Help us out with our home and large gardens in Sainte Hermine, France

Details

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  Description

  We are a Canadian couple with two teenage children who are 17 and 14 years old, and have been living in Europe for the past 25+ years.
  
  My wife is in Canada for the month of August with the kids so I am on my own trying to manage everything.
  
  Basically, we ( I ) need help with general house maintenance/cleaning and the large gardens, for the house, this can be anything from dusting and vacuuming to helping clean out garages of old building materials and other odds and ends to take to the recycling depot / décheterie. For the gardens this can be trimming, cutting, clean-up, watering etc., nothing that is heavy work but there is always something (or many things) that need to be done.
  
  There are also some bigger projects like painting shutters and interior painting that need to be done but aren't currently high priority.

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Light gardening

  Creative DIY projects

  Creating/ Cooking family meals

  Help around the house

  Light maintenance
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  Interests

  

  Gardening

  

  Carpentry

  

  Yoga / Wellness

  

  Winter sports

  

  Pets

  

  Culture

  

  Self development

  

  Sustainability

  

  Vegetarian or vegan

  

  DIY & crafts

  

  Animals

  

  Nature

  

  Fitness

  

  Sailing / Boating

  

  Water sports

  

  Beach

  

  Adventure sports
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  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  You will have the opportunity to learn new skills and improve your existing skills related to home and garden maintenance while having the opportunity to live on a luxury property with a laid back, easy going and fun English/French speaking family. You will also be able to improve your language skills in both French and English if you wish, however our first language is English so you will not be 'immersed' in a full French environment as we usually speak English in our family. Having said that, Warren is happy to speak exclusively in French to our workawayers to help them improve their French but you will need a decent level of French to begin with, we're not a French school ;-) You can enjoy living in a beautiful region in France, have the opportunity to explore the local area, and take in the culture and sites.

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  Projects involving children

  This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.

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  Help

  The general help we require is a little different everyday but there are many tasks that go with the general upkeep of our house and gardens that we need help with since both are large and we have very busy schedules! These tasks include some light yard work (watering, weeding, trimming (with electric trimmers or clippers) cutting the grass, planting or harvesting fruit and vegetables etc.), painting, cleaning out/organising garages, cleaning, dusting and vacuuming throughout the house etc. and generally just trying to stay on top of the dusting, vacuuming and tidying required in a very old house that has been renovated to the highest standard to keep it looking its best.
  
  Overall, whether it's helping around the house or on one of the bigger projects, it’s critical to be organised and to take the initiative without needing to be asked but you will be part of our family so not expected to do anything completely on your own, high energy and enthusiasm are the most important assets you can bring!
  
  We provide full room and board in a private room in the house.

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  Languages

  Languages spoken
  English: Fluent
  French: Fluent
  Dutch: Intermediate
  Portuguese: Intermediate
  Spanish: Beginner

  This host offers a language exchange
  Would love to learn Spanish
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  Accommodation

  Bedroom with king size bed and two ensuite bathrooms, one with shower and sink, one with bathtub and sink
  Located in a beautiful village with restaurants, pubs, bakeries, grocery store etc.

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  What else ...

  This is a wonderful escape to the French countryside and way of life. While we live in a French only environment (outside of our home) and it's therefore helpful if you can speak a little French, it is not necessary and we can help you improve your French and/or English while you are here since we are bilingual and we also speak a little Dutch and Brazilian Portugese.
  
  This region is second in tourism in France behind only the Cote D'Azur so there are many things to do in the area from beaches and surfing to chateaux and wine tasting and everything in between. There is a good network of buses and trains and our helpers in the past have often used ride sharing (BlaBla car) as a quick, easy and cheap way to get around.
  
  Please bear in mind that even though we're not far from many bigger towns and cities (Bordeaux, Nantes and La Rochelle to name a few), this is a small country town of about 3000 people so if you're looking for more of the bustling city life with lots of people around all the time then this definitely isn't for you.
  
  If you're looking for something slower paced, quieter and closer to nature while still enjoying many nearby amenities then this is definitely for you!
  
  Please drop us a note if you're interested to learn more-we'd love to chat!

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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 work from home and have good Wifi coverage in the house.

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  Can possibly accept pets

  We can accept a dog or cat. For dogs, they cannot be aggressive or bark a lot because we live in the middle of the town. It's also important they are well behaved and won't dig in the garden.

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  How many Workawayers can stay?

  Two

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