CURRENT MISSION

??? I'm on holidays, I'm a teacher and just started. I'm learning French and loving it. Also making treasure hunts. Love those! I've only made two real ones before and this third one is going to be a biology one (for the kids).

ABOUT ME

I'm new to CSurfing, although I've hosted loads of times, well at least my home has.

PHILOSOPHY

I think the philosophy that has most hit home I read about in a book by J D Salinger, Fanny and Zooey. When Zooey talks about Jesus (and for those of you who also love it, the fat lady and polishing your shoes for a radio program). I think it important to mention here that I was born and raised and atheist and now consider myself agnostic. However, Salinger talked of Jesus as someone who loved everyone (I think I relate this to accepting everyone) with a belief that everyone is special and loveable (maybe not my the two best words to describe this as they sound a bit.. but...). I can't always do it. I can't always crack people and get to the good stuff but I think it's always always good when I can.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I'm new to this, so not entirely sure. I want to visit Paris and speak French. I'd be up for hosting, especially if I get to speak French. Or Spanish for that matter, it's been too long!

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

None

Interests

Big passions: connecting with people of all walks of life, gardening (especially guerrilla gardening), recently got into stealing seed pods or clippings of flowers I like where ever I go for next year, also trying to start a community garden near my house. I love learning languages (and speaking them, obviously!) it started with Spanish, I lived in Spain for a year, which was probably the best thing I've ever done. Now it's French, I don't know when I'll get to live there, but I really want to, I've traveled to the other side of the world but never to Paris (2 hours away). I love traveling, my favorite trip was to Cairo for a month, the spring before the revolution. I loved it, I think, for the people I met and talked with, also tea, coffee and sitting in a completely different type of coffee shop. One more was the call to prayer, especially the last one of the day with sunset. Two more big ones: my house (see photo) and all those in it and my bike. Vivre le velo!

• books
• festivals
• cooking
• coffee
• gardening
• shopping
• flowers
• traveling
• guitar
• piano
• cycling
• atheism
• biology
• teaching
• languages
• science
• hitchhiking

Music, Movies, and Books

Books: Fanny and Zooey by J D Salinger, and Naive. Super by Erlend Loe

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Last call to prayer of the day watching the sunset overlooking the rooftops of Cairo in Spring. Also Petra!!!

Teach, Learn, Share

English (I'm technically a qualified English teacher, although unpracticed), Spanish (learning or teaching), French (still learning), Science (I'm actually a science teacher) - one of my favorite lessons I've ever taught was while hitchhiking to a festival outside of London with a couple and explaining the Higgs Boson, they asked more questions than I have ever been asked before about anything - they were brilliant. Also cooking (learning teaching or sharing) I've been cooking since I was ten because I was a very fussy eater, now much less fussy but I still love it especially with lots of people and trying new things - weirdest thing I've ever tried I think was cooked by housemate, which was a snowberry lemon drizzle cake (snowberries are pickled baby onions) it was inspired by the mixture of lemsip and monster munch. It was disgusting! Also, but much more recently I'm learning the guitar and piano (still very bad)

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