Profile information
Host rating
80 %
Last replied
12 May 2025
Reply rate
57.5 %
Usually responds within 14 days
Feedback
31
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Badges (3)
Details
Description
Stay with us by the side of a beautiful lake, enjoy stunning views, disconnect from the noise, become more sustainable, learn herbalism, soap making, teach English and connect with our farm animals. We are waiting for you!
NEXT AVAILABILITY: March!
MINIMUM STAY: 1 month
ONLY 4H WORK: compared to the average 5h+/day requested by most hosts
UNIQUE PROJECT: working towards making an impact on our eco system by changing daily practices from most places in the uses of soap that damage the delicate ecosystem.
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𝗣𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗘 𝗣𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗘 𝗣𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗘: 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗰𝗸 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝘃𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝘀. 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗢𝗞 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲. 𝗣𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲, 𝗱𝗼 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝘂𝘀 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝘄𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀!
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Hello! My name is Genoveva, and I live with my 10 year old daughter on a small isolated village of Jaibalito, Lake Atitlán, accessible only by water. There are no roads, Just nature, the songs of birds, and a stunning beach. I’m on a journey since 10 years ago I began my Herbal business and have been working in with it teaching herbalism and making products. I work with Mayan Medicine and Chinese Medicine both traditional medicines I bind this two worlds together and my aim is to continue preserving this knowledge so it wont get lost. On the other hand our herbal business started around 5 years ago making liquid castile soap and other soaps. All made with ingredients local to the area. Basically I want to educate everyone, businesses, local people, kids that using natural products like this one can have a positive impact on our delicate ecosystem.
We also have a tiny school in a small Guatemalan indigenous community on Lake Atitlan. Our goal is to foster skills and opportunity in the fields of the local ecology, natural health/nutrition, gardening, music, natural building, and entrepreneurship. Our current project is to expand our children's ukulele club/musical instrument library, and part time school for small kids into a fully functioning school.
Our children's school has been going part time for 8 years. Our model is based around nature, how to live with the forest in a stewardship, reforestation, preservation of water resources, botany, traditional herbalism etc... while focusing on singing, reading, writing, learning English .
Types of help and learning opportunities
Charity Work
Art Projects
Language practice
Help with Eco Projects
Teaching
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Animal Care
Farmstay help
Babysitting and creative play
Help around the house
General Maintenance
Help with Computers/ Internet
UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
We offer a nice tree house dorm to sleep. It has bunkbeds. It has a fully furnished kitchen. We don't include food.
Bedding is included. Wifi is available.
The place has a dry compost toilet, warm, shower and its in nature, so expect to have normal things that come with nature.
The nights are pretty quiet around here, the noises from town are not loud up here so you can really enjoy the place and the views from the hanging out area in the 3rd floor are great.
Projects involving children
This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.
Help
Here are some things you can help us with:
-Soap making: we are making soap every week, making the processes, bottling soap, labeling, its all a part of the job!
-Herb processing: drying herbs, bottling tinctures, labeling, processing herbs, it all varies depending on the season and demand,
-Errands and Deliveries: since we are isolated everything that comes in or out has to be carried by boat. This also gives you a chance to go sightseeing.
-Marketing and Education: a big part of our project is to make people understand why the need to change habits. And what other options there are. If you can help us with this is a big task!
-Construction: our tree house apothecary is always under construction! there are many projects always going on with bamboo and wood mostly. Painting, varnishing.
-Animal Care: we have a small farm with goats, chickens, dogs, cats and hopefully rabbits soon.
-Rooftop herb garden: I have started to plan a small garden on the roof top full of nice herbs and some edibles.
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Spanish: Fluent
Accommodation
We have a 4 bed dorm with a kitchen and bathroom.
What else ...
We are a guatemalan family, our friends are mostly guatemalan so you will be involved in our local life, we might do things slightly different from other local families but we are in love with traditional ways of living and we do this in everything we do. Including canning, cooking tortillas, and things like this. We enjoy to sometimes share meals and maybe bake some cake and play some cards! There is a wealth of activity here on beautiful lake atitlan from swimming and kayaking to hiking, paragliding, ziplining, etc.. The local expat and tourist community is very fun and social. As well, one can connect with many meaningful ways to make a difference in local peoples lives.
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Can host digital nomads
This host has indicated that they love having digital nomads stay.
How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
Feedback (18)
I have had an incredible 2.5 weeks at this fantastic workaway with a group of great people! Lake Atitlan has so much to offer and I really enjoyed Jaibalito as a basecamp.
Working with the local kids, swimming in the lake, and helping with construction in a bamboo tree house!!!! These are some amazing highlights for this… read more
Photos
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Cultural exchange:
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Communication:
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I have had an incredible 2.5 weeks at this fantastic workaway with a group of great people! Lake Atitlan has so much to offer and I really enjoyed Jaibalito as a basecamp.
Working with the local kids, swimming in the lake, and helping with construction in a bamboo tree house!!!! These are some amazing highlights for this… read more
Perdón por la tardanza en escribir! Pero, que decir de este proyecto? Llegamos en familia, mis dos niñas, mi esposo y yo, para dos semanas... Y nos quedamos un mes y medio! Porque llegamos como voluntarios, y nos fuimos con lágrimas en los ojos y como amigos. 💚
Mil gracias por vuestra preocupación, por las charlas, por la… read more
It was a blast working with the children in the
tree house school/jungle, playing music, walking goats, and experiencing life in the cutest little village of Lake Atitlan! I certainly learned and laughed a lot with them. I would highly recommend taking their classes if you… read more
At the time I was there, there were some problems and the program was not very accurate to the description (not necessarily in a bad way, but might be good to… read more
Thank you very much to welcome me in this beautiful place!
I really liked to spend time with the kids, to cook with Maria and to help in the garden!
I recommend it 200% :)
The school is at the heart… read more
I was mainly helping with cooking yummy healthy food, with the school project (the sweetest kids on earth), but the coolest thing was probably help with making a bamboo bed with the workers.
This is a place that often has more people living there (the… read more
En effet, nous pensions (compte tenu de ce qui était écrit dans l'annonce) être logés dans un appartement au centre de Jaibalito, mais cela n'a pas été le cas.
La nuit se… read more
we felt right at home. this family is quite simply one of our most beautiful volunteer encounters.
the construction is very well organized we were able to learn about bamboo construction at a great pace and well adapted to children.
we discovered temaskal.
we discovered village life, the ukulele and a lot of laughs.
thanks… read more
