Join our utopian living surrounded by wildlife near Windhoek, Namibia

Details

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  Description

  When I turned 65 last year, I decided to slow down work a bit and focus on a personal project which is to convert an army truck into a expedition camper based on the same sustainable principle I use in my business. For that, I will ideally need workaway people to help me convert the truck into a camper... people with special skills like car/truck mechanics, structural engineering, woodwork, cabinet working...
  
  About myself... I am a scientist (biologist) and an artist (photographer). I love nature and to create from concept to finish. I am originally from French Belgium which I left in 1994 for a 4-year expedition through Africa that ended in Cape Town where I lived for 19 years. Now in Namibia since 2016. I have 2 grown-up kids, Enya & James.
  
  Roberta - my partner - is Brazilian and speaks Portuguese, Spanih, French & English. She loves nature and travel. She is a lawyer who has the privilege of working remotely.
  
  Anne aka Grany - my mother - is 94 and in very good shape. She also lives on the estate in her studio. Granny only speaks French but she master Google Translate conversation and even AI now!
  
  The Utopia off-grid estate is located on a game farm 15 km North of Windhoek. We have 13 giraffes and a lot of game including springboks, impalas, elands, wildebeeste, hartebeeste, zebras, jackals & warthogs who often come to drink at the waterholes next to our house. It is a great privilege to live in such a beautiful place and so close to the city.
  
  Workaway people will certainly enjoy the peacefulness of the place and learn from living in a multilingual environment. They will also learn a lot of useful skills with us and sometimes when Roberta & I are away, they will look after granny and our 2 GS-wolf dogs.
  
  We own and run a company in sustainability practices to be applied to living spaces. We are a small but very creative company; I and my son James who just completed his Bachelor degree in architecture in Munich and 1-2 permanent employees. Some example of our creations are furniture made of recycled material such as wooden palettes or wire drums and alien wood. The employees also look after the property as living off grid on a farm always implies things to do.
  
  Accommodation for workaway people will be in a big tent that we erect in the garden near a shaded outdoor kitchen or in the guest room of the main house depending who is around the property.
  
  Depending on the responsibility and amount of work the workaway people want to contribute, we will offer free accommodation, some food or occasionally basic wages.

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Art Projects

  Language practice

  Help with Eco Projects

  Elderly Companionship

  Gardening

  DIY and building projects

  Animal Care

  Help around the house

  General Maintenance

  House sitting
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  Interests

  

  Van life

  

  Technology

  

  Sustainability

  

  Self development

  

  Plant care

  

  Photography

  

  Cooking & food

  

  Carpentry

  

  Animals

  

  Art & design

  

  Nature

  

  Mountain

  

  Hiking

  

  Camping
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  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  We are multilingual... English (main language), French (Granny), Portuguese (Roberta), Spanish & a bit of Japanese ;)

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  Help

  The current projects are building furniture (i.e. last one was a wooden bed integrated in a mokoro, Botswana pirogue), converting a 6x6 army truck into a camper and maybe building a camper on a Ford Ranger.
  
  The workaway people will also learn many practical skills useful for living in a sustainable way, maintaining off-grid estate, repairing, wood work, gardening, taking care of dogs and at the same time look at the wildlife around the wonderful estate.

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  Languages

  Languages spoken
  English: Fluent
  Spanish: Fluent
  French: Fluent
  Portuguese: Fluent
  Japanese: Beginner

  This host offers a language exchange
  Granny has been teaching French to some workaway people and both have enjoyed it a lot.
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  Accommodation

  Luxury tent with good mattress & bedding or in guest room in main house when house sitting. The ablutions are in the workshop building. No charge

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  What else ...

  Depending on the responsibility and amount of work the workaway people want to contribute, we will offer free accommodation, some food or occasionally basic wages for very specialised work..

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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

  They will love it.

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  Space for parking camper vans

  Big with ablutions

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  How many Workawayers can stay?

  Two

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  My animals / pets

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