It was a rather long trip from Tokyo to Vancouver the other Saturday. With the 16 hours difference, or 8 hours counter clock, you have a chance to live a Saturday twice, which I did, having spent the first Saturday walking down the Yoyogi Park in Tokyo, and the second Saturday in Vancouver checking in for the TEDActive events, having a dinner twice too: one with the TED crowd and the other one with a ex-colleague of mine and his family, which moved to Vancouver 8 years ago. It was a nice surprise to get a call from him upon the check-in at the airport on Facebook!

I take particular pleasure in talking to considerate, intelligent and thoughtful people, especially if they are women. Megumi Hagiuda is all that, and also very delicate and beautiful on a surface, but purposeful inside. Her business is flowers, and she can too be compared to a tight rose bud – beautiful, and solid. She is a kind of person who is being critical about herself with the only purpose of challenging self to move forward.

From the very beginning of the planning of my 30UP trip I wanted to couchsurf. Firstly, because through hosting couchsurfers in Kazakhstan I have met amazing, interesting and kind people. Secondly, it is a fast-track to a local community: usually hosts (like I did) would bring you into a circle of friends, take you see places, give advice on “do’s” and “don’ts”. And thirdly, obviously, this is about going out of my personal comfort zone — I just never before slept on a couch in a stranger’s house.