I am delighted to be back in the eastern U.S. since January 2020 after 35 years "stuck" in California.
Just 30 miles from the (now closed) Canadian border, and ~45 minutes' drive to Lake Ontario - this is Amish Country where cycling is great with gently rolling hills and a shoulder wide enough for the horse-drawn buggies, and passing drivers acutely aware of not wanting to spook the horses (or bicycles with only a minimal amount of manure-dodging).

My home is at the hydroelectric plant - during COVID-19 you are welcome to pitch a tent on the property and use the extra upstairs restroom if you keep mask-on from the moment you open the front door (after applying hand sanitizer) until the restroom door is closed. There's a possibility as well that you use the upstairs bedroom - but it is hot & stuffy when the temperature is above 80-degrees Fahrenheit.

The canoe/kayak portage around the hydroelectric passes right by your camp site. One of these days, I will make the water trip with my friend from here to Lake Ontario.

CURRENT MISSION

Wherever my job takes me (New Hampshire! no option to say "traveling" only "not hosting" 'cuz I'm not at my place), I prefer to hang with the locals.

ABOUT ME

Addicted to international student exchange and meeting locals when I travel or others who come to my community.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I signed up when I needed a place to stay while traveling in the U.S. on business - after 21 years in Fair Oaks (not exactly a place people think of visiting, but we've hosted 10 academic-year high school exchange students, in addition to miscellaneous short-termers), we moved within 3 blocks of commuter train to reach downtown Sacramento.

Interests

Especially like to spend time in the great outdoors; enjoy classical/baroque and world music (I play violin and viola, more recently participate in Quebec-Cajun jam group in Vermont), as well as theater and visual arts; interesting food and wine.

• arts
• theater
• dining
• wine
• traveling
• eating out
• music
• piano
• violin
• world music
• outdoor activities
• business
• teaching
• visual arts

Music, Movies, and Books

I play classical, baroque and pit orchestra for musical theater. I've finished the entire Voyager series (8 books, nearly 1,000 pages each) and other writings by Diana Gabaldon, now I'm back to light crime/mystery by Robert B. Parker, after having read everything available in digital from my library by Crais, Padgett, Grafton, Hillerman, etc.; enjoyed "The Internship" (about a couple of old-school sales guys who spent the summer at Google) on DVD while donating blood platelets recently (otherwise, I don't get out to movies much).

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

This question used to be "Seen or Done" and I wrote that it doesn't hit me as one question...things I've seen are a reflection of my perception of the outside world, things I've done are about me...I guess they do merge together when I think about being a high school exchange student to France, I took the challenge and got so much out of it.

I've driven one-way across the U.S. 10 times, three times solo in just 4 days - my 4th solo trip I took it easier; 6 days and ALL nights couchsurfing! I also drove all but about 4 hours the first day of 3,025 km in 11 days in Peru, much on national numbered highways that required using a turn-out to pass on-coming traffic on unpaved roads with an average speed of 30 km/hour.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I HAVE shared with many hosts my mother's never-fail cheese souffle and chocolate amaretto cheesecake. I just need to know to shop, and an hour in the host's kitchen to make either one (and since the souffle takes an hour to cook, I could make the cheesecake while waiting for dinner -- although the cheesecake is best cooled, so reverse order is best, and a 3rd hour to eat!)

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belize, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, El Salvador, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Italy, Malta, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Vatican City State, Virgin Islands, British, Virgin Islands, U.S.

Countries I’ve Lived In

Colombia, France, Peru, United States