First, although the profile says Beda Jesser, this profile is shared between my boyfriend (Tom) and me. We have traveled together for some time now (hitchhiking across Ireland, couchsurfing through Italy), and you can see that one of the references refers to both myself and my bf. We know that this might be unconventional but we just don't like traveling alone and thought a shard profile made more sense!

CURRENT MISSION

learning about permaculture and agriculture in general, we hope to one day start our own farm (either in the U.S., Germany or wherever they're accepting).

ABOUT ME

Beda-
I´m a fun-loving person, meaning that I can laugh whole-heartedly about almost every joke, what makes life a lot of fun=). I love to cook and bake, do sports, be outside in nature, learn new languages and get to know other cultures and habits.

Tom-
I am a bit more serious than Beda but still very much fun-loving. We both love the outdoors and while she bakes I tend to do a lot of the non-baking (it's a team effort, I cook , she eats). I try to learn new languages when I go to a new place but for now am still trying to master German. I love reading (perhaps too much) and (trying) to fix things whether it's a bike or a sink (sometimes it actually works, too!).

PHILOSOPHY

Beda-
Maybe we can´t change the world, but we can still try.

Tom-
Summed up better than I could in Wendell Berry's 'Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front'

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I started couchsurfing just because it´s a great way to get to know a foreign country together with its people.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Beda-
My first couchsurfing experience was in Istanbul with my cousin. We stayed with Emrah and his brothers in their flat and had such a great time that I wanted to keep doing it. So far I had great experiences, it felt not like meeting strangers but like finding new friends and so many times I just felt at home even while travelling. I hope I can get to know more and more friends around the world with couchsurfing.

Tom-
I think my first couchsurfing experience was with Beda in northern Italy, with Davide on his little farm/hamlet. It was wonderful, with Davide providing fresh artichokes and unhealthy amounts of biscotti! My favorite part of this actually happened many months later when we were trying to get back to Rome from Germany. It was getting late and we had nowhere to go when Beda remembered that we were quite close to Davide who saved us and let us stay another night with him.

Interests

Beda-

I`m interested in how to make the world a better place, in environmental friendly biotech, permaculture, languages, cooking and baking.

Tom-
I enjoy hiking and cycling, and am so grateful for my current job working with renewable energy. Love most things farming and am always reading up on it or looking for opportunities to work on a farm. I also really enjoy literature, particularly German lit.

• reading
• traveling
• music
• cycling
• surfing
• sports
• biology
• languages
• science

Music, Movies, and Books

Beda-
There is good music in any kind of genre and I´m always excited about getting to know new stuff.

Tom-
Movie: maybe 'The Man Who Knew Too Little'
Book: Gilead by Marilynne Robinson or Siddhartha by Hesse or 'Besuch der Alten Dame' by Duerrenmatt
Music: like Tallest Man on Earth a lot and Van Morrison

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Beda-
travelling through Europe by bike and getting to know so many lovely people on the way

Tom-
Also a big bike trip, +1500 miles around the US. Also, amazing for me, a long ~3 week hiking trip through Philmont.

Teach, Learn, Share

Beda-
I can teach you stuff about biology and science if you want;-). And I can show you how to make typical German bread, but it takes some time=).

Tom-
Tough one ... I typically love conversation about just anything so perhaps we could share a good drink (coffee, beer, water, not picky) and have a great conversation swapping ideas and stories? I also make pretty good brownies and pancakes?

What I Can Share with Hosts

Beda-
I can bake something nice for you=)

Tom-
I can cook something for you and if you have any manual labor (especially on a farm) I would love to help!

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Czech Republic, El Salvador, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Malawi, Mozambique, New Zealand, Scotland, Serbia, Slovakia, Turkey, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Germany, Italy, United States

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