Maria Alice

Italy
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Profile information

Travel information
I am currently
Travelling
Description
Italian woman currently living in Belgium. Here in Brussels I work as a barista in a coffee shop, and in my free time I do photography and hope to make a side business out of it in 2024. My dream is to one day be a digital nomad, so I'm also learning digital marketing and coding.

I am shy at the beginning but I love to talk and laugh when I get to know people better. I like to be straightforward and honest and expect others to be. I like to take on responsibilities and I love to learn something I don't know.

I'm a big lover of the outdoors and winter is my favourite season. Being out in the snow in a cold, sunny day is my idea of perfect day. I love the mountains and I could hike or ski forever.

I love all animals but dogs have a special place in my heart. When I was younger I wanted to be a dog trainer, but then life brought me elsewhere - but I haven't given up on the dream yet!
Interests
Yoga / Wellness
Vegetarian or vegan
Writing
Music
Camping
Blogging
Dancing
Books
Winter sports
Pets
Outdoor activities
Nature
Mountain
Languages
Hitchhiking
Culture
DIY & crafts
Hiking
Cycling
Cooking & food

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Languages
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
French: Fluent
Italian: Fluent
More details about my language interests
I can teach English, Italian and French.
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Skills and knowledge I'd like to share or learn
I'm interested in:
DIY and building projects
Life at a Farmstay
Some knowledge of:
Languages
Animal Care
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Hospitality/Tourism
More details about your skills
- Very good knowledge of dog care, training, feeding etc
- Good knowledge about animals in general
- I can drive stick
- I can cook very well
- I can do maintenance around a house or garden
- Very good photography skills
- Good marketing and writing skills
Age
29
What else ...
I love crafting! I know basic sewing and in the past few years I've been learning how to do DIY cosmetics from scratch, it's so rewarding.

I love food and I've been working for years in the food industry, so I can cook a bunch of cool dishes and I make amazing latte art. I'm very willing to learn to cook dishes from your culture!

I can ride a horse and used to do so quite regularly when I was a kid, I would love to ride again if a chance arises.

Photography is my biggest passion and my plan for my next trip is to try and photograph the Northern lights.

I have a background in communication and marketing and used to do social media management and communication for a tourist guides website as a remote employee. Best job I ever did, I would love to go back to it!
Some more information
- Smoker
- Driver's licence
- Allergies
- Special dietary requirements

Feedback

26 Mar 2024

Left by host (Contribute your love and ...) for Workawayer (Maria Alice )

Thank you for your feedback.

With regards to the premesis, we are in the midst of a renovation, this is part of what we need help for, that means that not everything is perfect yet, but we are constantly improving.

For anyone considering staying with us, you are more than welcome to ask us for a virtual tour before deciding to come here!

We… read more have made improvements both in the bathroom and the kitchen, since you left. We have also made sure all bedrooms have a clothing rack for hanging up clothes, a desk, chair and a bed. There are also lots of furniture left at the school, so if anyone wants or needs something extra in their room, they just have to let us know.

When it comes to our routines with the dogs.
For safety, when there is one person handling the opening, and taking in dogs, and one person handing them out to their parents again, the other dogs have to be in crates. If you were to leave them in a room unattended, there would be fights, wich are not acceptable. Norwegian law says a dog can only be altered if there is a medical reason for it, therefore all dogs in daycare are intackt, that means lots of hormones that needs to be handled carefully.

So for opening and closing, we need to use crates.
For the rest of the time, we have workawayers to help us activate the dogs, that means take them for walks or give them playtime together, alternating who is active throughout the day. It is not ok to leave them in crates 90% of the time if you are paied to take care of them, and you were never told to do this.
We do however make sure that puppies are not overstimulated, they need downtime to stay healthy and stressfree. We have puppies from as young as 8 weeks, and they need help to calm down when they are in an exciting new enviroment, the pet parents bring beds and toys to put in their crates, and fully expects us to care for their puppy in the best way possible.

We will not get into all reasons for why it did not work out to have you with us, but it was not a single mistake, the episode you mention - but not in full, was disregarding a direct order to stay away from a dog for safety reasons.

