I’m Nick. I’m a Malaysian journalist who used to cover crime and politics in Kuala Lumpur and San Francisco. Now I’m a postgrad student in London.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Never liked being cooped up in a hotel doing touristy things. Living as and with a local is the most fun way to really learn about the city I’m in.

Interests

Musical Theatre

• cats
• writing
• music festivals
• italian food
• cooking
• beer
• drinking
• drinking games
• socializing
• live music
• jazz
• karaoke
• cycling
• hiking
• backpacking
• scuba diving
• badminton
• history
• journalism
• food
• cleaning
• street food
• local food
• stand up comedy
• meeting new people
• netflix
• cards against humanity
• brunch
• broadway
• pictionary

Music, Movies, and Books

Foo Fighters, Bleachers, White Shoes and The Couples Company, Lord Huron, Arcade Fire, Kendrick Lamar, Mumford and Sons, Roo Panes, Laura Marling, Childish Gambino, Fredrik, The Killers, The 1975, MGMT, Electric Youth, The Lumineers, Of Monsters and Men, Wu-Tang Clan, Credence Clearwater Revival, Lil Dicky, John Butler Trio, The Smiths, The Vaccines, Temper Trap, The Naked and Famous, Vampire Weekend, HAIM

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Was a semi-famous television actor on the Disney Channel a loooong time ago

Teach, Learn, Share

One cool thing I learnt from my last travel:

In the 1600’s Edinburgh was a literal shithole. Thousands of people were packed into small tenement flats in the Old Town. What made it worse was there was no sewage then. People would throw out their waste into the streets, filling up the pavement with nothing but glorious shit. As some of these residents lived 7 floors up, no one was going to go all the way down to the pavement to throw shit out. So they poured them out the window. Naturally this was a horrible idea so Edinburgh passed a law that made it mandatory for people throwing out their shit to do two things :1. They could only toss their shit out at 10pm daily. 2. They had to warn people down below when they are about to do it.This was done using a common French phrase “regarder l'eau” which means mind the water. But because these are Scots, the phrase ended up being pronounced “gardyloo”. And now the best part. Pubs here use to close at 9pm. So there is no stretch to think that at that time, there will be some drunks wandering around the closes trying to stumble back home. And if you were unlucky enough to still be out at 10pm, you would have had front row seats to every window swinging open, Scots screaming “gardyloo!” and being showered with shit. And that was how the term shitface drunk came to be. I am not even kidding!

What I Can Share with Hosts

I’ve been told I make a bitchin lasagna.
Stories of the crazy news I’ve covered and people I’ve interviewed.
One of those rare people that actually like doing dishes and spring cleaning.

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, France, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Philippines, Scotland, Singapore, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States, Vatican City State, Wales

Countries I’ve Lived In

Malaysia, United Kingdom, United States