Profile information
Host rating
100 %
Feedback
27
Email verified
Badges (2)


Details
Description
Our owners are a pair of Aussies who left Australia in 2014 and went walkabout. They ended up settling in Portugal in 2015 and adopted us (their fur babies) in 2016 making their lives complete. We own a slice of paradise 10 kms outside Castelo Branco that needs keen and enthusiastic workaways, no experience necessary, just the right can do attitude to help them recover the olive grove and build us a house to live in.
Types of help and learning opportunities
Gardening
DIY and building projects
General Maintenance
Animal Care
Art Projects
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
Things possible to learn:
How awesome Australians are... Cos they are like super awesome bonfire builders...
How to eat Vegemite on toast (important cultural activity)
AFL, meat pies and an explanation of how a team can 'be in front by a behind' are also part of the taste of Australia whilst being in Portugal during the footy season.
Building and construction, both in concrete bricks and other materials such as plasterboard walls. This includes, how to correctly make cement, different types of cementing and the uses, how to build a wall / building / bathroom / kitchen, including rendering and using coloured dyes for effects. (Yep they get a little excited about cement)
Building a kitchen, tiling, plumbing
Gardening, growing and cultivating a vegetable garden which will help to feed them eventually
Use of general equipment skills, such as chain saws, strimmers, ( weed whackers, whipper snipper etc.) please note that you only have to use these machines if you feel comfortable.
Painting and other forms of decorating.
How to make glass bricks with empty bottles and build a wallProjects involving children
This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.
Help
Our little slice of paradise was abandoned for over 25 years and is in need of some serious love and attention and our owners can't do it by themselves because they only have 2 feet instead of 4. The property has an overgrown olive grove on terraces with grapes vines that look more at home in a Tarzan movie. The other half of the Quinta has native bush shrubbery and a variety of trees leading down to the valley floor. The property also comes with the best neighbours in Portugal who love meeting, and feeding workaways when they visit 🍛🥘🍝
They are slowly converting an old stone shed into a small house and have added on a bathroom and kitchen extension bit. It's mostly done except for:
They have no hot water except by the sun
Actually they don't really have a kitchen at the moment, that's on the list of things to do...
The front door is a wee bit bent so doesn't quite close...
At the moment they are converting an old water tank into a plunge pool and are currently tiling it and creating shade screens.
So what sort of help do they need from the workaways..
Whatever they need doing on the day...
This can be pruning trees and collecting firewood, to mixing cement and rendering walls to trimming the grass and making wine, picking olives in November / December.
At the moment the focus is on getting us a kitchen area where our owners can slave away catering to our lavish cat and dog tastes so installing windows, doors, rendering and most importantly creating some bottle walls is essential.
More than anything else, the right attitude is what is needed. They are more than happy to teach anyone the skills needed to undertake whatever task is asked of you. A willingness to muck in with whatever task is in front of them on the day is all we ask for.
PLEASE NOTE: We are unable to accept anybody under the age of eighteen for safety reasons be it either as a worker or dependant.Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Accommodation
Our owners have tents for workaways as it is cooler to sleep in over the summer months and even into autumn. Even they sleep in a tent which makes it easier for us to pounce on them unsuspectingly which is the cat's new favourite game with them.
Once they finish the kitchen it is the bedroom they are working on and that's going to be an underground room with bottle wall... kinda like a small hairy footed thing that lives in The Shire and can't be named for copyright reasons 😜
They will supply bedding and a towel for use, but workaways need to provide their own toiletries.
There was some loose lipped talk one night when they were emptying a few bottles about doing something interesting with the Caravan from hell... who knows they didn't share their drinks so we stopped listening
They come with free wifi and enjoy watching movies outside (mainly because it's cooler in summer and they don't have a lounge room yet)What else ...
We are 10kms outside Castelo Branco and are on the public transport route.
We are a 45 minute drive from Serra de Estrela where you can ski in winter and hike through in summer as well as 3 hours from Lisbon by train.
