Profile information
Host rating
80 %
Last replied
14 Jan 2025
Reply rate
70.0 %
Usually responds within 2 days
Feedback
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Description
About me:
Hello! My name is Carlos, I'm 46 and I'm portuguese. I grew up in a city close to Lisbon, went to college in Lisbon to study computer sciences and I started to work as a programmer. 6 years later I started to feel meaningless and took a leave of absence. I did volunteer work in organic farms in Sweden and France and went to Thailand to teach English in a public school in a small village. I came back to give a second chance to my job but after 3 years I decided to quit for good. Already with some land in the countryside of Portugal I started a journey in Portugal for one year to know about eco-farming and permaculture. It was hard to settle down in my primitive place so I went back to Thailand to the same school wishing to help those children in their English and football skills for one year.
After that, I came to establish and develop the land. I planted some trees, made some vegetable patches, produced cider, wine, olive oil, jams, I dried figs, tomatos and apples, etc.. The year after I did it all better with the help of nice volunteers and then with covid everything slowed down a bit. With the remote work possibility, in 2022 and 2023 I managed to work in IT again for a small software company and the feeling of loneliness was something I couldn't ignore anymore. I've lived in the farm for more than 4 years, on my own. My family and friends are all in Lisbon region. The connections I made here are light and with volunteers are ephemeral. I might have reached the same conclusion as in Into the Wild: “Happiness [is] only real when shared.” So my plan for now is to spend more time near my hometown sharing agroforestry and woodwork tasks with my brother and coming here for specific projects which I hope to keep sharing with volunteers or non volunteers. I'm a quiet person but I really enjoy to use my human qualities in a group.
About the project:
Having land to manage or just to protect was an early desire of mine. Self-sufficiency, healthier lifestyle, nearness of more natural and real environment are a few things that can be accomplished this way. I love trees and the main goal of this project is to increase life, diversity, soil fertility, weather resilience and to learn and teach how to exchange with nature in a beneficial way for both.
2015: First tree planted.
2016: First attempt to settle down.
2018: Became a home. Permaculture ideas implemented.
2019: First volunteers received. A fire burnt half of the land. Porch.
2020: Ferrocement tank.
2021: Chickens. Loft.
2022: Bees. Sheep.
2023: Rocky pathway. No watering field. Syntropic patches.
2024: First Eco-building steps with clay plaster and limewash.
For me, permaculture is the best answer for the problems humanity will face in this planet. There's still a lot to improve. And it's a great learning to go through all the processes. Money here is definitely not the priority. Increasing diversity and keeping people happy are the most important things. I'm open for your ideas and creative skills. This is a great place to find peace and slow down.
*I'm answering only to the people that takes time to read all the profile and shows interest in any of the
seasonal projects.
Types of help and learning opportunities
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
UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
This is a remote region in Portugal. The food is more authentic than in the urban centers and people keep some traditions expressed in events and fairs. I also buy products to the locals that can still make a good fresh goat cheese or grow their own fruit and vegetables. I can tell you about Portuguese culture, my travels, permaculture and other philosophical ideas. I'm curious to know about yours too.
Help
There are six times per year to form a great team for annual tasks or improvements. The projects are previously prepared and the time of stay will be determined by the tasks themself.
# February (1-2 weeks): To bottle wine. To prune trees. To graft trees. To sow potatoes and summer vegetables. Set the beehives for spring and summer.
# May (3 weeks): Fires prevention clean. Tree mulching. Syntropic annual pruning. Check/improve watering systems. Weeding. Elderflower syrup. Vegetable garden care.
# July/August (2 months): To water trees. Fruit harvest and processing: blackberries (jam, liquor, syrup); figs (jam or dehydrate); apples (dehydrate or juice); pears (dehydrate, jam or juice).
Improvement projects: Rocky pathways. Paint the house. Improve porch floor.
# September (1 week): Grapes harvest for wine and juice. Collect tree seeds to sow. Corn harvest.
# October (2 weeks): Plant trees. Sow trees. Extend Syntropic lines. Fall mulching. Olives harvest to eat.
# November/December (2 weeks): Olives harvest for oil.
During the year other common tasks can happen in more than one period: Collect wood, check the bees, harvest honey, make deodorant or tooth paste, controlling brambles, turning compost and update the nursery pots.
The dates will be updated closer to each project. If you already have some experience in the projects you want to join, great, but what I only expect from volunteers is interest in the tasks, willing to learn and being ok with the simple conditions.
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Spanish: Fluent
Portuguese: Fluent
French: Beginner
Thai: Beginner
Accommodation
My small shed has two matresses in the loft. I also have a tent outside where usually couples prefer to stay during the warm season.
The electricity comes from solar panels (it might be limited in winter time) and the water from springs. We usually cook more with gas during summer and wood in winter. There's a compost toilet and a solar handmade heater. In the winter we heat the water with a wood stove and a warm bucket shower might happen sometimes. We prepare the meals together and enjoy to share dishes from whenever we are. It would also be nice if volunteers could bring more natural hygiene products since we don't have a normal sewage system. Once a week we go to a indoors swimming pool, so a swimming suit can be handy too.
What else ...
The transports here are not good but I have a car. During the summer we go almost every day to some river beach or a beautiful lake in the afternoons where we swim or fish. Historical villages with stone houses and organic markets are also places I would like to take you. There are plenty of hiking routes around.
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Space for parking camper vans
The land isn't very flat but possible for small caravans. For bigger ones is better to park in the village (5 min away).
Can possibly accept pets
This host has said they are willing to accept those travelling with a pet.
How many Workawayers can stay?
Two
Feedback (15)
It's incredible the amount of work that we could take onward with her. It was also the first time I could have a break from watering because she achieved the amazing feat of knowing where 95% of the trees are.
We had… read more
Photos
Feedback
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Accuracy of profile:
(4.9)
Cultural exchange:
(4.9)
Communication:
(4.9)
It's incredible the amount of work that we could take onward with her. It was also the first time I could have a break from watering because she achieved the amazing feat of knowing where 95% of the trees are.
We had… read more
We had interesting conversations and fun while preparing the meals (Don't forget the lemon! ;) ) I was also lucky… read more
He doesn't need much time to learn how things work and was part of finding solutions for the problems we faced.
He loves to help with wood. It was good to have nice conversations about different topics and realize we share common opinions, including mould :)
All the best to you my friend.
Carlos is a very calm and caring person, which I appreciate all the more because of this bad start.
For about a week we harvested olives in… read more
Carlos found a passion in trees and nature and this project really comes from his heart. He is an honest, caring and passionate person and that helped to quickly make me feel right at home on the farm.
Even though I didn’t have much experience with farm work before, it felt good to put all my… read more
He learnt how we're doing the sheep fence and finished it almost by himself. He fixed drive ways and the swale and cleared a lot of brumbles. He can cook too if he has the chance :) It was great to see the amazing job he did… read more
Not to forget the introduction to permaculture and panda of course!
I hope to come back some day and see lots of flowers and trees flourishing all over the place .
Keep up the… read more
It's a great place to slow down, connect with nature (with yourself) and with the local community. Carlos is an amazing person and great teacher (and cook! He'll love to show… read more
These two wonderful girls didn't get intimidated by the first rule and embraced my place with an open heart and dedication. They hopefully brought a lot of games wich made our evenings much better. They are funny, smart, good heart and very mature. They would… read more
Thanks, and I hope to see you some other day :)
