I joined Couchsurfing at the start of my 9 Month trip around Central and South America in October 2015. It is a great site for meeting people and sharing experiences with other travellers. Now I have moved to Bangkok, working as a teacher in an International Elementary school and it's my turn to give back to the Couchsurfing community by hosting fellow travellers!

I'm up for a laugh and fairly easy going but I'm pretty passionate about lots of things in life too. I love music and going to gigs, I play a lot of sport - though I will be taking an overdue break from this on my travels. I have a penchant for useless trivia, remembering quotes, song lyrics and a mine of sometimes interesting but ultimately useless information! This sounds geeky (another side of me) but I love learning about history and culture through travel. I believe most things in life can be joked about and I'm not easily offended! Wit and humour are 2 of life's greatest assets and I'm up for meeting anyone on a similar wave length.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I joined in October 2015 when I took a career break from teaching after 6 years. I wanted to see more of the world and experience a bit more than the usual. I love to travel but unfortunately with work and sporting commitments I haven't done as much as I would have liked to in recent years. So I set a plan with a few goals to achieve before I would take off around the world and I can't wait! I'm travelling solo around Mexico, Cuba, Central America and South America is for a year. I met some great people along the way and memories that will last forever. Travelling solo was a daunting task for me but I am so glad I did it and look forward to more in the future.

Now I'm looking to share my experiences and host in the buzzing travel hub of Bangkok. I hope to show travellers that there is a lot more to this city than the Khao San Road. Not dissing Khao San - but sometimes that's all travellers see and love it or hate it!

Interests

I play a lot of sport. Gaelic Football (an Irish sport - google it!), rugby, and a few other sports. I also love going to gigs and play guitar and sing. The English language, reading, quotes, poetry and lots of bad puns! Travel is something I love and always hope to do more of. I love meeting new people and socialising!

I love learning about the history of countries and their cultures but not in the museum kind of way. I used to go to a lot of museums when travelling but then I found that unless I'm really interested in the particular thing then it's just another tick off the travel guide to say you've done it. I will obviously still do these things but learning about history or other things is often easier over a pint or a chat with a local.

• singing
• street art
• photography
• music festivals
• reading
• music
• live music
• guitar
• rugby
• sport
• gaelic football

Music, Movies, and Books

Where to start?! Into indie and rock music mainly but i listen to a wide variety of genres! Love going to gigs and discovering new music.

Some of my favourite music includes:
Arctic Monkeys, Vampire Weekend, Arcade Fire, The National,Coldplay, Muse, The Strokes, Regina Spektor, Paolo Nutini, Blur, Chvrches, Tame Impala, Jamie XX, Alt-J, Interpol, Tallest Man on Earth, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Leonard Cohen and many more. Have seen all of these live bar Regina and the strokes!

Books:
Reading my way through some of those "books to read before you die" lists and recommendations from friends. It's a habit I fall in and out of but I tend to read a lot when I travel. Some of my favourites are very familiar and recycled names but they're familiar because they're good. Here's a few off the top of my head:
The Catcher in the Rye, 1984, Trainspotting, Animal Farm and To Kill a Mockingbird among my favourites. V for Vendetta and Watchmen are incredible graphic novels. I like reading sports autobiographies too, Andre Agassi's "Open" being the pick. Have a lot of travel books and currently reading Vagabonding by Rolf Potts.

Movies, another wide variety!The Dark Knight is possibly my favourite! The Godfather part 1 and 2, Pan's Labyrinth (El Laborinto Del Fauno), Snatch, The Big Lebowski, Pulp Fiction, Goodfellas, Trainspotting, Reservoir Dogs, The Departed, Full Metal Jacket, Inglorious Basterds, V for Vendetta, Saving Private Ryan, Dumb and Dumber

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I played the guitar and sang on a boat on the river Ganges in Varanasi, India as the sun came up. There may have been a drink involved! That's just one but it's a memorable one. There are many more but what's the fun in telling you them all now when it's better in person?

Teach, Learn, Share

I can help with navigating this huge city. Share travel tips from my solo backpacking around the world and hopefully listen to and share some good stories.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Hopefully a laugh, first and foremost. Conversation is something I live for but not in a forced way. I find you learn so much when chats are casual and at ease. I have travelled all over Europe, Central America and South America and parts of Asia - working on Asia! I can share travel tips and advice, hopefully make them feel at home and enjoy Bangkok.

Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Ecuador, England, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Malaysia, Mexico, Monaco, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Northern Ireland, Panama, Peru, Portugal, Scotland, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Vatican City State

Countries I’ve Lived In

Ireland, Thailand