged snake wine in the Mekong Delta and have thrown myself out of a plane at 11,000 feet. With a parachute. Once I dreamed I was the Pink Panther and was roller-skating underwater, although I have never taken magic mushrooms or LSD. I narrowly escaped from an attempted kidnapping by a taxi driver in Beijing. I have built Angkor Wat out of sand. I don’t eat animals. I was interviewed by the Malaysian national newspaper “Mondo Times” at the 2001 Thaipusam festival in Kuala Lumpur. Ten thousand camels were offered in exchange for me in Luxor.

I bribed policemen and ate the occasional grasshopper taco while living in Mexico. I somehow managed to make gifts of homemade soap last Christmas without burning down my new house. In Guatemala I rode in the helicopter of a friend of a friend who said he was “just a businessman” yet had five houses and three armed bodyguards. I’ve passed a sobriety test in a left-hand-drive car in a small town near Melbourne, Australia. I foster pregnant cats and unwanted kittens. I danced with an old man on his way to market one morning in the streets of Florence. I’m allergic to penicillin. I’ve partied with Greece’s former ambassador to Japan while in Tokyo and met the Vienna Boys’ Choir on top of Mt. Fuji.

In Madrid I told off a would-be pickpocket in fluent Mexican Spanish. I’ve gotten lost in the Swiss Alps. I had two front-page stories published while interning at a newspaper in northern Virginia. I have scuba-dove (diven?) through a shipwreck of toilets in the Red Sea and served Red Cross meals to firefighters and rescue workers at Ground Zero on 9/15/01. Chamomile tea makes me throw up. I’ve been lost at night in the Arab Quarter of Jerusalem and was tipsy (shame on me!) while biking through rush-hour traffic in Rome. I am a Leo (8/15/76) but not a vain one. I have been kicked out of the McDonald’s at the Aquia Towne Center in Stafford, Virginia and have survived shopping for clothes in SE Asia even though I was at least one head taller and five sizes bigger than everyone else.

And last month on my way to work I inadvertently offended a satanist on the MetroRail by saying “God bless you” when she sneezed.

All of the above is true, and I can send you links to back up a few of the more outrageous-sounding claims. Come to Miami and meet me! Or, since I'll be traveling again soon, I'll meet you... :-)

PHILOSOPHY

My favorite quote is: "I am a part of all that I have seen." Odysseus says this at the end of his epic journey in The Odyessy. Just as we have an impact on the world around us, so also do the people we interact with and the places we see and the things we experience affect us...

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

Attending local CS events, hosting when I can...will be surfing more when I start traveling frequently again! :)

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Here's a list that's partial at best:

HOSTED/TRAVELED WITH:
- Brian from San Francisco
- David from Alabama
- Eliana from Miami/Colombia
- Tiemo from Germany
- Vivek from Miami
- Siva from Miami
- Dave from Indiana
- Joshua from Oklahoma
- Danny from Atlanta
- Tanner from Idaho ("no, YOU da ho!")
- Pedro from Portugal/Angola
- Nasser from Oman
- Ben from France
- Joao & Andrea from Portugal
- Sophie & Jon from Miami

DRINKS OR CS EVENTS:
- Ennio & Antonella from Italy
- Brandee from Coral Springs
- Omar from Miami (actually I know 2 Omars!)
- Andrew from Miami
- Guillermo from Miami
- Jose from Miami
- Leonel from Guatemala/Miami
- Tom from France
- Jorge, Rodrigo & David from Guatemala
- Camilo from Colombia
- Paula from Finland
- Hiro from Japan
- Nav from Tanzania/Miami
- Kasey from Miami
- Tracy from S.Africa
- Victoria from Miami
- Jessica from Germany
- Heather from Boston
- Nayelin from Cuba/Miami
- Elizabeth from Argentina/Miami
- Doug from Hallendale Beach
- too many others to mention!!

SURFED:
- Pedro in Florida
- Jorge in Boston
- Brian in San Francisco
- Paco & Vaz in Mexico City
- Andrea in Portugal

...and I've gotten to know many others at various CS get-togethers. They are all great people who are true to the fun, adventurous spirit of CS! :)

Interests

Animal rescue, the environment, the outdoors, current events, Latin music, the beach!

• animals
• cats
• festivals
• environment
• wine
• marathon
• running
• drinking
• shopping
• clothing
• traveling
• socializing
• magic
• music
• latin music
• outdoor activities
• cycling
• surfing
• scuba diving
• beaches

Music, Movies, and Books

I love to read anything by Wilbur Smith or Barbara Kingsolver. Last year I read "Lonely Planet Unpacked" which is a hilarious book of travel misadventures by contributing authors to LP. I don't watch much TV at all but I loooooove Jon Stewart on "The Daily Show".

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I have escaped from being kidnapped in Beijing. Seriously. It was terrifying. God forbid this should ever happen to you, but if it does, the key is to STRUGGLE AND MAKE AS MUCH NOISE AS YOU CAN!!!

Teach, Learn, Share

TEACH: I am a LMT (Licensed Massage Therapist) and enjoy showing people natural ways to overcome pain and muscle soreness. I love natural healing and organic products. I am TEFL-certified to teach Spanish. I am a fairly good photographer and worked in advertising for many years, so I'm a good person to bounce marketing ideas off of.

LEARN: My grandmother is from Slovenia (which I have never been to) so I would love to meet people from there since I want to go there someday soon! (unfortunately I don't speak any Slovenian, except for a few short phrases, a nursery rhyme, and some swear words) ;-)

SHARE: I'm happy to talk about natural healing, massage, etc. I can also give mini English lessons and brainstorm marketing concepts with you.

Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Panama, Philippines, Portugal, Puerto Rico, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Vatican City State, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

Greece, Mexico, United States

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