I’ve been to about 120 countries, and I've spent over 6 years traveling around the world. Now I manage a bicycle shop outside NYC and I travel in the winter. I'm open minded, but really I'm more absent minded. I enjoy challenges and adventure more then most people. I went to Russia without a visa just for the adrenaline rush of the possibility of being jailed, deported, heavily fined and banned from Russia. I really enjoy hitchhiking and do it alone often, but I enjoy it more with a friend on the side of the road with me. I like to tell stories, but you'll have to ask for them...or just read my shitty blog that I haven't updated -http://wanderingamerican.com/

Interests

Primary: Bicycles, Photography, History, Learning new skills
Secondary:
Quantum Physics, The Theory of Relativity, Geography, History (and Art history), Cosmology, Archeology, Languages, Cars and Motorcycles
Modern Art:
Matthew Barney, Jean Michel Basquiat, Joeseph Cornell, Dali, Marcel Duchamp, Lucian Freud, Eric Fischl, Paul Gauguin, Alberto Giacometti, van Gogh, Philip Guston (One of my favorites) David Hockney, Jasper Johns (another favorite), Wassily Kandinsky´s later works, Paul Klee, Gustav Klimt, Willem de Kooning (a favorite), Matisse, Roberto Matta, Gordon Matta Clark, Joan Miro, Robert Motherwell, Picasso, Pollock, Robert Rauschenberg (a favorite), Mark Rothko (a favorite), Frank Stella, Richard Tuttle and these don{t even include Photographers.
Photographers: Diane Arbus, Harry Callahan, Paul Caponigro, Henri Cartier-Bresson (a favorite), Gregory Crewdson (a fav), Philip-Lorca diCorcia, William Eggleston, Robert Frank, Yashiro Ishimoto,Dorthea Lange, Sherrie Levine, Sally Mann (a fav), Robert Parker-Harrison, Lucas Samaras, Cindy Sherman, Stephen Shore, Edward Steichen, Alfred Stieglitz, Paul Strand, William Wegman, Minor White, Edward Weston, Joel-Peter Witkin (Maybe my all time favorite) along with the Starn twins photography. If you have a chance PLEASE check out these two!

• arts
• books
• modern art
• photography
• tattoos
• running
• motorcycles
• reading
• traveling
• music
• cycling
• hiking
• archeology
• art history
• geography
• history
• languages
• physics
• hitchhiking

Music, Movies, and Books

A.C. Newman, Dan Deacon, The Decemberists, Air, Aimee Mann, Andrew Bird, Animal Collective, The Apples in Stereo, Arcade Fire, Azure Ray, Badly Drawn Boy, Basement Jaxx, Beach House, Bear in Heaven, Black Moth Super Rainbow, Beck, Ben Folds, The Big Pink, Bloc Party, Blur; Bon Iver, Broken Bells; Broken Social Scene, Butthole Surfers, Cagedbaby, Chad Valley, Cake, Calvin Harris, The Cardigans, Charlie Daniels Band, Chromeo, The Clear, Client, Cold War Kids, Crystal Castles, Crystal Fighters, Crooked Fingers, Cut Copy, Dandy Warhols, Death Grips, DeerHunter, Dan Deacon, Do Make Say Think, Doves, Empire of the Sun; Elliot Smith, Everclear, Explosions in the Sky, The Faint, Feist, Fang Island, Flaming Lips, Freezepop, Fleet Foxes, First Aid Kit, French Kicks, Fuck Buttons, Ghostland Observatory, Grizzly Bear, Godspeed you black emperor, Goldfrapp, Gorillaz, Groove Armada, Hot Chip, Hot Hot Heat, Iron and Wine, Islands, Jay Z, Junior Boys, Killers, Klaxons, La Roux, LCD Soundsystem, Local Natives, Low, M. Ward, M.I.A. , M83, Magnetic Fields, Memory tapes, Mack Miller, Moderat, Mogwai, Metric, MGMT, Midnight Juggernauts, Miike Snow, Mountain Goats, Muscles, Nada Surf, Neon Neon, Neutral Milk Hotel, The National, New Pornagraphers, Oasis, OK go, Okkervil River, Our Lady Peace, Passion Pit, Pete Yorn, Phantogram, Phoenix, The Presets, Ra Ra Riot, Royksopp, Ryan Adams, Santogold, Shins, Sigur Ros, Silver MT Zion, Sleigh Bells, Smashing Pumpkins, Sufjan Stevens, Telekenisis!, Tool, Twin Shadow, This Will Destroy You, The Big Pink, TV on the Radio, Ugly Casanova, Van She, Wavves, Washed Out, Why?, Wild Nothing, Whiskeytown, Wolf Parade, Wrens, Xiu Xiu, Radiohead, Yeasayer, Yacht, Yelle, Yeah yeah yeahs, Matthew Dear

Books:
I’m currently reading mostly American history books ranging from the 1750’s to 1900
The Age of Spiritual Machines
Interesting science reads on Physics, Quantum Physics and the universe include:
Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea
Decoding the Universe: How the New Science of Information Is Explaining Everything in the Cosmos, from Our Brains to Black Holes
A Short History of Nearly Everything
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

