New Zealand
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We are a friendly middle aged couple living on a lifestyle block in beautiful North Otago. Patrick is a retired teacher and Sara is an architect, working from home. We are both relaxed, easy going, intelligent and well read.
Gardening
Language practice
This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.
Our place is really beautiful and we live a simple kiwi lifestyle. We have travelled overseas and love to meet new people because we are both pretty social.
Our property is in a tiny village which used to be a gold mining town. There are no shops. There is lots of history in the area and lots to see and do. Sara is crafty and likes to sew and make things. We have a small vegetable garden and have started to grow lots of nut trees.
Patrick is recovering from a recent stroke and is really keen to return to foreign language learning to help him rebuild his brain. Patrick speaks basic French, German and Russian. He is also interested in Spanish. Patrick suffers from some fatigue so it would be great to have a hand around the property with some gardening and mowing. We would be looking for someone who can provide a couple of hours of language practice and a couple of hours in the garden daily.
German: Beginner
French: Beginner
Russian: Beginner
We have a cosy sleep-out with a queen size bed and nice bedding. The sleep-out is solar powered and has a deck with a great view. It is private from the house and has it's own outside toilet. (No smoking or cooking in the room please but you can make a hot drink there). If you are travelling with someone who you don't sleep with, we can offer a second cute sleep-out which is also our workroom, where the language lessons and sewing etc happen. Because our house is really small we also have a shared outdoor dining room and living area where we spend most of our time.
We don't watch much TV, just the odd documentary. We like to cook but nothing really fancy - it is mostly home grown vegies and local meat. We sometimes make our own bread. Eating food informally with friends and neighbours is a big part of our weekly routine. We often have friends to stay for a night or two. We would enjoy it if you cooked in the evenings sometimes too.
You would need to make your own breakfast and lunch, keep your room clean and change the sheets when you leave. :). We will provide all the food and you can help us with the shopping if you like.
Because Sara works from a home office the internet is limited to social media and emails, as movie watching etc uses too much of our internet. (The sleepout is too far away for WiFi).
We have no animals, but we do have a pet cat called Wendy. Most of our neighbours have animals.
The place we live in is called Livingstone. We live a half hour drive from Kurow and Oamaru and are close to Danseys Pass. We have a couple of bicycles to use and we are near the Alps to Ocean bike route. We go to Oamaru a couple of times a week for shopping and socialising. Our area is well known for its fossils and interesting geology. We are close to the Waitaki Valley and there is a river you can swim in nearby. There is no public transport but we can arrange pickups.
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Two
Maximum 4-5 hours a day, 5 days a week
