CURRENT MISSION

Be happy as cheesy as that sounds.

ABOUT ME

I grew up all over the U.S. and now I am trying to see the rest of the world. My adult life has been spent in a couple of countries, but mostly in Washington, D.C. I'm a wealth of U.S. experiences as my family is half from the south and half from the north, part mid-western and part east coast, some open-minded and some completely closed, a bit adventure and a bit "never leave the county." I like to think of myself as totally open-minded and full of adventure, but know myself to get lost in frustration and unsociable at times.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I guess most of my couch surfing has been paying to stay at people's homes in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. Unless you count friend's couches, then I am something of an expert.

Interests

I enjoy camping, hiking, biking, art, photography, coffee (a bit of an addiction really), sharing stories with new and old friends, traveling and learning about new cultures. My true passion is wildlife conservation and I can bore anyone to tears with information on primates, particularly great apes.

• wildlife
• arts
• photography
• coffee
• news
• traveling
• cycling
• hiking
• camping
• surfing

Music, Movies, and Books

I read a lot, so I won't even try to decide on a few favorites. I like most music with an intense fondness for jazz.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I was in Peace Corps in Kazakhstan in 1996-1998. It was fascinating to watch as capitalism (the good and the bad) and democracy (o.k. dictatorship) took hold. It was interesting to talk to people there and hear their views on these changes outside of what the news said or we were told to believe.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Honduras, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Italy, Morocco, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Russian Federation, Saint Lucia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uzbekistan, Viet Nam, Zimbabwe

Countries I’ve Lived In

Kazakhstan, Sri Lanka, United Kingdom, United States