As a small business in a small town, we are completely dependant on a good reputation. When an owner paies us to care for their aggressive dog, they trust us to keep their dog safe. We do not claim a dog is aggressive, we let you know that we have taken in an aggressive dog, and for you to come into our business, disregard direct orders (that are given to keep you and your coworkes safe) and decide you know better than us, that is unacceptable.

We live 200 meters away, and you had the means to call us if you thought the dog was in distress. The dog had been cared for all day, by myself and my husbond, and we had only been gone for an hour and half before you let him out of the crate. You didnt just let him out of the crate either, you left the door to the room open, so when he heard someone coming in the front door, he ran to attack them, luckily for you (and us) it was Ole that came in, and the dog recognized him and only hit him with its front paws. Had it been one of the workawayers that was there with you, the outcome would probably have been very bad.

A dog that bites people in Norway, will be euthanized, someone will get hurt, and we will be out of business. Therefore our safety rules are absolute. We understand that it was not a fun experience to be asked to find a new workaway host, but you were let go on a friday morning, and told you could take the day off to search for a new place, and stay for the weekend. You were paied for a full week, even though you didnt work for a week. And two hours after you were asked to find a new place, you had found one, and we drove you to the bus.

I wish things had turned out differently, because I thought you were a kind and gentle person, that was nice to the dogs when I observed you. You also seemed open to learning new things. I do not doubt that in another situation, you would be a great asset to a host, you are very selfsufficient and see what needs to be done. You kept things in order around you.

Wish you all the best, and hope you have some amazing workaway experiences.

(Neutral )

28 Feb 2024

Left by Workawayer (Maria Alice ) for host (Contribute your love and ...)

Not exactly what I expected and what is advertised. Hosts not very welcoming. Not helpful when I lost my ID. Gave me 48h to leave after a single mistake.

First of all, Bardufoss is a military town with nothing to do, no places to visit or anything remotely cultural. There aren't typical restaurants either. If you don't have a car, you won't be… read more able to enjoy the outdoors besides a couple cross country skiing tracks.

The place the host provides for sleeping is very run down: it's an old school being renovated so you have a very simple room (just a bed and a table, no chair or wardrobe). The bathroom is a room with two basins, a wc and a shower head. You don't get a shower cabin so besides being cold, when showering the water runs everywhere (because the floor inclination makes the water run opposite from the hole where it should go...) and you need to spend 15 mins cleaning up. The kitchen is very simple with minimal equipment (1 single hob, no oven or microwave, for 4 people..) but it's still ok. There's no other common place.

The job is fairly easy and the dogs are lovely though. The clients are nice as well. You are required to take dogs from owners, put them in cages, and then after 10am take them for a little walk. They will spend most of the time in cages though. All dogs are gone by 4pm when the owners come back to take them. All in all not really a fan of how dogs had to spend 90% of the time in cages.

There was no real cultural exchange and mostly, we were instructed on work to do and then left on our own. I lost my passport at one point, and they did not seem to care. I asked repeatedly for the address to have my boyfriend send me another piece of ID by post, but they didn't provide it.

Also, there was a disagreement that ended up with me being sent away. A dog was brought in the morning, put in a cage and we were told not to touch him. At 7pm he was still there and wouldn't stop barking, howling and crying. It had been a few hours and the hosts were nowhere to be seen. I, admittedly, did not respect the orders when I went to bring some comfort to the animal, took him out of this cage to have him drink some water and walk around a bit. Which did help him calm down a lot.

When the hosts arrived, they were upset about the dog having being taken out of his cage, as apparently, it's an aggressive dog. I totally understand their point and I explained myself, while also admitting my mistake. However, they were adamant that I leave their place in 48 hours since they couldn't trust me anymore. They told me that "you'll have no problem finding another Workaway" which is not true.

They basically gave me 48h to sort myself out of the Norwegian north in the middle of nowhere, knowing that any flight for anywhere would have costed at least 200€, knowing that I had no ID so I actually couldn't travel anywhere, and knowing that there are no opportunities nearby because again, it's not like we're in central London.

Overall quite a negative experience and I don't recommend it.

(Neutral )