Join us in our family garden and home in rustic Prades, France

Infos

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  Description

  We are a British/Kiwi couple new to living near the small provincial town of Prades, 40 kms from Perpignan. We were looking to move from the UK to the South of France and fell in love with this region on a holiday 5 years ago; captivated by its rustic charm and equidistance to skiing and the Mediterranean.
  
  Graham’s background is in engineering, insurance and IT and Debra’s in healthcare research. We are both able to work from home so our hours of work tend to be flexible. In our spare time we enjoy outdoor activities, walking, sailing, cycling, golf, music and the arts.
  
  Our lovely catalan style house with extensive grounds offers us a life outdoors, with a pool and alfresco dining. Below the house is a wooded hillside leading down to a stream; which we are in the process of creating an area to grow vegetables and fruit trees, adopt some chickens, as well as create spaces for leisure.
  
  We live about 1.5 kilometre from the town of Prades, in a tranquil location with magnificent mountain views of the Canigou (snow-capped Nov-May, winter piste skiing 1hr drive) and in spring our property is alive with birdsong. The Bohére irrigation canal is a short distance from the house linking walks in the area such as a 45min - 1hour stroll to the Abbey St Michael de Cuxa, nearby villages of Taurinya and Clara, as well access to mountain walking or biking. The main bus/train station linking the area is also a short 15min walk away and the nearest airport is Perpignan.

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  Types d'aide et opportunités d'apprendre

  Pratique d’une langue

  Aide avec des éco-projets

  Jardinage

  Bricolage et construction

  Aide à la maison

  Entretien général

  Home sitting
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  Centres d’intérêt

  

  Dev. durable

  

  Bricolage / artisanat

  

  Jardinage

  

  Cuisine et alimentation

  

  Montagne

  

  Activités en plein air

  

  Sports nautiques

  

  Nature

  

  Voile / bateau

  

  Sports d’hiver

  

  Randonnée

  

  Cyclisme
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  Echange culturel et opportunités d'apprendre

  Geographically this region is located in the foothills of the Pyrenees and shares both French and Catalan culture. It is historically linked with Spanish Civil War refugees, in particular Pablo Casals exiled in Prades (see festival below).
  
  The Prades tourist office ‘Tourisme Conflent de Canigou’ provides a range of local and historical information on cultural activities, sites, outdoor pursuits and a calendar of events.
  
  Prades and the region hold local weekly markets displaying local produce and artistic wares. It is a joy to sense the local bustle and busking as one meanders through the stalls. Prades is accessible by foot and the region by local buses.
  
  Medieval architecture is predominant in the surrounding communities and landscapes and can be explored through tourist routes and walks of religious heritage such as Saint-Martint du Canigou and Sainit-Jacques de Calahons to name a couple.
  
  Festival activities celebrated in this region transcend art, film, music and culture. Prades has a small museum and art gallery, in the surrounding region there are a number of local ateliers. The Lido cinema holds an annual french film festival. The festival ‘La Fête des Feux’ de la St Jean in June celebrates the summer solstice. The famous ‘Pablo Casals Festival’ (since 1955) commemorates the life of this cellist extraordinaire. There is a Catalan Summer University Week in August.
  
  Perpignan is a large city offering numerous shopping and services. Tourist spots in part include the old town, gothic Palace of the Kings of Majorca, Hyacinthe Rigaud Museum of baroque and modern art, markets, a day at the beach.

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  Aide

  Over the next couple of years we are going to be working on house and garden projects with an overall aim of reducing our carbon footprint. In 2021 we converted the gas heating to ASHP with underfloor heating downstairs, this has reduced our energy consumption. We have plans to add some solar panels to generate some of our own electricity.
  
  We have cleared and area to create a vegetable garden, this year we are hoping to get the ground prepared for planting in Autumn 2025. Outdoors there is always some garden and woodland maintenance tasks. When it is too hot or cold outdoors we continue to work on some indoor home projects.
  
  If you have skills to offer that would be great, otherwise we can teach you what we know as we work together.

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  Langues

  Langues parlées
  Anglais: Courant
  Français: Intermédiaire

  Cet hôte propose un échange linguistique
  We are an English speaking couple, also learning French, we would enjoy helping people improve their English and if you are a French speaker we would love to learn more from you.
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  Hébergement

  We have a fully equipped apartment downstairs that can be open or separate to the upstairs. The apartment has a fully equipped open plan kitchen, dining and lounge area with TV; which leads onto a large patio and pool area. There are two double bedrooms, one with a separate bathroom next to it and the other double or twin has an ensuite.
  
  All meals will be provided and will usually be taken together, either indoors or outdoors, breakfast is less formal. We are happy to share kitchen duties and if you have some favourite dishes you would like to share with us we invite you to use the kitchen. For those who like music we have a piano and guitar.

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  Autres infos...

  Leisure activities ….
  
  Experience this rustic region exploring a local medieval village. Hike in the Pyrenees. Take a local bus/train to Perpignan and visit the Mediterranean beaches and coastline. Cross the border to Spain for a day or more.
  
  Prades provides all essential amenities, banques, supermarkets, cafes, transport options to explore nearby historic villages such as Mosset, Eus, Villefranche. Outdoor pursuits such as canyoning and mountaineering, biking and walking trails are all accessible.
  
  We are a short walk 15-20 mins from the main bus and train station. Public transport is subsidised in this department, costing 1 euro per journey. In addition, 'Le Petit Train Jaune' (the little yellow train) operating since 1910, runs 63kms into the Pyrenees mountain towns and is well worth a trip.
  
  Enjoy the outdoors and simple pleasures such as local markets, indulging in local ripe summer fruits, sunning by our pool, playing an instrument if you would like to bring one, we also have a Nord Stage piano.

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  Informations complémentaires

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    Accès Internet

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    Accès Internet limité

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    Nous avons des animaux

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    Nous sommes fumeurs

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    Familles bienvenues

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  Possibilité d’accueillir les digital nomads

  Graham is a digital nomad himself so we understand the needs of those who enjoy the combination of lifestyles. The rooms available have desks, internet and are in a quiet part of the house with a tranquil outlook onto trees and the mountains beyond.

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  Combien de volontaires pouvez-vous accueillir ?

  Plus de 2

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