CURRENT MISSION

To win a game of grelottine, de me lèver et taper sur mes haricots en criant “grelot, ça picote !” et tenter la relance jusqu’au tour d’après

ABOUT ME

I'm a 26 year old doctoral student from England who is examining the social and cultural importance of alcohol to English and French societies between 1550 and 1750.

If I was stuck on an island and could only take one thing with me, it would be music without question. I'd just have to hope that my lonely island had a plug socket.

I enjoy sharing political opinions with people, and have a particular interest in discussing social, cultural and economic issues that impinge upon our society - alcohol, notably, being one, if not the most prevalent, of them. I also enjoy playing sport, although my love of cigarettes and alcohol does put a damper on my physical ambitions.

I'm normally the guy sitting on the train playing a pretend drum kit while listening to jazz on his headphones.

*** It's important to me that couch requests come from people who actually want to stay with me, rather than just in my house. If you are going to write me a request, please include the following information: Your favourite song and the year of the French Revolution ***

PHILOSOPHY

I try to base all of my opinions on empirical observation and objective (as far as is humanly possible) analysis. I do not have the energy to support stereotypes or intolerant opinions. I find continual comfort and solace in meeting new people, asking questions and sharing opinions as a means of understanding myself as well as the world around me.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I lived in France (Lyon) for a year during my university course and found my accomodation through a similar process to CS. Eventually my two flat mates moved out and I invited new people to live with me. I made some really good friends and hold some fun memories of my time spent in that apartment. Through CS, I want to make more friends, share and learn knowledge, and lend a hand to those who need it.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I had quite a lot of experience in my Lyon apartment. One particularly interesting episode was when I met a guy on the métro. I can't remember why we started talking now, but he told me that his flat had exploded that morning (there was a really big gas leak that ignited next door to his apartment). I invited him to stay with me for a bit - he seemed like a cool guy - and he ended up staying until I left Lyon. We had a lot of fun, shared some crazy nights out and did some cool travelling in the north of France.

Interests

Music, photography, art, history, politics, cooking, sports, travelling, thinking objectively and rejecting small-mindedness.

• arts
• culture
• photography
• cooking
• drinking
• politics
• traveling
• music
• jazz
• sports
• history

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Hmmm...tough one. I am a beatboxer (make drum noises with my mouth) and did a tour around the UK with a rapper from the US. That was pretty cool, especially commandeering an audience of around 8000 people. The most amazing thing I've seen was probably during a trek in Chiang Mai. Having walked for hours up a really steep hill, I reached an absolutely breath taking viewpoint. I was one of the only times in my life where I was speechless.

Teach, Learn, Share

I'm doing a doctorate in history and have a real thirst for learning anything about our past as well as teaching others about it (if I can). I'm currently working on the social functions and cultural importance of alcohol to English and French men and women between 1500-1800. Alcohol is something that everyone has a relationship to in one way or another, whether they enjoy it with dinner, on nights out, or abstain from it all together. I'd happily offer my hosts an insight into the drinking world of the past and cherish the opportunity to discuss drinking culture today, and perhaps even do some 'research' during my stay.

Countries I’ve Visited

Germany, Thailand

Countries I’ve Lived In

France, United Kingdom

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