**NOTICE** — Since CouchSurfing has become a paid site, I will not be using it all the time. I will only reactivate my account when I am traveling. Currently it will remain active until January 7. After that time, it is better to try and get ahold of me through Facebook because I won't have access to messages on this site until I activate again. Now, onto the profile…

CURRENT MISSION

Survive, make money, build an empire… see the world!

ABOUT ME

Let me clarify my "Maybe Couch": Unless I am out of town (and I sometimes forget to mark it), there is a 98% chance that I will be happy to meet you for a drink and a chat (or a party) and give you a bit of a city tour. However, I have a home office and the way my current apartment is set up, I find it a bit uncomfortable to host. However, exceptions often occur so ask someone else first and use me as a last resort for hosting. Any friends or previous guests I am always happy to see again (situation permitting).

Now, on to my profile:

Hello to all you people in far away places (and right up close)! I am a fun loving guy from Los Angeles who moved to Europe and currently lives in Odessa, Ukraine. I love to travel around, explore new places and revisit familiar ones as well. I do enjoy drinking and partying, but I don't really smoke or use drugs. I have seven professions (English teacher, director of a tourist agency, director of a business consulting and outsourcing firm, bartender, computer consultant, photographer and journalist [and I'm trying to get into both real estate and the stock market]). I sometimes stay in hostels when I travel but I would love to come visit you so I can learn how people in your country really live and work. I am a good cook and love learning and practicing foreign languages. I look forward to hearing from you! -Kevin

You can also check out my Hospitality Club profile here:
http://secure.hospitalityclub.org/hc/travel.php?cid=rulerk

Oh, and if you stay and have a good time, don't forget to leave a positive comment! I'd appreciate it if you also left one on my Hospitality Club profile if you are a member.

PHILOSOPHY

Live like you'll never die but love like today is your last.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I enjoy hosting and entertaining people from across the globe. Its great to make new connections and friends, spread education and information throughout the world.

Interests

Traveling, Dancing (Salsa, Merengue, Cha-cha, Waltz, Tango, Quickstep, Pole), SCUBA Diving, Sailing, Motorboating, Surfing, Windsurfing, Camping, Hiking, Rock climbing, Partying, Making new friends

• dancing
• tango
• waltz
• education
• cooking
• partying
• drinking
• clubbing
• traveling
• hiking
• backpacking
• kayaking
• windsurfing
• camping
• surfing
• scuba diving
• sailing
• rock climbing
• swimming
• business
• teaching
• history
• journalism
• languages

Music, Movies, and Books

Its virtually impossible to buy English books here in Odessa :-(
However, back in the day, I had some favorite authors: Michael Crichton, J.K. Rowling, Douglas Adams, Terry Pratchett, Neil Strauss, Cristopher Pike, Donald J. Sobel, Kevin Andersen, Richard Dawkins. I tend not to like books they forced me to read in school though.

As for movies, I was a movie addict in my teens and watched about 6 or more per week. Currently, I "rent" fairly new movie releases on DVD quite frequently! I also love me my torrents.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Watching the sun rise from a mountaintop after a week-long backpack.
Flashing down a canyon fighting rapids in either a raft or kayak, plummeting over a six foot waterfall at the end.
Jumping out of an airplane strapped to someone with a parachute and remembering to pull the cord (you'd be amazed how many people forget).
Diving 100 feet (30m) below the ocean surface and swimming through a school of six foot long sharks to explore a shipwreck site or playing hide & seek with a pacific lobster (no claws) in a reef near Hawaii.
Walk down the main road in Ephesus, the same road traveled by almost every famous figure throughout European and Middle Eastern history.
Pass the barricade at the end of the restored section of the Great Wall of China and witness how quickly nature is taking it back.
Visit D.P.R.K. (North Korea) to look back in time at the former Soviet Union, yet still being able to play frisbee with school children, high fiving people coming from a Kim Il Sung rally (nearly all of whom had never seen a real white person before), and being included in the wedding photos of a new couple including witnessing their very first public kiss.
Transfer my life from a nice, safe, normal home near Los Angeles, CA, USA to an apartment in the frontier that is Odessa, Ukraine.

Teach, Learn, Share

I teach English as one of my jobs here. I am also very knowledgeable about scientific pursuits and nature and a wide variety of other things. I love learning new things. (Oh yeah, and I cook... spread the love.)

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Canada, Cayman Islands, China, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominica, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Haiti, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Latvia, Macao, Martinique, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles, Nigeria, North Korea, Panama, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russian Federation, Saint Martin (French part), Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Vatican City State

Countries I’ve Lived In

Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States

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