CURRENT MISSION

To recapture my adolescence, but with the benefits of experience and maturity! Oh. And money!!

ABOUT ME

I'm a short fat guy with a pretty good line in self-deprecating humour. Come to think of it, I've a pretty big line in all manner of humour, especially irony. The irony goes down well in UK and in parts of the Far East. It goes down rather less well in France. Pity that - I love France!

I am very well travelled both as a holidaymaker and through my profession as a photographer. There was ,also, destination research for my own and other travel businesses. I also write on travel (also on photography and photographers[and engineering - don't ask -it's been fun!]), together with some fiction.

I am a sometimes failed vegan (Dalian had great seafood!), but always manage vegetarian at least. I'm a no alcohol, drugs, smoke or caffeine zone (though you're welcome to take coffee - in fact the smell of it is great at waking me up!).

I am a consistent yoga and gym freak. Though I'm not one of "those" yoga freaks - rolls eyes! I've no religion, but definite Buddhist and Daoist leanings, especially Daoist. My Buddhist leanings seem to collapse in direct proportion to the decline of Buddhism in Thailand!

Probably no surprise here that I'm a rather obsessive orientalist. My favourite travel zones are South-East and East Asia, though I've a growing interest in the Middle East.

I currently live in Bangkok, while completing a Phd, writing and photographing.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Primarily to work out how to convince Couchsurfing that I no longer live in Dalian, China, but Bangkok, Thailand. It seems to refuse to accept this rather critical fact! Update: Finally success!!

I love meeting new people, not that I ever do, thanks to this problem over location !!!!!!!

Interests

• writing
• photography
• seafood
• coffee
• vegetarian
• vegan
• yoga
• working out
• traveling
• buddhist
• engineering
• religion

Music, Movies, and Books

Music: is something I chop and change over. I , recently, went back to the music of my youth, but have sudden yearnings over quite recent pop. One problem: I don't know what on earth anything's called! In my more adult moments, I'm into jazz.

Books: I'm into Ryu Murakami and Haruki Murakami. I'm very into the Bangkok Noir genre of crime writing (and Chris Coles' painting too); and write genre fiction myself. I think Steig Larsson's ability to handle a multi-stranded plot is simply amazing. That said, Keigo Higashino is even more amazing. The Devotion of Suspect X is a must read.

I'm mostly rather precious about film. I guess my favourite film is a relatively obscure Turkish piece "Head On". Generally, I hate those Hollywood unequivocal endings. Then I muddle the issue by loving the happy endings in some Hollywood romantic comedy of the Stiller/Aniston/Vaughan ilk. That said, the favourite here has still to be "Pretty Woman". Maybe I'm confused, or, worse, romantic!!

The one thing I have absolutely no confusion about is I'd rather be Indiana Jones than watch Indiana Jones!! I'm rather contemptuous of the vicarious experience thing.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Diwali Night, Jaipur.
Old Town Square, Prague late night under fresh February snow.
A near-death experience in Bangkok - I learnt a little Thai,the Thai nurses learnt a lot about Western bodies, I got addicted for some years to Johnsons Baby Powder. Seriously!
Photographing under naval bombardment in the ex-Yugoslavia.
Helping save a drowning child in Bangkok.
Being declared an honorary woman by the Romanian Orthodox Church, so I could stay in a Convent.

Countries I’ve Visited

Andorra, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Barbados, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, Chile, China, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Laos, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Malawi, Malaysia, Malta, Mauritius, Monaco, Morocco, Myanmar, Nepal, Netherlands, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Saint Lucia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United States, Uruguay, Vatican City State, Viet Nam, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Countries I’ve Lived In

China, Thailand, United Kingdom