CURRENT MISSION

See the inside of self, find a strength to improve - Do what I should, not what I feel like to. What should: benefit others.

ABOUT ME

Nick name, Marko, which came from Marco Polo, who explored the globe in the 13th century. Currently professor and researcher on river, groundwater, and water-quality issues of watershed. Work with NGOs and communities to restore the ecosystem in local rivers and do projects to approach a sustainable, green city. Fundraising from private enterprises, trying to restore water resources for farmers in African rural areas. I like Nature Based Approach(NbS) or Design with Nature to solve engineering problems by replacing Grey Infrastructures with Green ones. Since 1993, I have attended conferences all over the world and taken traveling opportunities to fulfill my dream as a solo adventurer. I am not young in age but still young in heart. Married since 1988. My two sons are in their early thirties and all work outside my city.
(My FB / Please search: https://www.facebook.com/marko.hsu.5)

PHILOSOPHY

若我自往昔，素行利生事，除獲正覺樂，必不逢今苦。_入行論，第八品，157偈
Strangers are friends I have yet to meet.
Young is a status of mind, not a time of life.
No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it is not the same river, and he is not the same man.
Travel changes you. As you move through this life and this world you change things slightly, you leave marks behind, however small. And in return, life – and travel – leaves marks on you. – Anthony Bourdain
“Life is like dancing – it is not about getting from one place to another. It is about enjoying each step.”
"The only journey is the one within." - Rainer Maria RILKE
What you give out will eventually return to yourself, so give out only good things.
We are free to choose, but are not free from the consequence of our choice.
When given a choice between being clever or kind, always choose kind.
Work hard to get paid for your mind, not your time.
Save the trees and they will save us.
Leave people better than when you found them.
The fastest route is not always a straight line.
When carrying out a task, the focus should not be on the outcome but on the mind's intent.
Altruism means through the process of helping others solve their problems, you also solve your own in the end.
Beauty is everywhere; it is not that she is lacking to our eye, but our eyes which fail to perceive her. __A. Rodin
OMAK: Observe merits and appreciate kindness.
Everybody is a genius, but if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid._A. Einstein
"Efficiency is doing things right; effectiveness is doing the right things." - Peter Drucker
"If your daily life seems poor, do not blame it; blame yourself that you are not poet enough to call forth its riches; for the Creator, there is no poverty." - Rainer Maria RILKE
When smart people are stuck, they ask for help.
“It is not that they cannot find the solution. It is that they cannot see the problem.” - World of Engineering
If you only see one solution to a problem, you don't understand the problem.
"If you want to have good ideas, you must have many ideas."— Linus Pauling
In the long run, the optimists end up doing more.
Challenges are an indispensable element in my journey of growth.
Life is a short journey, so seize the day and do important things.
If the cost is your constant piece of mind, then it is too expensive.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Meeting people and sharing experiences.

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

My German roommate, Dustin, in a youth hostel in Freiburg, Germany, in 2010, told me about this community, and I admire this idea very much in terms of meeting interesting people, exchanging ideas, sharing, and reducing travel costs.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Exchange ideas with local people is much more interesting for me than simply sightseeing during all my journeys.

Until now, I have done 74 surfing, and 24 hosting, and have had many personal CS meeting experiences worldwide.

