Edoardo

Italy
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Description
DESCRIPTION IS A WORK IN PROGRESS, RECENTLY RESUBSCRIBED, UPDATING A BIT OF EVERYTHING AFTER YEARS =)

Hello there, we are Raana from Iran and Edoardo from Italy!
We both live and study in Pavia, a lovely historical student city close to Milan. Raana has just started her Pharmacy degree here, whereas I am concluding a PhD course in Earth and Environmental Sciences.
We would like to take a chance this summer 2026 for a brief study gap, indicatevely from the end of July to mid September continously, to reach you in any of the beautiful Italian destinations. An occasion to let Raana taste a bit more of our Italian culture too!

About me, I spent overall some years within community-based environments out of the world wide web, either volunteering or sharing spaces for a living. I love to chat and discuss on relevant topic as well, I'm ironic and surely not afraid to get my hands dirty! Indeed, after my Master degree in Medical Biotechnologies I moved every year to new destinations for working purposes and new projects. Mainly as agricultural technician after a heartfelt career shift, I have worked also as carpenter, lumberjack, gardener, shelf-stacker, waiter, scientific collaborator and as part of the agro-food and scientific laboratory staff in a couple of locally relevant agricultural companies. So, a bit of many things, eventually ending up in Pavia to conduct the current doctoral research on rice crops.
My first Workaway experience was in the far 2019 in Portugal, with Alice and Tim, a great great beginning. Then I joined the ESC and SCU programs, respectively in Sweden and Ecuador. Needless to say, they all were by now the most happy, varied, stimulating, learning and fulfilling experiences ever. It has been a "while", and I do miss the beautiful vibes of cultural exchanges, travelling, knowing new environments, people, and jobs.

Raana....
Interests
Movies & TV
Technology
Books
Drawing & painting
Plant care
Cycling
Nature
Self development
Mountain
Fitness
Hiking
Camping
Sustainability
Outdoor activities
Farming
DIY & crafts
Adventure sports
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Spanish: Fluent
Persian (Farsi): Fluent
Italian: Fluent
Skills and knowledge we'd like to share or learn
We're interested in:
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Eco Projects
Art Projects
Some knowledge of:
General Maintenance
Life at a Farmstay
Helping around the house
Hospitality/Tourism
Helping with Computers/ Internet
Able to teach about:
Languages
More details about your skills
I am a professional in the agricultural field, despite I started only recently: I worked both as a simple employee and as a consultant in this frame. I also have basics on permaculture and landscaping.

I'm in quite good shape, quite strong, and resistant to some extent, used to manual labour (firewood, building, farming).

I have also lived on my own for most of my twenties, and in a community of tens of people, so I'm experienced of house chores and co-living attitudes and needs.

I had several jobs during and after my studies: student tutoring, researcher in the medical field, gardener, waiter, shelf-stacker, builder, farmer, volunteer, carpentry (helper).
That's why I know how to use the most basic tools and materials, as well as others more job specific.

Thanks to the travels and the experiences I had into the academic field, as well as practicing different jobs within several social environments, I know how to deal with many people of different ages, nationalities, social status, and cultural backgrounds.

I could teach some skills about sports: archery, rowing, jeet kune do, capoeira, calisthenichs.

Good listener.

I like cooking, to some extent it's similar to set up experiments in the lab :-D

Handy with windows based OS (always fixed everything by myself), familiar with Office softwares, and excellent at web surfing and at retrieving information.
Age
33
What else ...
I like to sit and play board games, chess, cards, talking, anything that keeps the mind engaged and having fun.
I like to train with calisthenics and free body exercises.
I carve wood when I have the chance and inspiration.
I love to trek and to swim, especially if both allow me to explore new areas and see an unknown nature.
Some more information
- Smoker
- Driver's licence
- Allergies
  Cats. But I can easily cope with that by taking some antihistamine and not allowing them to enter my personal space.
- Special dietary requirements
  Not really, we eat anything.

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3 Mar 2019

Left by host (Help to revive a quinta ...) for Workawayer ()

Edoardo came to help us for two weeks and we soon realized we struck gold!
We got into contact only two days before Edoardo's arrival and we didn't really plan any big jobs for the period he would spent with us but it immediately proved not to be an issue. Edoardo has a splendid attitude on and off the working time.
He always tries to be helpful,… read more

(Excellent )

27 Feb 2019

Left by Workawayer () for host (Help to revive a quinta ...)

I met Alice and Tim thanks to a terrible expierence with a previous host. I contacted them in time of need and they gave me support, despite I've never had a conversation with them on Workaway before. I'm happy that things went in this way, otherwise I've never had the possibility to meet such open, friendly, generous, skilled and bright… read more people.

