Aka Haytham Saqr

Wanderer at heart yet city dueler for the most part

Born in Egypt, raised in Cairo, first moved to Dubai in 2007 and then to NYC in 2016

Lived and worked in nine cities and six countries, traveled to over a dozen and counting

Egyptian-American, North African, Middle Eastern, and Arab - Milkshake with a dash of Russian DNA

beautiful/incongruent - simple/complicated - easy going/sensitive - grounded/restless - deep/shallow - active/lazy - intense/relaxed - expat/immigrant --- trying to find balance in extremes

As a human being, I'm full of contradictions

I'm always working on myself, I hate judging people, and I don't relate to any religion, sect, political group, or framing would it be. Also, agnostic, antinatalist, and bisexual (labels sometime help)

I live in Brooklyn with my two cats, working remotely in digital advertising while seeking in-person experiences beyond the many screens

For the most recent cat pics IG @haythamsaqr

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Like-minded people, generous hosts, and incredible travel mates! I've had some of the most amazing life experiences thanks to Couchsurfing

Mainly hosted in Dubai for several years before moving to the US, where unfortunately, I haven't been able to host for the most part. I try to become active once again within the NYC Couchsurfing community

Couchsurfed in Geneva, Paris, New York City, DC, Mumbai, Pune, Abu Dhabi, Beirut, Damascus, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, New Delhi, Jaipur, Amman, Tehran, Claremont Ferrand, San Francisco, South Lake Tahoe, and Canton

Old school surfer, please don't send me a friend request unless we've actually met

Happy travels fellow wanderers!

Interests

Curious traveler and adventure seeker. I appreciate deep conversations. I’m drawn to culture, history, and human interactions. I enjoy the outdoors, hikes, architecture, old structures, body art, a shared meal, and perhaps a drink or two. I’m just as happy touring city streets and enjoying live shows in Brooklyn or Manhattan.

Usually up for the spontaneous road trip/ hike, existential and metaphysical conversation while sipping whiskey, or swapping travel stories and spiritual experiences over a glass of wine

• baking
• running
• hiking
• biking

Music, Movies, and Books

House, Trance, Electronic, New Age, Jazz, Pop, Latin, Classic, and Arabic music - mostly everything that's not Hip Hop. Let's share Spotify lists! (Favorites: IAMX, iio, Infected Mushroom, Stromae, Enigma, Era, Buddha Bar, Avicii, Pink Martini, Vaya Con Dios, Fairoz...)

Star Trek, Six Feet Under, Dexter, House, Russian Doll, Mr. Robot, Frasier, Louie, Two and Half Men, The Big Bang Theory, Survivor...

Novels and travel literature. Love Shantram! History. Psychology. A non-fiction must read is The Drama of the Gifted Child

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Two months retreat in the Himalayas 

Running Beirut marathon and Amman ultra marathon 
in the same year
Bunjee jumping in Nepal 

Skydiving at 18000 ft. in Monterey

Japanese walking/ chanting meditation of the Nichiren Buddhism 

Vipassana silent retreats 

Night diving in the Red Sea 

Osho Meditations 

Running in Petra and Wadi Rum 

House party in Tehran 
and home made Iranian Vodka!
Underground music festival in Mumbai

Holi in Jaipur 

Road trip across the West Coast 

Wasted in Las Vegas
Singing Midsummer Night's Dream The Ouzel Cock on stage 

Hot wine in Berlin under the rain on a bicycle

Trekking in Yosemite 
under the giant sequoias and a full moon
January 25th Revolution
...

Teach, Learn, Share

Teach some Arabic curse words and share a few Egyptian recipes in addition to any pearls of wisdom I may have gathered throughout the years :) Taught storytelling and filmmaking at Syracuse University for a few years.

Learn Spanish, roller skating, and EDM!

What I Can Share with Hosts

Adventures, stories, and maybe, once in a lifetime memory.

Countries I’ve Visited

Algeria, France, Germany, India, Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Mexico, Nepal, Netherlands, Switzerland, Syrian Arab Republic, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Egypt, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, United States

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