CURRENT MISSION

To live life unconventionally and experience the world

ABOUT ME

We're a 27 and 31 year old married couple that found a lot of common ground through our love for travelling. Morgan is a baker and part time wine maker while Karen is a cheesemaker and part time bartender. We are also co-owners of The Traveling Soap Shop - check us out online :)

We believe that no one should ever be a bystander in life. We should all experience a culture or a place for what it is instead of only how its meant to be seen by outsiders. We believe it is important to get out of your comfort zone and truly enjoy life.

When we travel we prefer to do as the locals do and we always hope that those we host will want to do the same. That they'll want to help cook some meals, help tidy up, follow roughly the same schedule, and have fun the way the locals do.

Please use our names when requesting to stay with us... it makes a big difference and we'll want to respond.

PHILOSOPHY

Most of all to be open to new experiences, to be yourself at all times and stand up for what you believe in.

Also don't eat a full Thali midday in 50 degree weather.

Eat where the locals eat. And try the water...just a sip

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

We participate by hosting other travellers, couch surfing ourselves, and giving travel tips to those who we cannot host at that time. Equal relationship! If you're going to travel, give a little back and host a bit, it's fun.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I (Karen) spent a month couch surfing in the NE side of the states, including New York, Washington, Chicago, Boston, etc. Thank you to all who allowed me to crash at your place!

We did some couchsurfing in Malaysia over 2014 with a very memorable family and a great family-to-be. We also spent the last month of our trip couchsurfing in Europe - such an amazing experience.

Back home in Canada and looking forward to reloading our karma now :)

Interests

Travelling of course, delicious food, wine and beer, napping, cooking, camping, hiking, horseback riding, foraging, learning new languages, learning new things in general, sustainable living, community living, wood working, gardening, swimming, canoeing, generally knowing how to make household things (soaps, etc).

• dogs
• culture
• education
• dining
• cooking
• wine
• indian food
• beer
• desserts
• traveling
• painting
• woodworking
• equestrian
• hiking
• camping
• surfing
• teaching
• languages
• beaches

Music, Movies, and Books

Love to read... Shantaram, Mr Nice, Gaias Garden, Never Cry Wolf, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, anything by Neil Gaiman

Love to sing and dance in the kitchen - rolling stones, tallest man on earth, shakey graves, the cave singers, fiona apple, blue rodeo, alabama shakes, anything bluesy or funky for Morgan

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Driving from Ontario to BC then hitch hiking from there back to Manitoba.

First of many real camping trips on an island in BC, Canada :) Great two-hour hike across the island to camp on a secluded beach with wolves, eagles, and sea otters. Fantastic experience! Ask me for pictures of Vancouver Island, I'd recommend everyone to come here at least once in your lifetime. I'll be moving there as soon as possible so you can stay on our couch!

Learning how to drive a motorcycle in Vietnam then being able to drive for hours along the Ho Chi Minh Trail.

Making our way from Spain to Italy in three days by hitching, train hopping, and good ol urban campin'.

Teach, Learn, Share

Always learning, who says education has to be formal?

Always sharing memories, stories and experiences.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Food! We love to cook. Morgan's an expert at soups, smoked anything, Thai curries and Karen is great at all kinds of desserts and Indian food.

We can always offer up our knowledge on wine, all things Canadian, advice for staying on a budget, and advice for packing long term. We've also really gotten into making just about everything natural... hair wax, soap (some different kinds), lip balm, hair spray, deodorant, and toothpaste.

We are tidy people who can help out with things around the house like dishes, cleaning, walking dogs, etc.

We have some other random skills that we've acquired over the last few years like making wine, beer and mead, some natural remedies, starting a compost, some woodworking and basic repairs.

Plus we always encourage having an adventure.

Countries I’ve Visited

Cambodia, Canada, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, France, India, Italy, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Peru, Singapore, Thailand, United States, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

Canada, Spain, Thailand

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