I stayed at their quinta for ten days, unfortunately, I would have liked to stay more for sure. I've never needed to ask for anything, because they really know how to make you feel comfortable in any context. After few days, at least to me, it was like we always knew each other.
I wanted to try an offgrid experience, and this was the perfect place: spring water, basically all of the food from garden and conserves (olive oil included, and very good!), accomodation in a caravan with stove, really warm room and comfortable bed, electricity and warm water from solar panels and collector. I can guarantee without any doubt that they are exceptional cookers, from breakfast with Tim's amazing pancakes to dinner with Alice's creative and tasty recipes. I also tried some Portuguese traditional dishes always cooked by them.
They are very well integrated in the local community and you can have the possibility to know more on Portuguese culture and people (including but not limited to, after my departure on Sunday they organized a home made tagliatelle lunch, with many invited guests from Midoes and neighborhood). But they are really full of surprises and resources!
The job tasks were varied, that is one of the things that I appreciated the most, so that I could see different aspects of an offgrid living, plus experience and learn new techniques and skills. And for sure if you decided to go to their quinta you will learn a lot on the matter, both from the work and from Alice and Tim's stories and opinions. I've never felt pressure during the work, actually I wanted to do more to help them even better. I spent basically from 8 am to 21 pm with them, and the chats after dinner were the best and funny part of the day.
All their dogs are something I've never seen before: unbelievably smart and communicative. I've finally decided to have a Griffon Bleu de Gascogne if I will ever have an other dog (Sorry dogs, but Maghi is definitely my favourite!)
About the free time, we visited the typical market in Tabua, we had breakfast at the pastelaira more than once, I had a yoga trial in Tabua where Alice is attending her yoga course, I made a walk along the river and with the dogs, and my last day there we went to the Museu of Azeite (olive oil musem) in Oliveira do Hospital, which was a real surprise since ultra modern and minimalist, but really informative and interesting. Hope to not have forgotten anything, the days passed very fast and were busy of activities.
However, to practically pass the great mood and the life style I experienced there, I'm going to make an other example: we were burning some logs and bushes to clear the land, then suddenly << You know what? We can grill some tasty juicy pork for lunch!!!>>. No plans, simple, let it flows.

Hope that this review could convince you to spend some time to Alice and Tim's quinta, because if someone deserves your help they are the right people.
Guys, a sincere obrigadinho!

(Excellent )

26 Feb 2019

Left by Workawayer () for host (Offgrid living in a valley ...)

I spent 4 nights at Rory and Ashley's offgrid eco lodge, then I left. This was my first workaway experience, so it could be arguable my feedback and that's why I selected neutral. I prefer that after reading it you could conclude by yourselves which should be the rating. I'm not sure anymore on the utility of the feedback system since apparently… read more anyone previously hosted had noticed what I'm going to say. Moreover, now I can understand why there are no images of the building site on the profile. Nevertheless, I will describe my experience adding only feelings and thoughts I had at that time, no personal comment, since I've been accused to judge without any experience on the matter. Just take in mind throughout all the reading that the place should become an eco lodge for tourists.

I arrived on Saturday evening, already dark, I had a very nice welcoming, Rory and Ashley were friendly and easygoing. We had dinner in a local pub in Ervedal da Beira with their Portuguese and Brasilian friends, I tasted francesinha, a typical dish from Porto. I enjoyed those moments, there was a very nice, familiar, and relaxing atmosphere at the pub.
Once back to the lodge they briefly showed me the basics like where the toilet and kitchen were, as well as the shower, my tent, and how the stove worked. Even if I'm not a builder or engineer, I found all the buildings well built, the ones with ecobuilding principles too.
First night, and the followings, first problem, despite I was prepared to sleep in a tent and to extreme cold. I wore integral termic ski clothes, a double sleeping bag and blankets provided by the hosts (with hair and fur on them). I was forced to leave a small window open because the stove is old and doesn't work properly, because it has a defective ventilation, so that few smoke could going out. I didn't want the smoke saturated the inner of the tent with me inside, and even if it wasn't enough to saturate the room till morning, sleeping inhaling smoke every night is not healthy. That's why the cold and the impossibility to sleep in the last hours of the night. Rory had told me that I had to clean the chimney once a week, but I encountered the problem right the first night.

The day after, Sunday, was the day off. I could see now how the place was with daylight: Trash, broken styrofoam, packagings, cardboard, building materials, hazardous building chemicals (I studied at university R phrases because of working in a research laboratory, I can state "hazardous" more like cancerogenic, toxic, and threatening acquatic life than simply skin irritating), roof tiles, a mattress, plastic bottles, screws, luggages and backpacks, tools, and whatever you can think of left everywhere or in well defined spots within the property. If bags containing building material, opened and exposed to rain.
I was shocked since I thought to be in an eco lodge. I mean, I've worked at and I've already seen building sites in Italy, but I've never seen something like that. I was relieved that they weren't already completely offgrid but still buying groceries and drinkable water at the supermarket, because I wouldn't have eaten something grown or farmed on that land.
In the morning Ashley showed me how to feed the animals. Dogs, piglets, chicken and goats are free, even free to walk on screws and building materials all around the property risking to be injured: just in three days I saw a goat eating lime and cardboard directly from the bag, and dogs playing with plastic.
So here the second concern about my safety during working ours, and towards animals and nature too.