In 30 minutes we are in Spain and Monsanto, the most Portuguese village in Portugal is also close by.
There are cinemas, public pools, libraries, museums, bars etc available in Castelo Branco on your time off.
In summer the barragem to swim in is close by, and they are right in the middle of some beautiful hiking country.
They are not vegans / vegetarians and enjoy all types of food. They don't cater for special diets, unless it is a food allergy or you are a cat. If this is is not for you, we thank you for your time in reading our profile and happy travels.
Abby 🐶
Blue 🐱A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
How many Workawayers can stay?
Two
Hours expected
Maximum 4-5 hours a day, 5 days a week
Feedback (13)
Marije was extremely easy going, despite our change in location from when she applied and coped with the hot weather very well. Abby and Blue loved having Marije around as well and our friends wanted Marije… read more
Bella, our shyest dog, adore Dylan and was sad to see him leave and we are sure she would have jumped into his suitcase and left with him given half a chance!
Fixing the retic, painting, renovating inside the farmhouse, painting the main gates and 1 of the white dogs… read more
Feedback
Marije was extremely easy going, despite our change in location from when she applied and coped with the hot weather very well. Abby and Blue loved having Marije around as well and our friends wanted Marije… read more
Bella, our shyest dog, adore Dylan and was sad to see him leave and we are sure she would have jumped into his suitcase and left with him given half a chance!
Fixing the retic, painting, renovating inside the farmhouse, painting the main gates and 1 of the white dogs… read more
Shelbea's help with picking and preserving cherries was fantastic and I'm so happy she enjoyed the experience… read more
I walked around with Catherine and discussed a number of jobs that needed doing around the farm and left Catherine with whichever she decided as we trusted her to get on and do the job.
Her ' role up the… read more
The 8 dogs at the farm adored Rosa and took to her immediately making her one of the family.
We asked Rosa if she could eat her weight in cherries and she had a great time trying. Having the dogs help pick cherries is always fun :smile:
We… read more
It was my first work-away experience and I can only agree with what the other work-awayers at Rose's and Darrel's place have already… read more
Painting, cherry picking, painting, gardening and painting were some of the things we asked of Team Dutchies and they took everything in their stride. They were even nice enough not to comment on a Darrel's truly… read more
Well Tom was a delight to have, with his wicked dry sense of humour
and despite everything we threw at him, he didn't lose it or his smile.
Tom even sat through a game of… read more
Picking cherries, walking the dogs, selling cherries at the Spring Fair and celebrating a birthday were all in a days work for Kristin.
We had a wonderful laugh and a… read more
We watched Aussie rules and introduced another workaway… read more
From the minute I got off the bus I was welcomed with open arms. The two of them (and the dogs), could not have been a better introduction to workaway for me! The work is varied but fun and never too hard, and the food something to write home about! I swear I… read more
Therese was loved and adored by the dogs and the cats at the farm, especially Gever who was so upset we let her leave, that he widdled on our bed the day she left!
Therese was amazing and ate everything we put in front of her, even the pancakes,… read more
I really enjoyed my stay at the farm with all its habitants. I fed the noisy ducks in the morning, cleaned after the dogs (8 in total and 4 of them were little terrorists ... I really miss them ). Sometimes you play with them, walk them and you brush them. It can consume… read more
We could say how hardworking he is, how you could have a conversation with Stefan the night before and know that everything you discussed would be done, or how nothing was too much trouble and we have 4 large puppies at the farm so we know trouble but rather than comment on how… read more
His willingness to muck in with whatever we had was fantastic along with Sean's sense of humour.
We wish Sean all the best in his future travels...
The enthusiastic, cheerful manner in which the guys approached whatever we threw at them, was fantastic , even when they had to clean out rat infested cupboards , clean up after the… read more
Their skills in bonfire building have increased tenfold.
They have made a huge difference to the farm and we… read more