Live life without holding back. My favorite motto is being comfortable with being uncomfortable. And that will open the gateway for any possibilities in life.

For hosts: if you have accepted my request and I hope you do because I love all my potential hosts, please just let me know in earnest 1) if you would be hosting other people during my stay 2) your contact details upon acceptance, i.e. your address (for me to find my way back after outings), phone number for calls, Whatsapp, Facebook messenger, as you wish. 3) whether you have spare key for me to go in and out, or you prefer for me to leave the house when you are at work in the morning and come back at a certain time when you are finished. Of course I will kindly remind you of these :) I don't like to badger people or push people to do what I want, I merely just like to be organized and neat. :) Hope you understand.

Trip 2018::
Australia - Working Holiday Maker (May20,2018-2019)
Gold Coast>Brisbane>Airlie Beach>TBD

Summer trip 2017::
June 28 - Hong Kong (07.40) - St. Petersburg (18.30)
July 2 - early bus to Tallinn (09.20-15.20)
July 8 - early bus to Riga (09.30-13.55) then straight to Jelgava for course orientation and group dinner!
July 8-18 (Summer School #1 - Jelgava, Latvia - “Lifecycle - from forest till high ecological value wood products”)
July 18 -27 Riga, Latvia
July 27- Riga (12.05) - Stockholm Arlanda (12.20) then a bus straight to Uppsala
July 27-30 Uppsala
July 30- Aug 18 (Summer School #2 - Uppsala, Sweden - "Uppsala International Summer Session")
Aug 18 - Stockholm Skavsta NYO (20.35) - Cluj-Napoca, Romania (23.55)
Aug 23 - Cluj-Napoca (07.15) - Bratislava (07.30)
Aug 27 - bus to Vienna
Aug 31 - bus to Maribor, Slovenia
Sep 3 - bus to Zagreb
Sep 7 - bus to Belgrade
Sep 12 - BEG(12.55) - Sep 13 - HKG(10.05)

For meet-ups in Hongkong: (For hosts it's fine bc you're gracious enough to host me, your inquiries of curiosity would be deemed reasonably justified)
If you are purely looking for people to give you local advice, and not try to engage me on a personal level as conversationalists, then don't send me an invite. I am not here just for that or at anyone's disposal. I enjoy and appreciate intellectual conversations and people of convivial nature which makes for a jovial meet-up. Please DO NOT ASK ME IF I IDENTIFY MYSELF AS A HONG KONG NATIONAL OR A CHINESE. I have been asked of that a lot and I have had it. It's like if you're an American and people ask you about American politics. DON'T GET THERE PLEASE. So please respect that.

I am at 89 references right now (as of Jun 20, 2018), I would really want to reach the threshold of 100. If you can, I would love for you to help me reach this goal by providing me with your views on your experience with me through giving me a reference. If it is not a memorable encounter between us however, I do not think it will be necessary.

Summer trip 2016:///////////////////////////////////////This has ended
23May Hong kong > Los Angeles, California
29May > Dallas, Texas
3June > Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
(----------BA (American Studies) field trip----------)
3-8 Philadelphia
9-17 New York
18June > Bergen, Norway
21June > staying in Vilnius, Lithuania
5July > Gothenburg, Sweden
13July > Copenhagen, Denmark
19July > Budapest, Hungary
25July > Rhodes, Greece
28July > Napoli, Italy
5Aug > Sofia, Bulgaria
9Aug > Malta
13Aug > Cologne, Germany
18Aug > Dublin, Ireland
22Aug > Helsinki, Finland
27Aug > Venice, Italy
1Sep > Hong Kong

ABOUT ME

Fb: https://www.facebook.com/stanyeungstanyeung2013

You can call me Stan, Stanley, Stanislav, Kai, Lok, Kai-lok, Mr. Yeung, whichever suits your tongue.
I am born and raised in the fascinating city of Hong Kong.
It is a coastal city on the southeastern outskirt of China though we speak Cantonese mostly here but I also speak Mandarin though I seldom have it needed to be used.

Hong Kong is a small city and safe geographically and quite metropolitan, industrialized and crowded and commercial buildings and skyscrapers and public housing estates are ubiquitous.

I am equanimous, studious, easygoing, compatible, pleasant, respectful, talkative, chill and curious and open-minded and eager to learn from others with their different cultures and languages and backgrounds.

I love animals. I have a 6 year old miniature poodle. I think cats are cute too. Canaries, turtles, rabbits, I love all.

I love cleaning dishes and vacuuming. There's something calming about that.

I have thick lips because I spun myself on a rectangular hard marble table at home at a young age.
I like drinking sugarcane juice and kefir and tea. I don't drink coffee anymore. I don't drink alcohol anymore. I smoke cigarettes if I am offered but I am not dependent. I don't like weed. I prefer kratom and am a medical advocate for it.

