(Did I catch your attention as the oldest person on earth? Like many, I feel uneasy about revealing too much about myself, at least in the beginning. Maybe it's an actor's habit—-not only do I hope to play a wide range of roles as an actor but in life, I hope to be able to interact with new friends around the world of all ages. )

I just learned about this organization but it seems to have been tailor-made!

Since I was a child I have been passionately interested in meeting people from all over the world----I knew the world was bigger than my own neighborhood. I also knew, deep down, I did not feel tied to a nationality or age group or a single occupation. From an early age, I was determined to not merely visit another place but to really live embedded within: learning the language, living with others and seeing the society from the inside out.

My work is directly inspired by these experiences. A short overview can be found on my website www.eliseglickmanrao.com

I have lived in Mainland China, Japan and the UK for 14 years in total.

In sum, I am what Emilie Wapnick founder of the Puttylike calls a "multipotentialite." (Check out her TED talk.) What drives me is artmaking, writing and a curiosity about design, architecture, fashion, literature, theater and how people live all over the world.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

What attracts me to travel is not just seeing the sites or museum hopping but getting to know people around the world—- seeing life and the world from their perspective, and talking about issues that affect all of us no matter where we live. This is not only fun but vital to my work as an artist, actor and writer of plays and short stories.

Interests

• arts
• writing
• literature
• theater
• architecture
• fashion
• film making
• acting
• film festivals
• dance
• film
• art museums
• fashion design
• design thinking
• designing
• actor
• journalist

Music, Movies, and Books

How much space do I have? Let's just begin with recent reading, finished or in progress. I just read Franklin Foer's new book, WORLD WITHOUT MIND: The Existential Threat of Big Tech and William Espers' THE ACTOR'S GUIDE TO CREATING A CHARACTER. I am currently reading THE MEANING OF THINGS: Domestic Symbols and the Self by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi and I have Murakami's MEN WITHOUT WOMEN and THE POETRY OF PABLO NERUDA home from the library. I read a lot of plays.

I love films. Some of my favorite filmmakers include: Wes Anderson, Paul Thomas Anderson, the Coen Brothers, OzuYasujiro Kurosawa Akira, Steve McQueen. Wim Wender's "Pina," is one of my favorite films because it documents the life and work of one of my favorite choreographers, Pina Bausch.

I love avant-garde music beginning with the early 20th century.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I could talk about the decade I worked in television and radio for a Chinese television and radio broadcaster, an experience I am very proud of especially the television documentary I wrote and hosted about women in China that aired around the world on CCTV or hosting a series of talk shows on radio and television in Mandarin, but that's in the past. Currently, I am preparing for a solo show this fall at Atelier 54 Chicago, an international women's artist incubator where I will debut a series of paintings and conduct a workshop reading of my two-act play in progress, "Amor Fati or The Little Girl Who Could."

Teach, Learn, Share

I can share my love of art and culture. I want to learn the language of the country I am visiting and get to know the core of the arts community.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I am happy to share my enthusiasm and interest in my hosts' country, my love of art and the arts in general.

Countries I’ve Visited

China, England, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Northern Ireland, Scotland

Countries I’ve Lived In

China, England, Japan