Help a retired couple with house maintenance, gardening and small animals, in the heart of the forest in Aquitaine, France

France

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7
Last activity
14/02/2021
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2021

Min stay requested: at least 2 weeks

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Description
[Please contact host in French]
We would need, possibly a couple, to keep our house for a week, at the beginning of September, for watering, and to feed our animals.
In the heart of the Double forest in Dordogne, a dynamic retired couple offers independent accommodation in a small village with a large garden and a few animals. In exchange, various gardening work, renovation of painting in the house and care of small animals (chickens, peacocks, lambs) Possibility to learn spinning and weaving wool, as well as chess. We offer cultural exchanges with the region. Healthy cooking with local and organic products.

We offer cultural exchanges with the region. Healthy cooking with local and organic products.

Nous aurions besoin ,éventuellement d'un couple, pour garder notre maison une semaine, début septembre, pour l'arrosage, et nourrir nos animaux.
Au coeur de la forêt de la Double en Dordogne, un couple de retraité dynamique offre un logement indépendant dans un petit village avec grand jardin et quelques animaux. En échange, de travaux divers de jardinage, rénovation de peinture dans la maison et soin aux petits animaux (poules, paons, agneaux) Possibilité de s'initier au filage et tissage de laine, ainsi que les échecs. Nous offrons des échanges culturels avec la région. Cuisine saine avec des produits locaux et bio.
Types of help and learning opportunities
Gardening
DIY and building projects
General Maintenance
Help around the house
Animal Care
Language practice
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
Discovery of a region rich in flora and fauna. Possibilities for walks, to discover an organic market gardener, textile wool and contacts in an ecological environment and respectful of the environment in which we live.
Cultural and musical exchanges. Opportunities for chess activities. Initiation to spinning with spinning wheel and weaving on a loom. (wool work)

Découverte d'une région riche en faune et flore. Possibilités de promenades, de découvrir un maraîcher bio, du textile laine et des contacts dans un milieu écologique et respectueux de l'environnement dans lequel nous vivons.
Echanges culturels et musicaux. Possibilités d' activités échiquéennes. Initiation au filage avec rouet et tissage sur métier à tisser. ( travail de la laine)
Help
Help with gardening (size, kitchen garden, various maintenance) In the house, painting projects to renovate an apartment.
Care for 4 small lambs, hens, peacocks, cats.

Aide au jardinage (taille, potager, entretien divers ) Dans la maison , travaux de peinture pour rénover un appartement.
Soin à 4 petits agneaux, poules, paons, chats

Gardiennage de notre maison et soin aux animaux pendant notre absence du 10 au 15 février.
Languages spoken
French: Fluent
German: Beginner
English: Beginner
Accommodation
Fully equipped independent housing (bathroom, kitchen, living room, television) and wifi.
Meals shared with local food.

Logement indépendant entièrement équipé ( salle de bains, cuisine, chambres salon, télévision ) et wifi.
Repas partagés avec nourriture locale.
What else ...
Possibilities to walk, from Qui Kong in the village. Piano on the spot. Local markets. Discoveries of sites.
No public transport, but the train is 7 km away. We provide travel. Bordeaux is 80 km away.

Possibilités de faire des marches, du Qui Kong dans le village. Piano sur place. Marchés locaux. Découvertes de sites.
Pas de transport public, mais le train est à 7 km. Nous assurons les déplacements. Bordeaux est à 80 km.
A little more information
- Internet access
- Limited internet access
- We have pets
- We are smokers
- Can host families
How many Workawayers can stay?
Two
Hours expected
Maximum 4-5 hours a day, 5 days a week

Photos

Feedback left by and about host (7)

These are extra optional ratings when members leave feedback. The average rating left for each option is displayed.

Accuracy of profile:
(5.0)

Cultural exchange:
(5.0)

Communication:
(5.0)

11/01/2021

Left by host for Workawayer (Wojciech)

Ce fut un bonheur d'accueillir Wojteck, polonais atypique, comme il aime se présenter. Wojteck est une personne de confiance, charmante, sympathique, discrète, toujours de bonne humeur et prêt à rendre service. Il s'est très vite intégré à notre vie quotidienne, à notre réseau d'amis, et nous l'avons considéré comme faisant partie de notre… read more

(Excellent )

