We are an international couple🌍 (Lebanese and Romanian/Canadian) living in the South of the USA. We are both multilingual (I speak Arabic, English, French and Spanish and Ramona speaks Romanian, French, English, Spanish, Italian and a bit of German) and love to learn and practice different languages in an informal environment.

We share a passion for travelling and having good food with friends and family. Ramona and I love to cook and experiment with different cuisines from all over the world!

Between the two of us sharing our culinary skills, one never gets hungry, parole de chef! :)

Meeting people is what resources us and opens the world to us. As two responsible adults, we both have full time jobs (I am an IT specialist and Ramona is a Professor of French and Francophone Studies).

We are not able to travel as much as we would like. So, by having international friends, welcoming travelers and Couchsurfers at our place, the world comes to us!

--------------------------------------------------- Espagnol ---------------------------------------------------------------------

Somos una pareja internacional (yo, Mazen, vengo de Líbano y Ramona viene de Rumania con un largo pasaje por Canadá) que vivimos en el Sur de los Estados Unidos. Podemos hablar múltiples idiomas (yo hablo árabe, inglés, francés y español; Ramona habla rumano, francés, inglés, español, italiano y un poco de alemán y árabe) y nos gusta aprender y practicar esos idiomas (y más) de una manera informal.

Tenemos una pasión en común: viajar y encontrar gente de todo el mundo con quien compartir no sólo una buena comida, sino también una buena charla y excelentes momentos. Siempre tenemos amigos y familia en casa para comer, hablar, mirar una película, etc. Nos gusta mucho cocinar y aprender nuevas recetas de todos los países. ¡Siempre cocinamos platos típicos de los países que hemos visitado, probamos bebidas y postres! Entre los dos y nuestros talentos culinarios, nadie se queda afamado, ¡parole de chef! 😊

Pero encontrar gente en nuestros viajes y en nuestra casa es lo que más nos gusta, lo que más nos abre el horizonte. Como dos adultos responsables, los dos tenemos trabajos a tiempo completo (yo trabajo en el mundo informático y Ramona es profesora universitaria de literatura y cultura francés y francófona). Desafortunadamente no podemos viajar tanto como nos gustaría. Es por esta razón que nos gusta tener muchos amigos internacionales, recibir gente de Couchsurfing en la casa y gente de la comunidad. De esta manera el mundo nos simbra más pequeño y más cercano!

-------------------------------------------------------- Francais ----------------------------------------------------------------

Nous sommes un couple international (libanais et roumaine/canadienne) et nous vivons dans le sud des États-Unis depuis plusieurs années. Nous sommes tous les deux plurilingues (Mazen parle l’arabe, l’anglais, le français et l’espagnol; Ramona parle le roumain, le français, l’anglais, l’espagnol, l’italien et un peu d’arabe et d’allemand) et nous adorons apprendre davantage et pratiquer ces langues dans un cadre informel.

Nous avons en commun une passion pour le voyage et pour les traditions culinaires de différents pays que nous aimons partager avec les amis et la famille. Nous aimons aussi cuisiner et expérimenter avec des cuisines ethniques ainsi que des plats internationalement reconnus! Entre nous deux et nos compétences culinaires, personne ne restera affamé, parole de chef! 😊

Rencontrer des gens de différents pays est une des choses qui nous donne de l’énergie et nous ouvre les horizons. Comme deux adultes responsables, nous avons tous les deux des boulots à temps plein (Mazen est informaticien et Ramona est professeure universitaire de littérature et culture française et francophone). Comme on ne peut pas voyager autant qu’on voudrait, on est très contents de pouvoir rencontrer des gens de la région quand on voyage et accueillir des gens de Couchsurfing chez nous. Ainsi, le monde s’ouvre à nous!

------------------------------------------------------------ Italiano -------------------------------------------------------------

Siamo una coppia internazionale (Mazen e libanese e Ramona e rumena e canadese) che viviamo nel sud degli Stati Uniti. Siamo entrambi plurilingui (Mazen parla arabe, inglese, francese, spagnolo e Ramona parla rumeno, francese, inglese, spagnolo, italiano e un può di arabe e tedesco) e ci piace molto imparare e fare pratica in tutti questi idiomi differenti in un'atmosfera informale.

Abbiamo tutti e due una grande passione per i viaggi e per la cucina internazionale, perciò, ci piace condividerla con gli amici e con la famiglia. Ramona e io adoriamo cucinare e assaggiare piatti diversi dappertutto nel mondo. Tra noi due e le nostre abilità con il cibo, nessuno morirà di fame, parole de chef! 😊

Però, incontrare gente di tutto il mondo è la cosa che ci da più piacere e che apre il mondo per noi due. Come gente molto responsabile, abbiamo dei lavori a tempo pieno (Mazen è informatico e Ramona professoressa di francese nella università). Come non possiamo viaggiare più spesso come ci piacerebbe, ci fa piacere incontrare gente internazionale dei luoghi che visitiamo e ricevere gente di Couchsurfing qui da noi per imparare il massimo di una cultura e interagire con loro.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Good friendships are one of the biggest sources of happiness in our life! So we value the new friendship Couchsurfing brings more then anything! We also love Couchsurfing because it gives us great insight into a culture that would be almost impossible to get when staying at a hotel.

Interests

We love being outdoors Gardening, Camping, Hiking or Canoeing! Listening to Live music! having great conversation in a local coffee house with friends....

• dancing
• cooking
• walking
• gardening
• reading
• hiking
• canoeing
• philosophy

Music, Movies, and Books

I enjoy mostly non-fiction books or a book that teach me something new. Some of my favorite Books that I find inspiring or entertaining are: Travel as a Political Act - Rick Steves / Freakonomics - Steven Levitt / Skin in the game - Nassim Taleb / At Home: A Short History of Private Life - Bill Bryson / Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Explain Everything About the World - Tim Marshall / The Sweet Life in Paris - David Lebovitz

I love all kind of music with the exception of maybe Country and Rap. I especially love Merengue, Batchata or Cumbia and Lebanese Dabkeh for dancing!! Flamenco, Salsa, Blues, Jazz or classical music for Cooking and relaxing!

I watch mostly Foreign movies and some of my favorite movies are: Quo Vado? or Troppo napoletano (both italian Comedies) - Vengo by Tony Gatlif (musical drama in spanish) - Capernaum & Where do we go now? (Lebanes movies by Nadine Labaki) - Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis and La vache (french comedies)

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Hiking in Yosemite national park and California in general was breathtaking.

Attend a Gigantic outdoor and unforgettable Karaoke in MauerPark in Berlin-Germany.

Teach, Learn, Share

Mazen is into permaculture and would love the opportunity to share ideas on gardening, sustainability and self-sufficiency.

Ramona is a language teacher and would love to teach and practice some languages with you!

What I Can Share with Hosts

We love having Quality conversations about anything (Religion, Politics, History, Ethics...) so I would say we hope to inspire you with new Ideas maybe and introduce you to a new perspectives of seeing things.
Above all, we would love to cook something new for you if possible as cooking is one of my biggest passion.

Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria, Chile, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Ecuador, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Macedonia, Mexico, Netherlands, Peru, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Syrian Arab Republic, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Canada, Lebanon, Romania, United States

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