| What is your most memorable childhood experience? | I remember the day I got my first original cassette tape. I was at a kind of state fair, playing with two cousins, running around after each other. I had my favorite Star Wars action figure in one my pockets. When we finished the game I realized I had lost my action figure. In desperation I started retracing my steps to see if I could find the figure on the floor. When I finally realized my search was hopeless I raised my head and noticed I was standing in front of a music store. There were several rock music tapes on display, and in order to mitigate my loss I asked my parents to buy me a tape. I don’t even remember what band it was, but I’m very fond of that moment because since then I’ve never stopped listening to music. |
| What immediate family member do you closely identify with and why? | I identify with my father because we have a similar temperament. He is calm, quiet, and reflective, just like me. He seems to be very serious and most of the time he really is, but he can also be cheerful and jubilant, especially when he is with family and friends. He is also very analytical, tidy and responsible; he loves things to follow a certain order, although he’s not obsessive about that. He likes to be in control of things and not the other way around. And I’m just like that. |
| What character traits do you admire in an individual? | I admire honesty, loyalty, friendliness, solidarity, generosity, humbleness, sincerity, genuineness, candidness, commitment, intelligence, and modesty but also admire self-confidence, passion about things, positive assertiveness and leadership. |
| What is the funniest thing ever to happen to you? | I can’t recall one specific funny thing, but most of the funniest things that occurred to me happened in high school. One funny thing is the fact that every year around the same day, I get together with my high school mates to remember those moments, and every year the anecdotes (although always the same) seem to get better and funnier! |
| If time and money were not an issue, where would you travel and why? | I would travel all over the world. But mostly I’d like to travel to different countries in Europe. I love nature but I really enjoy cities more. And the older the better. I have a special predilection for medieval architecture, so any place with castles would be great! The UK, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Switzerland. I also have a curiosity for Nordic countries like Iceland, Finland, Norway and Sweden. And I’d like to visit again the countries that I’ve already visited, like the Czech Republic, Italy and France. |
| When and if you ever have children, what would you like to pass on to them? | I do have children, and every day I try to teach them respect for life and for people. I try to teach them to be open-minded, straightforward, and honest. |
