Italy
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We are a family of 4 people , consisting of Dad, Mom, Nora 6 years and a half and Giona 4 and five months... oh I forgot our cat, his name is Harp and our dog, his names is Angus and he is a Labrador breed puppy 16 months old!
We live in the countryside, in a small town called MonteCarlo, which lies about 15 kilometers from Lucca, 70 km from Florence , 40 km from Pisa and about 30 km from the sea .
The nearest railway station is in the town of Altopascio , but there are buses to Lucca or is still easy to get around by bicycle.
The country of Montecarlo, situated on the crest of the ridge that separates the Valdinievole the Plain of Lucca, was built in 1333 to collect at the fortress of Cerruglio the inhabitants of the Commonwealth of Vivinaia destroyed by the Florentines in 1331.
The village was called Monte Carlo in honor of Prince Charles, son of King John of Bohemia , the liberator from the occupation of Lucca Pisa. The prince , who became Emperor under the name of Charles IV, was several times in Monte Carlo dealing with the fortification of the fortress that proved to be a strategic garrison in the wars that were fought in the fourteenth century between Lucca , Pisa and Florence.
In his old village is located il Teatro Municipal Reassured that was built in the early 1700s at the behest of an association of wealthy landowners and the country called Academy of policyholders , is still the center of a remarkable cultural and theatrical activities .
At the foot of the hill of MonteCarlo, on the road that leads to Pescia , is the ancient church of San Piero in Campo already mentioned in a parchment of the ninth century, the present church dates from the twelfth century and is a pure example of a Romanesque church with three aisles.
MonteCarlo is famous for the production of wine, in particular the white one , every year there are a number of initiatives related to the tasting of the wines produced on farms and in September the Wine Festival , because the country that is located on a hill is surrounded by farms producing wine, in our own house , a typical ' land-roof ', which is part of a typical Lucchese Court ( set of houses ) is surrounded by vineyards and olive groves.
Our family moved to Monte Carlo in 2008 , my husband Andrea works in an industry that designs and manufactures machinery for paper mills , and I am an architect with a passion for green architecture and odd jobs and not always related to my profession !
Nora is a very cute girl and attended the nest of the country since he was 1 year old, she loves to listen to music and loves to dance and be with others ;
Giona is a child very peaceful and smiling and he likes to relate to others , and soon will begin weaning food .
Our days are very busy but we try to find the time to do even what we like : Andrea is passionate about foot race , he participated in three marathons
and , when they can go for a run after work in Lucca on its walls , to train.
I am passionate about gardening in general, from the flowers to the vegetable , and every year our family helps our neighbor to harvest grapes and olives , not ours but we have a vineyard but an olive grove in a very beautiful place and panoramic called Matraia and every year around the beginning of November we collect olives and bring to shatter .
Nora and Giona soon start to go in the pool to learn to swim .
We really like the art , architecture , photography , and the brother of Andrew is an his wife are two artists ;
Andrea is passionate about beer ( and everything that revolves around it) and travel .
We both like to cook and like to help Nora !
Babysitting and creative play
Help around the house
Language practice
We are looking for a girl who speaks English and who is willing to be a
bit 'of time with our family and take part in our lives in the coming months, a person who loves being with children anch, that has so a little' experience with small children, it is important that you speak the language but Italian should be a person ready to understand their needs, this is important for us, because Nora does not speak English (she knows a few words), but can be understood, then there are some times when both do not want to understand even the Italian !! ! We therefore need to know if a person manage children with joy, sweetness and firmness when it is needed, because you will find one with them for many hours during the day.
and we are all ready to learn (our English is very basic !) .
Italian: Fluent
English: Beginner
Our guest will have future children's room with a bunk bed and a wardrobe in our house there are 2 small bathrooms with shower will share with our family.
The village of Montecarlo, as mentioned above, and close to several interesting towns to visit such as Lucca, a medieval town with its ancient walls, still entirely walkable and in this year the city celebrates the five hundred years after the construction of the walls, Lucca is a very active city from the cultural point of view: it has a small museum of contemporary art around which takes place every year in the month of November, the Photo-Film Festival; Within the walls there are many churches of Romanesque origin and in the countryside around Lucca there are endless small Romanesque churches and ancient villages.
The city of Lucca and easily reached by bus from the nearby village of Porcari, as well as Florence and Pisa are within easy reach by train or bus.
At different times of the year our guests can have the experience of picking grapes, harvest and then see how our neighbors produce the wine in November could help us pick olives!
Our volunteer could help to make the vegetable garden and the orchard and the garden fix.
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
One
5 hours