I am holding some cryptocurrency the outcome of this venture will be divulged at the end of 2018.

My favorite food items are tofu, hash browns, lamb shanks, watermelon, spaghetti Bolognese/carbonara, oyster, sushi, chocolate and lollies.

I speak English with an American accent, I guess it's too much influenced by Hollywood, and the consumerism/media culture, you consume too much and you subscribe yourself to that prescribed culture and regurgitate.

I guess I am more of a conservative traveler since I travel with my suitcase and usually go from point a to point b by flights. More so of a suitcaser/knapsacker than a backpacker. I have never camped before but I like hiking at times.

I like trying new food and new adventure. I want to challenge myself to do new things. Skydiving, bungee jumping to overcome fear of height, camping, learning to drive, learning to swim so I can scuba-dive and snorkel!

I wish to get braces for my teeth someday in Romania. And Lasik in South Korea. And I hope stem cell development advances soon so I can have my neck joints problems improved and fixed up.

One of my worst weaknesses is that I am too mellow of a person so I don't like to get into conflicts or confrontations, it's anxiety-inducing.

I have finished my Bachelor degree in May 2017 in American Studies. Many people have made fun and light of that and I personally am not too offended since I know someday I will do a Master and that's what counts and I had my degree at a great college so I am proud of that.

I like taking time off to decompress every now and then to catch some long overdue break in getaway trips just to breathe in new air I guess (well we have pollution problem here, can't help), for the recent past, mostly around Europe.

I really want to have a dual citizenship one day. There's no shame in saying that. If I can choose, I would want to be an American or a Canadian. I have a guilty obsession to want to be on a reality show called Big Brother either in the US or Canada.

I would like to continue with my education - a Master's degree in European Studies is my current idea, or volunteering for NGO, motivational speaking or anything good that comes by that also suits my personality.. It depends. Being an author would certainly be in the cards because I want to write about my health struggles.
Being involved in politics would also be something I dream of achieving, such as working for the UN.

If you are a host and reading my profile, I will be honest and disclose that
1. I need to wear glasses for my short sightedness since young.
2. I have neck joint provlems due to an abdominal neuropathy on left since Nov 2011 and have to depend on small quantities of sleeping ajds, anxiety meds at times and kratom (a natural herb) unfortunately, but I don't want it to get in the way of me enjoying life experiences that are precious and rewarding.

But in general I won't get in your hair because of the conditions. However, if you don't feel comfortable hosting somebody with a chronic illness, I would understand fully.

PHILOSOPHY

Don't live with regrets. Don't do things that you will look back on and feel like you should do differently.

I believe in an egalitarian world with a cosmopolitan outlook for our planet.

RELATIVISM and not ABSOLUTISM

Humanism

Don't take Couchsurfing uber-seriously (passwords in requests I cringe at those) but don't take it too casually either (don't make spontaneity as an expedient excuse). So to modulate your spirit is the middle-of-the-road path. That said, it's just a pure observation. It's human nature to contradict ourselves in some instances, I may actually get along with people who are super serious and super casual.

Keep things in perspective. Give people benefits of the doubts. Don't push too hard or fixate on something. I have my fair share of dislikes and displeasure in things. You can never always be happy. But even with emotional baggage in the past and reflections on regrets and damages you wished to undo, you can always reinvent yourself. Change what you can. And find an anchor that can secure your self-belief and seek your inner strength. Some external conditions in life are out of our control, things are impermanent, we all have to learn to let go of distressing factors and dissatisfying experiences. Though I know it's easier said than done. But make your beliefs, and the beliefs will make you.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

It is by serendipity to find such an amazing network exists in the cyberspace and I had been using it since 2014.

Find people with great vibes.

Everybody has a story to tell and I always find comfort in listening :)

I guess I also want to be a living testament that I can travel with my medical condition.. Despite living with an ongoing illness, I see travelling as therapeutic and I cherish every time the amicable hospitality from individual hosts.