08/01/2021

Left by Workawayer (Wojciech) for host

My first workaway trip has turned out to be an unforgettable experience - I have spent amazing four (!) months at the Catherine & Jean-Michel’s place and it was their exceptional generosity and hospitality that made my stay last so long and be so rich in experiences. Catherine & JM treated me as a true member of their household – it included… read more receiving guests and paying visits to their friends as well as going shopping together. We had a lot of fun in the late evenings playing molkky in the garden or the board games among which the Mexican Train become almost an addiction :) Both C & J-M are very active with Catherine being fully immersed in the weaving projects and J-M being busy all the time within their property or providing handyman help to friends.
I worked 4-5 hours a day (excluding weekends) which consisted mostly of taking care of small animals (opening henhouses in the morning, closing them in the evening, providing food and water a couple of times per day) and of the vast flower, fruit and vegetable gardens. My tasks included all kinds of garden-related activities: watering the flower garden, removing the weeds, leaves or branches. Personally, I found a lot of fun in cutting down the self-planted bamboos.
When the weather deteriorated, I worked partly indoors. Under the watch of Jean-Michel who is an amazingly skilled handyman, I removed the wallpaper and repainted the large living room in the part of the house where I lived (things I did for the 1st time in my life!). All these tasks were being done in a cool, no-stress atmosphere. Both C & J-M were very flexible with regards to my time management particularly when, from time to time, I needed to have my Polish job-related video calls at different times of the day.
The living conditions could not be better – there is a separate apartment for workawayers consisting of a sleeping room and a large living room, fully-equipped kitchen and a bathroom. 2 workawayers could comfortably live in the apartment. We had all the meals together and I truly enjoyed the amazing Catherine’s cooking skills who introduced me to the best dishes of the Swiss and French cuisine such as fondue and raclette while J-M was providing excellent local wines :)
Last but not least, C & J-JM proved an outstanding confidence in myself when they twice departed for a week-long holidays leaving the house, animals and the garden under my watch. Also, before the lock-down was introduced, I managed to make numerous trips in the region alone as well as with C & J-M and their friends dining in local restaurants or making car trips to visit cities (e.g. Bergerac, Cognac), castles and caves.
While Catherine speak some English, I fully enjoyed speaking solely French with my hosts thanks to which my language skills improved considerably which was one of my key motivations to go workawaying in France. Both C & J-M are very well prepared to host French learning workwayers – they can speak slowly, repeat things or explain patiently what they have in mind.
I could continue describing the details of this unique, culturally enriching stay but in short – there cannot be a better place than the Catherine & Jean-Michel’s one when one wants to get immersed in the local culture of rural western France. BIG thank you Catherine & Jean-Michel!

Mon première expérience workaway s’est avérée inoubliable – 4 mois (!) chez Catherine et Jean-Michel étaient pleines d’échanges culturelles et nouvelles connaissances. Ils m’ont accueillis comme véritable membre de famille avec une enthousiasme et générosité hors du commun.
Le travail de 4-5 heures par jour que j’ai effectué était exactement comme décrit dans leurs profil workaway, largement focalisé sur le jardin et des petits animaux. Comme j’ai décrit dans la partie anglaise au-dessous, les conditions du logement étaient également très bonnes.
Merci Catherine et Jean-Michel pour votre générosité et l’accueil qui va rester dans ma mémoire très longtemps. A bientôt !

(Excellent )

22/01/2020

Left by Workawayer (Alex & Jina) for host

Catherine and Jean-Michel surpassed our greatest expectations as hosts for our first Workaway experience. Jina (my girlfriend) was doing all sorts of cleaning and ironing inside while I was mostly collecting sticks to mulch or throw away in the garden outside. We found ourselves wanting to do more work in exchange for their amazing hospitality. I… read more

(Excellent )

07/12/2019

Left by Workawayer (Casey & Michael) for host

We had a fantastic experience with Catherine and Jean-Michel. They are both kind, generous and warm people. We were welcomed right from the start and felt right at home immediately. Catherine and Jean-Michel are both actively involved and take great passion and pride in their community. We were fortunate enough to be able to meet their friends and… read more

(Excellent )

21/11/2019

Left by host for Workawayer (Casey & Michael)

Nous avons eu énormément de plaisir à accueillir Casey et Michael. Un couple charmant, sympathique, plein d'humour et toujours prêt à rendre service. Ils se sont occupés de nos animaux avec soin et gentillesse. Ils ont fait de la peinture très soigneusement et ont préparé le jardin pour la saison d'hiver avec beaucoup de compétences.
Toujours… read more

(Excellent )

27/09/2019

Left by Workawayer (Thomas & Rosaleen) for host

Our time with Catherine and JMi was brilliant. Their was always a laugh with Catherine and JMi, also a wealth of knowledge which they were only to happy to share. Their patience with our poor French was never ending. We had our own beautiful independent accommodation with our only disturbance being from their lovely cat Petapon, (Not sure of the… read more

(Excellent )

23/09/2019

Left by host for Workawayer (Thomas & Rosaleen)

Couple sérieux et extrêmement sympathique et chaleureux. Ils ont participé à de nombreux travaux dans le jardin toujours avec enthousiasme et au- delà de nos espérances. Rosaleen est une femme discrète et souriante, toujours prête à rendre service dans ses domaines. Thomas est un amoureux du travail et a toujours plein d'astuces pour résoudre les… read more

(Excellent )

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