CURRENT MISSION

I'm not sure I like the word mission - sounds a bit too messianic. A well-seasoned traveler, I was bitten by the travel bug long ago at the age of 17. At the moment I'm looking for someplace in Germany where my daughter and I can practice our German.

ABOUT ME

I'm an American - though my roots, as Americans love to point out, are German, Irish and Scottish - who has been living for the past 20 years in Moscow, where I teach English and French, do translations, etc. My daughter, Madeleine,18, who was born here but is bilingual in English and Russian - and speaks excellent French -, is currently in love with the German language (having finally abandoned Arabic), which she has been studying at university this year as her second language, and because she is desperate for practice - and to finally get a look at Germany - we have been talking about going together to Germany this summer, ideally to stay with German people, speak the language and, at least in my case, quaff a bit of beer. I too have begun studying German - I already speak 6 languages - but am still in the early stages. Madeleine - not only a linguist but an accomplished pianist who has played in all of Moscow's great concert halls - now lives with her mother, my ex-wife, who is Russian but speaks excellent English.

PHILOSOPHY

Think.

As for Madeleine, it's "A test of a good argument is that it's falsifiable, not unfalsifiable."

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

None. But I have often been the lucky and coddled guest of many friends in France and Japan.

Interests

You name it, I'm interested - unless of course it's football, cars or rap. But I do not exclude people on the basis of their dubious tastes. My non-work time is devoted mainly to writing, music (playing as well as listening), exercising and reading books to help me in my futile task to finally understand the world. Anyone who can help me with this last is more than welcome.

• writing
• books
• concerts
• beer
• exercise
• reading
• traveling
• cars
• music
• soccer
• languages

Countries I’ve Visited

Greece

Countries I’ve Lived In

France, Italy, Japan, Russian Federation