Soon to be 47 year old single African American male born and bred in Palm Springs, CA. Landscape Architect afflicted with a rabid (and thus far incurable) case of seasonal wanderlust often followed by intense need for nesting. Anglophile, Europhile, & Metrophile. World citizen with unabashed American sensibilities. Like countless other college students, I backpacked through Europe for 3 months during my senior year. Unlike my arguably more suitably prepared brethren, I did it with a 90lb pack, and by the end of the trip had the biceps to prove it. Following graduation, I accepted a dream job at SWA Group's Laguna Beach office in the bastion of diversity that is The OC. Having proved I could survive (if not thrive) in the harshest of cultural environments, an affluent master planned community, I picked up stakes and moved 500 miles north. Even after enduring an El Nino winter, and more recently the state's worst drought, two different tech booms and subsequent busts, I STILL have no doubt that San Francisco is the greatest place to call home on the planet. Most often, I travel on my own to visit old friends and new acquaintances in cosmopolitan locales. At my deepest core, I'm still a "Desert Rat", enjoying regular visits to the area to thaw out from "the refrigerator" (my good nurtured nickname for what others refer to as the City by the Bay). Several times a year, I'll take weekend trips spread more or less evenly between Palm Springs, Las Vegas, and Phoenix crashing most often on an unsuspecting relative's couch, but occasionally rewarding myself with a hotel stay on The Strip. These days, my leisure travel is often limited to a 2 week hopscotch across Europe. London, Paris, Barcelona, Munich, Prague, and Venice are among my favorite destinations. I enjoy playing host as much as traveling.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

A former roommate recommended the site to meet locals while traveling

Interests

Food, Culture, Architecture, Urban Design, Landscape Architecture, and City Planning.

• culture
• architecture
• design
• dining
• technology
• traveling
• beaches

Music, Movies, and Books

Pink Floyd, Cold Play, U2, Snow Patrol (and most other whiny Europeans), Ironman (the first one, anyways), Snowpiercer, The Avengers, Guardians Of the Galaxy, Edge of Tomorrow, Minority Report, Interstellar. The last book I read was John Green's YA dramedy, "The Fault in Our Stars".

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Attempted to sleep on the street in Amsterdam's Red Light District, settled instead on a bench at Schiphol Airport after missing my connection to Paris. Used my missed connection to explore the canals and museums of Amsterdam. Due delayed arrival slept for most of the night on the street in Paris' uber posh Saint-Germain des Pres district. Later slept in Trafalgar Square on a park bench after failed attempts to find overnight lodging in London... starting to see a pattern, here? Managed to do all of the foregoing without being mugged. Returned to the States with both renewed empathy for the homeless and dedication to thorough travel planning.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Mexico, Monaco, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States