Hey there, I'm Mateo and I'm based out of Los Angeles. I work as a social entrepreneur (ie building startups that address social inequities) and am currently working on building cell networks for communities that have historically not had access to the Internet -- mainly after natural disasters. In the past I've also built prosthetics for musicians, a donation distribution platform for homeless shelters, and ventilators to address the COVID-19 shortage.

I also have a background in Archaeology, where I studied the impact discoveries of drugs and alcohol had on bringing society together. I did my fieldwork in the Republic of Georgia on a dig site that to date has the oldest evidence of wine production in the world. While I don't use any drugs myself (other than drinking a little), I still have a hobby interest in the development of society and try to keep up with the archaeological community.

As for hobbies, I play a bunch of instruments and LOVE music, especially jazz and indie but I will listen to and appreciate literally anything, from Ariana Grande to heavy metal to Irish folk music. I also am a hobbyist astrophotographer, I have an 8" SCT which I love to take out to the Mojave desert and image all night whenever I can. I also love skiing -- trying to get more into backcountry but love pretty much anything when there's snow. Lastly, while I don't always have the time, I absolutely love cooking.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I used to always feel like an outsider when traveling, missing my neighbors or local coffee shop baristas more than I was enjoying the new place I was visiting. For me, its the community and culture of a new place that makes me fall in love with it, not a famous building or museum (though I'm always down to check out the must-see stuff). Then, in Georgia, we stayed in a tiny rural town, drank wine made a couple houses over, and our hosts taught us how to make cheese and a bunch of other traditional dishes. I was there for work and it was the best vacation I'd ever been on. I had no idea Couchsurfing even existed, but the concept and community seem to be exactly what I've been looking for for years. Really excited to get to know you!!

And I'd love to host anyone in the future, but I currently don't have the accommodations for it. One day!

Interests

• cooking
• wine
• origami
• jazz
• skiing
• linguistics
• archaeology
• cosmology
• math
• social impact
• astrophotography

Music, Movies, and Books

Recently I've been listening to a lot of Sarah Kang, Alt-J, Sammy Rae, and Lake Street Dive
As for movies, really loved Slumberland recently. I don't have too many fav movies, but fav TV Series are Community and The Good Place

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I built a phishing scam used to take down a ring of human traffickers

Teach, Learn, Share

I've picked up a decent amount of history and astronomy knowledge, so even if you're interested, be careful opening that can of worms.

I'd really love to learn more about any languages you know or interests you're passionate about! The more excited you are about a topic, the more excited I'll be to learn about it (but actually though it's the reason I can tell you a little bit about so many different topics but only have a few I know a lot about, I keep getting interested in whatever my friends are interested in and picking up all these awesome random facts or stories)

What I Can Share with Hosts

I would love nothing more than to cook with / for you and will happily jam together to any music. If I'm driving up to you, I might be able to bring my telescope and give you a mini tour of the stars

Countries I’ve Visited

Belize, Canada, Costa Rica, England, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Monaco, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey

Countries I’ve Lived In

Colombia, Georgia, United States