Once in the kitchen I was shocked again: really dirty and a mess. I started seriously thinking to leave the place. No clean surfaces. Dogs could reach every dish, pot, or cup used to eat and drink. That morning was raining, and they shaked off water from their bodies several times in the kitchen right on the dishes. I saw one of the dogs licking the grill used for toasting the bread. Nothing briefly washed before using it, if already cleaned with dish soap and the stagnant green water accumulated in the pool (no running water). The water from the pool was used for showering too, but this latter usage wasn't a problem to me.
Anyway, they have a lot to eat, from bread, pasta, potatoes and honey, to cheese, meat, fruit and vegetables, so you won't starve at all. All the scraps to the piglets (tea bags included...). The food cooked was good and tasty.
Since day off, according to Rory well specified on the profile, I spent all the day alone at the lodge since they had some appointments, except for lunch. They didn't ask me if I would have liked to join them. No car or bicycle available until Monday when we went to pick it up, no tips on what to do or go. So I put in order some firewood in the woodshed to keep me busy.
That day I almost put on fire the tent in an accident, but they were very kind and comprehensive, they didn't become upset at all. So I can't understand very well these guys still now, because they are kind, comprehensive and warm sometimes but also too indifferent and as if they don't care in other moments.
As I said it was raining in the morning, there were no small wood to start the fire because they don't prepare bag or faggot for starting fire but simply picking up small sticks from the ground. Everything was wet, then at evening I asked Rory how I could start the stove. He simply put in it about ten to fifteen pieces of kerosene based starter just for one time. They use only the kerosene based starter to light the stoves. I could do that too, but of course I didn't want since it is not an eco move. He also put the starter into the stove still wrapped in the packaging made of plastic. I can understand that the plastic was burned regularly into the stoves, since the following days I found the one used to make hot water for the shower already prepared with plastic in it.

Monday and Tuesday, working days, for most of the hours I worked with Spike, a very nice and interesting guy from Scotland, one of their paid employees. I must say I had much more cultural exchange with him than with Rory and Ashley. Spike and I received instructions from Rory, planning all the working week since both Rory and Ashley would have left the lodge on Monday/Tuesday for several days (Ashley was going to come back on Thursday and Rory on Saturday). This implied I had to spend an afternoon and a night alone at the lodge, and the following days and nights with the workers. Before Ashley left, she gave me some telephone numbers of some of their friends in case of needs or emergency, and before Rory left he brought me to the supermarket to buy what I liked for my following meals.
So, I worked basically always with Spike. I worked a little or almost nothing with Ashley or Rory. Our cultural exchange was mainly limited to lunch, dinner, and car trips to the supermarket/shops, reduced to the bare minimum.
Concerning the tasks, I built some stairs made out of logs, I helped with the building of a new stone foundation for the shower stove, and finally to lift and secure some beams. Some carriage of materials as well and I fed the animals once, the same morning I left because no one apart from me was at the property. Nothing too hard and satisfying.
Nevertheless, the third concern about my safety came with some of their employees. ##text redacted#. The problem was that they used tools and materials as well as the rest of us, plus driving a bulldozer. So that was the final clue that drove me leaving the place.

When I left, I went to a quinta, not very far from Rory and Ashley's place, where a couple is living with offgrid and ecoprinciples too, real ones this time. They were hit by the great fire in 2017, so in this case I can understand the mess and the remnants in their property (always less than trash on Rory and Ashley's one, though, despite they were not hit by the fire). There I had a real cultural exchange, wonderful times, and I spent the following two weeks with them. I prefer considering the second one my first workaway experience. Moreover, the host I'm referring to has less and less good rated reviews than Ashley and Rory. That's why I think that this system is not foolproof.

Concluding, since I can compare the two experiences, I think that it is very unlikely that I found the worst and the best workaway hosts in just one trip. About me, I was the same in both the experiences of course. Then, I think that it is more likely that Rory and Ashley are simply trying to start their eco business as soon as they can, paradoxically without respect for nature and interest in a real cultural exchange with volunteers. I'm saying this because before leaving Rory told me that as a cultural exchange they provide just the means to, like bycicle and food, because the rest is up to us. I thought this was called rental and restaurant, but I must clearly misunderstood the workaway principles according to him.

(Neutral )

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