Currently traveling!

CURRENT MISSION

Visit at least 1 country a year, exploring other cultures and making friends across the world

ABOUT ME

I am interested in learning of the social systems and traditions of different nationalities. I enjoy these conversations even more over a cold beer or a bottle of nice red wine!

Sustainability and green living are very important to me. I am an avid gardener with a keen interest in heirloom varieties of tomatoes and other vegetables, recycle almost everything, compost my kitchen scraps and yard debris and I have a worm bin, which provides fertilizer for my garden.

Life is short and I don't want to go to my grave saying, "I wish I would have..." Instead, I am living life as a grand adventure!

If you are coming to Portland and want to meet a nice group of people I would be happy to put a call out to my fellow couchsurfers for an impromptu get together!

PHILOSOPHY

I believe that one must give to the community in order to truly appreciate receiving.

I was involved for many years with a local organization as Director of Fundraising for www.breastfriends.com, an organization that provides support to women diagnosed with breast, uteran and ovarian cancer. I am no longer on the board but I organize at least one fundraiser a year for different causes.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I am an ocassional guest, an ocassional host and I attend local couch surfing events here in Portland.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I didn't join couch surfing to get a free ride but rather to make new friends around the world.

I did my first "official" couchsurfing while visiting Thailand in 2006 and I am hooked! So far my experiences with couchsurfing have been stellar! It seems that travellers are more open minded than your average person.

The Portland area couchsurfers get together fairly regularly so if you are in town and want me to try to organize a gathering, I would be happy to do so!

Interests

I was born in Canada but I have spent the majority of my informative years living in Oregon. I love to sail, scuba dive, explore, conquer the many hiking trails around the area and camp. I am also a jewelry designer but it is really just a hobby gone wild, not an occupation. One of my favorite things to do is to have friends over for a good meal (I am a great cook!), have a few glasses of wine or beer and laugh over good conversation. I am an avid gardener with a semi-green thumb. Traveling is my number one passion and I explore other countries and cultures as often as my schedule allows.

• design
• causes
• dining
• cooking
• wine
• red wine
• beer
• flying
• gardening
• boating
• traveling
• hiking
• camping
• surfing
• scuba diving
• sailing
• sign language

Music, Movies, and Books

I read incessantly, mostly non fiction in just about any subject.

Books:

Kite Runner
Poisonwood Bible
Shooting At The Moon
Bangkok 8
The Curious Incident of The Dog In The Night
The Alchemist
Ishmael
Among The Thugs
The Secret Life of Bees

Movies:

Everything is Illuminated
Life Is Beautiful
Story of The Weeping Camel
Never Ending Story
Princess Bride
Roxanne
Borat

Music

Just about anything but rap. I love ska, cajun, blues.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

One of my most unforgettable experiences took place in November of 2006 during a 5 week solo trip to Laos, Vietnam and Thailand.

While I was in Luang Prabang, Laos, I met a young boy of 17 who had just spent 5 years as a novice in a temple. He had not been home for 5 years and he asked me if I wanted to go with him to visit his village. I was due to fly to Hanoi the next day but I was able to change my plane ticket.

The following day we headed 6 hours up the Mekong by boat and then hiked in to a remote village in NW Laos. Most of the people in this village had never seen a "falang" before (that is a westerner). They also did not speak English and my Lao is very minimal. We got by with sign language and lots of smiles.

I spent 4 days and nights in this village doing as the villagers did; harvesting food, cooking, bathing in the river each night and even went to the school hut one day to teach some English.

The people of the village opened up their hearts and homes to me. They were some of the friendliest people I have ever come across in all my years of travelling.

Teach, Learn, Share

I cook and garden with a vengeance! I make a mean mojito, too. ;-)

Becoming fluent in Spanish is a goal.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Home cooked meals, conversation and laughter.

Countries I’ve Visited

Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Aruba, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, Canada, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Jamaica, Laos, Liechtenstein, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Viet Nam, Virgin Islands, British, Virgin Islands, U.S.

Countries I’ve Lived In

Canada, United States

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