Ann

& Iban

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Wir sind gerade

Beschreibung

My name is Ann, and I'm a movie reviewer and critic. My husband Iban is a visual artist. After many years of caring for our little cat family, among which our last 21-year-old cat Fuchi, who passed away in the summer of 2024, we felt it was time for a change. Although we live in Belgium, we spend most of our time slow-traveling southern Europe, combining workaways, house-sitting and traditional (paid) stays. Our goal is to eventually settle somewhere in the sunny south, and our travels are a way to explore the possibilities.

We started our slow-travel journey in March 2025 and these are the places we've been to...

Our very first workaway was in the south-west of France at sort of a horse farm. Our main tasks were keeping the stables clean, walking the dogs and maintaining the property, which came down to mowing the fields and trimming the edges and bushes, as well as clearing overgrown areas and gathering wood. Additionally we did small repairs, and built and organized storage spaces in the workshop and stables. This taught us to operate a sit-on mower, a strimmer and a quad.

Next was a house-sit in the same area. Our job was mostly gardening and basic pool maintenance, but also cleaning up and organizing the tool shed and other storage spaces.

Then we went to an artist residence Galicia in northern Spain for a two-month workaway, but we ended up staying five months. We did a wide range of things. Garden and property maintenance was a big part of it, including organizing storage spaces and doing small repairs. We also maintained the organisation's social media and website, helped setting up and taking down exhibitions, and helped with the logistics of events, including serving drinks and food. We also looked after the property when the owner was away on business.

After a visit to family in the north of France and a brief return to Belgium, we left for a journey through France and Italy to do a workaway in Malta. This was originally a four-week stay, but that turned into more than three months. The work varied from small repairs and reorganizing storage space, to help preparing social events.and general assistance for a renovation project, including supervising the work while the owners were away.

Our next destination is a return to our very first workaway in the south-west of France, probably until the end of June, maybe a little longer. After that we don't have anything planned - we're confident that will soon change.

This was our journey in a nutshell so far; if you want to know more about it in detail, including all the stops in between, you can read Iban's story on Medium: https://medium.com/@ibanvdz/overview-of-our-indefinite-slow-travel-road-trip-5a2fc317dc9e?sk=dd03ea5ec2177255699c44e58814c5c9

Since we're away from home most of the time, we work on the road - one has to make a living after all. For that, we do have a few basic needs:
- I am a movie reviewer/critic and to watch movies and write about them, I need good internet access.
- Iban is a visual artist and for that he needs a bit of extra space to set up a table to paint on - roughly 4 square meters. The work is not messy and in all the places he painted, he never even left as much as a paint splatter. We always leave the accommodation in the same condition as we got it - we are respectful of other people's property.

As a couple we are used to work together; we know each other's strengths and weaknesses, and we complement each other.

Additionally, we're no backpackers and we carry more than just a suitcase; we travel by car: a standard size van - the same size as an average car, only a bit higher - which holds many of our belongings, including everything we need for work. As such, we ask for a secure parking spot, preferably on the property.

Interessengebiete

Yoga / Wellness

Haustiere

Natur

Kultur

Kochen & Backen

Bücher

Blogging

Schreiben

Fotografie

Musik

Film & Fernsehen

Zeichnen & Malen

Videoaufnahmen

Kunst & Design

Sprachen

Gesprochene Sprachen
Englisch: Fließend
Niederländisch: Fließend
Spanisch: Grundkenntnisse
Französisch: Grundkenntnisse

Mehr Infos zu meinen Sprachinteressen
We can teach Dutch and we are eager to improve French and Spanish.

Einen Sprachpartner finden

Bereiche, die uns interessieren oder in denen wir anderen etwas beibringen können

Interessiert uns:  

Kunstprojekte

Betreuung von Tieren

Zubereiten / Kochen von Mahlzeiten für die Familie

Hilfe mit Computer /Internet

Karitative Arbeit

Hausarbeiten

Leichte Gartenarbeit

Leichte Instandhaltungsarbeiten

Haus- & Haustiersitting

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Bereits etwas Erfahrung vorhanden  

Ökoprojekte

Mithilfe auf einem Bauernhof

Was könntest du arbeiten?

Between the two of us we have a lot of skills, and we are also fast learners.

- We both have a lot of experience with computers, including software like MS Office/LibreOffice and PhotoShop, as well as website maintenance and social media management.

- We're quite handy, which allows us to do small repairs, including basic electrics, and assemble furniture.

- Doing workaways, we've learned new skills, like operating different kinds of machinery, including a strimmer, a sit-on mower, a quad and a chainsaw.

- We are organized, in more than one way. We helped organize events, but also organized storage spaces, including installing shelves and other ways to optimize storage.

- We love animals and know how to take care of them. We had cats for more than 25 years, and we've taken care of dogs and other animals.

- I (Ann) enjoy cooking and can prepare meals - Iban is sometimes the kitchen help :-)

- If you're interested in learning various visual arts techniques, Iban would be happy to share his expertise.

Due to minor back issues, we are unable to do heavy construction work, but we’re eager to help in other ways.

Alter

51 & 56

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