CURRENT MISSION

I'm in a period of transition during which I want to focus on strengthening relationships, exploring myself and the world, having new experiences, and enjoying life.

ABOUT ME

At the moment I am taking time to focus on wellness, family, and friends, whilst planning my next life chapter.

People would describe me as a cheerful, friendly guy. I am also a gay guy, and I only mention this as to not find myself in an uncomfortable situation where I am not welcome or my guest feels awkward with me. Having said this, most of my friends for most of my life have been straight and I am completely comfortable with everyone.

I believe that all people are equal and should be treated as such. We all have things to learn from each other, no matter what walk of life.

I enjoy meeting people and exchanging ideas, I have a lot of freedom at the moment, time for sighseeing, visiting, helping newcomers with suggestions or information, road trips (I have a car), etc.

PHILOSOPHY

Life is too short to put-off what you really want to do. Don't look for excuses why not to follow whatever your passion is, look for ways to make it happen.

BOUNDARIES & EXPECTATIONS

I think it's good to be up-front and clear about boundaries as to not leave the other guessing. I am fine to share a bed with someone, I'm a very cuddly guy and enjoy that for sure if it feels right - but I wouldn't be comfortable seeing you naked and I will not want to have sex with you. This is nothing personal, these are just my own boundaries.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

During travels, my most memorable and meaningful experiences are never about sightseeing but are always about connecting with those around me. When I think of 3 months in India I don't first remember seeing the Taj Mahal or staying in a palace, I think of the family who treated me like one of their own in Mysore and who I'm still friends with. I remember the riskshaw driver who introduced me to his family when he took me home to have lunch together, after having spent several days of adventures together.

I travel for the personal experiences and growth that occurs when interacting with others authentically.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

When I was part of the JET programme in Japan, we had a couchsurfing organization called "tatami time share", since there were JETS situated all throughout Japan. (Name comes from tatami mats, the straw-like mats of specific dimension that cover floors in traditional Japanese homes. They are also used as a unit of measurement to define the size of a room or space. (ex. 8 tatami room). I was a member of this organization and enjoyed hosting other JETS who were travelling through my city, although I never stayed as a guest myself. My favourite experience was hosting three Australians for a weekend, two girls and a guy. They were lots of fun and yet respectful of my neighbours when at home, great to share a weekend with.

Interests

Travelling, Reading, Listening to music and podcasts, Dining out (and in), Walking my sister's Weiner dog, Visiting friends and family, Going to the gym, Dancing on occassion, Making friends and Enjoying life.

• dogs
• dancing
• dining
• walking
• reading
• traveling
• socializing
• podcasts
• music
• surfing
• road trips
• sightseeing

Music, Movies, and Books

For books, I prefer non-fiction slice-of-life books wherein reading you feel like you are experiencing someone else's life, which I find fascinating. Also, travel stories and adventures are fantastic. (Authors such as Nuala O'Falin, Allende, Bill Bryson,
I enjoy listening to music of various genres as long as it's not too loud. (ie. NOT heavy metal or hard rock)
As for movies, the only ones I avoid would be those that contain gratuitous violence (I just find it boring), too much fighting (just annoying), and action films that have very little story (action films with a good plot are fine, but many are just mindless).

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I cycled coast-to-coast across Canada with my brother one summer during Uni. (our winding route was 7000 ish kms and took 7 weeks).

Teach, Learn, Share

As I wrote above, I think that we can all learn different things from each other. Even if not a definable skill or piece of knowledge, we all have an impact on those we interact with. We take things away from each other, whether we know it or not.

Many of us has have had many travel opportunities, so this is one subject we can all share and learn by sharing our travel stories.

As a host, probably the biggest thing we can impart to our guests is for them to have a glimpse of someone else's life, we all lead unique lives in one way or another. I find people's varied lives/living arrangements/routines/lifestyles to be fascinating. Couch surfing provides a rare opportunity to join someone's intimate circle for a brief moment. It is a beautiful generosity to share our human living conditions with each other.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, China, Croatia, Cuba, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Gibraltar, India, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Monaco, Morocco, Netherlands, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand, Turks and Caicos Islands, United Kingdom, United States, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

Canada, China, Japan, United Kingdom