Interests

Hearthstone, Language Learning, playing Wii U with my cousin, chatting and drinking with friends, watching reality shows and serialized dramas, and movies, playing brainless apps, eating out, cultural exchange, shopping, doing nothing, understanding other countries' politics, walking my dog Duffy who's a 4 year old blonde toy poodle, watching Vice News, sing youtube karaoke (wish I know how to play instruments so I can make covers, if you can give me some lessons of any kind of instruments, that will be super cool), roaming about in the nature, food, beer, playing mahjong, foosball, billiards

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies:
Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, Elysium, Prisoners, We're the Millers, Thor, Percy Jackson, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Life of Pi, Upside Down, the Adventure of Tintin, Avengers, Les Misérables, Maleficient, Gone with the Wild, One flew over the cuckoo's nest, Sunset Boulevard, Stagecoach, Singin' in the Rain, Funny Girl, Scarface, It Happened One Night, Dead Poets Society, The Interview, Black Swan, Chinatown, Saving Private Ryan, Misery, Blade Runner, Back to the Future trilogy, Star Wars, Annie Hall, The Wild Bunch, Romeo and Juliet (1968), The Godfather trilogy, Fiddler on the Roof, Source Code, 21/22 Jump Street, Pulp Fiction, meet me in st. Louis, Grease, A Place in the Sun, The Shawshank Redemption, The Graduate, Mad Max, The Hunt, Fight Club, Taxi Driver, Thelma & Louise, West Side Story, Whiplash, The Martian, Reservoir Dogs, Short Cuts, Citizen Kane, Eraserhead, The Revenant, Mulholland Drive, Blue Velvet, Dead Man, Natural Born Killers, Mean Streets, Night of the Living Dead, River of No Return, Rocky, Into the Wild, Pan, Midnight in Paris, Casablanca, Harold and Maude, Demolition. Skyfall, Spectre, Shutter Island, Nosferatu, Catch Me if you Can, Rosemary's Baby, Network, a Woman under the Influence, A Requiem for a Dream, The Matrix trilogy, The Wizard of Oz, Magnolia, Indiana Jones series, , The Men Who Stare at Goats, Mean Girls, The Buddy Holly Story, Dead Pool, Lawrence of Arabia, The Imitation Game, The Danish Girl, Bonnie and Clyde, Suicide Squad, Animal House, Breakfast Club, The Addam's Family, Goodfellas, Notes on a Scandal, The Pianist, The Maltese Falcon, A Clockwork Orange, Hidden Figures, Doctor Strange, Oz the Great and Powerful, Sixteen Candles, Fargo, Rogue One, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, The Goonies, 127 Hours, Moonlight, Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Slumdog Millionaire, Everybody wants Some, The Karate Kid, Dazed and Confused, Straight Outta Compton, La La Land, Arrival, Moana, Forrest Gump, This is the End, Despicable Me, Shock Corridor, Transformers, Wonder Woman, Guardians of the Galaxy, Lego Batman Movie, Alien (Covenant), Now You See Me, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, The Mummy, Power Rangers, Logan, John Wick, Madea, Pirates of the Caribbean, Kingsman, Dunkirk, Logan Lucky, Baby Driver, It, The Elephant Man, Lars and the Real Girl, Gone Girl, The Book of Henry, Mountain Between Us, Blade Runner 2049, Thor: Ragnarok, The Disaster Artist, Coco, Jumanji, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Paddington

Foreign Movies:
Amélie, NaNa (Kentarō Ōtani), Force Majeure, Under Sandet, Jalla! Jalla!, Le magasin des suicides, Le Petit Nicolas, Svenskjävel, Trevligt folk, Ida, Tillsammans (Lukas Moodysson), Fanny och Alexander (Ingmar Bergman), REC, 君の名は (Your Name), Odödliga (Eternal Summer/Andreas Öhman), 신과함께-죄와 벌 (Along with the Gods: The Two Worlds), 120 Battements Par Minute

Music: English-singing artists-
rockabily/ rock n roll, The Rolling Stones, Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, The Beatles, Little Richard, Joan Jett, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Stray Cats, Rodney Crowell, Eddie Cochran, Chuck Berry, Graham Nash, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Chris Isaak, Simon& Garfunkel, Alabama Shakes, Ed Sheeran, M.I.A., Sam Smith, Francesco Yates, Joni Mitchell, Sheryl Crow, Carole King, Zealyn, Thurston Harris, Beth Hart, Fleetwood Mac, Aretha Franklin, Canaan Smith, Hawksley Workman, The Dresden Dolls, The Ditty Bops, Jessie J, Kimbra, Ella Henderson, Panic! At The Disco

Foreign artists:
Thomas Stenström, MØ,
Veronica Maggio, Robin Schultz, Morgan Sulele, Samir & Viktor, house/electronic/techno, Scarlet Pleasure, Julias Moon, Lukas Graham, De Vet Du, Niello, Marie Key, DÚNÉ, Mads Langer, Silvana Imam, Emil Berg, Jakob Karlberg, Martin Masarov, Edith Piaf, Salvador Vilar Braamcamp Sobral

I like taking song recommendations as well. I like all genres. When people ask me what music I like, id say things I find on youtube

Youtube Channel:
Vice News
Ijustwanttobecool (Swedish)
Secular Talk
Watchmojo
China Uncensored
CNN/FOX(interesting to observe American media bias)
Coyote Peterson
A daily dose of internet

Reality shows:
Big Brother US/Canada (social/identity politics in its microcosm), Survivor, American Ninja Warriors, Jeopardy!

