I like to explore culture and nature, and I'm especially interested in the indigenous cultures of Latin America and Asia. I am a Zen buddhist practitioner for many years. I do not eat meat or drink alcohol. I’m a quiet person and I enjoy walking around new places, seeing how local people live, hiking in mountains, and sitting in cafes to read or plan my trips. I ride motorcycles and hopefully some day will explore more countries on it other than USA. I'm trying to move more toward motorcycling as a means of travel instead of the backpacking style I was doing for years.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Traveling alone for long periods of time becomes lonely, and I like to share new experiences with others, especially locals from where I'm traveling.

Interests

I believe everybody should get back to their true roots in nature. I enjoy meditation and sitting at cafes. I do not smoke, do drugs, or drink alcohol. I like to walk through forest preserves because they help me to feel more connected with the natural world and the animals and insects. I've gotten really into motorcycle camping and traveling and hope to incorporate into my world travels. I cook almost every meal every day, and I try to vary the culture of each meal. I am a tea and coffee fanatic and purchase teas from small farms in China, Taiwan, and Japan and I appreciate tea cultures from around the world. I believe tea is best way to connect with ourselves because you can sit and reflect on what you are drinking, who planted the leaves, how the sun, clouds, and rain helped the tea leaves grow, and also the hard work of the families harvesting this tea for others to enjoy.

Music, Movies, and Books

Anime is a really big part of my life. Currently, I'm listening to alot of Japanese artists, like radwimps, yoasobi, minami, yorushika. I enjoy listening to foreign music, such as Spanish flamenco, Portuguese Fado, and piano music. My favorite composers are Ludovico Einaudi and Joe Hisaishi. I enjoy books from the Vietnamese zen master Thich Nhat Hanh, my teacher. I love foreign films also, especially from Spain.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I used to produce my own music, and I played every single instrument on all of the songs, including guitar, bass, drums, vocals, piano, harmonica, and many more. I released a first album when I was 17 and it was on 88.5 fm on the radio and it is on itunes, spotify, shazam, google play, etc. I do not play music anymore because I am not as interested, but from ages 17-18 years old, I produced 4 full length albums.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I really enjoy cooking and culture. I think they can be very enjoyable and I like to share different methods of preparation for world coffees and teas. I have a rich base of knowledge on meditation and Buddhism, so I would be happy to share some techniques and info to help live a more meaningful life.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, Cambodia, Canada, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Egypt, England, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Laos, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mexico, Morocco, Nepal, Netherlands, Northern Ireland, Palestine, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Scotland, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, United States, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

Mexico, Thailand, United States