I am just waiting for the next opportunity to go backpacking in the Carpathians, and in the meantime Im trying to keep busy. They call me Ryan, because that is my name. I was once in a Chinese pickled vegetable commercial, and on a different occasion I farmed beets. I'm a graduate student studying Conflict Resolution from Eureka, CA. I served in the Peace Corps in Ukraine (2013-2014, 2015-2016) and have finished a year of graduate school. Then I convinced some people into funding me for a year to live in Moldova and Ukraine in exchange for diligent language study and an internship. So I paused my graduate studies for a year to complete two fellowships (one in Chisinau, Moldova for the summer and one in Lviv, Ukraine for September to May). I really love showing people around, hearing stories and befriending strangers.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

It's one of those classic stories. One of my friends in graduate school hosted couch surfers, and I told him "Listen, you're crazy, you're almost certainly going to meet a bunch of crazy people and then you'll get murdered", but then I met the people he was hosting and they were so cool! And he was not murdered! So now that I am living in a cool city and I have the space, I'd love to host people and make some new friends, Bear some new stories, and travel myself.

Interests

• swing dancing
• cooking
• politics
• hiking
• backpacking
• languages
• dance
• jogging
• improv
• international politics

Music, Movies, and Books

Music, pretty eclectic, I only like good music
Phox, Dzidizo. Okean Elzy, Chalamada, Calle 13, Ani Cordero, Cafe Tacvba, Residente, Mumford and Sons, Vladimir Vysotsky, The Wind and the Wave, Phosphorescent, judah and the Lion, the Steel drivers, DakhaBrakha, the Staves, Miner, Dispatch, Andy Palacio, Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Macklemore, etc.

Books:
The Ugly American, Everything is Illuminated, The Brothers Karamozov, The Count of Monte Cristo. I just bought Anna Karenina as an Audiobook and am listening to it before I go to bed at night in five minute segments before I fall asleep. I should finish it by 2030

TV:
The West Wing, House of Cards, The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

Movies:
The good movies.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I once climbed a mountain and stargazed in Tibet.

Teach, Learn, Share

I can teach you how to cook Borsch, to swing dance, or I can share with you the history of Humboldt County, California.

I'd like to learn: any new language, how to brew beer, how to play backgammon, how to survive in the wilderness, how to cook tempura.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I will cook for you if you want (I like to cook) or we can go to some really good food in the city, I'll give you a tour of the city, introduce you to locals who know way more than me, and let you meet all the nice babushkas I've befriended around the city.

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Romania, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

China, Moldova, Tanzania, Ukraine, United States