Julia & Jack

Switzerland & United Kingdom
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Travel information
We are currently
Travelling
Description
Hello! We are Jack and Julia, two outgoing, confident, and hardworking people who met while taking part in a research project on wild Chacma Baboons in South Africa. Even though our time with the project has come to an end, we did not want it to be the end of our adventure!

Julia has just finished her Biology Masters, and Jack has spent his time working in healthcare in the UK while waiting for Julia to finish her studies. As you probably have guessed, we both love spending time outside in nature, the wilder the better! The environment is super important to us, and we want to do something good for it.

We have keen interests in conservation and wildlife preservation, Julia has even spent time in the past volunteering in animal shelters, helping to make their lives a bit happier, no matter the size of the animal! In our free time you can often find us hiking, swimming, reading, writing, gardening and cooking. Meeting new people, sharing experiences, learning and contributing to something bigger is something that we both really enjoy.

We are looking forward to connecting with hosts and other Workawayers who are passionate about nature, animals, and making a positive impact.
Interests
Nature
Vegetarian or vegan
Outdoor activities
Winter sports
Water sports
Pets
Team sports
Plant care
Music
Mountain
Farming
Gardening
Hiking
Drawing & painting
DIY & crafts
Cycling
Books
Camping
Cooking & food
Beach
Adventure sports
Animals
Languages spoken
German: Fluent
English: Fluent
Spanish: Beginner
French: Beginner
Skills and knowledge we'd like to share or learn
We're interested in:
DIY and building projects
Life at a Farmstay
Eco Projects
Animal Care
Charity Work
Some knowledge of:
Gardening
General Maintenance
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Helping around the house
More details about your skills
Here's a bit about what we can bring to the table:

- Animal Care: We've got experience with all kinds of animals, from farm critters to household pets. We love making sure they're well-fed, groomed, and happy.
- Gardening: We enjoy getting our hands dirty in the garden. We're comfortable with planting, weeding, watering, and general garden upkeep. Whether it’s flowers or veggies, we’re ready to help them thrive.
- Handyman Work: We're pretty handy and can tackle simple repairs around the house or farm. From fixing minor issues to putting together furniture, we’re up for it.
- Cooking: We both love to cook and can whip up some tasty meals. Whether it’s everyday cooking or special occasions, we’re happy to help in the kitchen.
- Versatile Help: We're adaptable and willing to jump into any task that needs doing. Cleaning, organizing, or any odd jobs you have—we’re ready to assist.

We're hardworking, eager to learn, and excited to meet new people. We can’t wait for the opportunity to work with you and make a positive contribution to your place.
Age
26 & 28
Some more information
- Smoker
- Driver's licence
- Allergies
  Wasps
- Special dietary requirements
  Vegetarian

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7 Mar 2025

Left by host (Help with taking care of our ...) for Workawayer ()

JJ - Julia and Jack stayes at our farm for 3 weeks. They helped with the routine of feeding the chicken and ducks, cleaning the coop each morning and evening. They make a great team of mowing lawns and sweeping up the grass to be used in the chicken coops, or as mulch for some trees. They also helped out cleaning and preparing the… read more

(Excellent )

7 Mar 2025

Left by Workawayer () for host (Help with taking care of our ...)

We spent 3 great weeks here with Kak Muni and Cik Lah, as well as their daughter Ella, her husband Fizi, and their son Faleek. They are an incredible family, who welcomed us with open arms and treated us for the entire duration of our stay. We got to experience what real rural Malaysian life is like while on their homestay, and got to help them… read more with general maintenance of the farm as well as feeding their huge families of chickens and ducks!

The work itself was split into two halves, we worked from 7:30 - 10:30, and then again from 17:00 - 18:30, 6 days a week (we still fed chickens and ducks on our day off when there were no other volunteers). This gave us plenty of time in the days to relax and unwind by the nearby river, go for bike rides / runs around the neighbourhood, or to just kick back and relax at our house on their property. They were never too demanding and encouraged us to rest if we were too tired or overheating, indeed, they were very understanding at the start of our stay when both of us were ill for a few days and couldn't complete a full day's work.

The farm is a lovely slice of Malaysian jungle crossed with manicured garden, there are orchards growing various citrus fruits, fields growing bananas, and even a section at the back of the property growing pineapples! There were also fish tanks on the property where a variety of local and exotic fish were being cultured, but our work never involved these tanks as they are overseen by the more than capable hands of Fizi and Cik Lah. There was also a vegetable patch and various lawns for us, the family, and their visitors to make use of. The farm was much bigger than we expected having just seen the workaway advert, so having all of this space was a great surprise and we loved being surrounded by so much nature.

It is a functioning homestay, so there were several visitors to the farm who came to stay over and also camp there while we were staying. It was great to meet such a diverse number of Malaysian visitors, who treated us with as much hospitality as our hosts did. Some of our work entailed cleaning/preparing the homestay properties for these guests, which was nice, easygoing work and made a nice change from our shifts spent pruning, mowing, watering and raking - what we're trying to say is, there was never an opportunity for us to get bored on this farm. The work was varied, and we were never asked to do too much out of our ability as two new arrivals to the farm. We had such a great time!

