David is a film critic and magazine editor with a spontaneous disposition and a love of deep conversation about anything and everything. A perfect day for him might involve exploring an abandoned building, making a vegetarian chili con carne and having friends over to watch an obscure subtitled film on VHS.

Lola is a Ukrainian born artist with a passion for cinema, visual and performance art and psychodrama. She’s a cinephile and has taken part in organising cultural events including the local Russian Film Festival and Czech and Slovak Film Festival. She speaks Russian and English fluently, gets by in Ukrainian and has racked up some pretty decent Duolingo scores in French. Her hula-hooping skills are, in the words of a friend, "not bad".

Ingmar is David and Lola's nine year-old son. He loves art and creating stuff, speaks Russian and English fluently and enjoys a deep conversation about anything and everything.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

We've been on couchsurfing for well over a decade, mostly in a hosting capacity here in Melbourne, Australia, though we've also stayed at people's places in Brisbane, Sydney and across Tasmania, and enjoyed it every bit as much.

One of the things we love most about travelling is the chance to meet new friends and sharing their lives and homes - even if it's only for a short window of time, each connection we get to make is a special one.

Interests

David: Cinema, poetry, urban exploration, friendly intellectual debate, philosophy, rodents

Lola: Photography, theatre, cinema, psychodrama, opera, visual art, human behaviour, feminism, samoyeds, books, yoga, meditation, bushwalks, The Mighty Boosh, everything Vera Chytilova.

• animals
• arts
• writing
• poetry
• performing arts
• photography
• festivals
• womens rights
• cooking
• running
• movies
• opera
• soccer
• swimming
• journalism
• beaches
• urban exploration

Music, Movies, and Books

David:
Movies: Films by Ingmar Bergman, Andrei Tarkovsky, Chantal Akerman, Eric Rohmer, Jacques Rivette, Jan Svankmajer, Agnès Varda
Music: The Cure, The Smiths, Pixies, Radiohead, Tame Impala, Neutral Milk Hotel, The Drones, Sigur Ros, Fleet Foxes
Books: anything by Karl Ove Knausgaard, Tarjei Vesaas, Henrik Ibsen, Astrid Lindgren, Kurt Vonnegut, George Orwell

Lola: Daisies, Mulholland Drive, everything Bergman, Mirror.

Ingmar: Mi-mi-mishki, Fixiki, The Wizard of Oz, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, The Wind in the Willows

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

David: watched a 35mm projection of a forgotten experimental Australian film in a backyard shed

What I Can Share with Hosts

Good conversation, food and wine (in some order)! We'd love to cook something for you if you'd like, and help out in any way we can around the house - but, most of all, to share your company, forge connections and leave happy memories.

Countries I’ve Visited

Czech Republic, France, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Russian Federation, Thailand, Ukraine

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, Ukraine