CURRENT MISSION

To wander the earth and learn from its different cultures

ABOUT ME

On the last day of 2005, I decided to leave my home, sell my car, and give away most of my possessions. I then commenced a-wandering around the world, stopping along the way to get jobs to fund more travels. This has taken me to places as far apart as Nouakchott, Mauritania to Saigon. Along the way, I have certainly had my ups and downs, with many stories to tell : )
Nowadays, I have re-settled back in the city of my youth: Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
In describing myself, I would say that I am an easy-going person who decided to risk it all. Still, I am definitely polite and respectful to my hosts. On that score, I recommend you check out my references : )

PHILOSOPHY

If everyone were the same, there would be no reason to travel.

Face your fears.

Come up with your own meaning in life, live it with your heart, and then, most important: don't ever tell other people that they are supposed to follow your way.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I have a lot of experience with Couch Surfing at this point. I have been guesting in other peoples' homes since 2006, and I have hosted since 2012. There are so many wonderful experiences! Here's just one: My CS host in Casablanca, Tarik Hamir, is a school teacher and he invited me to come and see him teach a class. It was a very interesting cultural experience to see how a school is run in another country. The kids were charming! The teachers I met also asked questions of the student for me so I could gain insight into their culture and understand their point of view on my country.

Interests

My main interest is culture - sharing my culture with other cultures around the world and, even more important, getting to know other cultures. My overall guiding mission through life is to learn cultures.
My second interest is travel (easy guess), and my third is city planning. Yes, that's right, I'm fascinated by how cities are planned and how they function : )
There are many other "honorable mentions" such as history, architecture, postmodernism, gastronomy, art, martial arts, boxing, dancing at clubs, singing at karaoke bars, playing guitar, etc. Actually, I am interested in everything except math and physics : )

• arts
• culture
• singing
• architecture
• dancing
• cooking
• clubbing
• traveling
• guitar
• karaoke
• boxing
• martial arts
• teaching
• history

Music, Movies, and Books

The great triumverate of my favorite movies is "2001 (A Space Odyssey)", "This is Spinal Tap" and "Before Sunrise/Before Sunset".

The music I lean to nowadays is classical, jazz and classic rock. My idea of fun is to listen to Miles Davis and discuss who is more of a genius between him and Mozart.

I like books about travel, such as "Dark Star Safari" and books that inspire me to travel, such as "The Sun Also Rises". Also books from authors in under-represented countries who tell me about that country, like "Things Fall Apart", which is a very good book about the culture/history of Africa (I recommend it highly).
I also recommend two other books on two important topics - "When Cultures Collide" by Richard Lewis is the only book I know which breaks down the different cultures of each country. "Work Your Way Around the World" by Susan Griffith breaks down just how to do that.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

One time, I decided to show up in a new land I had never been to before, no plane ticket back, not knowing anyone, not even knowing the main language well, with only $100. I wanted to see if I could survive (it didn't work out well, but hey, I tried...).

Teach, Learn, Share

As far as my knowledge goes, I can teach you some killer English, when I'm not trying to learn a new language myself ; ) I can also bore you with travel stories of all the places I've been to. And along the way, I can give you lots of advice on how to travel on the cheap : ) Beyond that, I can offer you some fun by talking/discussing/comparing ideas about things such as philosophy, postmodernism, and which cuisine is the best in the world. My favorite topic to talk about is culture, and comparing different cultures. If you are interested in this, we will "teach, learn and share" until the shining crack of distant dawn!!
If you wish to share your cooking skills with me, I'll be very happy! I love to learn how to cook. With my own limited knowledge, I can even cook a meal for you (if you sign a waiver ; ) Also, if you can teach me techie things, like how to operate an I-phone, I'll be much obliged (yea, I'm that much of a technophobe ; )

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Austria, Cambodia, Canada, China, Côte d'Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, France, Gambia, Germany, Ghana, Guatemala, Honduras, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mauritania, Morocco, Mozambique, Netherlands, Oman, Puerto Rico, Senegal, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Swaziland, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Viet Nam, Western Sahara, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Countries I’ve Lived In

China, Mali, Mauritania, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Russian Federation, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Viet Nam

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