My name is Fin and I'm a writer and musician who loves the moments in life that make you feel really alive. Swimming in the sea at night, camping, climbing trees, conversations around campfires, impromptu drinks at airports, sunsets and moss and dancing, connection, joy, solo cinema trips, love, adventure, magic, deep conversations.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Last year in May I departed, on my own, on a journey starting in Tallinn and ending in Budapest, via Turkey. I crossed the borders of twelve countries, travelled thousands of miles, met dozens of interesting people and made so many unforgettable memories. Couchsurfing was the crux of my trip and I've been addicted to it ever since - I believe that the biggest part of experiencing a country is through its people - people that are knowledgable about where they live and willing to share their culture with others. I know that this journey will be one of many CS experiences in the future, I can't wait for more to come.

Interests

photography, music, singing, dancing, running, camping & hiking, art, theatre, film, reading, writing, listening, conversing, cooking, eating, gaming, travelling, adventuring

• arts
• culture
• writing
• singing
• performing arts
• photography
• dancing
• cooking
• running
• reading
• traveling
• music
• guitar
• drums
• hiking
• camping
• muslim
• volunteering

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies - Studio Ghibli films (especially Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, Grave of the Fireflies), Kubrick. Pan's Labyrinth, Se7en, La Haine, Cidade de Deus, Star Wars, Amores Perros, The Matrix, Fight Club, Les Triplettes de Belleville (and other Sylvain Chomet), Paris: Texas, Machuca, Home, Inglourious Basterds, Once, Leon, The Usual Suspects, Intouchables, Pulp Fiction, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Trainspotting, Into the Wild, Donnie Darko

TV shows - The Wire, Firefly, Peep Show, Adventure Time, House of Cards, Twin Peaks, Spaced, The IT Crowd, Luther, Garth Marenghi's Dark Place, Flight of the Conchords, Community, Nevermind the Buzzcocks, Scrubs, Breaking Bad, House, Game of Thrones, Adult Swim, South Park

Music - Joanna Newsom, Sigur Ros, Radiohead, Beirut, Buena Vista Social Club, Geno Washington, God is an Astronaut, Portishead, Jimi Hendrix, Kings of Convenience, Arcade Fire, Pink Floyd, The Kinks, Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes, Joy Division, The Tallest Man on Earth, The Shins, Lou Reed, Tame Impala, The xx, Chuck Berry, Camila Moreno, Sufjan Stevens, Guillemots (TTWP), Otis Redding, Mogwai, James Brown, Daft Punk, Justice, Cat Power, Patrick Watson, Chopin, Satie, Yann Tiersen, Fever Ray, Godspeed You! Black
Emperor, Damien Rice, Pixies, Caribou, Cat Stevens and a lot more -

Books - Books - Travel writers in general. House of the Spirits. David Abram. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, The Passion, In a Strange Room, LOTR, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, In Patagonia, The Master and Margarita. Spell of the Sensuous. Songlines.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

While volunteering in West Africa, the organization we worked with would take us to rural villages to give talks on sexual health and family planning.

One day we arrived in Paglayiri, a tiny islamic community in the middle of the sub-saharan Sahel. As we drove through the tall grass brush we heard the sound of singing, drums and hand-claps approaching. Ahead in the road, the villagers held up a blackboard with a welcome message written in chalk. We were led into the village by the procession of dozens of chanting people, children shouting in excitement (likely having never seen white people before) and were welcomed by a performance the village had put together for our arrival.

Children in beautifully coloured costumes dancing in time to a band playing instruments made of dried gourds, a home-made guitar with a custom amplifier hooked up to a megaphone. The dancers performing incredible movements and kicking up the dirt with their feet to the rhythm, singing and clapping and smiling.

Countries I’ve Visited

Belgium, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Germany, Gibraltar, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Morocco, Netherlands, Peru, Poland, Réunion, Serbia, Slovakia, Spain, Turkey

Countries I’ve Lived In

Burkina Faso, Chile, Peru, Réunion, United Kingdom

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