General help welcome at our home and garden in Aveyron, France

Details

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  Description

  We are both British and retired. Richard was an officer in the fire service and Patricia was a tax adviser. We live in a converted barn in about two acres of land. The nearest town is Villefranche de Rouergue which is ten kilometres away.
  
  Please note. If you want to practice your English, then we are your ideal hosts as we are an English speaking household
  
  We are no longer as energetic as we once used to be, so extra help is always a welcome relief. The type of help would be with weeding, other gardening and the occasional DIY project
  
  We have lived in France long enough to appreciate what we call proper food. We strive to vary the diet so that no main meal is repeated for at least 14 days (unless specially requested) It may be French, it may be British, or it may be a mixture of French and British and on occasions you will taste the local delicacies.
  
  We are very flexible about helping hours all we ask is that In return for five hours help per day, five days a week, at a time to suit yourself we will provide you with good healthy tasty food and a private comfortable room which has TV and en-suite facilities
  
  If you want the night life, then this is not for you. If you want the quiet life and listen to the birds singing, walks in the country and good views then this may be the ideal place
  
  Must be non-smoker and we find that feeding vegans is difficult
  
  Cultural Experiences Offered
  • Can help teach English
  • Enjoy showing helpers my local area
  As well as individual bedrooms we do a three roomed self sufficient separate apartment.
  
  We will provide the breakfast food which you will normally have on your own at a time to suit yourself. Lunch will be around 1300 hours which we will all eat together and the main meal will be around 1900 hours which again we will all eat together. We are both sociable people and actively encourage conversation and cultural exchange especially at meal times as this this is as equally important to the meal as the food. However, vegetarian diets will cause us problems as we believe that we would not be able to provide a suitable satisfactory type of diet
  
  We are normally flexible about helping hours, all we ask is that you average five hours a day for five days of the week.

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Gardening

  DIY and building projects

  Farmstay help

  Help around the house

  General Maintenance

  Help with Computers/ Internet
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  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  We really encourage workaways to become part of the household during their time with us.
  
  They can learn how to help with gardening and building tasks.
  
  Hopefully they will discover a way of life that has changed very little over the last fifty years
  
  For those with an “open mind” the cultural exchange can give them an opinion on life from a completely different point of view.
  
  Over the years we have travelled a lot and gained experience of other cultures and we share our knowledge with our workaways
  
  We try to make sure that our workaways are properly looked after and when the weather is suitable we will take them sightseeing to places of local interest.
  
  We believe our lifestyle provides an ideal escape from a hectic working or studying or city lifestyle and it gives the impression of what life was like in the UK 50 years ago.

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  Help

  We have a large garden and a vegetable plot. There are so many projects to do that that the list is endless. It ranges from cutting the grass and hedges to weeding and pruning.
  
  In the winter there is always firewood that needs cutting and stacking
  
  At the right time of the year help could be needed in preserving the fruits of the garden
  
  Help is always useful at any time of the year, The tasks we will give to you will depend upon your capabilities and experience
  
  What we really need is a general helping hand

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  Languages spoken

  English: Fluent
  French: Fluent

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  Accommodation

  You will have your own private double bedroom and bathroom which also has a door direct to the garden and open air
  
  Also available is a completely self -contained 1/2 bedroomed apartment
  
  Internet access via Wifi
  
  We provide bedlinen and towels.

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  What else ...

  The Aveyron is one of the nicest departments in France and the locals are very friendly.
  
  Away from the main roads the area is very quiet. The whole area is scenic and full of quaint villages, in fact there are more of the “most beautiful villages in France” in the Aveyron than any other Department in France
  
  The terrain is very hilly with steep hills and deep valleys. Unfortunately, there is very little night life. It is ideal walking country and, if you can cycle up steep hills, then cycling is an ideal way to travel.
  
  And we do have two ladies and two men’s bicycles that you can use whilst you are here
  
  We are very flexible with the hours helped. Normally you can help at a time that suits you, but, we do ask that you help 25 hours per week
  
  Volunteers are welcome at any time of the year. We cannot say what the weather will be like but one thing we can promise you is a varied diet of good honest tasty food together with a local wine
  
  We do receive British satellite television and this will be available to volunteers
  
  This is primarily an English speaking environment, although Patricia can speak French fluently but we do not use it in normal daily conversation
  
  As we are both non-smokers we do not allow smoking in the house
  
  The nearest town is the bastide town of Villefranche-de-Rouergue and for French gastronomy and local fare, the market on a Thursday is not to be missed.
  
  Nearby are the medieval villages of Belcastel and Najac. Further away is Gaillac (a wine centre), Albi (famous for its Toulouse Lautrec museum and enormous cathedral). Cordes sur Ciel
  
  Getting here. Toulouse airport is our nearest international airport, there is a shuttle bus service from there to Toulouse railway station, from there it is a less than a two hour rail journey to our nearest railway station which is Villefranche de Rouergue (where we will pick you up, if required).

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  A little more information

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    Internet access

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    Limited internet access

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    We have pets

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    We are smokers

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    Can host families

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  Can host digital nomads

  We have a very good internet connection that is available throughout the house and garden

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  Space for parking camper vans

  We have ample space for motorhomes of all sizes and can provide an electric hook up

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  How many Workawayers can stay?

  More than two

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