CURRENT MISSION

To become really fluent in Dutch in the first half of 2012

ABOUT ME

I'm interested in meeting new people who are kind, and care about the state of the world. I'm mostly vegetarian, which can be a difficult limitation sometimes while traveling, but it's great to meet other vegetarians in new cities and get their restaurant tips and local recipes.I have a lot of different hobbies, mainly because I enjoy learning new things. I really enjoy learning languages, and I enjoy helping other people learn new languages. It's not as difficult as you may think, and I have plenty of tips to give. It mainly takes time and effort.In 2012 I plan to get a lot better at Dutch and Japanese, among others.(en Esperanto)Mi partoprenis en la SES 2010 en Slovakio kaj la JES en Germanio dum la 2010/2011 novjaro.

PHILOSOPHY

Politically, I consider myself an Anarchist, and therefore a supporter of both Socialism and Feminism. I've also been vegetarian for 10 years.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I've hosted many people at my previous location at a communal house in Vancouver. For each of our guests, we gave them a private place to sleep and we shared meals with them. (previously one of my roommates had the couchsurfing account, but I started my own account to gain some friends and references of my own)

I also hosted many times while I was living in Berlin.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I haven't surfed too many times, but I hosted many people in both Vancouver and Berlin.

Interests

learning languages, rock climbing, playing Go, juggling, unicycling, bicycling, bird watching.

• birds
• womens rights
• recipes
• vegetarian
• traveling
• juggling
• rock climbing
• languages

Music, Movies, and Books

For fiction, I tend to read a lot of sci-fi and fantasy in general. I liked Lord of the Rings, and Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series. Harry Potter wasn't worth reading in English, but I like using the translated versions as easy reading material in other languages.

Since Predator Came - Ward Churchill
Punished By Rewards - Alfie Kohn
White Like Me - Tim Wise
The Heart Of Whiteness - Robert Jensen
A People's History of the United States - Howard Zinn
Wounds of Passion - bell hooks
Spaces of Global Capital: Towards a Theory of Uneven Geographical Development - David Harvey

I like a lot of documentaries, or movies with intricate plots, but i still go for the occasional action blockbuster. Also, The Princess Bride, Holy Grail, Baraka, Usual Suspects

Music:
Pat Metheny, John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, Cannonball Adderly, Bill Frisell, Miles Davis

Jimi Hendrix, Steve Vai, Victor Wooten, Joe Satriani

Joey Only, David Rovics, Ivo Papasov, Bjork, Tom Waits

Mouse On Mars, Squarepusher, Boards of Canada, Roots Manuva, Amon Tobin

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I once did a bicycle trip from Vancouver to Kelowna (~500km) in 3 days. 197km the first day, 211km the second day, and then arriving on the third day in the early afternoon. Then I slept a lot ;)

Teach, Learn, Share

I enjoy teaching juggling and unicycling. It's also fun for me to teach beginner Chinese or Esperanto. I also teach general principles about how to learn any new language.

I enjoy teaching the chinese/japanese board game "Go" (aka "wei qi").

Also, if you've ever wanted to try Linux on your computer, I can help you get started, or give some advice if you need it.

My learning priorities in 2011 are Hindi, Spanish, and Rock Climbing.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Japan, Slovakia, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Canada, China, Germany, New Zealand

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