A peaceful summer camp dedicated to Men in the Foothills of the Pyrenees, France

Informationen

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  Beschreibung

  This location is in a beautiful sunny and sheltered river canyon - nestled right on the edge of the huge wilderness of the Corbieres which extends for 60 kms towards the Mediterranean. The canyon is green, wide, mostly sheltered from the wind and has the sun all day !
  
  Bring a project of your own as well writing drawing or bring an instrument - its the ideal place to do all of these things.
  There are at least two places to swim - one is a natural rock pool.
  
  A summer camp dedicated to Men aged 19 - 25 ... why ? Because after that age most guys have a plan and get very involved in moving that plan forward .... 19-25 is often more of a period of figuring stuff out and this place might be a good place to do a little of that figuring.
  
  This is a male only camp and ... a gay friendly venue - BUT most of the guys who come are straight - being gay is not a requirement. It's more that if you do happen to be a gay man you can know from the get go that you will be very welcome. Anyway, I happen to believe that being in a single sex environment from time to time is a perfectly reasonable idea. You’d be surprised how refreshing it can be. This is also to give an honest explanation why I won’t accept any female applicants, please respect that. For me the logic is very simple; I've spent all my adult life accommodating myself to a heteronormative world and some of you may have felt the same ...... In my retirement it is a real pleasure to spend at least some of my time each year in an all male environment ...... if that makes sense.
  
  
  OK .... if you're still with me ? .......... and you want to get to the point go down to;
  
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  See "SUMMER 2024" ... further down this profile.
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  Arten von Hilfe und Lernmöglichkeiten

  Hilfe bei Ökoprojekten

  Gartenarbeiten

  Heimwerker- und Bauarbeiten

  Zubereiten / Kochen von Mahlzeiten für die Familie

  Handwerkliche Arbeiten
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  Kultureller Austausch und Lernmöglichkeiten

  It's a calm and rural experience but not totally isolated from the "real" world, shopping trips get us out and about from time to time and it's fun to do little trips in the local area when time and energy permit.
  
  Bring your reading/instrument/camera/art project with you .... on site we have a piano, table-tennis, a slack line, some frisbies, a football, chess, multi-gym and a natural rock climbing/bouldering wall suitable for both beginners and experienced bouldering people. But here's the thing - you don't have to be good at any of this stuff. It's just here if you feel like giving it a try - in a non competitive mutually supportive kind of way. Oh and there are two or three places to swim depending on the flow in the stream ...... that can be vital if the summer is hot and it usually is these days.
  
  It's usually quite international;
  Our volunteers have in the past come from all over the world and English ends up being the language most in use - ( though Mandarin, Turkish and Portuguese have also been very popular from time to time !) ...... therefore if your main aim is to absorb French culture and language .... this is not the ideal place for you.

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  Arbeit

  Here are some of the work projects we have to tackle:
  
  I'd love to create a mould so that we can cast some concrete boxes for the kitchen garden .... I've only done some very simple concrete moulds before but I reckon with some added brains and manpower it should be do-able.
  
  And there's always gardening tasks - there's 7.5 acres in all - some of it wild and some cultivated so there's always things to be done - it's a mature garden ..... so we're not involved in taming a wilderness .... but there is always maintenance to be done .....

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  Gesprochene Sprachen

  Englisch: Fließend
  Französisch: Gute Kenntnisse

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  Unterkunft

  During the summer months we are camping in our beautiful canyon garden of several acres ...... this only requires that you have your own sleeping bag and mat and a torch ( we have plenty of good quality tents available so you don't need to bring one of your own) ..... All other facilities are provided centred around the covered Field Kitchen so you don't need full camping gear.
  
  I do provide the basic groceries for the kitchen - the aim is that the team keeps a list going and we organise shopping expeditions as needed - we keep the ingredients simple and the group makes itself responsible for running the kitchen - working to a modest but reasonable budget and preparing meals and cleaning up afterwards .... this is an essential part of the daily activities. (Alcohol and chocolate you buy for yourselves!)

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  Was noch ...

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  SUMMER 2024
  
  THE PLAN IS TO OPEN FOR MAY. JUNE + JULY + FIRST HALF OF AUGUST -
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  THIS WOULD REALLY SUIT A GUY OR A COUPLE OF GUYS WHO CRAVE SOME REAL PEACE AND TRANQUILITY. A CONVIVIAL ATMOSPHERE, A SLOW PACE AND TIME TO TAKE A BREAK FROM THE CRAZY WORLD OUTSIDE THIS CANYON. AND TIME FOR PROJECTS OF YOUR OWN.
  
  IF YOU'R LOOKING FOR LOTS OF PEOPLE AND A PARTY ATMOSPHERE ....... LOTS OF EXCITEMENT THIS IS NOT THE PLACE FOR YOU. I WILL TAKE YOU AROUND THE AREA TO SOME COOL OUTDOOR PLACES - WILD SWIMMING HOLES AND A CATHAR CHATEAU OR TWO ..... BUT PEACE AND QUIET AND CREATIVITY ARE THE MAIN ASSETS OF THIS PLACE.
  
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  Here’s a thing I’ve figured out …..
  
  That I’m at my best and most contented and most creative when I am making something or working on some outdoor project here in the canyon - with a few nice guys around who are looking for a peaceful space to spend some time and join in willingly with whatever small project is going forward.
  
  Apart from that much of the daily work revolves around running the camp itself. Be prepared to pull your weight and share the work that keeps the group going like shopping, cooking and cleaning up. But the real agenda is about creating a quality of life amongst ourselves for a few weeks over the summer. To re-learn what we already know: that daily life can be fun and simple in a congenial group in the great outdoors without the need for constant external stimulus.
  
  What I am proposing takes a few days for most people to adjust to - so figure out a time when you can spare a minimum of ten days or so - to which you can really commit in advance - and get in touch - I’m more than happy to exchange as many messages as you want to answer questions and add the detail ….. which will help you to figure out if this place and this idea is for you.
  
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  PS:
  
  There is a blog for this place - it was actually put together to offer the Moulin as a possible venue for small autonomous groups. This hasn't really found its audience - so is no longer strictly relevant - but it can give you an added sense of the physical place. I can always point you to that url if you are interested.

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  Etwas mehr Information

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    Internet Zugang

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    Eingeschränkter Internet Zugang

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    Wir besitzen Tiere

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    Wir sind Raucher

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    Familien möglich

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  Platz zum Abstellen von Camper Vans

  There is space for a couple of not too large vans - something to be discussed if that's your mode of travel.

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  Kapazität - wie viele Workawayer maximal

  mehr als zwei

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  Arbeitszeiten

  No more than 4 Hours a day 4/5 days a week.

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