CURRENT MISSION

I want to learn Russian and Turkish well and then travel around the Black Sea.

ABOUT ME

I love learning about almost anything. I have a broad and open mind yet I preserve decent values, which , I suppose, are open to others' interpretation. I am very observational, I'm always watching my surroundings and the people in them at the same time that I contemplate them. However, I'm quick to engage with others and throw myself into activity whenever the mood strikes me, which is often enough.

I love to laugh and enjoy the laughter of others. I'm irreverent and sarcastic, and I appreciate these qualities in others. However, I'm courteous and act appropriately in unfamiliar surroundings and among others whom I don't yet know well.

I enjoy engaging in serious discussions about almost anything, especially when I'm in a new environment and among new friends, hopefully. I have strong opinions, but I moderate them. I enjoy contrast, irony and watching the traditional and modern jostle up against each other. I want to hear about other people's opinions and experiences, and I in turn enjoy sharing my past experiences with others.

I don't wake up so well if I haven't had enough sleep, but knowing this about myself I always try to have an opportunity to get enough rest and grab some coffee or strong tea in the morning.

My sexual orientation is hetero, but I don't judge anybody's actions in this realm and maintain an open mind. I eat most foods, but I try to lean towards a wholesome diet that eschews fast foods except when I'm in a rush. I drink alcohol moderately. I like activity, but contemplation balances me out.

My life is a search for ever more experience and the time to allow it to settle in so that I may one day enjoy the growth that life and journeying will one day hopefully bring me

PHILOSOPHY

Surfaces are the contours of my imagination with which I love to play.

Warum ich bei Couchsurfing bin

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I'm a new member, so I've only gone to events around Istanbul like the Russian Club and a couple of meet and drink things

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

None so far. I've just met some couch surfers who told about all the cool things that they've done through connections from couch surfing.

Interessen

I love languages and foreign cultures, first of all. But the subcultures, for instance, in my country that are built around particular interests or ethnicity interest me as well. I'm currently learning Turkish and Russian for various reasons but especially for the trip I'm doing now around the Black Sea. I love especially to travel as slowly as I can, i.e., by train, hiking, or maybe even on horseback.

I like reading about and discovering the history and culture of the places I've visited, the places where I am, and the places to which I dream of traveling. I like to return to the same countries and cities to where I've traveled before in order to improve my use of the language spoken there, to stay in contact with people I have met, and to watch the political and cultural situation develop and witness history being made.

I enjoy walking about and discovering new people and places whenever I'm able. I like to read almost anything: history, fiction, science, politics, poetry, and so on; fantasy fiction, in spite of its gross popularity, does not do much for me.

I studied biology and the history of science at university. I worked in a medical school genetics lab and taught anatomy to high school students.

However, my life has been far from strictly academic. I've lived and worked in the forest for months at a time. I really very much enjoy the outdoors, camping and hiking, canoeing and kayaking, you name it.

In order to get through university and just make a living at random moments in my life, I've done everything from taxi driving, waiting tables, various types of construction and renovation in many different types of buildings, agricultural labor (stooping and picking blueberries, reach and picking apples, cheesy sales jobs, auto mechanics you name it. This acquaintance with many different callings has stoked my interest in people and what they do because often I can relate to the details of their lives.

• culture
• poetry
• environment
• coffee
• fast food
• dieting
• walking
• drinking
• clubbing
• politics
• reading
• traveling
• outdoor activities
• equestrian
• hiking
• canoeing
• kayaking
• camping
• surfing
• boxing
• anatomy
• biology
• genealogy
• history
• languages
• science

Musik, Filme und Bücher

I am eclectic as they come.

I like most music. Jazz, Blues and Rock 'n Roll are my preferences, but by no means my exclusive choices.

Movies consume too much of my time.

I like literature. My biggies are Mark Twain, Albert Camus, Nikos Kazantzakis, Manuel Altamirano, Hermann Hesse, Arthur Koestler and George Orwell.

Eine tolle Erfahrung, die ich gemacht habe

Sure, I'll pick a few, but I don't know why they occur to me.

One winter night the moon was full, beautiful and round on the horizon, and I hitched a ride with a trucker from southern Utah into Arizona. The terrain was steeply mountainous and bare of trees and each peak and ridge was exquisitely cast into a surreal silhouette by the moon's glowing light as it climbed higher into the early evening's sky. The trucker said not a word as did I, both of us spellbound and locked into a long moment's reverie that seemed to be endless.

Another time, after its closing I snuck into the ruins of Teotihuacan in central Mexico and spent the night with a Quebecoise girlfriend on top of the pyramid of the sun. We dozed for a long time snuggled in our sleeping bags, and when I awoke a gentle rain was falling that slowly lulled me back into a timeless sleep.

Lehren, lernen, teilen

I just said something about that in the last damned box.

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