Have an experience you'll never forget with us in Mountshannon, Ireland

Details

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  Description

  Hello,
  
  we are Flo and Dirk, the hosts of a large rural property down by the lake Lough Derg, just outside the village Mountshannon in county Clare.
  I, Flo, am a French fishing guide with a passion for the outdoors and was a volunteer for Dirk in the past. During my time spent here as a volunteer, Dirk and I became good friends and eventually I ended up moving here to help him with the upkeep of the property and become a professional fishing guide. Later, I got to know my now girlfriend Emma ( who is also French) and she recently moved to Ireland and is now living with us.
  
  Dirk is the owner and main caretaker of our beautiful estate. He is a friendly Irish man who's parents moved from Germany to Ireland before he was born so he speaks fluent English as well as German. His elderly mother lives in the house next door and he has an 8 year old son called Alex who lives here with us for half of the week.
  
  We also have a young German Shepherd called Zara, who is extremely loving, curious and playful and
  two friendly ponies.
  
  All in all we are a mixed bunch of people and animals and very welcoming to other people from all walks of life.
  
  The property where we live is rather large so therefore we could really use some extra pairs of hands to help with the upkeep and maintenance of it all. There is always something practical happening here so you will have lots of learning opportunities and the chance to (further) develop your own knowledge and skills.
  
  Our house is quite big with several spare bedrooms for the volunteers and we also have a large garden for all of us to enjoy. The far side of the garden borders the lake, where we have our own little marina where we keep our boats, canoe and kayaks.
  
  We strive to offer our volunteers an authentic Irish countryside experience and if you'd like we can introduce you to some of the more vibrant Irish culture as well. If volunteers are interested, we will gladly take them to one of the local pubs and let them have a taste of their first proper Guinness or Bulmers.
  As creative and sociable people, we enjoy spending time with our volunteers. Most days we sit down together for lunch and dinner. In our household it is common to eat all sorts of food but if you happen to have specific dietary requirements, please feel free to discuss those upfront with us so we can see if we can accommodate those.
  We love to hear about your adventures, life stories and future plans and are always willing to give you well meant advice on how to go about to achieve your dreams.

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Art Projects

  Gardening

  DIY and building projects

  Animal Care

  Creating/ Cooking family meals

  Help around the house

  General Maintenance
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  Interests

  

  Movies & TV

  

  Self development

  

  Van life

  

  Pets

  

  Culture

  

  Events & social

  

  Technology

  

  Videography

  

  Plant care

  

  Music

  

  DIY & crafts

  

  Art & design

  

  Photography

  

  Gardening

  

  Cooking & food

  

  Drawing & painting

  

  Carpentry

  

  Animals

  

  Nature

  

  Camping

  

  Sailing / Boating

  

  Beach

  

  Water sports

  

  Outdoor activities

  

  Adventure sports
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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

  There is an insurmountable amount of beautiful and interesting places to visit in Ireland. Especially Dirk could give you lots of travel advice if you'd like to explore the region on your days off. Some of the nearest highlights would be Holy Island, the Cliffs of Moher, Bunratty Castle, the Burren and Portumna Forest Park. Ennis, Limerick and Galway are the nearest cities and especially Galway is considered well worth a visit.
  
  As mentioned before, we could introduce you to some of the pub life in Ireland where a lot of people's social lives take place and if you're lucky you could even end up in a spontaneous traditional Irish music session. It is also the place where people will gather to watch all sorts of sport events such as the traditional Irish sports hurling/ camogie and Gaelic football. You might even pick up some typical Irish expressions and end up telling your friends that you had 'great craic' here.
  
  Occasionally we would bring you with us on trips to for instance the seashore and spend the day enjoying the fresh air and perhaps even catch some fish for our dinner.
  
  Apart from all of the Irish culture that we can introduce you too, you will also definitely get a taste of some typical French and Geman dishes. Simultaneously we would be really grateful if you'd prepare some of your traditional home cooking.

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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

  Some examples of the tasks that we could use your help with are:
  - gardening jobs such as weeding, mowing the lawn and cutting the hedges
  - small DIY jobs such as fixing a fence or do some paintwork
  - everyday household jobs such as cleaning the house, cooking a meal or bringing in firewood for the stove.
  
  Sometimes we will be working alongside of you and we gladly take our time to explain to you what we are working on and how to do that specific type of job. This would give you the opportunity to gain invaluable life skills that you can apply in your own life once you go back home.
  At other times you will be working on something by yourself or in the company of a fellow volunteer.
  
  Please never hesitate to share a good idea with us that you believe would benefit our home. We all have our own talents and skills and really appreciate your input. Simultaneously, sometimes we just need to get a job done and in that moment there is less time available to talk things through and we ask you to trust that we know what we are doing and follow our instructions.

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  Languages spoken

  German: Fluent
  English: Fluent
  French: Fluent

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  Accommodation

  Most of the time we are able to provide volunteers with their own private bedroom, yet occasionally you will be asked to share a room with another volunteer. Bedding and towels are provided and there is an option to shower as well as to take a bath.
  
  A lot of the time we will be sharing our meals and at other times you can help yourself to food from our well-stocked kitchen and pantry.

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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

  This host has indicated that they love having digital nomads stay.

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  Space for parking camper vans

  This host can provide space for campervans.

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  Can possibly accept pets

  This host has said they are willing to accept those travelling with a pet.

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  How many Workawayers can stay?

  More than two

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  My animals / pets

  2 ponies

  Zara

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