Hi, I'm a currently a model and actor in the Dubai TV / Commercial / Film industry. I was formerly in the humanitarian/philanthropy sector with a focus on education in developing countries, ed-tech and teacher training. Before that, I was a Humanities & English teacher in USA.

I was born in Pakistan and moved to the Washington D.C. / Maryland / Virginia area after my parents divorced when I was 7. I moved to Dubai in 2019 for a job and 9 months later, the covid lockdown started.

I am living in Barcelona, Spain for the Summer of 2022, to explore different opportunities in acting, language exchange and in urban planning. Also avoiding the Dubai summer heat.

My dream is to work in Urban Planning with a focus on wellbeing and climate change in both developed and developing countries. Barcelona is one of the best designed cities in the world and is a great place to see first hand thru tours and museums how a modern city should be planned and designed.

My hobbies are watching movies, hunting the best street food, cooking, board games, working out, yoga and basketball. I grew up loving films and basketball because they helped me connect with American culture. I also learned cooking from my mom and aunts. Board games were a great way to make friends and pass time in college.

While I am a news junkie who feels disconnected from the world if I don't know what's happening, moving out of America made me realize how much the news vacuum consumes you and how non-stop politics is there. Most Americans are either too invested or don't pay any attention. There is no balance. While other countries don't have perfect political systems, it was a nice change of pace and scenery to see people living instead of letting ridiculous politics suck up the oxygen and dominate the conversation.

In college, I started as an Acting/Filmmaking major the first 2 years then switched to Psychology. For both majors, I realized they were not for me. Like a lot of American millennials with limited prospects and funds, I loafed around for years following college doing odd jobs and unpaid internships. I worked as a designer for my friends fashion company for a bit.

I eventually realized I would be a good teacher because I had learned (and failed at 😂) so many things. My friends said I was a good mentor and communicator and should pass on what I've learned.

After turning my life around, I eventually got a really nice teaching job with a masters degree scholarship but because life is random, I got a job offer at an education philanthropy in Dubai the same day. I took the leap and moved there to gain more world experience and see what doors and growth it would open.

My life was very different after that.

I grew and learned a lot at that job from very talented people around the world and travelled to many countries to see how education was being addressed in different parts of the world. But it was also a very toxic place and so after almost 2 years, I quit.

Then I was job hunting in the consulting field and almost moved to Chicago for a really innovative organization but after 2 directors said yes about me joining, they pulled out and screwed me over last minute.

After this, I was going broke so a really good friend of mine who worked in film production, introduced me to acting, modeling and film production in Dubai, which I have been doing for about a year.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Many friends have recommended it for travel and for socializing when in your country of residence. I wanted to meet new people and become a part of this community everyone talks about.

Moving countries taught me that travellers look out for each other. I learned so much from generous people on how to settle and adapt. I want to pay it forward.

Interests

• politics
• technology
• movies
• board games
• hiking
• basketball
• teaching
• history
• travel
• food
• nonfiction
• current affairs
• international development
• humanitarian work

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies: kill bill, inception, dog day afternoon, home alone, arrival, 12 angry men

Music: pre-dumbass kanye, daft punk, Hans zimmer, moby, run dmc, n.e.r.d., mia,

Books: Maus, potter, dostoevsky, v for vendetta, hero within, a people's history of the United states, death of a salesman

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I moved across the world from USA to Dubai by myself to start a new job. I have grown and learned so much about myself and the world from this experience. Got my first apartment.

Did my first solo Euro trip to Greece in 2020. I went to Athens, Santorini and Meteora, a unesco heritage site with monasteries on giant cliffs. It's supposed to be one of the best views in Europe. This trip taught me how not to travel with a giant suitcase but rather travel light as a backpacker.

My summer 2021 trip to Turkey and UK was much better as I applied every lesson I learned.

During my third Euro trip in summer 2022, I visited Sicily, Budapest, Vienna, Bratislava, Krakow and Barcelona. For this trip, I mastered the art of traveling light and cheap.

Went dune bashing and drifting in dubai and flipped my dune buggy over.

Learned how to snowboard, kayak, wall climb, golf, camp and bowl in 2020. I learned how to swim in 2021.

Got laser eye surgery and never have to worry about foggy glasses again. I have 20/10 pilot vision now so don't challenge me bruv.

Travelled to different countries to manage education grants.

Teach, Learn, Share

English Language & communication skills
Writing skills
Researching and analysis
Cooking
Humanities
Film
Basketball
Fitness

What I Can Share with Hosts

I'm a foodie and a good cook so i can always whip something up. Food always brings people together, unless you're Judas.

Travel stories and advice. I used to travel for my job and from personal travel, I have learned a lot on how to travel both efficiently and with new technology. I recommend onebag traveling and the subreddit r/onebag. There's so much to learn since technology has drastically changed ease of travel by shrinking and strengthening things. You can live for years from one bag. I learned this the hard way when I lugged a giant suitcase around Europe. Never again.

Education and employment advice but not in every sector.

Board games.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Bulgaria, Egypt, France, Greece, Hungary, Jordan, Pakistan, Slovakia, Spain, Sri Lanka, Turkey, United Kingdom