Help our family in our home and garden in the beautiful Shoalhaven region, Australia

Details

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  Description

  Hello Travellers!
  Avail to host: Oct to Nov 7th.
  We are a busy hands on family who have moved to the Shoalhaven region 2 hrs south of Sydney.
  
  THE FAMILY: German chemist/scientist (Felix), Australian massage therapist/teacher ( Cami), two daughters (10 and 13) who can be social, fun, quiet, reserved, creative, sporty, bookish and feisty at any given time. Plus pets Marmalade and Honey (guinea pigs) who love a cuddle and a gold fish.
  
  EXPERIENCE: We have enjoyed hosting volunteers on and off for the last 15 years across Melbourne, Perth, Hunter Valley, Shoalhaven and Germany. Our workawayers have made a huge positive impact on our kids development and the help around the house has been phenomenal.
  
  We try to live a sustainable lifestyle in a comfortable home. We have direct access to some truly beautiful nature trails right outside our doorstep. If you are a rock climber you will not be disapointed by the technical climbs or if you enjoy trail hiking then this may just be the perfect workaway for you.
  
  Also we are vegetarian. Yum!
  
  LOCATION: Our yard looks out over forest and a small creek where the kids love to play. On early morning and dusk walks you can often spot native Australian animals such as kangaroos, wallabies, kookaburras, a lyrebird or two, and if you are lucky even a wombat or echidna foraging nearby. 4 kilometers from town, a bike ride, bus or hike away.
  
  NSW (North Nowra, 160kms/2 hrs sth of Sydney. Train connections are avail from Sydney-Bomaderry, 3-4 hours. Bus depot is Nowra with rural connection between Canberra and Sydney.

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Language practice

  Help with Eco Projects

  Teaching

  Light gardening

  Creative DIY projects

  Animal Care

  Creating/ Cooking family meals

  Help around the house

  Light maintenance
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  Interests

  

  Vegetarian or vegan

  

  Sustainability

  

  Self development

  

  Pets

  

  Music

  

  Languages

  

  Plant care

  

  Drawing & painting

  

  Gardening

  

  Art & design

  

  Cooking & food

  

  Books

  

  Animals

  

  Yoga / Wellness

  

  Team sports

  

  Hiking

  

  Fitness

  

  Camping

  

  Beach

  

  Cycling

  

  Dancing

  

  Nature
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  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  We are an almost 'normal' family, busy, happy, intense, loving, sharing. There is a real mix of practical skills that could be learned and we attempt to match your interests to the tasks at hand. If you are here to improve your English then we are patient and provide lots of opportunities to practice. Supporting the children getting ready for school and doing homework is a great English exercise. Learning 'on the job' everyday words and phrases is also a natural way to improve. Playing and hanging out with the kids in your own time is a great way to accelerate your language learning too 😀

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  Projects involving children

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

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  Help

  We are looking to host independent, efficient, energetic and practical people who could assist in garden help, day to day house help, cleaning, light home maitenance tasks (old clothes and shoes recommended) and german language practice with the kids.
  
  There is a local volunteer bush care group who help preserve the area with weed removal and path tasks. Its a great eco project that we are a part of and you would be welcome to join if this is an area you are interested in.
  
  All stays regardless of whether they are short or long helps so much to reduce the 'motherload' of a working mum, and a dad who is working most of the week. We all get to rest and play a little more when volunteers come to stay. :)
  
  FOCUS PROJECTS: From Oct onwards Felix and I are hoping to progress at fitting out the ground level floor#. It's to become a beautiful studio apartment for workawayers and family guests to stay. Volunteers would be helpful at this time with taking care or the regular every day householder tasks as mentioned above and below. Or help out with some of the smaller steps of this project if you enjoy hands on DIY.
  
  #Tradies will be contracted to do most of the work.
  
  EVERY DAY HELP could be:
  + day to day general housekeeping, cleaning, laundry, deep cleaning
  + general gardening help, weeding, pruning, mowing, edging
  + eco project weeding and maintaining the bushland in the surrounding area
  + small DIY maitainance or repairs.
  + help decluttering and organising garage
  + expanding the vegetable garden. Improving soil quality with compost and manure.(late 2026)
  + making and baking your own ferments. (Sour dough bread, kombucha and kefir)
  + cooking simple and wholesome vegetarian meals
  + German language practice with us all
  + Homework help: German
  
  Up to 22 hours of volunteer help exchange includes accommodation, vegetarian food and WiFi. Cooking a couple of meals and/or helping clean up after some meals are in addition to your weekly help exchange hours.
  
