I am father of three, and a traveler by heart. Left my homeland to make Australia my adopted homeland, so that I can travel and see the world. It's been 10 years, and I am stuck up in a suburban family home here in Melbourne. All I do is read about the world, look at maps and plan on my head. I read travel books, blogs and watch videos of places around the world to quench my thirst for travel. However, I've never lost my passion for travel. I know, that day will come. I want to know many people, many cultures, many languages, many cuisines, many stories!

I've always been interested in history and geography, languages and cultures. I have a dream of waking up in Berlin one day and walk down the Spree river all by myself. Walking along the streets of Sarajevo, Nördlingen (Germany), picturesque Dubrovnik (Croatia) or Trondheim in the far north (Norway). Strolling around in the Plaza de San Francisco in Sevilla (Seville), Spain and listening to some street singers playing flamenco music! Walking the Camino De Santiago - the long walk from Sain-Jean-Pied-De-Port, France to Santiago De Compostela through Northers Spanish towns of Pamplona, Logroño, Burgos, León, and Sarria. Living like a local in Cali, Colombia or Concepción, Chile. Walking the desert track from Okongwati to Orupembe, Namibia. But alas, life is short!

I have hosted people from about 20 countries only, out of the possible 200. From Asia, I had guests from Japan, China, Thailand, Malaysia and Russia. Well, whether Russia is in Asia or in Europe is a debatable subject after all. Most of it's geographical sprawl is located in the traditional landmass of Asia, although most of it's population live in the European part, that is, west of the Caucasus Mountains and the Ural Mountains. I've hosted people from the American continents - Canada, USA, Argentina, Brazil and Colombia. Most people on my guest list are from Europe - UK, Poland, Hungary, Germany, France, Spain, Finland, Netherlands, Switzerland and Italy. I haven't yet had the opportunity to host someone from Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, The Pacific Islands (Micronesia/Polynesia/Melanesia) or Mexico/Central America/The Caribbean Islands.

Couchsurfers come in all shapes and sizes - and I appreciate them all. Some would like to engage with us and interact with us, hang out with us and ask for tips/info, which is welcome. Some would like to keep that engagement minimum while they enjoy their trip here in Melbourne, and we appreciate that too. However, communication is the key. Please do communicate what do you expect and what do you not, so there's no misunderstanding. Please do remember that Couchsurfing is a community, not Airbnb or free hostels. There are two set of expectations to be met - one is yours and one is ours.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Couchsurfing is a great community, and I feel excited to be part of that community. It's nice to see people traveling and exploring the world, and I think it's a privilege to be part of that journey. Me and my family enjoy what comes with meeting a new person from a new culture/country/language/continent, and that has enriched our life.

It's truly this community feeling that I like about Couchsurfing. Given the choices, even if you can spend the money on hostels/hotels/Airbnb, you have taken the less comfortable option of staying with someone - that tells a lot about your curious traveler soul. When I am traveling, I'd do the same - I want to see a place with a local and as a local, not just taking photos of touristy places and walking downtown. I think CouchSurfing fills a much-felt need of the traveling community for ages.

Interests

Cricket, Chess, Cinema, Languages, homo sapiens, history, geography.

Music, Movies, and Books

I love European and Indian classical music, and the last movie I watched was 'The Great Beauty'. I was introduced to 'Seu Jorge' and 'Paco De Lucia' by fellow couchsurfers, and I have become fans of them lately.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Nothing much! My life is pretty boring. Well, there's one thing that I can mention here: Melbourne ranks on the top 10 of most liveability index, whereas my old city of Dhaka ranks at the bottom 10 consistently. I have moved up from the very bottom to the very top of liveability, in one lifetime.

I have climbed the Matthews Peak at the You-Yangs Regional Park multiple times - by myself and with my couchsurfing guests. This was first climbed by Matthew Flinders, an explorer who first climbed it on 01/05/1802. The main train station in Melbourne is also named after him. I've also climbed the Keppel's Lookout at Marysville, Victoria. I have done the major bike routes of Melbourne's west with my old bike, from Williamstown to Brimbank Park (20 km) along the Maribyrnong River and from Albion to Werribee River (25 km). Next on my list is to climb Mt Kosciuszko, highest peak in Australia.

Teach, Learn, Share

I learned German when I was in the University, back in Bangladesh. I even took an exam called ZDaF (Zertifikat Deutsch Als Fremdsprache), which means Certificate of German as a Foreign Language, similar to IELTS. However, back in those days, I had no opportunity to keep practicing it with natives or be exposed to that language otherwise. I am talking about the early days of the internet. I have forgotten almost all of it, but I still believe I can regain the language with some practice and exposure. I can still survive in Germany, possibly.

However, my new fascination is the sweet and musical language of español, a language that is spoken by so many wonderful people of the world! Learning this language opens up my doors to those places and cultures - from the Iberian Peninsula in Europe to the Canary Islands, the whole of South America and also Mexico and Central America. I've been learning by myself with books and online stuff for a year, and I desperately need to practice with natives. I took some lessons from native speakers here and there, but a teacher-student relationship isn't the best for language learning. I need to practice on an everyday life basis with someone who can help me build my confidence. I have a plan to go and live in a small town somewhere in the Spanish speaking world for a month to take my level to fluency. Hopefully.

Any help is welcome and much appreciated!

What I Can Share with Hosts

Stories from my life and the places where I have been - Bangladesh, Australia and everything in between. I can also learn their language and teach them mine, if that's something they are interested in. I can cook as well - something from our kind of cuisine, although I am not very good at that.

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, Bangladesh