Help an artist with natural building and gardening in Granit, Bulgaria

Details

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  Description

  I am an visual artist, painter and a teacher of fine arts. I am living in a village, growing small permaculture garden, build and reconstruct a house from natural materials. I love listening and making music. Some of my other activities are playing clarinet and singing in a musical group, performing Bulgarian and Balkan folklore.
  I live in a village called Granit. It is located in Starozagorski region. Located in the Upper Thracian plain, the village is part of one of the most fertile lands in the country. Agriculture is a traditional livelihood for a large part of the inhabitants of the area. The village is located about 20 kilometers from the town of Chirpan and about 50 kilometers from the city of Plovdiv.

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Charity Work

  Art Projects

  Help with Eco Projects

  Gardening

  DIY and building projects

  Animal Care

  Farmstay help

  Creating/ Cooking family meals

  Help around the house

  General Maintenance
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  UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

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  What's this?
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  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  Volunteers will benefit from the cultural exchange with me as I am passionate about different cultural fields and activities. On the one hand, I deal with visual art and painting, and I have an interest in the theory and history of visual art. By profession, I am a teacher of fine arts. I am also attracted to ethnic music in general and Balkan folklore. I play the clarinet together with a musical formation for authentic Bulgarian folklore. Another occupation and permanent interest of mine is construction with natural materials, earth construction, and the study of the various possibilities, techniques and methods in this field. Another thing I deal with is sustainable agriculture. I cultivate a small permaculture garden in which I grow about 30 types of vegetables, legumes, spices. I am guided by the principles of natural farming and make my own selection of seeds. Another important thing is the sharing of experience from the local cuisine, because by preparing meals from own and local products, processing and preserving food, the volunteers will get to know the culture of the region and its peculiarities.
  
  My interaction with the volunteers will be on few different levels. On the one hand, I could share my experience of practicing sustainable agriculture by planting plants together and taking care of the vegetables in the garden. They will be fully involved in the process. They will also have the opportunity to immerse themselves in building with natural materials and, under my guidance, learn about the different techniques, stages, materials and apply their knowledge to different construction projects. Another experience and knowledge I could share is the practice of painting and fine arts. Volunteers could be involved in the process of creating a work of art, and if they wish they could be introduced to basic principles, pictorial methods, drawing and painting techniques. I would also be happy to share knowledge in the field of art theory and history in the form of a lecture or talk. Volunteers will have the opportunity to feel part of the team and family by being involved in joint activities, sharing and eating food together, and talking and interacting with people from the local community. I hope to learn from the visitors more about the culture of the country they come from.
  
  Building tasks: Volunteers will have the opportunity to learn from practice interesting and creative techniques of construction with natural materials, for example they can get involved in helping to build a building from clay and straw, using the cob technique and stone masonry for the foundation. Also, volunteers can get involved and learn some methods related to building an interior from natural materials, such as reed ceiling insulation or sunflower stems, Clay plaster on a wall, building non-wall niches from clay, building a wooden floor, traditional Moroccan waterproof lime plaster Tadelakt and others.

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  Help

  I will be happy to host energetic people who will be interested in building from natural materials, doing permaculture gardening, maintenance of house and yard.

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  Languages

  Languages spoken
  Bulgarian: Fluent
  English: Intermediate

  This 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.
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  Accommodation

  I offer private accommodation room for one person. With shared kitchen, bathroom and compost toilet.
  
  Food will be an important part of the exchange, as volunteers will learn more about local foods, traditional varieties of vegetables and get to experience the national cuisine. Growing the plants and preparing the food are part of the experience, knowledge acquisition and cultural exchange that I offer. I offer three vegetarian meals a day, usually made from local, seasonal produce.

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  What else ...

  I live in a village which is close to city of Plovdiv, cultural and touristic destination. Near by the village, there are beautiful nature, ethnographic expositions, art gallery. In the village are living artists. The sights that can be explored in the area are mostly natural and archeological. The oldest tree in Bulgaria is located in the center of the village, an oak about 1680 years old. Another interesting natural landmark is the }
  "Chirpan Bunar" protected area, which is located a few kilometers southwest of the village. It is a cave and karst spring, home to various rare species of birds and mammals. Other interesting places near the village are the Ancient Thracian megaliths located in Sarnena Sredna Gora and the domed tomb "Momina Mogila" in the village of Bratya Daskalovi. One of the interesting destinations nearby is Plovdiv, a city with an ancient history and a multicultural environment, where you can see and explore the old town from the 19th century, the archaeological remains from the time of the Roman Empire, art galleries, traditional crafts and much more other stuff.

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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

  I have a room suitable for people doing such work and a good internet connection

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  Space for parking camper vans

  I have a space suitable for parking a large caravan

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  Can possibly accept pets

  I can accept pets, but only if they live in the yard of the house.

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  How many Workawayers can stay?

  More than two

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  Hours expected

  Maximum 4-5 hours a day, 5 days a week

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