Along with welcoming us into their home, the family also introduced us to life in and around Sungkai, the town closest to where they live. This is a place full of new experiences, with plenty of shops to visit, roti canai stalls to eat at, and markets to explore. They took us round the market to explain what everything for sale was, which was great for two 'Malaysia beginners' to have as we wandered round, we particularly appreciated their food recommendations, as we got to try out snacks that we otherwise probably would have missed without them. We were even lucky enough to visit one of the Warongs nearby with the family, which is essentially a roadside cafe popular in Malaysia, and this made a nice change from cooking our own meals, which we normally did on the farm.

So, all in all, we highly recommend it as a stop on your travels throughout Malaysia. We were there for three weeks, but there were also volunteers on smaller schedules (shout out to Lee from Canada and Lydia from France!) so I think that any timescale could be accommodated. They really are some of the best people you could hope to meet on your travels, and if you do decide to come here you will not be disappointed. A highlight of our stay was on our final evening when we a 'pot luck' dinner and everyone brought a dish for everyone to enjoy. It really was a special night and showed off the type of family oriented community that they have managed to foster here, and we will always treasure those memories.

Thank you so much Kak Muni, Cik Lah, and everyone that is part of the family, we will keep in touch!

Jack & Julia - JJ

(Excellent )

21 Feb 2025

Left by host (Help us at an Organic rice ...) for Workawayer ()

Jack Julia! We already know we can’t thank you enough to their help and their leaderships!
They are so hard working, friendly, respectful, calm, such great mood makers, organized and flexible couples.
When they came here, we were just about to start planting. So they helped us from the very beginning stage of growing rice; taking out all of the… read more

(Excellent )

15 Feb 2025

Left by Workawayer () for host (Help us at an Organic rice ...)

We spent an amazing 3 weeks at this farm helping Captain and the gang start to plant their next batch of ruby rice. This was a very varied task, when we arrived we were belly deep in the paddies helping to clean the water weeds to make way for field preparation, which involves digging trenches and flattening the mud in the paddies to allow for… read more

(Excellent )

11 Dec 2024

Left by host (Help with dog sitting in a ...) for Workawayer ()

Julia and Jack were an absolutely great help for me and my dogs. Julia and Jack were able to help with every task they were asked to do and worked independently. My dogs were very happy, fed, walked, and groomed each day. Julia and Jack adapted very well into rural Thai life and were well liked by the locals, and integrated with the local shop and… read more

(Excellent )

30 Nov 2024

Left by Workawayer () for host (Help with dog sitting in a ...)

We spent 1 month at Karen's bungalow looking after her amazing group of 6 dogs. The entire experience, from early communication with Karen to organise dates, to our arrival, our adventures while we were there, and our time with the dogs was honestly perfect. This was our first workaway and couldn't have wished for a better start to our journey.… read more Karen was so communicative, honest, and always contactable with whatever issues we had (from big things such as water supply breaking, even to little things like recommending where we could go to eat when we were fancying something more than our own home cooked food).

What helped our experience was not just Karen and her role as 'manager', it was also the location itself. Kuraburi is a big town for the region - about 4 hours north of Phuket - but at the same time the bungalow is on the outskirts of the town, and you are essentially in your own private slice of jungle. There is so much to do in that area alone that we even spent several days without leaving the property, there are walks to go on that the dogs will more than happily join you on, you can swim in a waterfall fed pool that is within 15 metres of the bungalow, and you can spend your time watching all the various wildlife, from small insects to big geckos, go about their daily lives.

And for the dogs themselves, we couldn't have asked for better companions. We instantly fell in love with them all, especially how wild the youngest three brothers appeared to be when we first arrived. In time, it became clear that they were just pushing our boundaries when we first arrived, as all young boys do, and they all were so well behaved by the end. And that is not forgetting the other 3 dogs too - Dam, Snoopy, and Deng were all great dogs to hang around with, they are all unique with their own personalities and likes and dislikes (get ready for Deng to dry herself on you after rainstorms!). We were truly heartbroken to leave them after our month, they had become our own little family and we will carry them with us forever.

I would recommend this workaway to anyone who loves animals, nature, and getting to fully immerse yourself in a wild part of the world. Having spoken no Thai at all before arriving in the country, we managed just fine with a language barrier with the locals, and everyone is so welcoming, hospitable, and just so helpful. Your closest neighbour, P'Pom, doesn't speak English but he does have a heart of gold and will be on hand to help in any maintenance crises. Similarly, the people of Kuraburi themselves are just like P'Pom - we struggled with our bike starting on our arrival and always got the help of strangers to get it going again!

That being said, we would recommend you to stay for as long as your trip to Thailand makes possible. We wouldn't have done half the things we did or seen half the things we saw if we would have stayed for only the minimum amount of time Karen has set on this website - get yourself out here and stay for long enough to really settle in!! Every day is a treat out here and, like us, you will have no regrets with your time here.

Thank you so much for this opportunity Karen, we are very grateful.

Julia & Jack

(Excellent )

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