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Description
I am a marine biologist (remotely completing my PhD) and mother of two sweet boys (both under 2 at the time of writing this). My husband (an expert consultant for architechtural software), children and I live on Macleay Island a small residential island located just south of Brisbane. Our house is a 2 minute walk down to the water, and we can see the bay across the road through the windows. Our neighbours and the community in general is incredibly warm and friendly. Life here is simple, tranquil and beautiful. We wake up to the sun rising through our windows with glimpses of the water just beyond. The house is often filled with the smell of fresh bread baking. Children grow up running wild, swimming in the bay, riding bicycles, climbing trees and playing in the dirt. Nearly everyone on the island has a boat of some kind, and so do we. The island is about 7km long from top to bottom and comes with the necessities - an adorable gelato shop, two medical centres, a grocery store, a few cafes and clubs and a gas station. It's a quick 15 minute ferry ride to get to the mainland (Redland Bay) and from there a 45 minute taxi ride to Brisbane airport, or a bus ride to anywhere else you need to get to. You get the feeling of being completely remote and isolated while actually being quite conveniently near the city when you need it.
For some, this is a nice place to spend a quiet few days, and for some, it is a place to spend longer, settling into the simple lifestyle. But one way or another, whoever you are, you will probably love it :)
Types of help and learning opportunities
Language practice
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Babysitting and creative play
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Help around the house
General Maintenance
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
My husband and I have always felt that travel is most about connecting with people and cultures, and so we are excited to host friends from diverse cultures in our home as a way of traveling without traveling, and hope to offer a unique experience to our guests as well. Staying with us on Macleay Island you will be exposed to a welcoming community that is almost completely Australian, while living with a family that is half Indian half Persian. We love playing music (we have a number of instruments in our home - a piano, guitars, a cello and other assorted small instruments), singing, sharing prayers together with friends from different faiths, and playing games. The island culture is all swimming, kayaking, going for walks and bicycle rides, and congregating at the gelato shop. We have a small boat that can be taken out, weather provided, to really experience the joys of living on the island. The community itself hosts various activities as well. A brass band practices at the community hall every Sunday, two artisans market are held each month, there are art sessions for children or families held at parks, and various other group activities that run weekly.
We hope that we will also be able to experience a little bit of the world through you. With our children being so young, having international guests is a wonderful way for them to learn about different languages, cultures and cuisines, improve their socialisation skills and build an all-embracing worldview.
Projects involving children
This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.
Help
We would love to welcome you into our home and life, and with two young children and two working parents, there is plenty of help we need.
- If you are good in the garden, or just willing, it is in constant need of attention: weeding, trimming, mowing, etc. and it would be a blessing to have someone help with it. Right now it is in a particularly overgrown state, being quite neglected since our 2 month old son was born.
- If you are good with children, playing with our older son (almost 2yo) while we work would be super helpful.
- If you like to cook vegetarian food, we are all vegetarians and someone taking on the task of cooking a few meals helps free time for us to do other things.
- If you are handy and like building things, we will probably have some project around the house that needs help (cementing something, trying to build a treehouse or construct a shed, etc.).
- If you are happy to perform house cleaning jobs (vaccuuming, scrubbing bathroom tiles, etc.) that is always helpful too.
Generally, most of the work we need help with is around the house, but if you have a particular skill you think might be helpful that I haven't thought of here, we'd love to hear about it. We are an English speaking family, so if you need to practice English this would be a great opportunity to do so. If you happen to be interested in learning Farsi, my husband has been teaching it to our sons so you'll get exposed to that as well :)
Languages
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Persian (Farsi): Fluent
Hindi: FluentThis 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
We have a single bedroom with a double bed available for you to stay in. It is east-facing, so the sun rises through the window over the garden. There is a bathroom just across the hall from your room, and another one located outside just through the back door.
We eat simple, vegetarian meals. Breakfast is generally cereal, milk and fruits. Lunch and dinner in our house often may be rice or bread with vegetables/lentils, pasta/lasagna, dosas (Indian crepes), homemade pizzas, Turkish gozlemes or pides, Persian aush soup, etc. We can have meals together and would welcome your assistance with cooking. We'd love to also try any vegetarian recipes you have up your sleeve! If you'd like to eat out anytime there are a handful of places on the island open for lunch or dinner.
What else ...
The island is a lovely place to spend some time, with strong artistic community. There is an arts centre walking distance from our home, and the two main beaches are also within walking distance. To get to the shops or ferry you will have to drive (we can either drive you or you can borrow the car if we don't need it), take bicycles (we have two bicycles and an electric bike.. the island is quite hilly so you'll need to be up to the task), or catch a taxi (there is a share taxi van that operates on the island). Once you're at the ferry terminal, you can catch a ferry to one of the other islands nearby (there are 3, <10 min ferry to any) or to the mainland (~15 min ferry ride). From the mainland (Redland Bay Marina) you can get to anywhere in Brisbane via bus (or often multiple buses). Google maps will give you an overview of public transport options from Redland Bay Marina.
Life with two small children comes with a few adjustments which you will have to mould to as well while staying with us. Our older son sleeps for a few hours in the afternoon and he is a very sensitive sleeper so these hours are quiet, no-noise time inside the house. We also sleep quite early, by 8:45 - 9 pm, so after this the rest of the night is also no-noise time. If you happen to be a smoker, we request that you please do not smoke while staying with us unless you are out on your own.
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Can host digital nomads
This host has indicated that they love having digital nomads stay.
How many Workawayers can stay?
Two
My animals / pets
