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Host rating
65 %
Last replied
23 Jul 2021
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Description
Hello, We are a French / Italian family of 4, offering food, accomodation and fun on Lago di Garda (Veneto, Italy).
Martin and I met during a volunteering experience and kept doing it when traveling, so workaway is our story ! We always liked the idea of being able to host one day, return the opportunity to others. We finally have a proper room for volunteers, always good food at the table and extra pairs of hands would be welcome, so we guess that this time is now !
A bit about us :
After having travelled for years together, we settled in Charlotte's hometown (Grenoble, France) for a few years, had a child (Irene, 3 yo), moved to Italy in Martin's hometown and... had a second child (Loris, 5 months old) !
We like just being a family and spending time together, going for walks on the lakeside, taking care of our garden, playing games, having guests over to share a good meal... We are very open to other cultures, which would make us virtually travel again.
A bit about our place :
Our house is located on Garda Lake, in the Veneto region (east side), in a village in the northern part of the lake. We are literally 20 meters from the water and beach. We have a large garden at the back of the house, with plenty of olive trees, a good spot for hammocks and a WIP vegetable garden.
The house is divided into apartments : our project is to renovate them to create a nice and cosy B&B.
A bit about the help we need :
Because of lockdown, our renovation project hasn't gone as far as we wanted in 2020. Now with 2 little kids, it is hard to get free time (and free hands !) to go forward, so we would appreciate some help.
Depending on your interests, you could get into renovating, decorating, gardening... or staying with the kids while we do all this ;-)
We don't look for any particular profile, skills, age or anything because we know that everyone can bring us some experience and wisdom. We only expect trust, mutual respect, interest, motivation, communication and open minds.
We look forward to meet our first volunteer(s), will it be you ?
Types of help and learning opportunities
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Babysitting and creative play
Help around the house
General Maintenance
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
The volunteers will benefit from a bi-cultural home and can improve her/his language practice, get into French and Italian lifestyles, songs, literature, politics... but also exchange about our travel experiences.
They can experience life in Italy by going to the village, to the market, have coffee in bars, eat delicious pizza and gelato, meet local people, visit the nearest cities... Our lakeside is also known for its olive trees and olive oil production, they can get the story by walking along the old mule paths on the mountain.
We are not experts but we try our best in everything we do, so we can all gather and exchange our knowledge.
Last but not least, they will get so many hugs and smiles from our sweeties :-)
Projects involving children
This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.
Help
Renovation project :
Most of the "hard work" has been done, but there is still some painting to do, floor to install, general cleaning and finishing etc. We also need to decorate and furnish the apartment, we have our ideas but creative minds and DIY skills will be appreciated.
Garden :
The big job would be to prune the olive trees. Martin has all the equipment but he needs a partner in work.
We also need to start the summer vegetable garden, regularly mow the lawn and keep on clearing some "colonised areas".
Kids :
Irene is nearly 3 yo now, very active, playful and curious. She loves to be outside (playing with peddles at the beach or horseriding the trees in the garden), she likes listening to music, to dance, to be told stories, to cook... She looks after her little brother very well.
Loris is 5 months old and also very curious. He is generally very joyful and communicative, he follows all our moves.
We wouldn't ask too much for the kids, only being good company to them. More details would be given if necessary.
We will be flexible about the work, depending on your interests and motivation. We don't have a proper schedule, some days may be lighter than others, activities will be done according to weather, the availability of material... and you will get plenty of time to enjoy the surroundings.
Languages
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
French: Fluent
Italian: Fluent
German: Intermediate
Spanish: BeginnerThis host offers a language exchange
This host has indicated that they are interested in sharing their own language or learning a new language.
You can contact them directly for more information.
Accommodation
The volunteers will stay in a double bedroom in the apartment which is being renovated, above ours. For now, the private bathroom is not functional, so it will shared with us in our apartment.
There is also space for tents in the garden if the volunteers prefer their own accomodation.
We will share the meals in our kitchen or on the terrace. We cook mainly French and Italian but also world cuisine. We have a classic diet, with seasonal food (from the market or our garden), we eat local meat and fish but not at every meal. Italian coffee breaks garanteed !
What else ...
We live in a splendid natural environment, between mountain and lake, very nice to practice outdoor activities on days/time off. We usually have beautiful weather and temperatures.
For the sportive ones, it's paradise : the lake is famous for water sports (sailing, windsurfing, kitesurfing, scubadiving...) but also for hiking, climbing, (mountain) biking, cycling, paragliding...
For sightseeing : all the villages on the lakeside are really typical and deserve a quick visit ; the other side or the norht of the lake have also their beauties and can be reached by ferry boat ; if you want a higher panorama, you can take the cable car to the top of the mountain.
For cultural visits, art and history are not so far : Verona, Trento and Venice can be reached by bus/train.
For recreation time, the famous theme park Gardaland is at the south of the lake.
For travel planning, we can help to guide and find information.
For the ones who just want to rest, you can relax and get a sunbath at the beach !
Nearest...
Airport : Verona o Bergamo - Train station : Peschiera del Garda - International/Regional Bus station : Verona - City bus station : Garda and then our village.
If authorized, we will come to pick you up where you need. For your visits, we might as well take you where the regular bus line does not.
Feel free to contact us for more information !
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Can possibly accept pets
We have a cat named Rousseau, who now spends most of his time out. Martin has grown with a lot of dogs, cats (even duck!) around, he loves them and so does Irene.
How many Workawayers can stay?
Two
Hours expected
25 hours/week maximum
