Delightful 18th-century former farmhouse in Malaucène, France

Details

• 

  Description

  Workawayers are welcome at L’Eau Salée over most of the year, although during July and August we don’t get so much done, too hot! Most tasks are outside on the land, with a mix of brush-cutting, weeding, pruning and general gardening. Inside there’s always something to do, such as refreshing paintwork or general cleaning (it’s a big place). Help with cooking is always appreciated too - we enjoy learning about other countries’ cuisines with our visitors. Meals we try to take together as much as possible, but are happy to give visitors space when needed for self-catering, in which case we provide the ingredients.
  
  It’s nice, but certainly not essential, to hear from people with related skills, who can contribute and advise on more technical things. But more importantly, we see Workaway as an opportunity to meet responsible and empathic people from around the world, to learn from each other, to improve understanding of different cultures, especially in these difficult times. Together, we soon appreciate that wherever we are from in the world, we have far more in common than not.
  
  We are pretty laid back in our approach, and are happy for Workawayers to organise their time around the tasks that suit them best. Workaway is a fair exchange, not an employer/worker thing. It’s very important to us for visitors to be able to relax and get as much as possible out of their stay. We have also had a few people staying who need to work remotely - no problem, because we have high speed fibre optic internet despite our very rural location.
  
  A little bit of history - my youngest daughter and I have returned to our beautiful 18th century farmhouse in rural Provence, at the foot of the Mont Ventoux after a ten year stay in SE Asia. Our caretakers during the years abroad didn’t look after the property very well, so we’ve quite a lot to do, inside and out. There are nearly 3 hectares of hillside land, which we are gradually clearing.
  
  This is a beautiful and unspoilt area of Provence, a hiking and cycling paradise. We're close to the Medieval/Roman towns of Vaison (7km) and Malaucène (3km), so although there are no other houses in sight, all amenities are within easy reach. Helpers can use a bike to visit the area, although you need to be pretty fit to ride to the summit of the Mont Ventoux, 24 kms away but a 1,700m climb from our home at 330m! We are happy to drive people to nearby places when we can. Bear in mind though that if you are looking for frantic city-style socialising, this may not be the place for you! If you go out searching for an open bar after 9pm, you may be disappointed! The pace of life here in the Provençal backwaters is … slow.
  
  There is accommodation all over the property, but mostly Workawayers stay is in a couple of independent apartments each with en-suite double bedrooms in annexes to the main house, with log-burner, wifi internet access. Ideal for couples. There is also accommodation in an independent poolside gîte with its own kitchen and shower room - also with log burner.
  
  Looking forward to meeting lots of fascinating people in hopefully better times to come, after all the trauma many have been suffering in recent years. Let’s inspire each other to see beyond all the xenophobia and distrust, and embrace all those values shared by humanity, wherever we are from. Safe and enriching travels to you all.

• 

  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Help with Eco Projects

  Gardening

  DIY and building projects

  Help around the house

  General Maintenance
• 

  UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

  ×

  ...

  ...

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  What's this?
• 

  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  I am bilingual English French, and a single dad of a 13 year old who has lived with me most of her young life - and is trilingual English/Thai/French. So we are certainly a multicultural family!

• 

  Help

  An old farm, we spend about half our time clearing the land and gardening, the remainder on general upkeep and repairs, painting etc, around the house.

• 

  Languages

  Languages spoken
  English: Fluent
  French: Fluent
  Thai: Beginner

  This host offers a language exchange
  I trained as a translator and interpreter and all my kids have been brought up in a bilingual environment. My youngest, now thirteen, is trilingual, speaking and writing Thai, English and French fluently.
• 

  Accommodation

  There are pleasant rooms and bathrooms around the property destined for summer lets during the holiday season, so these are ideal for our volunteers.

• 

  What else ...

  Flexible hours, but public transport is rather rare, so we drive our helpers into the local towns (5 and 10 minutes away by car) when possible... push bikes available, it’s an easy ride to the nearest village.
  
  We enjoy good food and wine, but appreciate a little help around the kitchen too!

• 

  A little more information

  • 

    Internet access

  • 

    Limited internet access

  • 

    We have pets

  • 

    We are smokers

  • 

    Can host families

• 

  Can host digital nomads

  High speed fibre broadband now up and running

• 

  Space for parking camper vans

  We once hosted a New Zealand family of 8 in their camper van, plenty of room here to park up with full facilities.

• 

  Can possibly accept pets

  Good-natured dogs accepted. We have a lovely dog of our own.

• 

  How many Workawayers can stay?

  More than two

• 

  Hours expected

  Maximum 4-5 hours a day, 5 days a week

Feedback (1)