Spain
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Due to the Covid-19 coronavirus we are in improvise mode.
We have not taken any volunteers yet in 2020 due to the lock-down. As the restrictions are lifted we might take some volunteers. The volunteers that we might be interested in would have these characteristics. Actually interested in growing food, self sufficiency and alternative technologies. I am thinking of making a greenhouse and installing a high mass rocket stove heater. Don't care about being isolated and in the middle of nowhere. Sociable and fun to be with. It would be better for a couple. We would prefer longer stays. For the first 2 weeks we may need to have some social distancing. If you apply tell us the date you would like to arrive and for how long.
We will be planting growing and harvesting vegetables and preparing to be as self sufficient as possible.
We are an English couple who have lived in Spain for over 30 years. We are in our late 50's. Our business is on-line so we can work anywhere as long as we have an Internet connection. We spend our time between Granada, the coast and our cortijo in the mountains. We are mainly interested in some help up in the mountain house. We have 36,000 m2 with about 160 olive trees, 800 grape vines, 100 almonds, almost all the fruit trees you can think of, a vegetable plot, about 5 springs, solar powered electricity, solar water heating. 10 X 5m swimming pool. It is 1300 metres high. The nearest village is 6km up a non asphalt road. We don't have any children but have a dog "Shep"and a cat "Meg".
We have hosted over 300 workawayers over the last 10 years. We welcome hardworking people who like being in a beautiful remote mountain setting. It is especially important that you are a pleasant sociable person with a good sense of humour who likes good conversation and can appreciate eating good healthy food.
Note: If you are a French, Spanish or Italian native speaker we often ask you to do translations into English.
Gardening
DIY and building projects
General Maintenance
Farmstay help
Help with Eco Projects
If you have any question about the Spanish language we can give you a good answer because we are fluent in Spanish and also have spent many years as language teachers, if your level of Spanish is good enough you could speak to us in Spanish however the main language at our farm is English. You will probably learn a lot about growing your own food and self sufficiency.
The most important thing is that you like gardening and helping outside.
Here are some examples of the help. Skim the dead insects off the swimming pool, sweep up the terraces, weed the flowerbed, weed the vegetable plot, plant out lettuces, go with me to collect mulch on the tractor, plant trees and bushes, repair the irrigation system, pick peaches and other fruit, staple paper bags around the apples to stop the birds eating them, paint a wall, varnish a door, clean out the barbecue, cut the grass on the lawn, pick walnuts, crack almonds and walnuts for the muesli. Pick broad beans. Plant seeds. Help with fencing. Let the chickens out. Shut the chickens up. Collect horse manure. Teach us something we don't know.
Sometimes during the week we go and do chores in a house on the edge of Granada doing painting and gardening help.
English: Fluent
Spanish: Fluent
There are 2 self-contained independent apartments for the volunteers and we shuffle the people around to get the best combination.
For breakfast we normally eat our delicious healthy muesli which has our own nuts in. For midday meal we try to eat stuff that we have grown ourselves with either fish or meat. In the evenings in the summer we have gazpacho or other ways of eating the abundance of really nice tomatoes, pepper, aubergines etc that we grow. We often cook outside on the barbecue. We have a wood oven for pizzas, bread and roasting etc. We eat mostly vegetarian food but we are not strict vegetarians. If you have special dietary requirements you must tell us when you contact us. We don't take vegans or people who don't eat eggs.
The cortijo is 6km from the nearest sleepy village which has a population of about 1000. We have a good 22 mega per second internet connection. Wifi is available in the main lounge and in outside areas but not everywhere. You can use skype.
As the electricity system is solar you have to be careful to switch off lights and not waste electricity. We have 2 mountain bicycles. There are lots of interesting walks all around the mountains. It would be very unsuitable for a city person who hates the countryside.
Andalucia is very hot in August, as we are 1200 metres high it is much more pleasant than lower down.
Important: There is plenty of time to connect to social media and keep in contact with your friends via internet when you are here. However, if you are so addicted to using your iphone that it prevents you from interacting with new people then please don't come here.
Very shy introverted people who almost never say anything don't tend to enjoy it much here, if you are in that category you should choose a less sociable workaway place. We have volunteers to do some work and make life more fun. There is nothing wrong with being a very quiet person but we want sociable people.
What you can do on your days off: As most of the workawayers don't have their own transport we have often taken everyone out on excursions. In the past we have taken people down to the beach and a few times we have let everyone stay in a house we have in Granada. There is a lake about 6km way which is good for swimming, we often take everyone down there on Sundays.
It is is necessary that you like eating vegetables. We don't take people who don't like tomatoes, who can't eat perfectly good things just because of the texture or fussy eaters in general.
We don't take volunteers with pets or children.
Almost everyone who comes here leaves more healthy, more relaxed, fitter and happier than when they arrived.
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
This option would only be a good idea for long term stays.
This host can provide space for campervans.
More than two
5 hours per day, 5 days a week
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