My first hostess was talented cricket in Philadelphia, USA. The 2nd is a French guy, Michel, who lives in an apartment with a breathtaking coastal view in Penang, Malaysia. The 3rd is beautiful Lesslie in Quito, Ecuador, South America. The 4th is dear Bob, an American in Fukuoka, Japan. The fifth is charming Cheryl in Shanghai, China. The 6th is Julie and Casey in St Paul, Minnesota, USA. The 7th is Nick Lee, also in St Paul, Minnesota. The 8th is Jimmy Chen in Yilan, the first case I surfed in Taiwan. The 9th and 10th are Sofia and Roberta in Bologna, Italy. The 11th is Catherine Men in Xian, China. The 12th is Andrea in Busan, Korea. The 13th/14th are Melissa/Chris in Daegu, Korea, respectively. The 15th is Loudine in Gumi, Korea. The 16th is Victoria and Josh in Busan, Korea. The 17th is Merel Amstel and Eduard in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The 18th is Leonie Persoon and her husband, Jan, in The Hague, Netherlands. The 19th is Sabine Wensink, also in The Hague, Netherlands. The 20th is Clement and Pamela Chevignon; the 21st is Francoise Belcour, a medical doctor; the 22nd is Jacques et Sophie VALLEE; the 23rd is Emeline Brulé and Emile, all in Paris, France. The 24th is Annemieke in Amsterdam, Netherlands. My 25, 26, and 27th are Martina Hu, Bonnie Wang & her husband, Marathon, and Eileen Chen, all in Shanghai, China. My 28th was PEI WEN TSAI in Hsinchu, Taiwan. My 29th was Emma and Kyle in Saint Louis, MO, USA. The 30th and 31st were Jessica and Virginia, respectively, all in Iowa City, IA, USA. The 32nd was Tomas in Kyoto, Japan. From 33rd to 36th are all around New Delhi, India, including Ranjana and Martin in Neeti Bagh, Richa and Man in Dwarka, Advaita in Gurgaon, Shobhna and Guneet at Munika. From 37th to 39th are all around Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, including Jenny in Menara Indah, Noori & amp; Mie in Kajang, and Alina in Laman Ceylon. My 40th host is Delyan Lyutskanov from Bulgaria, who is working in Nanchang, Jiangxi, China. My 41st hostess is Tzuyu Huang, and her young brother is from Taiwan, now in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan. My 42nd hostess is Kana Takami from Tokyo, now in Sasazuka, Tokyo, Japan. My 43rd hostess is Tatiana Mrt from Russia, now in 東松原, Tokyo, Japan. My 44th hostess is Vita Wahyu, and her husband, Syamsul Arief, is in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. My 45th host is Made Suamba, and his wife Ayu is in Bali, Indonesia. My 46th to 48th hostesses are 密Mia Zhou, 夢Moon Liu, and 凱晶K.J. Ho, respectively, all in Beijing, China. My 49th host is Keita Yamazaki(山崎慶太) in Takaoka, Japan. My 50th host is the Thabarwa volunteer/meditation center in Yangon, Myanmar. My 51st hostess is Sylvie in Stafford, Queensland, Australia. My 52nd hostess is Michelle Nguyen, and my 53rd host is Ricardogz Gomez, both in Orange County, California, USA. My 54, 55, and 56 hosts (ess) are all in Granada, Spain, which are the Dutch musician/philosopher Jacob, a local, Nacho, and Helene, a young French mother. 57th hostess is Florence OUEDRAOGO in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. 58th is a Polish couple, Paulina and Pawel, who live in Malaga, Spain. 59th is Dorothy, an ABC, and Hugo, from Ecuador. 6oth is Anna from Ukraine. 61st is Leandro, an immigrant from Cuba, and 62nd is Mauricio from Paraguay, all in Barcelona, Spain. 63rd, Gentleman Luca in Bologna, 64th, Ambassador Chiara in Carpi, 65th, Leonardo and 66th firefighter Mattia, all in Ravenna. 67th, Andrea, in the seashore of Ravenna. 68th, Leonardo, a young college student in Bologna. 69th, Victor, a Russian post-doc. 70th, Deepak, a graduate student from India, all in Palermo. 71st, Elisabeth in Vienna. 72nd, Veronica in Ljubljana, Slovenia. 73rd, Jasna in Zagreb, Croatia. 74th, Mirela in Solin, Croatia. 75th, Tuan Ngo Minh in Hanoi, Viet Nam. 76th, Jaypee Botero, a Philipino in Luang Prabang, Laos.

The first surfer I hosted was Johanna from France, energetic and speaks Chinese Mandarin well. She enjoyed oatmeal, lemonade, and Korean rice pastry we prepared for her. I also helped my hostess Cheryl host Gabi and Snir from Israel while I visited Shanghai. 3rd surfer was Lily Chow from Hong Kong, a backpacker, independent and brave, and told me a little recent history about Hong Kong. 4th surfer, Christine Chung, from Chicago, USA, who was doing her one-month internship in Xitou forest, has good writing skills. 5th surfer, Roser Ylla from Girona, Catalonia, Spain, was a volunteer who offered herself child education in the Philippines, took a few days vacation in Taiwan, and attended the Mazu Pilgrimage walk. Bonnie Wang & Marathon; her husband, my previous host in Shanghai, visited us and stayed one night in April 2016. 7th surfer was Angel Liu, her sister, and her mother from Taipei in Sept. 2016. 8th surfer was Ramon Sist, an Italian photographer and therapist, in March 2017. He traveled around the world and had lots of stories to share. 9th surfer was Conçalo Cruz from Lisboa, Portugal, in April 2017, a passionate young man who has continued to travel all over the globe for quite a long time. 10th surfers were Hengzhe LUO( 羅亨哲) from Shanghai and Yoga LI(黎宇嘉) from Guangzhou, China, May, 2017. The 11th and 12th surfers were Charlotte van der Mijle from the Netherlands and Anita Lin from Australia. The 13th and 14th surfers were Roxanne and Maartje, a female couple, from the Netherlands traveling around the world and making good videos. The 15th surfers were Lindsay from Vancouver, Canada, and Paolo from Italy, a couple who traveled the world by their Vespa scooter.
The 16th surfer was Celina, Sin Ying Chan from Hong Kong(we met in Kyoto), and a gentleman from ... the 17th surfer was Andrea Rezza from Italy. The 18th surfer was Kathy, a medical student from North Germany. The 19th surfer was Claire Culver from Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. She is young and riding a rented bike, camping around this island. The 20th and 21st surfers were Micky from Tainan and Annabelle from Taoyuan. Both are experienced CS travelers. 22nd is Xuann from Vietnam, a very polite, sweet girl. 23rd is Donard and Aillen from the Philippines, for climbing Jade Mountain. 24th is Faosia from Burkina Faso, the younger sister of Rachid.

