Stay with our family & share farm life with us in Marche, Italy

  • Favourited 1018 times
  • Last activity: 10 Dec 2023

Availability

  2024 

 Min stay requested: at least a week

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Details

  • Description

    Description

    *️️️️️️️️*️️️️️️️️Currently not looking for help until Springtime*️️️️️️️️*️️️️️️️️

    We are an English family; Kevin, Jodie and our 8 year old son and 5 year old daughter, living and working on our farm of about 6 acres in our small rural community in the Montefortino area, right on the edge of the Monti Sibillini National Park. We made the move here from England nearly twelve years ago in search of a more satisfying and peaceful way of life and we have certainly found it!

    Situated in a beautiful location, we have stunning views of both the Monti Sibillini and wonderful rolling hillsides. Close to many walking and hiking tracks, woodland and river walks, but also only 3 km to local shops, we really couldn't have a better spot.
    On the farm we currently keep chickens and ducks for meat and eggs with the plan to add to the brood soon. We have a dog, rabbit, goldfish and cat too. We live a very self sufficient life here, nothing goes to waste! We work our land with numerous vegetable plots, growing everything from aubergines to zucchinis, being as organic as possible. We have a burning passion for food and cooking, and love to experiment with the various crops we produce. We also have several fruit and nut trees and when the fruit is ripe every morsel is used in jams, jellies, pickles and pies. We also forage for wild produce, combining our love of food with our love of the outdoors, making delicious delights with what we find including elderflower champagne and wild plum jam! In addition, we grow a wide selection of herbs and what we don't use fresh, we dry or freeze for later use, which comes in very handy in the winter time. We always cook 'home-made', from breads and pastries to sauces and stews and buy as little processed food as possible. (We are quite passionate about this too, we like to spread awareness regarding the use of 'questionable' ingredients within the food industry). We also try to use natural and homeopathic remedies wherever possible.

    We have many ongoing projects, including; planting, weeding, wood-cutting, home improvements such as painting and decorating and building animal houses, along with the day-to-day farming life to which we have become accustomed, such as feeding the animals, collecting the eggs, picking the fruit and vegetables as required and tending to the gardens.
    The cat and dog do their fair share on the farm, keeping the mice and other pests at bay. Everyone has their part to play here and we hope that you too may enjoy a stay and help us with our farming adventures!

  • Types of help and learning opportunities

    Types of help and learning opportunities

    Help with Eco Projects
    Gardening
    DIY and building projects
    Animal Care
    Farmstay help
    Babysitting and creative play
    Creating/ Cooking family meals
    Help around the house
    General Maintenance
  • UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

    UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

    UN goals
    No poverty
    Zero hunger
    Good health and well-being
    Quality education
    Gender equality
    Clean water and sanitation
    Affordable and clean energy
    Decent work and economic growth
    Industries, innovation and infrastructure
    Reduce inequality
    Sustainable cities and communities
    Responsible consumption and production
    Climate action
    Life below water
    Life on land
    Peace, justice and strong institutions
    Partnerships for the goals
  • Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

    Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

    We hope to share our knowledge of farming, animal husbandry, growing fruit and vegetables, living sustainably, cooking and preserving amongst many other things that interest us such as diy-ing, art,; drawing, painting, calligraphy, crafting, sewing, repurposing/upcycling, mechanical engineering, woodwork, metalwork, attachment/natural parenting, child development and homeschooling/unschooling. In return, when time allows, we also like to learn new things, so if you have a skill that you can share with us that's great! Better still, share it with our children so that they can learn too! (They both have a thirst for knowledge and love to hear stories of the world around us, they also love music, so if you have an instrument with you, they'd love that!)

  • Projects involving children

    Projects involving children

    This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.

  • Help

    Help

    Most of the jobs we need help with are outdoors, so be sure to pack accordingly, at very least you will need a good pair of boots or wellies, a sun-hat, sun cream and clothes that you don't mind getting dirty. In addition to this a rain coat would be good, unless it's unsafe, we still work in the rain. It's also a good idea to bring insect repellent as we are in the countryside. We don't wear shoes inside the house, so bring along thick socks, slippers or a clean pair of shoes or sandals as we have stone floors.

    We don't accept smokers. We don't smoke and don't want to expose our children to smokers. We are very hard-working yet fun-loving people and enjoy the simple things in life, we are looking for hard workers who don't mind getting their hands dirty and will be respectful of our home. We are not a hostel or business and we appreciate all guests to treat our home with the same respect as they would treat their own. We kindly ask all guests to tidy up after themselves. We ask five hours of help a day, weekdays, often spread out across the day, but occasionally will need longer depending on what projects we are doing. Weekends are free, but we still ask that you help out in the kitchen with washing dishes and cleaning up etc. We find this way of life very rewarding and hope to find like-minded people to help us with our farm work and odd-jobs, but reap the rewards of these beautiful surroundings.

    We plan on doing a bit of home improvement work this year and would be grateful of any experience or skills involving bricklaying, cement mixing, wood sanding and varnishing, painting walls and any other practical and DIY skills, especially plumbing! Of course we always need help with many other tasks too so if you are not experienced in these things we still need you!

  • Languages spoken

    English: Fluent
    Italian: Fluent

  • Accommodation

    Accommodation

    In Winter you will be staying in our spare room in our house and will be sharing our bathroom and kitchen.
    In the summer time you will be staying in our 5 berth caravan but still have access to our bathroom and share mealtimes. Bell tents also available. The house has a very spacious veranda overlooking our land and the neighbouring hillside, which is best enjoyed after a hard days work on the farm with a nice glass of wine! We have a large lawn, this too is nice for relaxing! All beds and bedding provided. Towels and wash cloths also provided if required.

  • What else ...

    What else ...

    Our internet access is very limited, so apologies if we can't reply to you immediately.
    We are looking for hard working, mature helpers who will be respectful of our home and be committed to the give and take Workaway ethos. We don't accept smokers. As much as we love animals we are unable to accommodate Workawayers with pets. Please only apply if you intend to come and stay with us.

  • A little more information

    A little more information

    • Internet access

    • Limited internet access

      Limited internet access

    • We have pets

    • We are smokers

    • Can host families

  • Space for parking camper vans

    Space for parking camper vans

    This host can provide space for campervans.

  • How many Workawayers can stay?

    How many Workawayers can stay?

    More than two

  • ...

    Hours expected

    5 hours a day, 5 days a week

Host ref number: 626663743466

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