TV shows: South Park, East Bound and Down, Dexter, It's always Sunny in Philadephia, Six Feet Under, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Sealab 2021, Archer, Breaking Bad, The Office, Black Mirror,

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Breaking into a house (while hitchhiking) in no mans land on the border of Kyrgyzstan an Tajikistan for shelter from a -5 night in the snowy cold and be woken up by 6 border control guards all carrying automatic rifles and not quite happy with me or my companions. We talked our way out but had to walk 23km to the Tajik side.
Riding alone on a 1979 Honda Cub 50cc motorcycle from Saigon (HoChi Minh City) to Hanoi without health insurance. To say this bike was in poor condition was an understatement. It didn't have blinkers or a horn, brakes barely worked, tires were bald, speedometer/odometer and rear tail light didn't work, and the whole thing was spray painted puke green. Over the course of nearly 2000km, I learned to love this bike and all her quirks, then I sold that cold hearted bitch for more then she was worth.

Entering Russia illegally without a visa and going to Moscow. I took an illegal taxi in the middle of the night as soon as I arrived and the driver was pulled over for having his tail lights out. The feeling of going to Russian prison and being deported back to the US felt very real in that moment. Luckily I just shut my mouth and the cop didn't ask for my passport.

Took a 5 day hike in the Guatemalan jungle to reach El Mirador, the largest Mayan pyramid ever made, and I slept at the top under the stars with the sounds of howler monkeys in the jungle around me.

Made my way to the northern most point in South America, Punta Gallinas by indigious boat, slept in a tradidtional Chinchurro under the milkyway, went biking with a indiginous 10 year old boy to 60 meter sand dunes that drop into caribbean waters, ate lobster everynight, and did it alone, without another tourist in sight for days.

Watched giant sea turtles lay eggs off the coast in French Guiana under the moonlight with my couch surfing host.

Hitch hiked down the Maroni river between Suriname and French Guiana on a cargo boat carrrying 6000 liters of gas. I spent a week in a Maroon village during a once a year celebration of the dead. Slept in my hammock, bathed in the river, drank rain water, ate mangoes off the trees, drank water from coconuts, went fishing, got drunk with the villagers, then spent an entire day sitting on a metal gas can in the pouring rain to make it back to civilization.

Slept in my hammock in a prison cell on the Salvation Islands in French Guiana. Spent the days searching for Monkeys and Coconuts with my machete, the nights reading a book in my hammock.

Got into a kickboxing match in Thailand with a professional kickboxer while drunk and definitely regretted it the next day.

Found myself in an interesting situation in the Californian desert with a ex convict living in a storage container. He told me stories about his tattoos that he got when he was 13 years old, and showed me his scars from being stabbed multiple times in the stomach. Needless to say this was an interesting night.

Befriended an Eygptian store owner on the Sinai peninsula. I would stop by his store and we would drink tea for hours while talking about our cultures. Before I left, we exchanged gifts. He gave me a Tamarind sugar that I´ve never been able to find anywhere else in the world.

Travelled the USA with my best friend when we were 19 years old with my 1987 VW Vanagon Westfalia, sleeping in Wallmart parking lots along the way. The Van broke down in the Texas desert one night, so we had to get a hotel room for the only time in the 4 months we were on the road. Total cost of accomodation for the whole trip: 15 dollars. (this was before couchsurfing)

Hitchhiked north of the arctic circle in Norway and Finland and was lucky enough to catch the northern lights even though it was only the end of August, which according to everyone is very very rare. Then slept in a tent with temperatures reaching -4.

Was hit by a car riding my bicycle. I lost a liter of blood from my head, had 110 stitches in my skull, and ended up with a 25,000 dollar hospital bill. BUT I lived to tell about it, and I was back on my bicycle in one week with the stitches still in my head. (I have photos for anyone who wants to see!) or the scar...if you have the chance to meet me.

Hitchhiked to Oulu Finland on the day of the semi finals of the World Air Guitar championships. I befriended a group of them, including the American champion and stuck around for the World Championships the following day with first row tickets. My new friend came in second, just behind another American! A few weeks later after hitchhiking down to Estonia, I randomly ran into the guy who came in 4th in my CSers kitchen in Tallinn...they didn't even know each other!

Sailed the Darien Gap bewteen Panama and Colombia during rough seas, and felt seasick the whole time but never threw up.

Hitchhiking from Spain to Portugal I was picked up by a man, only to find out while we were driving that he was a drug smuggler. He buys kilos of hash in Andalusia Spain, and smuggles them across the UK boarder. I asked him how he does it, but he said he couldn't tell me!

Teach, Learn, Share

Teach:
How to be a cheap fucking bastard from years on the road.
Useless facts. Did you know the Earth weighs 13,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 pounds?

Learn:
I´d love to learn to Hello, Yes, No, Thank you, and a few others in your language.

Share: Our experiences on this earth. Food if I’m hosting.
I also love sharing music with others who are passionate about it.

Countries I’ve Visited

Albania, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Denmark, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, England, Estonia, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, France, French Guiana, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Oman, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Samoa, San Marino, Scotland, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Spain, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste (East Timor), Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Vatican City State, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Zambia

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, United States

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