Kevin & Angelica Melissa

United States
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80.0 %
Travel information
We are currently
Travelling
Our next destination:
Sri Lanka - from Mar 2026 until Jul 2026
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Description
We are Kevin and Melissa, husband and wife, currently traveling in India from November 2025 until July 2026. We are excited to help in various workstays around India, exchanging language, culture, and skills with the wonderful we've met in this country already!

Kevin was born in Belgium, Melissa was born in Colombia, and we both live and work in the United States, but have quit our jobs in October 2025 to travel the world for 1-2 years.

Kevin has previously done many workstays in Australia, New Zealand and South America using the website 'HelpX'. He as plenty of references from hosts there: https://www.helpx.net/profile/849234MQ

Kevin is a mechanical engineer, but has been involved in some entrepreneurial work in regenerative agriculture since 2022. He has spent some time working and learning on organic farms and is very interested in continuing to learn about regenerative agriculture and natural farming techniques.

Kevin's hobbies include mountaineering, hiking/trekking, cycling, mountain biking, football, farming/gardening, riding motorcycles, photography, ecological projects, and thinking of creative business ideas for sustainable projects.

Kevin's skills include photography, project management, motorcycle/bicycle repair, gardening, business strategy.

For an example of his photography and videos, see here:
https://kmaxphoto.com/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/56705746@N02/
https://vimeo.com/user2023197

Melissa is a civil engineer (geotechnical engineering specialization).

Melissa's interests include geology, latin music/dancing, hiking, bird watching, learning and sharing languages and cultures.

Her skills include project management, taking care of children, gardening.

Both of us are very laid back, flexible and easy-going, yet not afraid of hard work and we're always up for sharing stories, language, culture with others helpers, locals, and hosts.
Interests
Farming
Pets
Sustainability
Videography
Technology
Politics / Social justice
Culture
Plant care
Photography
Languages
Hitchhiking
Gardening
History
Cooking & food
Astronomy
Books
Animals
Yoga / Wellness
Team sports
Nature
Fitness
Camping
Beach
Dancing
Mountain
Winter sports
Outdoor activities
Hiking
Cycling
Adventure sports
Languages
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Spanish: Fluent
French: Fluent
More details about my language interests
We love learning anything we can about all languages. We are happy to teach what we can about English, Spanish, and French (our native languages)
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Skills and knowledge we'd like to share or learn
Some knowledge of:
DIY and building projects
Creating/ Cooking family meals
General Maintenance
Life at a Farmstay
Eco Projects
Helping around the house
Animal Care
Hospitality/Tourism
Charity Work
Able to teach about:
Gardening
Languages
Helping with Computers/ Internet
Teaching
More details about your skills
Please see my www.helpx.net profile for skills, interests and many positive references from previous hosts: http://www.helpx.net/profile.asp?usercode=849234MQ
Age
37 & 34
Some more information
- Smoker
- Driver's licence
- Allergies
- Special dietary requirements

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21 Jan 2026

Left by Workawayer () for host (Off grid coffee estate ...)

