CURRENT MISSION

Corporate refugee learning how to backpack one step at a time

ABOUT ME

Hi all,

I work in PR at an American tech company here in Singapore...but not for long. After 7 years of flackin', I'm saying goodbye to the Man and taking off on a year long backpacking trip around the world (fight the power! But first work for it so you can save some cash). On the itinerary are New Zealand, Fiji, South America and Africa. But before I go, I'm sneaking in one last trip to Japan: revisiting old haunts and visiting a few places in Kyushu I never got to see.

Along the way I'm hoping to share a few good times and a lot of beer (Asahi preferably) with fellow travelers in this crazy country called Japan.

PHILOSOPHY

Try everything twice. Also, healthy skepticism never steered anyone wrong.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I'm going solo for the first time in a long time, so I'm hoping to impose on the kindness of strangers to try surfing for the first time.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I'm a total couchsurfing n00b. I've met lots of folks over the years who rave about how much fun they've had hosting and surfing, but never had a chance to try myself.

Interests

Languages (jack of all trades, master of none; I've studied Chinese, Japanese and Korean)
Scuba diving
Far flung islands (favorite so far: Naoshima, Yakushima, Andaman and Nicobar)
Reading

• beer
• technology
• reading
• traveling
• backpacking
• surfing
• scuba diving
• languages

Music, Movies, and Books

I'm a sucker for mystery/thriller novels--which are apparently highly correlated with procrastination.

I also like reading medical histories, history of science, true spy stories, pop psychology, Asian history.

I never was able to make it the whole way through The Corrections.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Yakusugi ancient cedar trees that predate the Roman empire by thousands of years.

Teach, Learn, Share

I might not have many practical skills, but I'd love to swap travel itineraries--within Japan or outside. Ask me about Shanghai, Singapore, Phuket, or New Zealand. Or about Naoshima, Hiroshima, Kanazawa, Tokyo, Nikko, Shimoda, Takayama, or Nagano.

Countries I’ve Visited

India, Indonesia, New Zealand, Thailand, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

China, Japan, Singapore, United States