One of the things I find hardest about travelling is when I am asked “where are you from?”; ok; I was born in Africa (Zimbabwe), grew up in Italy, college in England, University in Scotland, lived in Germany, spent the longest period of my life in Lithuania, a year in Malaysia, live now in Norway..and oh yeah, my surname is Basque, my father was born in Egypt, my grandfather in Ecuador, my passport British, my partner Lithuanian,.. so... the point is.. I hate borders and national boundaries, we're all people. Whatever culture you belong to, beliefs you have, values you hold, principles you have, none of them are "right". There are only two things that matter: Be kind to others, respect the environment. If you disagree with me, I'm very happy to have a long philosophical debate about it, in a kind and respectful way, over coffee/dinner!
I studied maths at university (and some other things) and then ended up working in something completely different. I have been: a social worker, a driver, a teacher, a business owner, a life guard, a builder, a barman, a shop floor worker, and other odd jobs I can't really remember.. and at 65, I'm still wondering what I want to be when I grow up.
I am married with two children, who somehow managed to grow up into two wonderful people and have flown the nest to live their own lives. And somehow, I now live a quiet(ish) life in a lovely little house with a view over the fjord and mountains on the west coast of Norway. I am sure this is far more than I deserve, so do my best to appreciate it every day

Por qué estoy en Couchsurfing

I travel modestly, generally by bicycle. Whilst I see the value tourism can bring to places, I also see its destructive side, and prefer to travel according to the principle of "Leave no trace, only good memories". A hotel is a hotel is a hotel, once you are in it, you could be anywhere in the world, and it destroys what is different and that which makes travelling valuable. So I prefer to stay locally, act locally, share locally, having as little impact as possible on the environments I visit, and learning as much as possible from the people and places.

Similarly, I host because I want to share the same with like-minded people, and return the kindness that many people have shown to me. Most of my hosting etc has been through the Warmshowers cycling community, so if you happen to use that you can learn more about me there (warmshowers.org) but recently I have been a bit disillusioned by the new WS management so I am looking to couchsurfing, trustroots and welcometomygarden as alternatives.

Intereses

• politics
• cycling
• economics
• science
• bike riding
• bikes
• discussion
• bikepacking
• philosophical conversations
• cycling trips
• cycling tours