Creating the future with friends near Tomar, Central Portugal

Details

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  Description

  Hi lovely workawayers
  
  I'm Wendy, from Johannesburg/London/Kerala and now from a small cottage in a lovely fertile fruit-growing valley, in a very old village (possibly Roman, there are wonderful ruins nearby at Conimbriga). This little stone house is about 100 years old but recently refurbished, insulated, modernised to a certain extent. Surrounded by farm land, we're planting up a food forest and woodland in what used to be flat pastures, for a more sustainable future. There are garden/flower beds, tall trees and apple and nut orchards, and vegetable growing space.
  
  Besides gardens and olive orchards, there is a beautiful old stone barn and an original tiny donkey [burro]-shoe-ing blacksmiths building, still to be refurbished with timber and old-fashioned tile, maybe straw-bale walls, earth/clay floor and lime plasters, recycled windows and doors. We've also been installing decking/toolsheds/pergolas/stone paths and walls, and more gardens. Everything I do here is trying to demonstrate more kind, sustainable methods and processes, within a degrowth/anti-consumerism perspective, creating a kind of Permaculture Solar Punk demo site.
  
  I also want to learn from you, my project is mostly about mutual development and support of the community, so people visiting will have a chance to participate in projects and meetings in the local area too.
  
  We are developing the land, focussing on enabling self-sufficiency, organic, more wilderness, and permaculture principles. Gardeners and landscape designers and rewilding people might find it interesting. There are no animals.
  
  I welcome crafters, artists, carpenters and painters, as the property is a creative space, in the process of refurbishment so any building/making/crafting skills/experience are welcome.
  
  There's hundreds of fascinating historical sites to visit, contemporary tourism and swimming/beach/rivers/forest walks, artistic and community projects and swaps and meditation/yoga/tibetan bowls, museums and more so no time to get bored.

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Art Projects

  Language practice

  Help with Eco Projects

  Gardening

  DIY and building projects

  Creating/ Cooking family meals

  General Maintenance
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  UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

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  What's this?
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  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  My personal Work is in Education, around Climate change and Sustainability - I have an academic background and years of research and activism in this field. Our future depends on humans changing, learning to live much more closely and kindly in both our human communities - and with Nature and the more-than Humans in our ecosystems.
  
  I've lived in intentional communities, yoga ashrams, as a volunteer, and in shared housing for a long time. I have good stories to share, but equally want to learn from visitors.
  
  I really like to create opportunities for visitors to develop skills, experience joy in this lifestyle, and find their own Path to the Work of caring for the planet and each other that we all need to be doing.
  
  I can offer support and guidance, and tools for people transforming their lives to more sustainable pathways.
  
  I am a yoga therapist and meditation teacher and sometimes offer community Yoga classes in the area which visitors are welcome to join.
  
  My community here is mostly focussed on living closely and sustainably with Nature, we have a lot of events and Workawayers are welcome to attend any while they are visiting, I am part of a Transition group, a large Food/Goods Swap, a potluck dinner group, and ongoing community yoga and meditation groups. Our community includes reforestation and rewilding projects, yoga and meditation retreats, animal rescue, and a focus on SImple living.
  
  During the summer, there are village festivals locally, every weekend, and we have loads of Nature beauty spots, and some great historical sites, within minutes of the house.
  
  I offer an opportunity to spend time living gently, close to Nature, in rural central Portugal, eating healthy and well, working a bit, playing and socialising a lot, and resting up.

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  Projects involving children

  This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.

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  Help

  The land is a beautiful piece of rural nature in a farming valley, birds and sunshine and good water from wells, the house is comfortable and has modern facilities.
  Mostly what I am busy with is developing a tree nursery for gifting to reforestation projects, growing a small woodland, planting a forest garden around the house and implementing other Permaculture projects, the Olive orchard requires annual maintenance during late autumn (October / November) and harvesting, we also help neighbours with a lot of trees. We use 100% pure virgin olive oil from our own trees in all our cooking.
  