  MIN STAY: 1 week
  MAX STAY: Up to 12 weeks
  
  MEETING FACE TO FACE B4 VOLUNTEERING: A a short video call to get to know each other a little before hand is the usual process we take before onboarding terrific volunteers. Its a great way to ask questions and get a feel for if we will all live and help well together. We also have a 'volunteer agreement form' that goes over what we have discussed and helps make us feel more safe with inviting people into our home and family life. It can also help you to feel confident that you are coming for a fair volunteerexchange and positive experience.
  
  We are happy to pick up and drop off from local train station (Bomaderry), bus depot (Nowra). Also plenty of parking and camping space avail for anyone road tripping about Oz :).

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  Languages

  Languages spoken
  German: Fluent
  English: Fluent

  This host offers a language exchange
  We are working towards a bilingual English-German family. The kids have online lessons once a week, and a bit of homework. Their enthusiasm has been lacking recently and they are lagging behind in their classes and(we the parents) would love some additional Deutsch practice for the kids. With native speakers its terrific for inspiring our kids to learn further. We are also patient with people learning English and give you plenty of chances to practice conversation at meal times and during your stay. Don't be afraid to make mistakes, laugh a little,we are all learning!
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  Accommodation

  Whilst we fit out the ground floor guests and volunteers will stay in a large room on the 1st floor along side the family. There is a queen sized bed, forest views and a home gym in the space. Share main bathroom, communal kitchen, deck and a living room with peaceful views.
  
  It is a lacto ovo VEGETARIAN house hold/kitchen. This means dairy, eggs and of course chocolate is enjoyed! In addition to your volunteer week, it is hoped that you can cook a meal or 2 to share your countries traditional flavour and taste secrets :).. if not we'll support you to try and follow a new vegetarian recipe for the first time. Helping with the dish washing up is also a extra for the evening/lunch meal if you are not cooking.

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  What else ...

  This region is renowned for its natural beauty. Bush walk/hike in nature, mountain bike, and rock climbing are all easily reachable from here. We are a short bus or bike ride into the nearby township of Nowra, or you can catch the train to the lovely town ship of Berry, and beachside town of Kiama. However rural bus schedualling means you need to be organised. We can provide lifts when going to and from work as well and on some weekends we get out to explore this beautiful region as a family. All townships have interesting heritage from early settlers, boutique stores, good coffee and cakes. There are also vineyards, beaches and great big forests a bit further abroad if you have your own transport.
  
  You are always welcome to borrow a bike or kayak for some local adventures.
  
  This area is also just a typical quiet Aussie countryside setting in a family friendly neighbourhood. Interesting to foreigners, and a nice place to take stock, follow your own creative pursuits and re-energise before jumping back into your travels.
  
  We think Workaway volunteers could benefit staying with us as they can explore the country culture, practice English or speak German, enjoy a bit of homely family life, apply and/or learn practical skills and balance their study/ work/travel with their exchange hours.
  
  We look forward to hearing from you
  
  Cheers and happy travels, Cami, Felix, Jana, Frieda and Marmalade and Honey the guineapigs

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  A little more information

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    Internet access

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    Limited internet access

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    We have pets

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    We are smokers

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    Can host families

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  Can host digital nomads

  Our NBN WIFI connection is reasonable for general internet use however streaming, gaming, heavy graphics applications etc would need to be used at times when we are not working from home as this can cause drop outs to other users. We ask that whilst you are doing your volunteer hours phone use is kept to a minimum. This ensures your own safety, efficiency and attention to detail for the jobs at hand. The hours a volunteer works is flexible and be discussed in the first week of your stay. Whether you chose to do 3 long days or just 3 hours every day works fine by us. In the summer the yard work should be done either early or late to avoid peak heat times. This leaves most of the day free for study, exploring, rest and play.

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  Space for parking camper vans

  There is a flat parking space across from us next to the forest and creek. We've had a few campers in alrrady who love the peaceful spot. Other vehicles have plenty of space to park in the street.

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  Can possibly accept pets

  We do love animals. If yours is tolerant of being adored by kids then hosting you and your fur baby could be possible. We have guinea pigs,and whilst its in a cage we would need to ensure your pet does not hunt it. Notr- our property is currently not fenced.

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  How many Workawayers can stay?

  Two

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  My animals / pets

  Guinea pigs

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