I'm personable and clean! What more could you ask for?

Okay, I'll elaborate. I am an intrepid traveler, a lover of languages, and a connoisseur of craziness.

My journeys started when I graduated from university, got on a plane in San Francisco, and found myself in Tokyo, Japan. Harajuku costumes, armies of suited salarymen, sushi galore, country life coexisting with sprawling urban landscapes. It was everything I could have ever dreamed of and more.

Three years of mischief later, I fled from Osaka to live in the center of the universe, New York. $$$ signs and fashion.

Another year later, I embarked on a round-the-world trip, starting in Asia (Taiwan, Japan, Thailand, China), riding the train through eastern Europe (Mongolia, Russia, Latvia), and then aimlessly wandering from festival to festival in Western Europe.

There's more, but I don't want to be a bore.

PHILOSOPHY

Try everything at least once.

Live fast and die young.

Why work away until retirement before seeing the world when you can experience it now?

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I've been couchsurfing at friends' places for as long as I can remember and have met a ton of couchsurfers in my travels, as well as in my circle of friends.

It's great to give back to the community of travelers, because I know how much I appreciated it when people offered me a place to lay my head for free.

Plus, traveling is really hard, so isn't it better when you can have one less thing to worry about?

Interests

Travel obviously! But I prefer living at the destination rather than simply passing through.
Meeting new people and making friends with the locals.
Munching on street eats, even if it means I have to down a couple of stomach pills...

• fashion
• festivals
• dining
• cooking
• breakfast
• traveling
• music
• snorkeling
• entrepreneurship
• languages
• sightseeing
• beaches
• calisthenics

Music, Movies, and Books

House, trap, hip-hop, jazz, j-pop, whatever's on the radio, and whatever floats your boat probably floats mine too.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I hitchhiked across Japan (and lived there for three years) for over a week. Some drivers thought we were hobos and wanted to feed us, but we all had full-time jobs.

I volunteered for two months in tsunami-stricken region of Japan near Fukushima. It was physically and emotionally demanding work, but ultimately rewarding in the end when you saw the people who'd benefit from the house you just built, or a farmer's land saved from flooding after you cleaned the gutters.

I also rode through Bali's major sightseeing sights for an entire day on the back of a motorcycle, with a driver who had no idea what I was saying. The feeling was mutual.

Traveled the world for an entire year, although it was only Asia and Europe. This included taking the Trans-Siberian from China through Mongolia, and spending an entire month in Russia. I learned Russian breakfast means shots of vodka with your new train car flatmates.

Went snorkeling in Thailand and played with the bioluminescent plankton (they glow in the dark).

Spent three weeks on a beach along the Crimean peninsula in Ukraine for Kazantip, a music festival.

Teach, Learn, Share

Ask me language questions!
I'm constantly trying to learn new languages and learn more about other cultures in the process. As a result, I know some pretty nifty study methods that make learning a lot easier and more fun.

If you need entrepreneur advice, I can offer that as well!

If you want to try some basic Filipino food, I'd love to cook a meal or two. :)

What I Can Share with Hosts

I have many services to offer to hosts! These include:

- opening tight jars (sometimes).
- cooking a simple Filipino dish or two. For vegetarians, I can make a quinoa bowl :D
- taking photos for you with my camera (Sony A6000)
- sharing funny and crazy travel stories
- teaching you words and phrases from Japanese, Tagalog, or other languages
- buying you an alcohol beverage or two
- put me to work in the house and have me clean!

Countries I’ve Visited

Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Dominican Republic, France, India, Indonesia, Italy, Latvia, Mexico, Mongolia, Netherlands, Philippines, Russian Federation, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Taiwan, Thailand, Ukraine, Vatican City State

Countries I’ve Lived In

China, Japan, Mexico, Taiwan, United States