Hi, I'm Richard!

I'm 25 years old and I grew up in Canterbury, a small city near London.

I've been living in Berlin for the past two years where I work as a freelance translator. I see a career more as a vehicle for freedom and prefer experiencing the world instead.

I think I am a very curious person and I think a lot. Even when I was a child I used to ask questions all the time.

I am usually doing one of the following:

Translating or reading or writing
Cooking and eating simple, healthy, mostly vegetarian food
Riding my bike
Larking about with friends
Going out at night and meeting new people
Dancing to electronic music
Teaching people English
Photography
Meditating

People often use these words to describe me:

Open
Friendly
Smart
Funny
Direct
Calm

Things I like:

Bikes
Cats
Rain
Sun
Forests
Lakes
Apples
Broccoli
Cameras
Computers
Books
Languages
Meditating
Cheesecake

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I've used Couchsurfing in my own city and met a few of my good friends at Couchsurfing events, but never in other cities.

I really like my city (Berlin), but I haven't seen any new places for a while so it's time for an adventure. I've never travelled on my own before and I'm a little afraid, but I hope to challenge myself and expand my comfort zone.

NORTH AMERICAN ECLIPSE ADVENTURE 2017

I'll be travelling around the United States on a budget, starting in Vancouver in June and ending my trip with the total solar eclipse on August 21, where I plan to be somewhere near Nashville.

I've decided to travel light because I don't want the stress associated with carrying a lot of stuff around. My bag currently weighs under 7 kg (15 lbs), and I'm trying to reduce it even more.

Please host, feed, entertain or transport me! :)

Interests

Photography:

I like to photograph interesting things I see when exploring. After much deliberating, I decided not to bring my DSLR with me, as I want to travel light. Instead I'll have my smartphone and a GoPro. I'm planning on making a video of my trip, so if you'd like to be in it or have any ideas, that would be awesome.

Writing:

I kept a journal for a number of years, but stopped recently. I'll be writing a journal of all the cool things I see and people I meet on my trip.

• photography
• electronic music
• cycling
• languages
• psychology
• travel
• foreign languages
• germany
• reading and writing

Music, Movies, and Books

Music:

Ulrich Schnauss, Jon Hopkins, Moderat, Lusine, Fritz Kalkbrenner, Bonobo, Sigur Ros, Trentemoller, a-ha, Röyksopp, London Grammar, M83, Caribou, Apparat, Solomun, Bloc Party, Alphaville, Ludovico Einaudi, and many more...

Movies:

American Beauty, Ex Machina... I don't really watch movies that much to be honest.

Books:

1984, Brave New World, A Clockwork Orange, The Affirmation, Breakfast Of Champions, Agnes

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Not a huge thing, but I once spontaneously cycled 100km from Berlin to Poland and only vaguely planned it the night before. I really enjoy longer cycles and would like to undertake a bigger trip such as Berlin to London in the near future.

I spent eight years of my life teaching myself German and now people in Germany think I'm lying when I tell them I grew up in England.

Teach, Learn, Share

I really enjoy teaching English and German and going on adventures and larking about generally.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Everybody has a unique view on the world and meeting new people is energising and gives you new ideas and inspiration. No two people know the same things and have the same perspective. I will share my perspective with you.

I can help you learn English or German.

I am open, calm, smart and funny.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States