We're a couple of married Wisconsinites living in Milwaukee, WI. We love our neighborhood and our life here with our two "fur babies" - a cat and a dog.

PHILOSOPHY

Andrew: I can't stop being fascinated at the people and places around me. I never want to stop learning or improving myself, but I will never forget to have fun along the way. "You don't stop playing because you get old, you get old because you stop playing."

Amanda:
"i thank you God for most this amazing
day:for the leaping greenly spirit of trees
and a blue true dream of sky;and for everything
which is natural which is infinite which is yes"

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Our first experience with CouchSurfing was when Amanda went on her first visit to western Europe in 2007. She was on a train to Florence and struck up a conversation with a very nice (very well-traveled) gentleman...who told her all about the site and his experiences CouchSurfing. Amanda and her friend decided to check it out for the remainder of their trip - and had an amazing time! She met up with the aforementioned gentleman's CS host, went to a CS trivia contest in Florence, and eventually stayed with a young man in Paris. I love how CouchSurfing allowed me to meet all kinds of people I wouldn't have otherwise; there is no experience to parallel communicating with other citizens in the world in their own homes, sharing ideas and experiences.

We are very much looking forward to the opportunity to have many more conversations and experiences.

Interests

Andrew: Photography, reading, running, swimming, camping, Spanish, good food, current events, new technology, Newspaper comics, exploring and learning new things.

Amanda: singing, yoga, reading, Spanish, new languages and cultures, eating, listening to music, biking, concerts, acappella, squirrels & foxes, clouds, chocolate, peanut butter, hiking, long walks without any destination, post-it notes, wasting time on Wikipedia and YouTube, listing ridiculous interests

• singing
• photography
• concerts
• education
• dining
• chocolate
• running
• technology
• comics
• trivia
• reading
• traveling
• music
• cycling
• hiking
• camping
• swimming
• teaching
• languages

Music, Movies, and Books

Andrew: What is the What, Lord of the Rings, Ishmael, Dune, Interview with a Vampire, The Breakfast of Champions, The Omnivore's Dilemma, East of Eden. Motorcycle Diaries, City of God, Good Morning Vietnam, The Constant Gardener, Lord of the Rings. Third Eye Blind, Iron & Wine, Sufjan Stevens, The Weepies, Tegan and Sara, Death Cab for Cutie, Wilco, Rilo Kiley, Bon Iver.

Amanda: [books] A Prayer for Owen Meany, We Were the Mulvaneys, The Sun Also Rises, Lord of the Rings, Let the Great World Spin, The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, Station 11, The Hours, Midnight in the Garden of Good & Evil, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius [movies] Garden State, Lord of the Rings, The Princess Bride, Contact, Closer [music] U2, Beyonce, Tegan & Sara, Tori Amos, The Hold Steady, Arcade Fire, Death Cab for Cutie, Nickel Creek, Postal Service, Bon Iver, Metric, Bat for Lashes, Radiohead, a cappella of any kind

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Andrew: Formative experiences include growing up in a rural town of 700 people, traveling in Spain in high school, studying abroad and traveling in Argentina, spending a summer in New York City, visiting Washington DC, and long-distance running for 12 years.

Amanda: I teach Spanish to high school students - and every day is a new adventure.

Teach, Learn, Share

Andrew: Fascination with political economy, tech geek, amateur photographer, interested in everything!

Amanda: learning/teaching foreign languages, US educational system insider [!], choral singing

Countries I’ve Visited

Costa Rica, Czech Republic, England, France, Italy, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Nicaragua, Spain, United States