CURRENT MISSION

Backpacking through Europe

ABOUT ME

We're backpacking through Europe this summer and are looking for couches along the way.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

We're surfing

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

So far I have only surfed once, in Bologna, and it was a great experience.

Interests

I'm interested in literature, film, theatre, sports like soccer and surfing, and a myriad of other things.

Jess- politics, the arts (whether attending ballets and art museums, or working on some of my own paintings), literature, going to concerts, soccer, track, skiing, among other sports, learning about new cultures.

• arts
• books
• literature
• concerts
• politics
• music
• guitar
• backpacking
• surfing
• skiing
• sports
• soccer
• track and field
• languages
• political science
• science
• sociology

Music, Movies, and Books

Books: Poetry, philosophy, fiction, history, Shakespeare, Amaryta Sen, George RR Martin, Piers Anthony, JRR Tolkien, and more.

Jess- I like the classics mainly...love George Orwell's 1984 and Animal Farm, Fahrenheit 451, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, A Clockwork Orange, A Separate Peace, etc. I'm really into John Perkin's books right now, Confessions of an Economic Hit Man and The Secret History of the American Empire. I enjoy any political based novels such as The Limits of Power: The End of American Exceptionalism by Andrew Bracevich. I also like anthropological books. My favorite sociological theory works include those from Karl Marx, C. Wright Mills, and W.E.B. Du Bois. I just love to read.

Movies: Everything Tim Burton, Cohen Bros, or Guy Richie, most of Quinten Tarintino. Donnie Darko, Boondock Saints, Fight Club, American History X, Slumdog Millionare, Legends of the Fall, Lucky Number Slevin, Life is Beautiful, Pans Labyrinth, etc. My favorite actor is Johnny Depp, but Robert Downy Junior is up there too.

Jess- I also love Tim Burton, especially Edward Scissorhands, Beetlejuice, and Sweeney Todd. Darren Aronofsky is amazing, especially The Fountain, Requiem for a Dream, and Black Swan. Other movies I enjoy are Defiance, V for Vendetta, Lord of War, 500 Days of Summer, Shawshank Redemption, and Blood Diamond. Anything with some historical/political/philosophical touch is great in my opinion.

Music: I listen to just about everything; from metal to blue grass, classical to folk, regge to opera, no country or rap though.

Jess- I mostly just love punk and sub-genres of it. Rise Against, Anti-Flag, Tiger Army, old AFI, Rancid, NOFX, The Unseen, Alkaline Trio, Thrice, Dropkick Murpheys, Flogging Molly, The Living End, some older stuff like Operation Ivy, The Cure, The Misfits, The Smiths. Regina Spektor is great. And I can't get enough of Irish/Scottish music. Celtic Woman and other more folky bands, or even just some good bagpipes.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

We're about to graduate with our bachelor's degrees in Sociology and Political Science. Derek has been accepted into the University of Edinburgh Grad School as well.

Teach, Learn, Share

Learn: I have been learning to play the guitar lately and I have been studying Italian as well. I would like to improve my language skills by also learning some Spanish and French also. I think that the more languages a person knows the better because then you are able to communicate with more people.

Teach: How to toss a frisbee or kick a soccer ball.

Share: Music from almost every genre, film, book, theatre, or comedian references, telling stories.

Countries I’ve Visited

Germany, Italy, Norway, Spain, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

Italy, United States

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