Campervan conversion, gardening, renovation works and DIY projects in Casares coast, southern Spain

Details

• 

  Description

  **UPDATE! We won't be able to receive workawayers until October (we will need someone expertise or highly skilled in carpentry, who can help us with the campervan conversion)**
  
  We are a couple, Michel (Dutch) and Maria Angeles (Spanish), two travelling souls who seem to finally have settled down in beautiful Malaga coast with our two cats Cleo and Kimi.
  
  We are currently in the middle of our DIY Fiat Ducato campervan conversion. And we are doing it mostly entirely by ourselves with no previous experience so we are looking for someone with good knowledge about carpentry, plumbing, solar systems or anything related to van building! We are hoping to finish at some point this year 2024 so we can start the very much dreamt van travels around Europe and Morocco.
  
  At the same time we have recently purchased our new home in Casares coast, Malaga, where we have just moved in. It is a small townhouse with a 100 sq meters back garden/terraces that we would love to convert into a little outdoor paradise full of herbs and flowers! The house itself is about 70 sq. meters and also needs some improvements, as it is over 40 years-old. All of the works we'd like to develop in the garden and renovations in the house (and the campervan!) will follow ecological principles, using natural materials whereas possible, in the hope of making a healthy home :)
  
  A little glimpse about ourselves: we are both quite easy going folks who like to enjoy the small things in life and try to follow a quiet, slow, sustainable, healthy and simple lifestyle where mindfulness and environmental awareness are very present. So far we enjoy very much the coastal lifestyle but above all we are true nature lovers, that is why in the future we would also love to acquire a plot of land in the rural Valle del Genal where to place our campervan to be able to unwind and submerge in nature. In this land we would also need help from workawayers to do some works such us fruit picking or making a completely eco-built tiny house. But this is chapter number two! We will update when this help is needed.
  
  **In the summer months we are normally away (working and travelling) for 3 to 4 months, which could be also an opportunity for someone who would like to stay at our home in exchange of house/cat sitting, some works in our house and managing the check in/out of our rental apartment located nearby. We are also open to suggestions ;-)
  
  We also accept couples or friends (double bed). No smoking in the house, please.

• 

  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Art Projects

  Help with Eco Projects

  Gardening

  DIY and building projects

  Animal Care

  Creating/ Cooking family meals

  Help around the house

  General Maintenance
• 

  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  If you are interested in learning Spanish, Dutch, English or Norwegian we can offer a language exchange in any of these languages. Mariangeles will be also happy to show you how to cook some Spanish recipes as well as international cuisine, and tell you about andalusian traditions. And we can of course show you around the area whenever we have time for it :-)

• 

  Help

  In general, some of the help we need might require some good physical condition, for other works we need a more expertise type of help and other help would be more general. Have a look at the list we write bellow, tell us what you prefer to help us with, based on your skills, and we can find a project that suits you! We'd love to hear from you.
  
  Here is a list of some of the works and DIY projects we need help with:
  
  For those with campervan building skills:
  - Anything related to campervan conversion!
  (So far, we have installed the windows and roof vents, the sub floor, insulation and electric wiring).
  
  General help, gardening, DIY projects:
  - Making a fence for the back garden,
  - Making an eco culinary/medicinal herbs & veggies garden,
  - Making a composting box,
  - Planting a couple of trees and berry shrubs,
  - Creating paths in the garden,
  - Installing/making a couple of fountains,
  - Making a DIY "outdoor litter box" and climbing tree for our cats,
  - Help in making a DIY pergola,
  - Hanging lamps and curtains,
  - Some furniture make overs
  - Painting the house.
  
  For the building experts:
  - Upgrading toilet room,
  - Flatten textured ceiling surfaces,
  - Making built in benches and shelves.
  
  Other help we may need:
  - Help with cooking lunch,
  - Management and cleaning of our vacation rental apartment check-in/out (summer months),
  - House and cat sitting (summer months).

• 

  Languages

  Languages spoken
  English: Fluent
  Spanish: Fluent
  Dutch: Fluent
  Norwegian bokmål: 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.
• 

  Accommodation

  Because our own house has only one bedroom and it is designed as an open plan concept, we prefer to offer a separated accommodation for workawayers(*). It is a one bedroom apartment located at the nearest village, 2.5 km away from our house (we can pick you up by car or you can wal along the beach promenade if you prefer so). Because of this, in this exchange you can be more independent, but of course we can both be as social as we feel like, share some dinners together, eat out, visit the area, go hiking, etc.
  
  We normally prefer to start working early in the mornings, then have breakfast and continue working until lunch (Spanish time) so we can have the rest of the day off, and weekends off as well. However, if you need another schedule, we can probably find a way that suits both. Ask us :)
  
  In regards to food, we will provide breakfast and lunch which is the biggest meal of the day for us, following Spanish habits ;) During the working days we would eat breakfast and lunch together, and for the rest of the days we'll provide the ingredients so that you can cook your own breakfast and lunch in your apartment. If you think some other way would suit you better, let us know. Please, let us know as well if you have any special diet requirements.
  
  (*) Please, note that the accommodation where you will be staying is our vacation rental apartment that normally gives us part of our income. We need to keep it in a good standard for its purpose, so we expect from you to take care of it as if it was your own house and also that you give it back in the same conditions as you received it. Visitors of workawayers who're staying over in this accommodation are not allowed (unless they can also contribute in one or another way :-) let us know in advance and we can figure out how). Thanks!

• 

  What else ...

  We are located at the west end of Malaga coast, bordering Cadiz province. Nearby, we have the pretty coastal Estepona town and the fishermen village of San Luis de Sabinillas. A short drive inland, and you´ll enter into the beautiful Malaga and Cadiz countryside, with its amazing mountains, natural parks and traditional white villages. A true pearl worth seeing!

• 

  A little more information

  • 

    Internet access

  • 

    Limited internet access

  • 

    We have pets

  • 

    We are smokers

  • 

    Can host families

• 

  Can host digital nomads

  You would have you own apartment with fair Wi-Fi connection

• 

  How many Workawayers can stay?

  Two

• 

  Hours expected

  Maximum 5 hours a day, 5 days a week