Profile information
Host rating
80 %
Last replied
1 Aug 2024
Feedback
39
Email verified
Badges (2)
Find your perfect host
Details
Description
I am an English artist who is lucky enough to be able to split my time between New York and a tiny village in the south west of France. I've been a fine art photographer for over 30 years and recently finished the work for my fourth book. I'm a BBC radio 4 addict and listen to it constantly during work. My wife and I enjoy setting up the projector to end the day with a late night movie fest. We both entertain and cook a lot. I tend to cook more the traditional roasts as well as the paella on the terrace and the sushi. Nike cooks more of the Asian food as well as the desserts. Our house is often full of friends and guests. I'm usually working on a few projects at any one time from working on a new series of Photographs, to creating a piece of sculpture, to a new building/renovation idea for our place in France. I am fortunate that my work is also my great pleasure.
Types of help and learning opportunities
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Creating/ Cooking family meals
General Maintenance
Help
We recently bought an old stone ruin at the top of our village in France to renovate into a living space and workshop. We are looking for help with the renovation as well as with the day to day of living in the countryside.
One of the reasons we love our village so much is its complete contrast to life in manhattan. If you want a late night party scene, our place is not for you.. you need to be in Manhattan! We work six days a week and take Sundays off but as a work away you would be expected to work Monday to Friday five hours a day with Saturday and Sunday off.
A lot of the work is very physical, so we always like to tell people ahead of time. It can range from the less physical work of shopping or house cleaning/turnarounds up to re-pointing stone walls, digging a basement out to relaying a cement floor, or putting in windows and doors. You don't have to know how to do all of these things before you come to us but you need to be handy,hard working,strong and willing to learn. We live together as a family, so everyone,chips in on what needs doing whether it be hanging out the laundry to baking a cake to mixing cement or plastering a wall. Because we are in a small village a drivers license is very handy.
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
French: Fluent
Accommodation
We live on a small street in an old stone house that was originally used to make and store wine from the local vineyards. It is like a New York loft but located in a tiny village in the southwest of France
The main living space has a large kitchen area , old velvet sofas, a long dining table and of course the all important projector for the evening's entertainment. Upstairs is our roof deck with a big table and a BBQ for meals al fresco.
The downstairs area has the original cuves that we converted into a bathroom and shower as well as small Japanese inspired pod bedrooms.
What else ...
We are in a tiny village in the Languedoc in the Aude in the foothills of the Pyrenees . The local post office, open mornings four days a week is next door and a very basic cafe is located at the end of our street. We are 15 minutes from our local market town of Limoux- famous for its sparkling wine and simple winter carnival. We are 45 minutes from Carcassonne, an hour and a half from Toulouse and four and a half hours from Barcelona. Our area is famous for its Cathar Chateaux as well as beautiful countryside. We are surrounded by local vineyards. There are plenty of beautiful walks, Just pack a picnic and head out the door.
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Can host digital nomads
We have recently installed Starlink so our internet connection is good.
Space for parking camper vans
This host can provide space for campervans.
How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
Hours expected
Five hours per day. Monday through Friday.
Feedback (29)
The work was very physical but… read more
I ended up spending the month of October with three friends of mine at Alvin and Nike’s, and it was truly an experience like no other. For the first week I worked on the construction site, demoing the old stones and bringing them down the hill. It’s tough physical work, but extremely… read more
That week seemed like a month. I really felt like a member of the family. Nike prepared magical dinners, which we enjoyed with a candlelit dinner. I was never bored, we always went somewhere in the area. There are loads of… read more
Photos
Feedback
These are extra optional ratings when members leave feedback. The average rating left for each option is displayed.
Accuracy of profile:
(4.9)
Cultural exchange:
(4.7)
Communication:
(4.5)
The work was very physical but… read more
I ended up spending the month of October with three friends of mine at Alvin and Nike’s, and it was truly an experience like no other. For the first week I worked on the construction site, demoing the old stones and bringing them down the hill. It’s tough physical work, but extremely… read more
That week seemed like a month. I really felt like a member of the family. Nike prepared magical dinners, which we enjoyed with a candlelit dinner. I was never bored, we always went somewhere in the area. There are loads of… read more
Thank you so much for the wonderful time we had!!
We can only recommend this place for workawayers because it is a beautiful and unique experience!
When Alvin picked us up with is blue converted Morris minor the magic began...
We spent almost three weeks in Bouriège. They were so patient with us being in quarantine for ten… read more
I would recommend them to anyone who is motivated to work, has at least basic social skills and wants to experience first-class hosting within this community.
For you contribution you'll get rewarded with a big variety of… read more
Anyone who is accepted by Alvin and Nike can consider themselves lucky. It was a nice and interesting experience for me and I hope, that I could help… read more
I arrived the same day as Alvin, and 4 other workawayers. which made me feel home from the start.
For me the work task was mostly building and fixing up things. Lots of various projects to do, plus If you had an idea of something to make/fix, were he always open.
Alvin is a very… read more
Alvin. Jack of all trades. Iron Chef. Purveyor of puns. Brings palms to knees. "Slap". Has his own particular way. To slice a potato. To boil an egg. Will build you a wall. Of brick and… read more
Our garden has never looked so good. We are only sorry that she missed seeing and tasting the bountiful results of all her hard gardening… read more
Tasks were varied and included helping to clear, restore and maintain the gardens and assisting with guest-room turnarounds. A lot of the tasks were fairly physical and so suited a Workaway that likes to keep fit.
Alvin and Nike… read more
Let's try to make a summary.
From the first moment we sent them message, they were super helpful.
By the time we arrive to Alvin and Nike's home, they had the house full but we were introduced to Chris, a friend and neighbor who also needed help and we stayed at his house for a week. But every day we dined… read more
c est simplement que vous imaginer aller tourner un film et tout les soirs, tout les acteurs se retrouvent autour de la table et souvent d’autres acteurs (amis, voisins, famille) sont invites au grand diner. Nike et Alvin sont très généreux , on ne… read more
Nike and Alvin have created a magical place full of beautiful things, delicious food and amazing people. They treat workawayers like family and we could feel that they really wanted to get to know us better, spend time together and have fun together.
We did some help with… read more
Nike is so lovely and adorable woman, and Albin is so pleasant and attractive man.
Most of our help was painting and cleaning. It was affordable amount work for sure and they tried to organize the works to make you feel comfortable.
Everyday, dinner was super nice with endless wine.
Usually we ate in… read more
Alvin & Nike
Alvin & Nike
We wish them all… read more
