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Description
Apart for our general hosting text below, we now have a specific cry for help for this (late) winter /early spring, namely:
We are looking for a (couple of) Workawayer(s) who can put together a greenhouse I bought for the vegetable garden. I got 3 boxes with all the components, but assembling/constructing it is beyond me. When I bought it, I clearly misjudged what building it up here would imply.
So if you have experience with constructing or similar DIY projects, and if this is something you think you can do, please contact us. (I could help a little maybe, and my son-in-law -who was our Workawayer two years ago- also says he can occasionally help.)
What period would be up to you, only it would be nice if it could be finished before April - sowing season.
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We, mother and daughter, run a 15-acres smallholding in the southern part of the Netherlands..
On our farm we have some 12 to 14 Icelandic horses (including a beautiful frisky little filly foal, born thisMay!); some of them are ours, some are here just for a limited period of time, to be trained.
We also have some chickens (for the eggs), some sheep (our weed controllers), dogs and cats.
Our farm borders on the woods; the environment is beautiful and quiet. A nice starting point for long walks and cycling trips, while yet we are less than a mile away from the nearest village.
My daughter works as a part-time psychologist; the major part of her time, however, is spent taking care of the horses and training them.
I, the mother, (a linguist by education,) tend to most of the other chores: fruit trees, vegetable garden, fences, sawing/splitting wood for the wood stove, etc.
There is always a great variety of things to be done around here, and it will be obvious we are looking for Workawayers who like animals and who are used to - and like to do - outdoors work.
Types of help and learning opportunities
Gardening
Animal Care
Farmstay help
Help around the house
General Maintenance
UN sustainablity goals this host is trying to achieve
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
Staying here you will have plenty of opportunity to enjoy our beautiful Dutch nature and countryside, while at the same time the bigger cities with their cultural input are within easy reach.
The farm itself borders on the woods, where you find walking trails, ponds, and if you are lucky you may spot deer, buzzards and other wildlife.
There are several nice little villages within walking/cycling distance. And if you like some more ‘cultural’ or big-city input, you can there catch a bus to one of the larger towns close by, like Helmond and Eindhoven, where also there are railway stations and trains to other cities like ‘s-Hertogenbosch (20 minutes)- the beautiful old capital of this region- or to any other city in our country.
You will have a good bicycle at your disposal, and you may come with either of us when we go somewhere by car. Of course you may also join us to the movies or to other places we visit (for work or otherwise).
Help
We very much like to have some help now and then, for a week or a few weeks at a time.
We have quite a few horses here, many of them, though, belong to other people and are brought in for specific training programs by Lara. And though, of course, you are welcome to watch, it will be only very occasionally that Workawayers will be able to help with this.
On the other hand, there are always horses that can do with some extra TLC and that love to be groomed or walked.
In general, however, the work will involve other sundry farm chores, such as helping with cleaving/stacking wood, maybe work in the vegetable garden, cutting hedges, anything you can think of that needs to be done on a (small) farm.
(Also cooking and/or baking once in a while, is very much appreciated!)
And if you think up something else: feel welcome to share your ideas with us!
We have recently acquired some 12 extra acres of land, which allowed us to finally build our much-desired ‘horses’ paradise’ with adventurous paths for the horses to roam. It makes the horses’ life a lot more natural and interesting.
Also we have planted some 1400 young trees and shrubs dividing the new land into 7 separate fields.
Depending on the goodwill of the province and other authorities, we will this summer and autumn be busy with the next project involving (a.o.) putting up a long fence somewhere and planting over a thousand baby trees along the little stream bordering some of the fields. These will then have the subsequent winter months to take root.
In short: a lot of exciting and creative things to do!
For all this, we very much appreciate help from Workawayers who really like - and have some experience in - outdoors work.
We start work every day at 9, with a coffee break at about 11. Lunch is at about 13.30 or 14.00 o'clock, which for our Workawayers means the end of their working day.
Also, of course, you are welcome to have dinner with us early evenings.
After dinner we usually like to spend the evening having some time to ourselves.
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Dutch: Fluent
German: Intermediate
Spanish: Beginner
French: Beginner
Accommodation
Staying here you will have your own room. The kitchen is used as a common area; also we have an additional “Workawayers’ den”.
What else ...
I have been a Workawayer myself on several occasions, and with those experiences in mind we hope to be able to help you with whatever you , as a foreigner, would like to see and do here in Holland. There will always be things we ourselves do not think of; please feel welcome to ask questions and discuss whatever you would want to talk about.
Please take note: you need to have your own insurance, working here!
Also, we are explicitly looking for non-smoking Workawayers. And please read the Workaway 'rules' to see what's generally being expected of Workawayers.
In these difficult Corona times we follow the rules as issued by the RIVM, so please find out what they are, and think about what they mean for a stay at our farm.
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Can host digital nomads
This host has indicated that they love having digital nomads stay.
Space for parking camper vans
This host can provide space for campervans.
How many Workawayers can stay?
