I was born in South Africa, during the firm grip of Apartheid to British parents, my parents both in the hotel industry had signed up for an adventure overseas, I was born during their time there, and stayed in Durban for 2 years, returning to Europe, to Switzerland where my father had the management of a hotel in Lausanne, where I attended a nursery mixing with the other international and Swiss children, staying for 4 years, I grew up with friends from many nationalities and lots of chocolate.

I remembered my African friends, the children of the house staff we were obliged to have in South Africa, being white people an expected requirement, who were often surprised at the freedom shown by my parents and me, more like friends that helped out than anything else.

After moving to the UK as a youngster I moved with my parents around the country to various hotels, in Harrogate, Liverpool, Newcastle and eventually settling in London, making friends and absorbing different customs along the way.

My education was straightforward, attending college to study computing and went on to work for many multinational companies, Control Data, IBM, Rank Xerox, Shell, BP, NatWest & Barclays Bank. I migrated to Telecommunications and joined Ericsson to become responsible for specialised technical training worldwide.

In New Zealand I was involved with a organic farm with the vision of producing culinary herbs and plants for naturopaths an unsuccessful venture and investment.

Returning to the UK, after a stint of technical training contracts, I continued my training as a Life coach after starting the process in India and I mentor under privileged groups, a combination of this and English Language tutoring was how I earned my living.

I volunteered in West Africa, Burkina Faso & Ghana, and spent a year working with a charity in Burkina Faso, who provided clean water, Sanitation and Health strategies, I met tribal chieftains and negotiated land usage and also had a regular English language program on FADA FM the local radio station.

With local support I initiated a group of local academics and likeminded individuals to Positive Mental Attitude practices and connected with other more established groups from Togo.

In Ghana, volunteered to work in a Youth advocacy in Adente near the capital Accra and worked with children with special needs initially and migrated to offering Business Support to the organisation.

Before returning to the UK I formed an information exchange partnership - Cuture2Culture which exists today an initiative to enable People from West Africa and Europe to understand their respective cultures.

My passions have always been Different cultures, History and Art and I love eating different foods and on occasion good wine from the different countries and territories I have visited as well as conversing with different nationalities along the way.

I am developing workshops in Positive Mental Attitude (PMA) and Triumph Over Adversity (TOA) I enjoy Public speaking & I am an active member of Toastmasters International, I love to write, my first book "Shadows before Sunrise" will soon be published and I am working on the next one, as well as facilitating change through PMA & TOA workshops and one to one training.

To summarise:
I am widely travelled. open and inquisitive, Interested and a good listener Positive and creative, Self-effacing and confident. 'A born conversationalist!’

I am now based in Florianopolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

People have always been kind to me, offering me somewhere to stay when I am Traveling and it's also a good way to meet new people and share experiences.

Interests

People, Travel, Different cultures

• arts
• books
• education
• chocolate
• wine
• coach
• traveling
• business
• teaching
• history

Music, Movies, and Books

I love all music and have an eclectic taste from Opera to South American Folk and everything in between.

Film I prefer, independent art house films than holywood blockbusters although I have seen a few

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Escaped from some would be Highjackers in Mali West Africa

Teach, Learn, Share

I love to teach English,

I am trying to learn Portuguese - badly

Share travel stories

What I Can Share with Hosts

Stories and Experiences

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Benin, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Croatia, Czech Republic, Egypt, England, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greece, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Luxembourg, Mali, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Niger, Paraguay, Portugal, Qatar, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Serbia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Togo, Turkey, United States, Vatican City State, Wales

Countries I’ve Lived In

Brazil, Burkina Faso, England, Estonia, France, India, Italy, New Zealand, Portugal, Spain