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Host rating
100 %
Last replied
11 Mar 2024
Reply rate
100.0 %
Usually responds within 16 days
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Description
Hello, I'm Lola.
I'm a Canadian/ Irish/ British theatre actor and have been living and working in France for 25 years. Last year I bought a 100 year old stone house in a town in Ariege in order to look after my mum during her senior years. Another member of the household is Jalia, my little dog. She is very friendly and affectionate.
Over the years I've had different projects that I've very much appreciated working on with workawayers from all over the world.
We're friendly people and enjoy meeting new people, exchanging culture, sharing good food... Of course you will also have your own space.
THIS WINTER - 1 workawayer at a time
I'm not planning any big DIY projects during the winter months so it would be mostly helping to do the little finishing jobs after having done some major things last Spring through to Autumn. Some sewing would be great if possible, but if not it will be things like putting artwork up, finishing paint touches here and there, boxing in pipes, etc.
The help would be no more than 5 hours a day and for most of this I'm flexible on times. There are just two moments in the day when I will need a helping hand with my mum. I look after her at home and in the last few months she has started to suffer from arthritis in her knees and is a lot less mobile. I therefore need another set of hands to help steady her when she gets up once in the morning, 10 - 10:30 am, and once in the evening, 6 - 6:20 pm. It's very easy. I do the actual care work. Fortunately, even though Mum has dementia, she is still jolly, enjoys having a laugh and meeting people. There are two days off a week and these days there is a nurse who comes to help me with Mum.
You would have your own bedroom which also has a sitting area and a desk area.
***
SPRING & SUMMER - Up to 6 workawayers at a time
DIY, SEWING:
In the spring and summer I will be looking for some help with:
- sewing: curtains and cushions
- pointing a stone wall with lime mortar
- a little plastering
- a little drywalling
- painting
- removing cement from a small stone wall
- demolishing a fireplace
General Information:
I would be working on the different projects around the house & garden too and when everyone is working together it's nice to share the cooking and also learn recipes from different cultures.
We have 4 bikes available and there is a train station in our town so on days off you would be able to get around easily. There are frequent trains to the city of Toulouse and, in the other direction, to Foix and into the Pyrenees mountains. The town we live in has some shops, a few restaurants and cafés. There is a food market on Saturday mornings and a flea market on Sunday mornings.
I speak fluent French so can teach English, French or anything to do with theatre.
I would really appreciate a helping hand
Best regards,
Lola
(Mary Lynn, Lola is my nickname)Types of help and learning opportunities
Art ProjectsHelp with Eco ProjectsElderly CompanionshipGardeningDIY and building projectsCreating/ Cooking family mealsCultural exchange and learning opportunities
- learning French or English and about different cultures
- learning about theatre
- surrounding sites: historical / natural
- hiking, water sports...Help
Help needed for:
- tiling
- a little plastering
- demolishing a fireplace
- removing cement from a small stone wall
- pointing a stone wall with lime mortarLanguages
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
French: FluentThis host offers a language exchange
I'd quite like to learn some Spanish or Italian.Accommodation
- unlimited wi-fi
- bicycles available
- train station close by
Winter
- a bedroom for one person with a sitting are and a desk area
Summer
- a large (shared) bedroom in the house with 3 single beds
- a big tent in the garden with 2 separate bedroom sections and a full single bed with bedding in eachWhat else ...
Activities and places of interest nearby:
• The Pyrenees Mountains for hiking
• Prehistoric caves
• A big prehistoric open-air park/museum
• Medieval towns such as Foix, Mirepoix and Carcassonne are beautiful to visit
• Montbel Lake with beaches, sailing and fishing
• Ziplining, tree climbing
• Canoeing on the Ariege river
• Parachute jumping
• The lovely city of Toulouse, rich in culture
• Roman Spa at Ax-les-ThermesA little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Can host digital nomads
Fiber internet connection.
How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
Hours expected
No more than 5 per day, 5 days a week
Feedback (31)
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Accuracy of profile:
(4.8)
Cultural exchange:
(4.9)
Communication:
(5.0)
Lola is super friendly and her mum is an absolute poppet.
I'm full of admiration for Lola tackling so many jobs in her house restoration. I loved doing soft furnishings for her and would be really excited to see her finished… read more
...I stayed at Lola's place for almost 4 weeks and I enjoyed it so much! She is a very lovely, caring and easy-going person and even offered me her own bedroom when she went on vacation. Moreover, she always made sure we are fine with the work and we never had to work too much;) Her mom Betty is a very cheerfull person as well… read more
Unfortunately we couldn't communicate as much as I would have liked because of the language barrier but with a translation app there was no problem for her to understand what help was needed.
I would thoroughly recommend hosting… read more
The work was very much fun and we did achieve much while renovating all together Lola’s kitchen. Some of my tasks were for example cooking, smoothing walls and painting them.
Lola is a perfect host because she is a very caring,… read more
Pamiers is a really nice city to stay and you have everything you need there but can also go to different cities easily.
I enjoyed all of the different work tasks. Which were painting cupboards, building… read more
Alicia was a great help! She is a hard and efficient worker, always cheery and willing to do the variety of jobs I needed doing. She worked very well with the other Workawayer and together I was surprised at how much they got… read more
My room was really cozy and I slept so well in my comfortable bed.
The work was a good combination of different tasks like painting, gardening and building lots of Ikea furniture ;)
I… read more
It was a great experience for me. Lola, Betty and Jalia are all lovely and helped me to be comfortable during my stay.
In my free time I went to the sea, Sidmouth is nice, and really close, and Exeter too. We also went out all together a few times for some great pub lunches… read more
Best wishes for the future!
MaryLynn, once again, thank you so much for everything. ^^
Mary Lynn
Thank you Jarred
And thank you… read more