  I am constantly doing craft/creative projects like painting on the walls, making mosaics, and plastering and painting in the house (with lime), including cob sculptures, and outdoors a lot of stone structures - a love seat/bench in the rose garden, a large patio eating area to protect, raised flower beds, a herb garden spiral which we build with rescue stones and recycled bricks.
  
  More technical Projects to explore include a grey water filtration system , a small natural duckpond, the barn needing a new floor, a summer kitchen area, new wood and tile rooves with insulation on some of the outbuildings with the help of Local builders. Plus there are 100s of other projects possible for the right Workawayers and artists.

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  Languages

  Languages spoken
  Afrikaans: Fluent
  English: Fluent
  Portuguese: Beginner

  This host offers a language exchange
  I speak English and Afrikaans (old Dutch) and some Portuguese, I can understand German and Spanish.
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  Accommodation

  The house is simple and old, but refurbished, comfortable enough with grid connections for water and electricity and good broadband internet. We may install solar this year.
  
  The land is very beautiful, full of birds and small wildlife including a neighbours 6 pet shetland ponies. Everyone around me has animals, so there is no possibility for guests to bring pets.
  
  There are 2 guest bedrooms in the house, a comfortable double, and a very quiet single space. Workawayers have their own shower room and toilet. I live in the house too, but have separate accommodation.
  
  The house and land are not suitable for young children.
  
  There is a fully functional kitchen with all facilities, fridge, stove etc. For winter there are two heating woodstoves. The house is well insulated. For summer there is a lot of comfortable outdoor space for camping amoung olive trees or in the orchard if you prefer to sleep outdoors.
  
  I provide most home comforts - bedding, blankets and towels, and things like a hairdryer if needed. Let me know if you need anything else.
  
  I provide breakfast , a light lunch and full dinner, but prefer to share cooking/food prep responsibilities when there are visitors. I provide large quantities of only vegetarian food, mostly organic and locally produced by friends or in the garden where possible.
  
  I don’t cater for food sensitivities and special diets – but you are welcome to bring your own, there is storage space.
  
  What we don't have:
  No meat on the property - carnivores are welcome, but will need to get their fix at the local cafe or elsewhere.
  I personally don't drink much alcohol, but visitors are welcome to buy their own wine/beer - Portuguese wine is excellent and well priced :-)
  The entire property is non-smoking, not just the house, so if you need to smoke - tobacco or weed, or need drugs and/or alcohol to relax, this is simply not the place for you.

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  What else ...

  There is good internet, and space to rest, do yoga,make music or dance, the valley is an ancient farming area, still full of fruit orchards, olive trees and vineyards (we have our own wine label within this community) and oak groves - so plenty of lovely space to walk or run or take photographs.
  There are river beaches and large rivers/dams nearby for swimming although not walking distance. There is an outside shower and maybe a swimming tank next year.
  We are between the ancient city of Coimbra/Conimbriga, and the Knight's Templar home Tomar. A lot to see and explore, in nature, and history. The neighbours are really friendly and there are often events nearby or that I am involved in, at the house and elsewhere - food swaps, cultural events, dinners and other community meals, yoga classes, guided walks, and traditional festivals.
  
  There is a traditional cafe in walking distance, and I am happy to provide transport on a shared tourist/sightseeing/nature trip once a week.
  For getting further away, there is taxi service, a local on-demand bus to either a local town, or even to Lisbon or Porto, both of which are 1.5 -2 hours away by train.

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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

  the internet is quite good here and parts of the house are extremely quiet, and can be closed off to use for online meetings etc. The accomodation is separate bedrooms for a single, and a couple, so someone could stay and have a private space for their work, or depending on age we could accomodate a couple with a child.

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  Space for parking camper vans

  Workawayers could park up next to the house, have access to a full bathroom inside (close to the parking space) and grid electricity and water.

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  How many Workawayers can stay?

  More than two

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  My animals / pets

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