Hi, what's up?
My name's Jacek, the international one is Jack (just like Jack Sparrow). I work as a circus pedagogue and juggler. I graduated geography and my huge interest is history. During my free time I try to do as much mounatineering as possible - having already hiked/climbed in five continents I still regard Polish Tatra mountains as the most unique in the world. I used to hitchhike a lot but now I am focused on cycling.

If you come to Lodz I would do my best to show you around the city which has way more to offer than local people think. Not evertyime I can host people (on the other hand it's not 0% neither, worth asking me) but I can offer you my companion while sightseeing or pub crawling.

When I'm abroad I'm rather active than passive. I like both history mueums (especially cartography related) and nature. I'm in love with "free walking tour" intiative all around the world, one day I'd like to become a guide too, no matter where.

I like to meet new people and to learn languages and new skills. I can listen too, but if you'd like to force me to talk you should mention some mountains/travels/history/art/new circus/chess/football.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I think it's a beautiful idea. When I host people I try not only to give them a place to sleep but also to experience my city with them and help them to understand it. I hosted quite a few people and I had 100% positive experience with them.

Usually I do CS when I am not forced too, I just enjoy to meet new people, to practice language skills, to feel a little bit more into the local vibe than beeing "just" a backpacker crashing at some international hostels (which I pracitce too from time to time).

IMPORTANT part If you'd like to write a request to me.
Of course there is nothing against if you'd like read my profile carefully and give some super personalized phrases, but you DON'T HAVE TOO :) We all know how travelling can be easy and sometimes very difficult. When you suddenly got lost while hitchhiking, caught by bad weather or just not in the mood or in the skill of writing a very long request - I don't expect you to do it. If you need a place to stay I'd like to help you. If you'd like to take your time sightseeing the city or doing your own buissnesses I won't disturb you or can help you too. I think it's the biggest value on CS that people should help each other not expecting anything in return. In this point of view I can't be dissapointed but only positively suprised.

Interests

Three big branches as simple as:

TRAVELS
no suprise here, as it's the travellers community. I try to combine it with my geography and history interests.

ART
Beeing a circus pedagogue I work a lot with children at schools teaching them equlibristic and juggling. So for example how to walk on the walking sticks, unicycle (that's the thing I can teach, but can't do myself), juggle with apples or fire torches/knives. My favourite circus prop is diabolo which I started in 2007.

MOUNTAINS
that's the value I choose most of my future travel destinations according to. When I'm in your country it's pretty possible that I came to summit one of it's highest points, walk some mountain ranges or just hike local hills around the cities.

• traveling
• juggling
• geography
• history
• mountains
• art
• trekking
• bicycle

Music, Movies, and Books

Fantasy movies and good and quite old American cinema (i.e. Forrest Gump, 12 Angry Man, and so on). I enjoy listening to the folk music (Irish), and I'm quite familiar with rock and metal music. But I'm really open-minded in this matters. I read a lot of books written by Polish travellers.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Just after my 23rd bithday I graduated the univeristy and bought the plane ticket to the southernmost point of South America and I started to travel. In 12 months I found myself in NYC. On the way I summited some ramarkable summits (Aconcagua, Chimborazo, Cerro Pisco, just-almost-after-2-tries-Ojos del Salado). All of them wre organized just by myself some of them I did solo too. But not only mountains. People, their culture, hitchhiking, thousands of kilometres, all of them create memories which will remain with me. But I am not saying it was the trip of my life. Way bigger ones are going to come one day.

Teach, Learn, Share

I'm really up to learning new language skills, right now especially Spanish or Russian I have on my mind. I can talk really long hours about geography or history as I'm really into these two subjects. Also I can teach someone how to juggle, if he or she wants to :)

What I Can Share with Hosts

Food, alcohol and good mood

Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Armenia, Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, England, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Hungary, Iran, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Mexico, Montenegro, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Turkey, Ukraine, United States, Uruguay

Countries I’ve Lived In

Chile, Poland