TV Series:
The Walking Dead, Breaking Bad, Downton Abbey, Game of Thrones, Parenthood, Switched at Birth, Once Upon a Time, Glee, Teen Wolf, Awkward, New Girl, 90210, Fringe, Ugly Betty, Gossip Girl, Hannibal, Orange is the New Black, Gotham, Vikings, American Horror Story,Better Call Saul,House of Cards, Mad Men, Heroes Reborn, Screen Queens, The Simpsons, Family Guy, South Park, Bob's Burger, The Shannara Chronicles, How to Get Away with Murder, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Black Mirror, Freaks and Geeks, Westworld, Stranger Things, Rick and Morty, 13 Reasons Why, Inside No. 9

Plays:
Death of A Salesman - Arthur Miller
A Streetcar Named Desire - Tennessee Williams
Waiting for Godot - Samuel Beckett
Professional Foul - Tom Stoppard
Top Girls - Caryl Churchill
The Dumb Waiter - Harold Pinter
The Crucible - Arthur Miller

Books:
Tess of the D'urbervilles- Thomas Hardy
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde
The Book Thief- Markus Zusak
Game of Thrones ( I have only finished Volume i) - George RR Martin
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain
The Joy Luck Club- Amy Tan
The Bluest Eye - Toni Morrison
The House on Mango Street- Sandra Cisneros
Moby Dick - Herman Melville
"i taket lyser stjärnorna" av Johanna Thydell
The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
Wuthering Heights - Emily Brontë
War and Peace- Leo Tolstoy
Bartleby, The Scrivener: A Story Of Wall-street - Herman Melville
Damage - Kay Hogan

Documentaries:
I learnt about the Zeitgeist Movement (TZM) and the Venus Project from a Bulgarian host and it's one of the most fascinating and fantastic thing I've ever seen that the world needs to move towards for the common good..

Searching for Sugar Man (2012) about the discovery of Sixto Rodriguez

The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara - life and times of former U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara illustrating his observations of the nature of modern warfare.

The Coalition Roundtable by "End Organ Pillaging" - talking about the untold stories of organ harvesting and transplantation in China. (13/05/17)

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Eating fried bugs, silkworms, crickets, bee cocoons in Hong Kong :P

Trying surströmming (fermented Baltic Sea herring)

Hiking for Eight Hours with some Czech-mates (see what i did there) in Eastern Slovakia (Slovak Paradise)

Finished reading Moby Dick by Herman Melville (Jan 9, 2017). Have become my all time favorite now.

Finished reading the Swedish novella "i taket lyser stjärnorna" av Johanna Thydell through my Swedish studies at university. A teen fiction it is.

Skiing and snowboarding in Queenstown, yeah boy!

Just going into a Polish 2 week crash course in Krakow as the only one from Asia

seeing and touching a miniature cow and horse and donkey in Christchurch. Tame and amazing creatures.

I won about 3000 USD in my first horse-betting. Beginner's luck does exist.

Virtual Reality experience with the Samsung VR Gear. What a surrealistic exp.

Went inside a women's bathroom by accident in the airport in Bergen. And finished using it. And washed my hands. And even filled up my water bottle. And even seeing women going in and out. And still I thought I was in an unisex toilet because there're unisex ones before going through the customs. Only realized I had used the women bathroom after getting out. LOL

Getting kicked out of a nightclub in Hungary

Going to Gozo, an outlying island of Malta and spending time there with only a 1 EUR in my pocket (as I later found out). walked for 10 kilometers on my own on that day to get to the central district of it and it was mad fun in and of itself!!

Teach, Learn, Share

I consider Mandarin and Cantonese the easiest languages to learn, and that I can share.

Buddhist theological thoughts. I am not an expert or fervent believer but some of its teachings resonates well with me and are very share-worthy.

I want to learn about things that I don't know, see things I don't normally see, and be able to take pleasure from new experiences and to broaden my horizon. Travelling abroad and meeting new people will be a nice way to gain a new fresh perspective.

Favorite male idols/role models: Ai Wei-wei, Abraham Lincoln, Simon Ostrovsky, Chris Chappell, Kyle Kulinski

Favorite female idols/role models: Jill Stein, Vanessa Rousso, Lam Yi-Lai, Isabella Lövin, Park Yeon-mi, Jessie J

What I Can Share with Hosts

previous couchsurfing experiences.

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Macao, Malta, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Romania, Russian Federation, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, France, Hong Kong