CURRENT MISSION

To eat my way round the world & meet interesting people

ABOUT ME

Travelling with my friend Christopher across South America. Looking to meet cool, clever & good people along the way. If you are hosting we need 2 spaces! Cheers

Restaurant Manager at a Chinese restaurant in Scotland. Eat local, think global!
I am passionate about the plethora of flavours associated with food & drink. If that means taking the motorbike to the Loch Fyne Oyster Bar in Scotland or travelling the world to uncover hidden gastronomic treasures then I will die a happy man.

PHILOSOPHY

Work hard and do everything you can to the very highest stadard possible. Endeavour to know more about everything. Explore. Eat and drink what you can afford...it is life's greatest pleasure; undoubtedly the maxim of happiness

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I gave a donation. I would love to host fellow travellers but until recently I have been living with my parents. Now we can venture into the blueyonder.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I met a Couchsurfer in China during my travels and her enthusiasm and attitude toward this meant I just had to explore the magic of couchsurfing. Currently travelling in South & Central America and would be keen to meet local people with a passion for their respective countries.

Interests

The joy of discovering new food pleasures. Writing & curating an accompanying food & travel blog to complement, document & remind me of these phenomenal, primal pleasures :)
The art of mixing drinks (properly) & mixology.
Listening to vinyl, old & new, on my incredible record player. Sharing music with others & admiring those that can play a musical instrument.
Sailing in the west coast of bonnie Scotland. Day skipper certified in the Mediterranean.
Socialist politics & Scotland´s struggle for Independence. Ha.
Embracing everything that is new and strange...even if I don't like it. You only live once, right?

• arts
• culture
• writing
• causes
• dining
• cooking
• wine
• chinese food
• cocktails
• drinking
• politics
• traveling
• blogging
• magic
• music
• sailing
• tourism

Music, Movies, and Books

Dire Straits 'Communique' has to be one of the greatest albums of all time. I genuninly hope you listen to it. This is music to my ears. Sonically brilliant this album oozes melodic charm.

The Soul of Man under Socialism by Oscar Wilde is intoxicating in its critique of charity & vision of liberty. Profound & visionary.

The pain of Sean Penn´s ´Into the Wild´ is exhilerating & desperately sad. The venture & yearning for the life of solitude and exploration is ultimately a grave endeavour brought to life, in essence, by human compassion. Phenomenal!

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Being welcomed into a family's home in Laos to drink their homemade distilled spirit and fiery lunch during Awk Phansao (end of rainy reason). Humbling. No tourism guide or any bullshit. Just rambling through the back streets of Vientiane. Pure culture.

Teach, Learn, Share

Beaujolais wine is made from the Gamay grape and is very reminiscent, at times, of Bubblegum on the nose! ´Beaujolais Nouveau´ is pure genius marketering. A celebration of a mediocre vin rouge to bolster tourism & sales of this light, raspberry-scented wine. Clever.

The volatile chemical that causes the typical aroma of anise is called anethole. Weight for weight, it is 13 times sweeter than table sugar. Interestingly, in anise flavoured drinks such as Ouzo, Pastis or Ricard, it is this chemical compound that causes the drink to cloud when added to water. Why? Because anethole dissolves in alcohol but not in water. Ergo, when the added water dilutes the alcohol, the anethole molecules cluster together in bunches big enough to scatter light.

On the ´perfect espresso´. The extraction of this liquid gold should ideally take around 25 seconds. The quality of espresso can be tested by pouring a demi-tasse teasoon of brown sugar on top of the caramel crema. If this robust, creamy layer can hold the sugar for around 2-3 seconds then the extraction of the espresso has been a rip-roaring success. C´est magique

What I Can Share with Hosts

The art behind Scotch malt whisky production & our distilleries
A knowledge of cooking great meals with a frugal budget
My passion for viniculture & tasting wine from around the world
The inside scoop on Chinese food & the secrets behind cooking amazing oriental cuisine
A supreme knowledge of ´bonnie´ Scotland

Countries I’ve Visited

Albania, Belgium, Brazil, Cambodia, China, Czech Republic, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Kosovo, Laos, Macedonia, Malaysia, Netherlands, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand, United States, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

France

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