A main reason I travel is to become enriched from experiencing other cultures firsthand. The cultural immersion provided by Couchsurfing will provide that experience, both as a host and a guest.

I’m somewhat adventurous and tend to have shared interests with younger people than my age would suggest. I enjoy staying at backpacker places because of the social and friendship opportunities they provide, as well as being a great source of travel tips. I look forward to similar advantages from Couchsurfing.

When visiting new places, I often like to explore them on foot, which helps to understand them thoroughly. I’m always looking for unique and interesting photo opportunities, and capturing images is one of my favourite travel passions.

My career was mainly as a freelance business planner, and I now focus my time on travel and leisure. I am very clean, a non-smoker, reliable, well organized, and always aim to be a polite and conscientious guest. I am friendly, fun-loving and easy-going, and generally am willing to along with whatever is happening.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Couchsurfing provides an opportunity to meet the locals firsthand and get to know their culture and hometown more easily. As well, I’m hoping it will lead to new and lasting friendships. To me, it’s the people one meets along the way that provide the most meaningful and memorable travel experiences. I tend to travel for fairly long periods of time, so Couchsurfing also makes long-term travel more affordable, although I’m certainly quite happy to share costs and pay for any out-of-pocket expenses (food, wine, etc.) during our time together.

If you are interested in learning about Canada, I would be happy to share what it’s like with you. And if a mutual friendship develops, for sure I’ll be inviting you back to my place and show you around Victoria, and possibly beyond!

Interests

While I enjoy visiting tourist attractions, I’m more interested in getting off the beaten path to get to know what it’s genuinely like in other parts of the world. Basically anything cultural intrigues me. I’m most attracted to places that are affordable, hot (preferably also dry), and love hanging out at the beach and snorkeling. So, I tend to either to go the tropics or to the desert, although I enjoy all natural landscapes. I always appreciate the opportunity to try new international foods and wines, exchange ideas with local people, and to practice my hobby of photography.

• arts
• culture
• photography
• dining
• wine
• traveling
• music
• snorkeling
• long-term travel
• beaches

Music, Movies, and Books

When I’m reading or watching TV for pleasure, I generally like to learn about reality, rather than escape from it with fantasy. So, I seek out travelogues, travel guides, documentaries, and most things that provide a learning experience. I enjoy basically any music that has a good beat, especially when it’s fun to dance to!

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

A favourite travel memory occurred at a homestay in Luang Namtha, Laos. I was travelling on a Stray Asia bus, and we stayed overnight with a local family. There was no electricity or running water, and the locals used the nearby river for washing and bathing. The mother and daughter prepared the traditional Lao meals for us. There were children everywhere in the village, as the average age in Laos is 19. The evening was magical, as everyone danced to music, played games, and the children drew artistic images on the ground around the campfire. Music and art truly transcend cultural boundaries. These families had few materialistic goods by just about anyone’s standard, but Lao people are strong-spirited and genuinely happy. This was a memorable and inspirational travel experience because I was able to completely integrate with an authentic local family and their neighbours in a vastly different culture.

Teach, Learn, Share

I’m happy to help out with the chores, share my travel experiences and adventures with you, and explain what it’s like to live in Canada. If there’s something else you’d like me to share or teach you, please be sure to ask, as I'm very approachable!

What I Can Share with Hosts

I will be happy to share just about whatever you’d like, so don’t hesitate to speak up! I’ll have lots of travel adventure stories to share, as well as sharing what I know about North America. Here’s a link to a website with some of my travel photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/dannyfoster/sets

Countries I’ve Visited

Cambodia, Indonesia, Kenya, Laos, Malawi, Malaysia, Mexico, Mozambique, Namibia, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Thailand, United States, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

Canada