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Help around an Umbrian Tuscan household in Italy.

  • Favourited 968 times
  • Last activity: 24 May 2024

Availability

  2024 

 Min stay requested: No minimum

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Details

  • Description

    Description

    Hello, I’m Alexandra (Alex for short!) and over the past 20 years, my family has been fixing up a country house, cultivating an organic garden, and caring for olive trees.

    Now that the kids have flown the nest, it’s just me. Any help maintaining the house is most welcome!

    I need somebody that can help with gardening, home DIY and general handiwork. You don’t have to be an expert, but someone with initiative and a who's ready to get stuck and get their hands dirty is the right fit for here.

    The house and grounds are within a rustic estate and wooded parkland, near Chiusi in Central Italy, halfway between Roma and Firenze, Assisi and Siena. I’m close to the main north/south highway and rail service, putting all of central Italy within reach.

  • Types of help and learning opportunities

    Types of help and learning opportunities

    Help with Eco Projects
    Gardening
    DIY and building projects
    Help around the house
    General Maintenance
  • Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

    Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

    When the work is over, there are plenty of sights to see which I can help you get to.

    We are 10 minutes to a central Tuscan train station putting all of central Italy within easy reach. The city centers of Roma, Firenze, Siena, Arezzo, Orvieto, Cortona, Assisi or Perugia can be easily reached by comfortable and inexpensive trains. You can walk to the bus stop in the morning and find the local café or bakery.

    The estate I live on provides many lovely walks through native woodland. There are also a few old mountain bikes hanging around the shed.

  • Help

    Help

    What I am looking for is someone who enjoys the outdoors and is comfortable with manual labour. Creativity, initiative, and fresh ideas are encouraged

    Your main tasks would be weeding, pruning, planting, and harvesting. Machinery handling is highly desired (primarily for cutting dead trees).

    Spring is the time to overhaul the vegetable garden, so I would need someone who would be happy handing seedlings, creating tomato structures and installing shade cloths.

    There may also be some casual indoor maintenance, but the focus of the work would be outside.

    Don’t worry if a lot of this is new to you. I am more than willing to show you the ropes, I just need some extra hands!

    I have a lot of experience with Workaway, so I recommend volunteers plan for stays of around a week. This gives both host and guest time to get to know each other without making too big a commitment. If it's a good fit, we can discuss extending your stay.

    I usually ask for five hours a day on weekdays with weekends off for you to explore Italy. This has worked well in the past but can always be discussed further upon arrival.

  • Languages spoken

    English: Fluent
    Italian: Intermediate

  • Accommodation

    Accommodation

    You will have your own private room and bathroom with shower and a place set for you at the supper table even though you might be cooking for yourselves. You'll be treated with equal parts privacy and company. I offer free wi-fi and phone calls from my landline to the US and Europe.

  • What else ...

    What else ...

    I am based in an old Italian farmhouse - rustic but comfortable. The rooms are plenty and spacious so I am happy to accommodate couples and pets. There is a gentle, outdoor cat to keep everyone company.

    The household is as eco-friendly as I can make it: I save water (you might think obsessively), energy, cook from scratch, recycle and waste as little as I can. The water is heated by the sun and I now have an air-conditioning/heating heat-pump running off solar-generated electricity.

    As an eco-friendly household, my diet is largely plant-based and as such, I only make plant-based food for my guests. However, you are more than welcome to bring your own fresh cuts and meats. I don't smoke.

    I enjoy a friendly household: the first volunteers stayed with us twenty years ago, and every visitor since then has brought support, fun, laughter, and worldly experience to the family.

    In terms of getting here, RyanAir flies from London directly to Perugia, which is an hour's drive away. The airports in Rome are about two and a half hours by car or train. Here in the country, it helps to have a car - rentals are available at the train station in Chiusi. However, with excellent rail service, it is not a necessity.

    Please feel free to get in touch if this sounds like the job for you or with any questions and I will endeavour to get back to you as soon as possible!

  • 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.

  • Can possibly accept pets

    Can possibly accept pets

    This host has said they are willing to accept those travelling with a pet.

  • How many Workawayers can stay?

    How many Workawayers can stay?

    Two

  • ...

    Hours expected

    25 hours per week

Host ref number: 000000000271

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