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  • Last login about 5 years ago

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Overview

  • 59 references 17 Confirmed & Positive
  • Fluent in English, German, Greek (modern), Spanish; learning French, Italian
  • 51, Male
  • Member since 2007
  • by chasing happy yet seemingly financially unsuccessful p...
  • educated through private catholic school institutions, mi...
  • No hometown listed
  • Profile 100% complete

About Me

CURRENT MISSION

to figure out where in the hell i am

ABOUT ME

basically i was raised in a mini market my family owned and operated. as is typical in any such family businesss, life revolves around work, work, work. so after finishing my b.a. in psychology, and already having 17 years of work experience under my belt, i decided to take a one year round-the-world road trip before getting back to the real world. that was in 1994. it took me 4 years to travel through the u.s. in my truck, living in colorado, florida and california. i've worked in construction, bars, restaurants and hotels, as a sailor on private motor yachts. from san francisco, i turned south and spent another 4 years between tijuana and tierra del fuego, spending most of my time in angentina, honduras and mexico. i became a photographer in argentina and made my first exhibition, and a scuba diving instructor in honduras, and learned a helluva lot about how the world really works in every country. i went back to detroit to touch base and get to know my family again. i made my second photo exhibit there, and connected with the group in mexican town-- a good group of people to meet. in 2003 i came to europe, to switzerland, following my heart and a beautiful woman (well, what do you expect?!?)and even let her talk me into walking the camino de santiago through france and spain. i worked in the markets and construction there, and began my career as a street musician. after 2 1/2 years, and a broken heart, i decided it was time to come home. i constructed a trailer, loaded my stuff on top, and walked most of the way from switzerland to athens-- i cut out serbia/montenegro and albania. so, now here in athens, i'm figuring out what to do now that i'm home.

PHILOSOPHY

-pay it forward! if we just pay things back, we end up in the same kind of group that passes positions like president of (insert appropriate country here;)
-the more i learn, the less i know.
-the adventure lies in the journey-- there are no destinations.
-my education was interrupted only by my schooling.
-love like you've never been hurt, and dance like nobody's watching...

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

at the moment, i'm trying my best to be a good ambassador of humanity while travelling

i have surfed and hosted
helped in organizing street events for musicians
attended meetings welcoming newcomers to athens
i try to give an honest opinion about where i am and where i have been
trying to keep myself updated on this website:)

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

i've hosted, been hosted, gone to meetings and have met CSers randomly on the streets. though i travel in ways that make it difficult for me to use Couch Surfing, i have alwyas had (well, almost always) incredible experiences. it even makes helping offer a space to randoms on street easier as well. i mean, this website isn't the only place you can find travellers in need :p

Interests

photography
scuba diving
climbing/bouldering
playing guitar
talking about subjects not common in mainstream philosophies
Quantum physics (a hobby really)

  • photography
  • dancing
  • education
  • wine
  • beer
  • instructor
  • walking
  • traveling
  • bouldering
  • music
  • guitar
  • backpacking
  • surfing
  • scuba diving
  • rock climbing
  • teaching
  • psychology

Music, Movies, and Books

Lala Land, 5th element, the usual suspect, starship troopers, 9 reinas, big fish, good bad the ugly, revolver, princess bride,

as for music, i like just about everything from everywhere execpt suicidal love songs-- they suck no matter where you are. motown and blues are my favorites though

as for books: Zorba the Greek, Report to Greco, Freedom or Death, Thus Spike Zarathrustra, ender's game, carlos casteneda, paulo coelho, little prince, but basically i read as much and as often as i can about basically everything from the theory of relativity to 'how to shit in the woods'

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

other than being hit by lightning, the most amazing thing i've actually done is walk about 4,000 kilometres through europe

the most amazing thing i've seen was at the glacier perito moreno in argentina, where a piece of ice fall that was 10x10x60m and at least 55 million years old. i went with a group who got tired and bored before we had seen anything incredible. since i was the only one who wanted to stay, i made a deal with them. we wait 5 minutes, and if nothing happens i buy the beer for the night. they agreed, and just before time ran out, this piece of ice fell right in front of us. not only did i get a great sequence shot with my camera, but the group bought my wine for that night

Teach, Learn, Share

i think it's our purpose to teach others what we know and are truly gifted with. even the smallest gifts can teach us great things. i do what i can to learn from everyone around me, though i seem to like learning things the hard way. trying to get out of that though. when we're open and honest with ourselves, there's nothing we cannot share with anyone. having said that, i guess i can teach scuba diving, rock climbing/bouldering, spanish, german, dirty jokes not appropriate for most people, photography, a few songs on the guitar, and few odds and ends about backpacking, but i do not offer money-back guarntees on any of it:)

Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Belgium, Bolivia, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Ecuador, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Panama, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, Uruguay

Countries I’ve Lived In

Argentina, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Switzerland, United States

Old School Badges

  • 20 Vouches

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