Two
Hours expected
Maximum 4-5 hours a day, 5 days a week
Feedback (16)
Thank you so much for welcoming me so warmly in your house. I had a really nice and quiet stay with some beautiful afternoons. The work was hard, but it gave back a lot, especially the Ecological Zone. And you have done the seemingly impossible: I have learned to enjoy the woodwork! But only with the cleaving machine. ;)
I would… read more
You are one of those Workawayers that we are sad to see leave. We shared some very busy weeks here, with pig( problem)s, woodwork, and of course the planting and sowing in the new Ecological Zone. Those were exhausting and long working days, but even though as a Workawayer no-one could expect you to keep on going, you did. And very… read more
During your stay we were very busy with woodwork - collecting, cleaving, stacking wood- and of course: the pigs!! Gathering windfall and acorns for the pigs, while us trying to lure them into the horsetrailer turned into a sort of 'pig-wrestling' adventure, fit to be shown on the 'funiest home video' show. Thank you for all your help… read more
<3
Thank you for welcoming me into your home. This was an amazing experience and just what I needed. Being that this was my first workaway experience, I was unsure of what to expect. You welcomed me with open arms and cooked some delicious meals. The work was both challenging and rewarding, and true to your word, exactly what was… read more
Thank you for everything you did here, from gathering acorns and windfall for the piggies to painting the new little overhang for Lara's 'playmobile', and everything in between. Also it was really nice to find we had so much to share, so many similar experiences, both from our personal lives and from both our backgrounds on the… read more
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Thank you so much for welcoming me so warmly in your house. I had a really nice and quiet stay with some beautiful afternoons. The work was hard, but it gave back a lot, especially the Ecological Zone. And you have done the seemingly impossible: I have learned to enjoy the woodwork! But only with the cleaving machine. ;)
I would… read more
You are one of those Workawayers that we are sad to see leave. We shared some very busy weeks here, with pig( problem)s, woodwork, and of course the planting and sowing in the new Ecological Zone. Those were exhausting and long working days, but even though as a Workawayer no-one could expect you to keep on going, you did. And very… read more
During your stay we were very busy with woodwork - collecting, cleaving, stacking wood- and of course: the pigs!! Gathering windfall and acorns for the pigs, while us trying to lure them into the horsetrailer turned into a sort of 'pig-wrestling' adventure, fit to be shown on the 'funiest home video' show. Thank you for all your help… read more
<3
Thank you for welcoming me into your home. This was an amazing experience and just what I needed. Being that this was my first workaway experience, I was unsure of what to expect. You welcomed me with open arms and cooked some delicious meals. The work was both challenging and rewarding, and true to your word, exactly what was… read more
Thank you for everything you did here, from gathering acorns and windfall for the piggies to painting the new little overhang for Lara's 'playmobile', and everything in between. Also it was really nice to find we had so much to share, so many similar experiences, both from our personal lives and from both our backgrounds on the… read more
Life here was very different from your everyday life in front of your computer; you were very far from your comfort zone and had to acquire completely unfamiliar skills. You worked hard, though, and in the short time you were here, you were a great help in clearing the garden and working on the courgette and pumpkin field. Thank you!… read more
From day one I understood the beauty of this authentic farm life, completely surrounded by nature and peace in it’s simplest form. Christine (and Lara) have managed to create a… read more
We were really happy having you here; you know that. Always helpful with everything: the vegetable garden, the sheep, the horses, etc. It was lovely seeing that you so much enjoyed being here, working in the peace and quiet of our ranch, and even helping Lara with the horses, and getting some riding lessons yourself! We also also loved… read more
We felt home really quickly, waking up mostly every morning with a lot of Curacao music 🇨🇼, and had interesting talks about cultural aspects and English language .
We enjoyed the satisfying work we achieved there such as upgrading the… read more
I was truely very happy hosting you; you did a lot of work in the few days you were here, and you were lovely company to have around! It was a joy working together, or doing my own thing knowing I could leave other work to you, that I could rely on you to do everything in a responsible way.
Also I very much enjoyed our… read more
She welcomed me into her home, letting me experience their culture, their habits...and she is an EXCELLENT TEACHER of english (and many other langueges...soon also italian) BRAVA!!! :)
Christine is an independent woman, you have to let her explain how to do things her… read more
I just dropped you off at the busstop for you to get to the airport to fly back to Italy.
We are a bit sad to see you go. It was great to have such a nice, friendly and helpful person around.
Thank you for everything you did: your help in cutting the hedges, clearing away all those branches from everywhere around, getting the area… read more
I wish you all the best with your plans for the future, and hope you will soon find your much-longed-for place to finally settle down.
I had a wonderful time in your gorgeous farm, singing with you, working in the garden, playing games, the Greek restaurant and walking in the forest! I loved when you sang, it made the work more joyful and it finished faster.
Thank you so so much for letting me experience a little bit of how the day by day of your farm is!
Warm… read more
They cheerfully did an enormous… read more
I stayed with Christine and Lara for two weeks this summer, and my stay reached all my expectations (and even more!). I felt warmly welcome from the first day and enjoyed my time there fully until the last one.
The activity around the farm and the type of work are very accurately described in the profile. My work was varied: preparing… read more
Christine and Lara established such a unique place, where I felt welcome and right at home. The 'farm' is a place of nature, hard work, rest, discoveries, challenges and… read more
Christine and Lare, thank you very much for the experience!
You were here for only a short time, but we really enjoyed your stay. Also it was nice that you and our other Workawayer Kim, got along so well. Thanks for your enthusiastic help, for your ‘super-sweet’ desert and for leaving that recipe with us. We were glad that also you could make it to our Workawayers’ reunion weekend. See you… read more
I was happy to share with her my interest in organic farming ; together we went to see the film ‘The… read more
The work is not hard at all, the four hours are over before you know it ;) I mainly took care of the horses, painted the stable and I harvested different kind of berries and apples.… read more
I hope you succeed in getting into university here to complete your studies, and maybe you will then also find a good soccer team to play… read more
Hardworking, cheerful, helped with the cooking after a long day, and baked us some lovely cakes. In her time off she went for bicycle trips and long walks to the surrounding villages and through the beautiful springtime woods. She even taught our other (Irish) Workawayer some Dutch lessons; and very effectively… read more