After attending all kinds of CS gatherings in Taichung City, such as language exchange, potluck, hiking, and home parties, I created a regular meet-up activity on Wednesday evenings inside my campus for all CS people in my city, Taichung, since I usually cannot host due to frequent out of town.

Interests

Meeting people, sharing experiences. meditation, yoga, swimming, biking, hiking, massage therapy. cooking, potluck, vegetarian, vegan, health, travel, sightseeing, ecosystem, site investigation on natural or engineering practices. Sutra study, lifelong learning-teaching, language-exchange, volunteering, culture, history.

If you are interested in hiking in Taiwan? Here are some links:
http://hikingtaiwan.wordpress.com/
http://www.taiwan-adventures.com/
http://www.taiwanese-secrets.com/hehuanshan-taiwan.html

• cooking
• potluck
• vegetarian
• yoga
• massage therapy
• meditation
• traveling
• cycling
• hiking
• engineering
• history
• language exchange
• volunteering
• rivers
• tea
• spirituality
• buddhism
• ted talks
• nature conservation
• documentary films
• swimming in nature

Music, Movies, and Books

Music: John Denver, Andrea Bocelli, Jim Croce, Lobo, Anne Murray, Crystal Gale, Enya, Whitney Houston, The Beatles, Eagles, The Carpenters, Air Supply, Bread, The Brothers Four, Bee Gees, Dana Winner, Lionel Richie, Louis Armstrong, Kenny G, Brooklyn Duo, ...... Schindler's List, 千の風になって, ...

Movies: 海的彼端After Spring, the Tamaki Family..., Diet for a new America, Forks over Knives, Food, Inc.(美味代價), Your health your planet(新世紀飲食), FED UP, A civil action, Forrest Gump, Dead poets society, Malena, Saving private Ryan, The reader, Madre Teresa, Under the tuscan sun, (Grace of Monaco, Lion, Australia, The stepford wives/Nicole Kidman), The spanish apartment, Training day, The Accidental Tourist, (Life of Pi, Sense and Sensibility/李安Ang Lee), Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind(王牌冤家Jim Carrey), One day, ......

Books: Practical permaculture for home landscapes, your community, and the whole earth/ Jessi Bloom, The omnivore's dilemma : a natural history of four meals / Michael Pollan, Mutant Message Down Under/ Marlo Morgan, Just kids / Patti Smith, How i met myself / David A Hill, On the edge / Gillian Cross, Of mice and men / John Steinbeck, The missing coins / John Escott, The wrong man / Kris Anderson, A tangled web / Alan Maley, The lady in white / Colin Campbell, In the shadow of the mountain / Helen Naylor, Table of the supernatural / Frank Brennan, The man from nowhere / Bernard Smith, Nothing but the truth / George Kershaw, A love for life / Penny Hancock, The Amsterdam connection / Sue Leather, The ironing man / Colin Campbell, All i want / Margaret Johnson, A love for life / Penny Hancock, .....

Starting years ago, I enjoyed Barack Obama's speeches and many TED talks, etc...., via YouTube(e.g.: https://youtu.be/zrp-v2tHaDo). I've visited almost 50 countries and found that human nature is all the same, but due to different systems, we behave differently. Hopefully, the United States will become a better country for the world, not just want to keep as a world superpower and the world will become a better place, e.g. government system, for all people and living creatures. We still have a long way to go!

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Watching and helping the delivery processes of my sons are really amazing. Became a teacher, a Buddhist, then now a vegetarian, a vegan in future, which I did not feel like at all when I was a university student.

Teach, Learn, Share

I can share my Buddhistic practice, including Tibetan Sutra listening, discussion, and meditation ... etc. The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment (Lam rim chen mo) by Tsong-kha-pa (1357–1419).

What I Can Share with Hosts

To be more spiritual and less religious.

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Austria, Belgium, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, England, France, Germany, Greece, Guam, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Laos, Luxembourg, Macao, Malaysia, Morocco, Myanmar, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Portugal, Russian Federation, Scotland, Singapore, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Vatican City State, Viet Nam, Wales

Countries I’ve Lived In

Burkina Faso, Germany, Japan, Taiwan, United States, Viet Nam

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