I am a person who is passionate about travel and my adopted city of Paris. I grew up in New York, and I have an Irish passport thanks to my parentage. I moved to Las Vegas when I was 18, and graduated from UNLV with a B.A. in English literature. I taught English in Seoul for nearly eight months, and then did a working holiday in Sydney for another eight months. I came back to the US and did my M.Ed. at UNLV. After finishing my coursework I moved to Paris. I taught English in Paris for two and a half years. I returned to America, first living in Chicago, and then Arizona for nine years. I moved back to Paris and am now employed as an English instructor at an art academy, as well as at a language school. Occasionally I work as a freelance translator of Spanish and French into English.

Random facts:
1. I am a vegetarian, but I do not go around preaching vegetarianism as I think the choice is personal.

2. I am somewhat interested in the possibility of visiting every sovereign nation on earth.

3. I am not claustrophobic. I sleep in a very small space.

4. I am married (since 2004), but my wife and I have very different ideas about travel, so every year I go off by myself and do an overland trek while she visits a place that is more to her liking.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I plan to resume traveling, and I would like an authentic experience in each country I visit. I would also like to meet people who want to visit Paris as I love showing people around my favorite city.

Interests

Cinema, opera, travel, art museums, vegetarian cuisine

• arts
• literature
• vegetarian
• running
• instructor
• boating
• movies
• traveling
• socializing
• opera
• freelancing
• languages

Music, Movies, and Books

Books: the Sorrows of Young Werther by Goethe, the Way of All Flesh by Samuel Butler, Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham, the Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov, Journey to the End of the Night by Louis Ferdinand Céline, Ham on Rye by Charles Bukowski.

Movies: Wild Strawberries by Ingmar Bergman, the 400 Blows by Francois Truffaut, High and Low by Akira Kurosawa, Blow Up by Michelangelo Antonioni, and Double Indemnity by Billy Wilder.

Music: classical (Borodin, CPE Bach, Mussorgsky, Ravel), opera (Puccini, Verdi), classic rock (the Who, the Rolling Stones, the Doors), and I am learning a lot about jazz and blues.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I once traveled through every single nation in South America by bus, boat, and train, never taking an airplane once.

Teach, Learn, Share

I could teach you Spanish, English, and French. I can also give good advice on travel, especially things to do in Paris.

What I Can Share with Hosts

English language lessons

Housekeeping (washing dishes, running the vacuum, ironing, etc.)

Countries I’ve Visited

Albania, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Azerbaijan, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, France, French Guiana, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Iceland, India, Iran, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kosovo, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Mexico, Mongolia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Russian Federation, South Korea, Spain, Suriname, Switzerland, Tunisia, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Vatican City State, Venezuela

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, France, South Korea, United States