We stayed for a week after getting in touch with Vishal and Aditi via Whatsapp. After seeing so many wonderful reviews, we were looking forward to meeting them, despite the last review being from 2023. They gave us all the information necessary on how to arrive (contact info for a driver familiar with the farm; 1000 rupee rickshaw ride from… read more Chikkamagaluru).
When we arrived, it turned out that Vishal and Aditi were not at the farm, but in Calcutta for a family emergency, so unfortunately we weren't able to meet them, which was a big bummer for us. I was particularly interested in talking with them about the organic/regenerative aspect of the farm as well as some of their conservation initiatives. We completely understand that these things can't be planned for, so we wish them well and hope to return some day to meet them in person :). The rest of this review will focus on the farmstay itself.
We were greeted by two of the local staff, Ganesh and Sheshi, two young guys that do general cleaning and some of the coffee processing. They were joined by Stefan, the new property manager. It sounds like none of the staff that appears in the previous reviews are there anymore, and these guys are recent hires.
The staff were very accommodating and easy to get along with, despite not speaking much English. We actually enjoyed very much learning some Kannada and trying to communicate with them. Stefan, who does speak more English, was very accommodating during our stay, gave us some tasks, and helped out with the cooking, as there was no cook for half of the stay. We also helped with cooking and cleaning the kitchen before a new cook, Pavatri, and her family arrived.
Pavatri quickly became the heart and soul of the place, with her wonderful cooking, her big smile, and her adorable son Bargo. She immediately cleaned up the kitchen, which was quite dirty and disorganized when we arrived.
Stefan was kind enough to invite us to participate in a pooja (ceremony) he and his family held with the farm cows one afternoon, as well as walking to one of the local waterfalls together. Definitely one of the highlights of the stay.
Stefan also introduced us to Maesh, the supervisor of the coffee harvesting. We had a few great afternoons talking with him while picking coffee cherries (this was January, so full coffee harvesting season).
The previous reviews are accurate in saying that the location is truly spectacular. The grounds are really beautiful, with flowers, ponds, and abundant birds + wildlife everywhere you look (note: look out for ticks; we were bit by a couple, which we later found out is quite common in these mountains. Wear long pants/shirts in the forests and do tick checks, these things can carry some nasty diseases).
The various rooms and buildings are well-thought out, if rustic. But the views from some of the rooms are just amazing (Sunbird room!). You can tell that some of these buildings could use a little bit more attention in terms of cleanliness and organization (there is evidence of mold under mattresses, for example, and sheets should be washed more often). I'm sure that with a bit more time, this new crew can get this place up to its full potential.
Most of our time was dedicated to general cleaning, picking up trash, participating in coffee processing activities (though not a huge amount to do beyond picking), and washing the many windows, which had accumulated a lot of algae/moss over the months of monsoon. Guests should be able to enjoy the beautiful views much more easily now! I think if the work were a little bit more well-defined and organized, volunteers' time could be used more efficiently. We consistently asked how we could help and ultimately just did the things that seems obvious to us (washing windows, cleaning, cooking).
Overall, it was a pleasant stay in a stunning location with very friendly and kind locals. With a little bit of guidance on cleanliness and organization/communication around tasks, this would easily be a 5-star review.
Once again, we wish Aditi and Vishal the best and would love to meet them one day. They sound like super interesting people.
Best wishes,
K+M

(Very good )

19 Jan 2026

Left by Workawayer () for host (Join us on our organic farm ...)

We arrived as curious volunteers, we left feeling like we had made lifelong friends.

My wife and I stayed a little over 2 weeks with Thomas and Christina and we could easily have stayed so much longer if we weren't at the start of our long trip. The highlight of our time on their farm was, by far, spending time talking with both of them.… read more Christina and Thomas are incredibly-well traveled, with fascinating backstories that filled many hours of conversation. We exchanged ideas, opinions, lessons, anecdotes, and jokes (many jokes!) on an endless amount of topics ranging from language, culture, religion, technology (get Thomas started on anything tech-related and be blown away by his knowledge), spirituality, business, etc etc. These two never shy away from going deep on a subject and we loved that about them.
Beyond the cultural exchange, we helped with whatever needed doing, but this mostly involved cooking, which we were more than happy to take on as a daily task. This freed up both Christina and Thomas to take care of the many projects they are involved in (whether the non-profit they run in Bangalore or the endless amounts of farm infrastructure projects Thomas has going on). The farm itself is large and still in development, so we also brainstormed ideas on how to make use of some of the spaces and fields available.
I also helped with some high-level business strategy and development on another project they have in the works, which I thoroughly enjoyed helping with.
The cottage we stayed in was spacious, clean, with its own kitchen and gas stovetop (which we never used, but nice to have anyway!), refrigerator, bathroom/shower and patio overlooking one of the fields.
Thomas and Christina were always very attentive and respectful, allowing us our own space when needed.
The main home is modern and comfortable to spend time in.
On a couple occasions we went into Bangalore with Thomas and Christina to meet their friends or run some errands.
Thomas' friends and family also stayed at the farm for a couple of days. It was a lot of fun to meet and share time with them.

We are so glad we got the opportunity to come and bring what we could to Thomas and Christina's farm. They left an extremely positive impression on us and our only regret is that we met them so early on in our travels so couldn't stay longer due to other commitments.

We sincerely hope to meet them again one day and will definitely stay in touch!

(Excellent )

18 Jan 2026

Left by host (Join us on our organic farm ...) for Workawayer ()

Kevin and Melissa spent two wonderful weeks with us at our organic farm in rural Bangalore, and their presence truly enriched our time here. They brought enthusiasm and generosity to everything they did, happily lending their hands to any task that needed doing — including cooking healthy meals, cleaning, research, and installing solar… read more

(Excellent )

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