I live in paradise. I know it is only one of the many worldwide, but I Iove showing it off to new friends. I live in Gibsons, BC, Canada which is on the ocean on the west coast of Canada. It is only 1 hour away by ferry from Vancouver, a world class city. We live in the outdoors and on the ocean and in the mountains here. Summers are filled with boating, beach activities, cycling, climbing ( I paraglide), hiking, motorcycle touring. You get the picture. Winters there is snow in the mountains and skiing and back-county hiking and snowshoeing are common pursuits.

I have a huge interest in the world and in experiencing other cultures. I am planning to travel starting in Fall 2017 to Spain, Portugal, France and Italy, and I have heard so many great things about couchsurfing.

I am in my late 50s but am very active, strong, youthful, enthusiastic, and am very young at heart. I am passionate about yoga and dancing and this keeps me fit and agile.. I have many friends, and most of them are in their early to mid 40s. I traveled quite a bit in my 20s and 30s, then I settled down and raised a family. They are now grown and living their lives, and I recently got divorced, so I am now free to travel again. I am very excited about this!!

My four main summer activities are Sailing, Hiking, Motorcycle riding, and Paragliding. I am an accomplished sailor, and I have a small sailboat. I would love to share that with you. My passion though is music. I am a musician, and an audio engineer.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I love meeting new people, showing them my hometown, and the amazing connections and cultural exchange that happens when I do so. During my earlier travelling years it was always the way for me to invite cool people I met to come stay with me when visiting Canada, and they would in turn extend an invitation to stay with them if I were visiting their home town.

To me this is much better than staying alone in some hotel or guesthouse. Through couchsurfing we get a local person's introduction to the possibilities for visitors. When you stay with me, I will introduce you to my friends, and we can hang together a bit if you like. I would like to hope you would do the same for me if I were staying with you.

Because I will be going travelling starting in the fall of 2017 (Portugal, Spain, France, Italy), I think it only fair to open my home to others visiting my part of the world.

Interests

• dancing
• salsa dancing
• yoga
• massage therapy
• motorcycles
• boating
• music
• hip-hop music
• hiking
• sailing
• skiing
• paragliding
• beaches
• beach
• motorcycling

Music, Movies, and Books

Not a huge movie person, but I make up for it with lots of Books and Music..

I have a huge range of tastes and love many genres of music. Jazz. Classical. Rock. R&B. Hip Hop. Soul. Funk. Pop.. I embrace all music if it is played from the heart, and with feeling..

I love both novels and non-fiction and personal growth books. I will list some titles soon.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

In my lifetime, the most amazing thing I have done is to raise a family and to be a father for my two wonderful daughters.. It is such a beautiful thing to raise children and see them grow into amazing adults.. Family is so important!

But recently the most amazing thing I have done is learning paragliding! I just started a few years ago and I totally love it!! Beginners generally spend their first year or so, learning launch and landing skills, so they generally launch and glide down to landing. But at the novice and intermediate stage it is all about finding thermal lift and getting as high up as possible. Once you catch and ride thermal lift, you can generally launch from about 2,000 feet (600 metres) and climb to 8-10,000 feet (2500 - 3000 metres) or so! And then you can stay in the air for hours..

I am just now at the point where I am catching and riding thermal lift to get high up. My last flight this summer was my best so far. I reached about 8,000 ft (2,500 metres), and stayed up for over an hour.

Teach, Learn, Share

Languages are the main thing I want to learn. I would love to learn more French and Spanish and perhaps some Italian in preparation for my coming trip. I can help you with your English.

And I can of course share any of my interests and activities with you..

What I Can Share with Hosts

If I visit with you, I can share my life experiences, stories, energy and enthusiasm for life. On a practical side.. Being a tradesman, I am also very handy with tools and home improvement, so I could definitely help with projects around the house. I would love to help you with your English if that is not your first language.

If you visit with me, I will make you feel welcome and at home. I love to show my world off to visitors. As my guest, you are welcome of course to do your own thing, but if you'd like to get some ideas of where to go and what to do, I am happy to provide that. We can also share stories and the occasional meal if you like.

If you are interested I could introduce you to some of my friends, and we can hang together a bit if you like. I would like to hope you would do the same for me if I were staying with you.

Have a look at my pictures. They paint a good picture of our surroundings and activities..

Countries I’ve Visited

Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Belgium, Fiji, France, Germany, Jamaica, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Canada, Netherlands