Grew up and got educated here in Melbourne, then got out into the world and started to get a real education. Since then I really haven't stopped learning, and traveling, both of which are at the top of my list of ideal ways to spend your life, plus socializing of course. I'm ever so slightly social.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Looks like a great way to meet people, and be part of the world at large, either hosting and helping make it possible for people to enjoy Australia, or traveling and enjoying someone else's country.

Interests

Music, Latin dance, French culture, cuisine, art and cars, Italian culture, cuisine, art, cars and motorbikes, traveling, exploring, camping, fishing, hunting, boating, and much more.

• arts
• culture
• dancing
• education
• boating
• traveling
• cars
• socializing
• music
• fishing
• camping
• hunting
• teaching

Music, Movies, and Books

Way to much to list, music, everything from 50's jazz and blues to hip hop, trip hop, house, ambient, trance and occasional industrial. Not really into heavy metal, country, or middle of the road stuff, and not grind core.

Books, anything that makes my brain tick, fan of older good sci fi like Clifford D Simak, Phillip K Dick, Roger Zelazny, and the masterful Ballad of lost C'Mell, and Norstrilia, both part of the 'Instrumentality Of Mankind' series by Cordwainer Smith, one of the most talented Sci Fi writers of all times. I've also been a fan of Cyber Punk and writers like William Gibson from it's very beginning.

Always a fan of something different like Koyaanisqatsi and other experimental films. Due to half a lifetime of martial arts I have a soft spot for films about this, including all the original Bruce Lee films and Jet Li films, 'Once upon a time in China' is pretty amazing. I also still like 'The Seven Samurai', and the original Lone Wolf and Cub series. There have been quite a few great films coming out of South America in recent years, mainly from Brazil and Argentina. I'm not really a fan of overdone hollywood blockbusters, especially when they are anything but. I do like films about nature and the wild, so ' Into The Wild' is a great movie, but the real story is more inspiring.

'Art', the forgotten category for some reason. I love Dali and his ability to both twist and melt ordinary objects into new and strange things (like 'The Persistence of Memory'), and also to paint incredibly detailed complex large scale scenes as well like, 'The discovery of America by Christopher Colombus', and 'The Ecumenical Council', both of which I like a lot. 'The Last Supper' and 'Christ of Saint John of the Cross' are both paintings of his that I love. I also love the French impressionists including Degas and Paul Gauguin. Monet and Renoir are rightly regarded as the masters in this style, and represent very different perspectives of this style, and while I appreciate the colour and life of Renoirs works, I love the sensitive washed out colours of Claude Monet. Despite all this, if I had to pick a favorite it might be 'Tiger in a tropical storm' by Rousseau, ( or a Modigliani).

I'm also partial to a bit of sculpture and a sucker for intense architecture. I would die to live in the city that Gaudi built.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Single handedly saved an airliner full of people from explosive decompression over the pacific ocean. Despite all appearances to the contrary, this is a true story brought about by a series of unlikely co-incidences.

Teach, Learn, Share

Teach, anything I can to anyone who'll listen, learn everything I can get my hands on, and share whatever i have with whoever needs it.

What I Can Share with Hosts

A storehouse of knowledge, anecdotes and traveling tales. Some of it useful, some maybe not. I am generally a positive can do sort of person, plus I have a practical (ex mechanic) side to me, I can fix your car, or lawn mower, but not your fridge.

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, Canada, France