CURRENT MISSION

Chewing before I swallow

ABOUT ME

Well, I'm a language lover. I love the tentative first steps, when you start to wrap your mouth around sounds you've never made before, when you contort your brain into positions it has never experienced. I love the golden moment when, after you've learned how to say cat and table and happy and person and ceiling and all those words you never really need to use anyway, you realize that a new language is not just a strange way of speaking, but the gateway to a previously unknown culture and way of life. And I love to finally use them, to communicate, to connect with people I never could have before. That, for me, is the greatest reward. There's a Czech proverb that says that you live a new life for every new language you speak. If you only speak one language, you only live once. I intend on living as fully and completely as possible.

Ever since I entered college, I've become fascinated by the topic of international development. I've sought out a bunch of experiences to get more familiar in the field, first volunteering in Cameroon, then interning with a peace-building organization in Chad. Right now, I'm doing a two-year fellowship with an organization in rural China that seeks to reduce educational inequity. When I think of the places I've been, whether traveling or working, I see a trail of places that have left their marks on me. Immersion in any environment, whether a village in rural Cameroon steeped in tradition or the turgid waters of the Mekong River, is impossible without having a bit seep into your pores.

PHILOSOPHY

Ignorance can bring you satisfaction, but would you really want that kind of happiness? Better to always be experiencing something new, to live on your toes. Life is nothing without rapture, and it's better to regret the things you've done than the things you haven't.

If you don't improve the lives of others, what meaning will your own have?

Let yourself be suffused with empathy and appreciation for others. Remember that like yourself, everyone is ensconced in their own fears, doubts, insecurities and shortcomings. Then, love them for that.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

My first surfing experiences were with an ambassador in Lyon, and later in a lovely beachside town in Croatia. Since then, I've surfed all sorts of places, although mostly in Europe and Asia. Best host so far? Probably Tomás in Hungary, although definitely a tough question. The best surfer award goes to Alex and Anna from Russia, hands down.

I got into hosting about two years ago when I was in Washington DC, and by now, I've hosted more than thirty people of eighteen different nationalities. I'm hoping to meet some more soon. It's not just a way to pay it forward, but another side of the CS coin just as rewarding as surfing, if not more so!

Interests

Playing the violin on a street corner.
Learning foreign languages.
Photography, cooking and people who have unique insights.
Good analogies and bad analogies.
international development and civil society.

• cats
• culture
• folklore
• photography
• environment
• cooking
• traveling
• violin
• surfing
• rock climbing
• languages
• volunteering
• beaches

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies: La Haine, City of God, The Lives of Others, Pan's Labyrinth

Books: John Steinbeck, The Unbearable Lightness of Being, One Hundred Years of Solitude, Mountains Beyond Mountains

Music: Bach and Ysaÿe Violin Sonatas; classical guitar; jazz, specifically Bill Evans; classical music from the romance era, especially Liszt, Chopin, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Sibelius and Ravel.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Standing on the black sand beaches of Limbé, right where the jungle meets the sea. Then, for two days, climbing up, up, up through the rainforest and past the treeline, 14,000 feet up to the summit of Mt. Cameroon, to breathe in the smoke from its crater and gaze down at the beach where I'd started, miles below me.

Teach, Learn, Share

I've played the violin for fourteen years now. Want to learn?

Surtout, je cherche à héberger ceux qui parlent français, pour améliorer mon propre niveau. Je cherche chaque opportunité possible pour pratiquer, et héberger, c'est la meilleure façon à part de vivre en France ou au Quebec.

!Hledám i lidi, kteří mluví český, protože jet do prahy letadlem na jaře. Tak pokud to mluvíš, můžeme trénovat!

Вы говорите по-русский? Я тоже. Давайте говорить!

你会中文吗？我好想跟你练习，你感兴趣的话，就跟我联系一下～

What I Can Share with Hosts

Huh, isn't my winning personality enough? Just hit that button. You know you want to.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Ethiopia, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Laos, Morocco, New Zealand, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Ukraine, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

Cameroon, Chad, China, Czech Republic, France, United States

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