Come give us a hand and enjoy the beautiful surrounding Irish nature in Mountshannon, Ireland

Details

• 

  Description

  Hello :)
  
  Welcome to my and Minor's profile. I am Joey, originally from the Netherlands but happily living in Mountshannon since 2017. Minor is my dog and probably the cuddliest dog you've ever met.
  We live outside of the village in the last house of a dead end road so it's very peaceful and quiet here.
  
  Over the years I have started to do up the house and garden but in order to achieve the vision I have for this place, there is still a lot of work to do. The goal for this place is to have a garden accessible to people of all ages and abilities and to create a little community where volunteers and guests mingle in a sensory soothing environment. It is extremely important to me that my home is a safe space for people to visit and let them have the opportunity to enjoy some of the tranquillity and serenity that can be found here.
  
  Both the property and my dreams are rather big, funding is limited and I have some health challenges due to which I do not always have the amount of energy you'd expect of a man my age. Therefore I can really use some help with the practical development and maintenance.
  
  Once volunteers get a feel for the place and have shown that they are well enough accustomed to the everyday rhythm, I like to encourage people to let their own personality and ideas shine through in their work. Showing diligence could potentially lead to having the opportunity to work on your own projects. You might end up developing a specific section in the garden, design and build a piece of furniture, help me work out certain details for the overall vision or come up with and create your own project. Just remember that no matter how much I would love for each individual to work on projects they enjoy, there are many mundane tasks that take priority, especially during the growing season.

• 

  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Art Projects

  Gardening

  DIY and building projects

  Creating/ Cooking family meals

  Help around the house

  General Maintenance
• 

  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  This place would be ideal for somebody in need of a bit of a break from a busy lifestyle or who is generally inclined to love a (mostly) slow paced lifestyle. However there are also plenty of opportunities to get a taste of the Irish culture.
  
  There is an insurmountable amount of beautiful and interesting places to visit in Ireland. Once you are here I can help you organise and/ or accompany you on trips. Some of the nearest highlights would be Holy Island, the Cliffs of Moher, Bunratty Castle, the Burren and Portumna Forest Park. Ennis, Limerick and Galway are the nearest cities and especially Galway is considered well worth a visit.
  
  I believe that the exchange with volunteers is a genuine give and take and will try my best to find the time to teach you if you want to acquire specific new skills. I am fluent in English and Dutch so if you'd like to learn either of those languages, I can definitely help you with that.
  I have a keen interest in being as self sufficient as possible and have a lot of books that you can read. I regularly bake my own bread and like to engage in craft activities such as crochet and hand sewing and depending on how busy I am, I can teach you the basics.

• 

  Help

  ****** For the autumn I am specifically looking for a volunteer that has an interest (and ideally also experience) in sanding and painting window frames, who works very tidy and is detail orientated *****
  
  Overall, the main focus lies on tidying/ developing the garden and achieving small home improvements. Over time I'd like to create several themed outside area's, a vegetable garden, have lots of flowers/ herbs and a small plantation for firewood. But in order to achieve all this, we first need to get on top of eradicating lots of bramble bushes/ briars and weeds.
  
  I might also ask you to do some basic DIY jobs, but don't worry if you've never held a drill in your life. If you're inexperienced or not too confident, we'll take it one step at a time and you'll learn as you go.
  
  The everyday running of the household, such as cooking, cleaning and doing laundry, is a shared responsibility to which we all contribute and considered to be a part of normal daily living. Therefore the time we spend on those chores does not count towards the 5 hours of work per day that you need to accomplish.
  
  With regards to the hours you'll be working, a certain degree of maturity and sense of responsibility are absolutely necessary since everybody regulates their own hours/ tasks. You'll have a significant amount of freedom to create your own preferred daily routine ( as long as it respects the overall rhythm of the household) and if I notice that people put in extra effort, I will do the same as a host so everybody has the most enjoyable experience possible. I don't keep exactly track of the hours that each individual contributes and find it important that there is a healthy balance between self care and work. Most people choose to work a bit extra on some days so that other days (especially when the weather is extremely nice or horrible) we can take it easy and go out to the lake to enjoy a picnic or spend the day chilling by the fireplace.
  
  I really appreciate it when people show initiative and approach me with ideas that they believe will positively contribute to the overall project and atmosphere but no matter what you'll end up doing here, I will always value quality over quantity!

• 

  Languages

  Languages spoken
  English: Fluent
  Dutch: Fluent
  German: Intermediate
  French: Beginner

  This host offers a language exchange
  I enjoy teaching but am less inclined to learn new languages myself.
• 

  Accommodation

  You will stay in one of the guest rooms and depending on the amount of people around, you may end up sharing that room with a 2nd person.
  
  Be aware that the house is very badly insulated and heating is limited so make sure to pack enough warm clothing. You'll also need to bring proper rain gear, wellies/ waterproof shoes and thick gardening gloves.
  The house is equipped with UK type sockets so get yourself a travel adapter if your electronical devices require one.
  
  I will make sure that there is suitable food available to entertain everybody's dietary needs and restrictions (if you inform me on time). We have at least one communal meal a day together and the rest of the day you are welcome to browse through the cupboards and sort yourself out. Just remember that it's always nice to offer other people a cup of tea/ coffee when you put on the kettle.
  
  To reach my house by public transport you'll need to take bus 344 from Ennis and get off at the 2nd bus stop in Mountshannon (at the pub.) Depending on where you are travelling from you'll have several options to reach Ennis.
  Usually I am able to collect you from the bus stop in Mountshannon and if I'm not it will be a 30 minute walk roughly.
  If you cannot manage to arrive before 20.00 I will have to ask to book yourself accommodation elsewhere and arrive the following day.

• 

  What else ...

  You will have plenty of time to yourself since I need a good bit of rest. I often retreat to my bedroom quite early and appreciate it if the house is kept quiet during those times. It might be a good idea to bring some headphones if you enjoy listening to music/ watching digital content.
  
  Other days we will take our time to create a special meal, have a good chat, play some card/ board games, do some crafts or watch a movie together.
  
  If you'd like to go out in the evening you could go for a nice walk or visit one of the two local pubs in Mountshannon. I hardly ever go there myself but the people are friendly and welcoming and you are likely to meet other local volunteers and travellers.
  
  Apart from the pubs you will find a petrol station, pizzeria, some coffee shops, a park, a small forest and a harbour in Mountshannon. The lake is beautiful and friends of mine often go fishing there and I have a kayak that you can borrow.
  Public transport is limited and time consuming but several times a day you can catch a bus from Mountshannon to Ennis and from there it is easy to find transport to wherever you'd like to go.
  It is also not uncommon for people to hitchhike in this area so as long as you're not in a rush you can always get to places.

• 

  A little more information

  • 

    Internet access

  • 

    Limited internet access

  • 

    We have pets

  • 

    We are smokers

  • 

    Can host families

• 

  Can host digital nomads

  Wifi is available and working digitally is possible as long as you don't rely on a very fast connection.

• 

  Space for parking camper vans

  A normal sized camper or campervan can be parked in front of the house

• 

  How many Workawayers can stay?

  More than two

• 

  Hours expected

  Maximum 4-5 hours a day, 5 days a week

Feedback (3)