Profile information
Host rating
90 %
Last replied
23 Dec 2024
Reply rate
76.5 %
Usually responds within 2 days
Feedback
127
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Details
Description
Hello, we are a Dutch-US couple who live and work in the southern part of the province of Mendoza, near the town of San Rafael.
We live in a rural area surrounded by vineyards and orchards. We run a small vineyard-orchard and we grow apricots, peaches, plums, grapes, and quince. We sell our crops locally and we make preserves and can our fruits.
We keep bees for the production and sale of honey which is harvested several times a season.
We have five dogs and one cat.
At the end of 2021 we completed an eco house, built over the course of 3 years. We received lots of help from workawayers and locals to accomplish this feat.
We love and enjoy international visitors.Types of help and learning opportunities
GardeningDIY and building projectsAnimal CareFarmstay helpCreating/ Cooking family mealsHelp around the houseGeneral MaintenanceHelp with Computers/ InternetUN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
You will get an idea of old fashioned farm life and caring for orchards and vineyards. Depending on the time of year you may participate in harvesting, learn how to can fruits, make yoghurt, bake bread, work with farming tools, burn weeds in controlled fires, beekeeping and/collect honey. Then there is music, birdwatching and cooking to participate in.
Help
We are looking for help on the farm, in the yard and in and around the house. Even though we hire local workers, we can always use extra hands! With spring here we have the gardens, orchards and vineyards to care for. Mostly that consists of weeding, mowing, moving branches and back-up help with any harvests.
We have other work to do, keeping the household running, cooking for several people etc, pet care, maintenance of house, barn and gardens. There are a variety of chores to do!Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Spanish: Fluent
Dutch: FluentAccommodation
We live in a traditional farmhouse to which we have added modern amenities. An apartment attached to the house serves as a guesthouse and it will be used as lodging for workaways. It has its own private bathroom and entrance. A smaller room is available if we host more then 2 workawayers, which we sometimes do. In case we have more than 2 workers, the bathroom is shared. We work and live as a family which means we cook and eat together, clean-up together and spent time together.
What else ...
We live 37 km (20 miles) from San Rafael. We have bus service in front of our house 2x per day. We go to town several times a week and we take along whoever needs a ride. There is a small hamlet 3 km from our house where local shops serve the community for its daily needs.
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
How many Workawayers can stay?
Two
Feedback (57)
The work was very enjoyable and doable. We harvested quinces and olives, collected wood, painted some walls, varnished and looked after the dogs for a couple of days. The dogs are really… read more
Helena and Arnie made me feel at home right away. We quickly found common grounds and a good everyday routine. We shared every meal together and could easily sit at the… read more
We had a good time… read more
Feedback
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Accuracy of profile:
(4.7)
Cultural exchange:
(4.6)
Communication:
(4.6)
The work was very enjoyable and doable. We harvested quinces and olives, collected wood, painted some walls, varnished and looked after the dogs for a couple of days. The dogs are really… read more
Helena and Arnie made me feel at home right away. We quickly found common grounds and a good everyday routine. We shared every meal together and could easily sit at the… read more
We had a good time… read more
They helped with the harvest of apricots and making jam. They put a fresh coat of paint to one of our rooms. They took some nice long walks with the dogs. They helped with everyday household chores. We played wordgames… read more
Management of the workers on our farm threw up some unexpected challenges, which were handled well. We were always kept informed and communication was excellent.
Thank you guys… read more
We simply loved our time with Helena and Arnie. They live on a beautiful farm with their seven dogs in which we totally fell in love with. All surrounded by really nice neighbours who make everybody feel very welcome. There is all kinds of work to do… read more
Some of these jobs included helping out on the farm, in the house, with the cooking and with her 6 dogs, which was an absolute pleasure. She was very… read more
Arnie and Helena are super nice and gave us a warm welcome.… read more
No seriously it was a wonderful time, Arnie was a perfect host (I didn't met Helena), also wine lover. Working around the house or the finca was always a pleasure and participante in a project of ecological house (great architect an team) was a real luck.
We spend meals talking about everything and the other workawayers… read more
I seriously enjoyed working with them on their wonderful finca and they made me feel extremely welcome. The work was varied and presents a great opportunity to understand how a vineyard and fruit farm is run.
They are both extremely knowledgeable and have a great understanding of the local… read more
Day to day I worked in the early morning until lunchtime before it was too hot. Jobs included weeding, painting, tidying the work site and occasionally beekeeping. This meant I could work hard in the… read more
We participated in the everyday life of the farm. We shared… read more
Although it was our first workaway, everything is organized well so that we could fit in quickly.
We got a lot of new experiences. Varnishing logs, cleaning bee boxes and more. They also taught us many things. For example, how to make homemade… read more
They wrote on my profile that we worked hard but let me clarify this. First of all they have accepted us as a member of their family. They treated us like we are one of them. We ate all… read more
We took the bus from San Rafael main station and found it easy… read more
In finca you won’t get… read more
I spent a week with my mother on Helena and Arnie's farm and it was a real pleasure getting to know them.
We had it quite easy which I am grateful for as I was there with my mother. The… read more
Pasamos casi un mes junto a esa pareja maravillosa, super mente abierta y acogedora. Nos sentimos como hijos.
Adoramos pasar el tiempo con ellos y con… read more
Amanda y Vinicius se quedaron con nosotros en nuestra finca en San Rafael en Julio de 2017. Son una pareja joven, my bueno, muy trabajador y con gana de aprender. Nos ayudaron mucho y dejaron su trabajos bien hecho. Ayudaron con el mantenimiento de la vivienda: barnizando y organizando varios librerías, azulejando tableros de cerámica… read more
The work was variously, most of the days we worked in the vineyard but also did other tasks around the house, like cooking, cleaning beams or lawnmowing. It was always interesting, reasonable… read more
We looked after their house when they were away for holiday and we did several jobs like canning grapes, gardening, cutting firewood and of course taking care of the lovely dogs and cats. We learned about beekeeping from Arnie and Helena tought us to make… read more
In the off hours we loved to talk with them about a variety of subjects. Our 5 dogs and 3 cats felt very happy to have them around and lots of tails were… read more
Rochella was a great guest, easy to get along with, a quick learner, once she knew a task she would do them with ease and if needed teach others. Rochella anticipated what needed doing and then would take care of it without being asked. She was a great help, a good worker and wonderful to have around. We wish… read more
We went on a trip to Valle Grande and had… read more
Thanks for making us meet your friends too.
Thanks to you we fear a little less bees now.
We regret to not have met Helena, but with the travel she was doing, we envy… read more