Profile information
Host rating
90 %
Reply rate
85.7 %
Usually responds within 2 days
Feedback
28
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Details
Description
Come and stay at a warm house that's in the city (40 min bicycle to the old square central moat) in the ancient ruins of Wiang Kum Kam...and a beautiful farm / forest outside Chiang Mai city.
WORK
This is not a business, it's a private home. I've always got lots of projects happening, mostly carpentry (cutting and sanding), cleaning and gardening. Some people have done paintings others have built walls, it really depends on the moment. We have chickens and pheasants that need feeding just around the corner by an ancient chedi (stupa), I love doing it just before going to work^^
START
We accept volunteers to try starting WEDNESDAYS or THURSDAYS. By Sunday, we all usually agree on how long their stay is.
WHO
My wife and I are FULL-TIME teachers, Monday - Friday 8:00-16:00 I can meet discuss the arrangement after work. My Thai wife also teaches. She is tremendously considerate and helpful and can speak English excellently. I am a Canadian man who has lived in Asia for 19 years. I am easy to drink and happy driving around the countryside. I work full-time at a high-school and look for people who have independence and flexibility.
FOOD
I will treat you for meals if I'm with you at meal times. so Mon-Fri = always dinners with me and you normally find your own break/lunch. Everyone has left here having tried lots of different foods!
We welcome workawayers 28 and older. I probably will not answer if you are near 20. I really like couples or groups of friends.
I do not use a smartphone so do not think I can reply all the time. I don't have Whatsapp yet. I make appointments and meet there. I probably will not answer if your request shows you haven't read much of this, just because I don't have the extra time.
Types of help and learning opportunities
Help with Eco Projects
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Animal Care
Farmstay help
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Help around the house
General Maintenance
Help with Computers/ Internet
UN sustainablity goals this host is trying to achieve
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
I am happy to show you some basic carpentry and other skills and let you practice. We have bicycles you can borrow and sometimes motorbikes you can borrow/rent.
We have always taken WAers hiking and to a few destinations outside the city for fun. We often go to lakes and have dinners. I'll take you to a few of the really local bars, have you try some Thai drinks and play bocce ball / boules with the locals.
Obviously the history of Chiang Mai is evident in the ruins and I have enough knowledge about it that I could share as well as general knowledge of Thailand, Thai culture and East Asia.
My wife is a delightful Thai person and WAers have a great time when we take them to special dinners. She's very busy but she'll teach you little bits here and there, cooking, plants, culture and more.
Help
When I understand what you are capable of doing, I can usually think of an interesting project for you to help with.
For people with construction skills, I have a lot of ideas for renovation and beautification. I am slowly setting up a proper work shop.
For highly skilled artists, have paintings and sculptures that need to be made.
At the farm, ongoing watering / weeding / planting is needed.
Languages
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Korean: Intermediate
Thai: Intermediate
German: Beginner
French: Beginner
Indonesian: Beginner
Chinese (Mandarin): BeginnerThis host offers a language exchange
This host has indicated that they are interested in sharing their own language or learning a new language.
You can contact them directly for more information.
Accommodation
Behind the house is a small detached secure room. It is private and has it's own tiny bathroom with a sink, toilet and shower so you can come and go as you please.
The 3 x 4m guesthouse (not including the bathroom) is slowly being decorated and furnished. We have a single bed and a small table and fan (no air-con) and we have other mattresses. (we can sometimes include a bar fridge) just like a small hotel room^^ You can use our washing machine and we have a hot plate and a wok you can share but usually people cook and eat together with us.
If there are many WAers, we sometimes invite you to stay with us in the main house. People staying in the main house must be prepared to leave the house (which we lock) Mon-Fri 7:30-16:00. You can still stay on the property and there is an external toilet with a shower so you can wake up slowly^^
What else ...
The farm is right near a fantastic reservoir dam...stunning sunsets! It's in a wonderful area to bicycle around. There's a mountain temple which looks over all of Chiang Mai basin. If you like to, 10 minutes away is a rather great mini-golf with mini Eiffel tower and everything!
At the house in the city, I have a couple bicycles to borrow for free. We have motorcycles for rent if you want.
In the city: For vegetarians, we have 2 great restaurants nearby; Happy Green is 5 mins by scooter/30 mins walking, a bit closer is a no-name shop (Guan Im) and in many people's opinion is one of the best value in the whole city.
There are tons of old ruins of ancient temples within 5 minutes of the house, while nowhere near as impressive as Sukhothai or Ayutthaya, they are still romantic. The main road nearby is the Chiang Mai-Lamphun road which is lined by towering 100 year old rubber trees (google: Dipterocarpus alatus) and is a great day trip to Lamphun. It's very easy to get to downtown Chiang Mai by red truck during the day, about 15 mins, or 10mins by scooter to the very centre of the city.
The location is very convenient for leaving Chiang Mai as well by all means, airport, bus station and train station are almost straight down one road or another.
On motorbike, it's very easy to go to the southern end of Suthep mountain (the main mountain in Chiang Mai city) and go on the famous Sameong loop
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Can host digital nomads
I'm not fond of the 'digital nomads' I've met so far but I don't mind someone who does a little extra work online
Space for parking camper vans
Lots of space!
Can possibly accept pets
It would have to stay in your little room and there may be restrictions with it on the property as we have birds. Also street cats and dogs come by frequently
How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
Hours expected
maybe a 2-4 hours a day during the week & 5 hours a day on Saturday-Sunday (max 25 hours)
Feedback (13)
We spent 3 weeks with Ora and Daniel and enjoyed our stay so much.They are very caring people, friendly and welcoming. They live in a beautiful typical Thai neighborhood not far from the city center. The volunteers house is separate and quite small, but has everything one needs, even its own bathroom. The work was comparatively very… read more
Feedback
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Accuracy of profile:
(5.0)
Cultural exchange:
(5.0)
Communication:
(5.0)
We spent 3 weeks with Ora and Daniel and enjoyed our stay so much.They are very caring people, friendly and welcoming. They live in a beautiful typical Thai neighborhood not far from the city center. The volunteers house is separate and quite small, but has everything one needs, even its own bathroom. The work was comparatively very… read more
For his first time in Asia, he was completely at ease. He happily ate everything, his attitude towards daily routines… read more
I also cooked some… read more
For the visitors, the task may vary depend the day, little of sanding, maintaining the place, garden plants, fix or paint somthing that need to be done,also they… read more
we built a wall like the temple just near his house to replace the grilling. when daniel came back from his job he discovery us the local life, and good restaurant.
thanks very… read more
They were extremely nice and welcoming to us. Always ready to share stories and go for a ride to show us around.
The house is about an hour outside the city (walking or by bus number 2), which makes it great to get to know the real life in Chiang Mai. The neighborhood is full of local shops with wonderful… read more
