Kia ora beautiful humans of the world! I'm a 33 year old kiwi, been living in Wellington for the past 2 years in an open and dynamic communal space in Newtown with an evolving group of people. I'm a whole foods chef, keen musician and environmental warrior investing my energy in being a sustainable human and enjoy the beauty of connection with other people on this journey we all walk alone, yet together. As a Taurus it is in my nature to offer hospitality to those around me, curate space, share music, interesting conversation and a positive, safe and comfortable environment for others to put their feet up, take a long deep breath and rest easy in feeling at home in... well, my home. I now strive to make connection with the Earth in everything I do 🌿 and to find the best in the present moment of NOW, whilst embracing and trusting that the universe will bring us the people and experiences we are meant to have right when we need them.. I've hosted many couch surfers over the past few years and it's been an amazing experience of humanness, that's presented new lessons and insights through each interaction and in seeing more deeply the diverse spectrum of human beings. I've made incredible friendships with people who continue to shine their light on my life even when they've left the shores of this beautiful country. I've had numerous surfers return, some time and time again, and have also watched as amazing connections between others have taken shape as we share this space.. I do value receiving the many thoughtful and personal messages that I get as it gives me an opportunity to try and get a sense of who you are. I'm sure you're all awesome people! but my intentions are also to encourage the positive connectivity enabled by the couch surfing community, not just to offer free accommodation. Your vibe attracts your tribe.. ✨ It's also possible there could be a cross over with other couch surfers and you may be sharing our hosting space with other friends or travellers at times.. - We're not strangers, we're just friends that haven't met yet...

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

After spending most of my twenties as a stay at home dad, my son ventured off with his mum to live in Sydney for a year and I packed up my life and headed off with what I could fit in my car to travel the world... in saying that it was the piece of earth right beneath my feet, Aotearoa, New Zealand, "the-land-of-the-long-white-cloud" where I was born and raised that intrigued me most. While many take their adventures and search for the unknown off the shores of their place of origin, I decided to go and explore what was right in front of me. What began as one year ended up being nearly three as a kiwi traveling in New Zealand, and many, many beautiful experiences in an array of magical settings around this fine country deep in the pacific. My adventures ranged from exploring majestic rivers, wild oceans and tranquil native forests; living in a hostel and picking fruit and grapes for a summer in the sunny Hawkes Bay on the East coast, and wwoofing for six months on a farm in the hills of Kumeroa in the central lower North island where we worked on a developing permaculture system. We also kept and milked two house cows from which I learned how to make cheese and butter and yoghurt, as well as preserving our abundant harvests, and embraced living a simpler existance with things like showering in an outdoor bathroom and using composting toilets... I also lived in the stunning Coromandel on a festival site for almost a year, where I kept fed a community of people busy preparing for their annual New Year event with nourishing food and heartfelt goodness while experiencing the beauty of community life in a very alternative living arrangement... The world has beauty everywhere you look, many seek it far and wide and across oceans, but I found so much magic without having to go very far at all. Funnily enough most of my adventures were spent with people from all around the world, it was like reverse travel, in that the world came to me. I realised that while many, many people travel in these modern days, the journey is not only about the places we go, but just as importantly it is in the people we meet. If everybody was constantly travelling, where would we all go without having people grounded somewhere to host us, to met us when we arrived. So here I am, opening the door from time to time to see who's on the other side, offering somewhere for weary travellers to come, rest a while and share stories of the journeys already taken while indulging in the moments of the present shared together.

Interests

Music - listening to and jamming good tunes, learning how to play new instruments, experimenting with the sense and spaciousness of sound, going to live gigs, conscious festivals, the daily practice of mindfulness, doing yoga, bush walks, swimming, permaculture, growing exotic plants, alternative living, positive social change, second hand shopping, upcycling, trying to never buy anything new, living sustainability in thought and in action and protecting the earth 🌏 in every way possible. I believe that balance is essential to an enjoyable existence; with active use of your body, mindful awareness and a spiritual engagement with life, whole foods, the use of herbs and probiotic fermentation we can build the basis of our human health. I love to engage in stimulating conversation and genuine connections of Love, compassion and lighthearted fun. I enjoy making people feel comfortable. I enjoy making people feel uncomfortable ✨☺️ I'll always explore the paths less trodden... And really enjoy silence and time spent peacefully in contemplation.

Music, Movies, and Books

I love music in many forms! And New Zealand is home to some of the best. Some of my unwavering favs locally and abroad are Trinity Roots, Electric Wire Hustle, Fat Freddie's Drop, Fly My Pretties, The Black Seeds, Salmonella Dub, Bonobo, Bon Iver, Rhian Sheehan, Elder Island, Thievery Corporation, Jose Gonzalez, Jordan Rakei, Tora, FKJ, Khruangbin, The Human Experience, ... the list goes on.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I was born, and then I lived...

Teach, Learn, Share

I have many hobbies and passions, recently I've been developing my interest in the art of fermentation, with a small home kombucha distillery in the basement of our house, so occasionally I'm brewing and bottling my booch if anyone's interested in learning about fermented beverages made with tea. As a household we are actively working on reconditioning our consumer habits and moving towards being zero-waste (living without creating rubbish - so be prepared to discuss the subject and aware that this exchange comes with a "leave-no-trace-policy") I'm trying to move quickly against the tide of global consumerism, against the state of convenient, "disposable" living we've accustomed ourselves to in modern western societies when it comes to food, fuels, energy and consumables. This is the greatest source of our waste. It's what's killing our planet. We. Must. Slow. Down.. we must reconnect with the planet and remember that it already has everything we need in perfect balance. I spent some time during my 20's studying environmental sociology, trying to really grasp the extent of this looming problem humans had created and for the past 10 years I've been exploring this in depth through my own life experiences. I believe it can be a different way, but it would require reshaping everything we think we know and this relies on an evolution of the collective consciousness, but it also can begin with you... For the foreseeable future, I'll be based in my Newtown house, trying to fill every single last inch of my small garden with flowers and homegrown organic vegetables and practice living a lighter existence. In a few years my partner and I plan to build a recycled wooden house with our own hands out in the hills somewhere, grow all of our own food, live with little technology and instead harmoniously with the earth, with the seasons, the weather, the sun and the moon. But ultimately with ourselves... I want to live out my days working in the garden, expressing through the art and music manifested of my own spirit, creating a self sustaining example of what we individually can accomplish and contribute to hopefully seeing a brighter future for humanity and our shared home 🌏 ...of course this will also be a new location for travellers to pass through to create connection with and to remind them of their humanness and it's innate relationship to our big green spaceship floating about in the cosmos ✨ Right now I'm practicing this life on a miniature scale in the city, where I am right now. Because it can begin right now, in this moment, wherever we are, with a simple choice.. to grow beyond our limitations and return to the source... We're gonna try and tell our story as we go to inspire others to realise their own capacity to challenge and change the way we live upon the world that we all share. If you're interested, find us on instagram - @oururbansanctuary

Countries I’ve Visited

England

Countries I’ve Lived In

New Zealand