Hello everyone! I love meeting people from other nations - I've lived with guys from Spain, Mexico, Canada, Germany, and Nepal. I graduated two years ago and bounced around South Dakota for a while looking for a decent job but not finding it I decided to see what Europe has to offer. So now I'm an English teacher in Madrid, learning Spanish poco un poco and hoping to explore this city and any others I can get to in my time here.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Hotels suck, hostels are pretty good, but a free space to sleep is a big reason I'm on Couchsurfing. But besides that I think you can meet some really cool people, hear their stories and advice for their city. I want to know the underground things to do in a place.

Interests

My hobbies/interests are all over: film (world cinema especially), reading, researching scientific breakthroughs, listening to history and political podcasts, cycling, hunting/fishing, sports (this year I've played racquetball as much as I can), exploring, the occasional video game, and many other things.

Music, Movies, and Books

Music: almost everything in the world (besides country). Some of my favorite artists are: Led Zepplin, Violent Femmes, The Beatles, John Fahey, Wu-Tang Clan, White Stripes, Waldeck, TV on the Radio, Thelonious Monk, Sublime, Dispatch, R.L. Burnside, Chili Peppers, Radiohead, and I'll stop the list with that.
Movies: this list could go for ever, but a few of my all time favorites are from these directors : Cohen brothers, Paul Thomas Anderson, Stanley Kubrick, Martin Scorsese, Akira Kurosawa, Park Chan-Wook, Michael Haneke, Werner Herzog,
Books: Moby Dick, Blood Meridian, Frankenstein, Gravity's Rainbow, Aliens in the Prime of Their Lives, all Joseph Conrad, Oliver Sacks novels, Short Nights of the Shadow-Catcher.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

It's called RAGBRAI: Registered Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa. This week long cycling journey is the largest non-competitive biking tour in America, an average day will see 30,000 cyclists. I've done this tour three times, two of those times hauling my own trailer with all my gear. It's one of the most exhausting experiences you could ever put yourself through, but hey, live a little.

Teach, Learn, Share

I'm a Medical Biology major with a double minor in English and Chemistry.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Unique perspective on life, politics, economy, basically anything that can be talked about I'll talk about. If time allows I can be a tour guide for the area. I know how to make a few tasty dishes, but better yet I know where to find cheap, delicious food in town.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain

Countries I’ve Lived In

Spain, United States