I'm 19, currently in South America learning Spanish. I love meeting new people, cycling (mountain/road), basketball, running, listening to music (E-40 and The War on Drugs being my favs when this intro was written), attempting to cook, and learning Spanish!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I really like meeting people in a more relaxed setting, and I think the hosts of couchsurfing definitely provide that. I also really like staying with families/individuals who know a city or place really well.

Interests

Already covered this. Other than reading! I love reading! In particular 20th century American novelists like Patricia Highsmith, Raymond Carver, William Burroughs, John Williams etc. I tend to find that American authors of this (broad) period possess a particularly magnetic control over the reader, which is what I always look for in literature.

• literature
• performing arts
• cooking
• running
• technology
• reading
• socializing
• music
• cycling
• sports
• basketball
• teaching

Music, Movies, and Books

Favourite artist: The Cure

Favourite album: Lost in the Dream by The War on Drugs (you can read any book to this as well, which is very useful. , Untrue by Burial, or Good Kid M.A.A.D City by Kendrick Lamar

Favourite movie: Star Wars (1977) but I find it very difficult to label a favourite movie because so many sort of lie there in your brain, semi-forgotten, even if they're amazing.

Favourite book(s): What We Talk About When We Talk About Love by Raymond Carver - hollow, often sinister, sparingly comedic, this collection of short stories provides a harsh but subtly sympathetic insight into the societies of Deer Hunter-era midwest America.

The Price of Salt/Carol by Patricia Highsmith - this book is the perfect encapsulation of how it feels to be in love for the first time. Read to 'Loud City Song' by Julia Holter for a perfect soundtrack. Or listen to Carter Burwell's awesome film score. The adaptation is really good as well.

Stoner by John Williams - I was tempted to put Butcher's Crossing, John Williams' ode to the decline of frontier America, but I believe that Stoner is his most widely known work for good reason. This is a magnificent piece of prose, in which Williams tortures the reader by provoking an array of emotional responses, with surgical precision. It's awesome.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I got faith-healed by Derren Brown once, and from that day (Friday) to the following Monday, I then spent 50/55 hours in my school drama studio, where me and some of my friends turned a pigsty of a performance into a really good play (by high school standards).

Teach, Learn, Share

I am teaching English in Arequipa for 4 months this year (March-July) so after that I will be a confident teacher. I am a very patient person and when I have been in a teaching/coaching role in the past I have been really excited when people start to improve, in whatever discipline, so I can definitely be of assistance with learning conversational English.

Whenever possible, I like to practice Spanish, because I want to be conversationally fluent/maybe more by the time I return to the UK in August.

I love all kinds of sports, so I am always up for running/cycling anywhere or playing something new.

I love hearing stories of all kinds, and I have a couple of interesting ones myself, so there are always those to share!

What I Can Share with Hosts

English skills, some tech advice, a willingness to cook, a desire to talk in Spanish, recommendations for touring the UK and some of Europe, and I am forever grateful to anyone that would take me in - or even look at my profile!

Countries I’ve Visited

Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Peru, Portugal, Scotland, Serbia, Wales

Countries I’ve Lived In

United Kingdom