Sonja

Travel information

I am currently

Description

I suppose I’m a kind of a nomad – partly by choice, partly by necessity… Long story short: I grew up in Austria, moved to the UK in 2007, where I lived/worked/studied for over a decade, before moving to the East Coast of the US to do my PhD in History in 2017. I’m still working on that PhD and, as part of that, I’ve been spending the last year in the UK and the Republic of Ireland, researching and writing. – Honestly, I struggle to answer whenever I'm asked where I’m from or what my “home/permanent address” is, haha!

What I can bring to a WorkAway position (- to which I’m completely new at this point) on a practical level, will probably be my maturity (I’m 34), my life experience, and my very diverse skill set.
Although I’m mainly a historian now (which has also included teaching college students), I have previously worked as a pastry chef in a restaurant kitchen, as a barista, in customer service, as a housekeeper, as Au-Pair, as a camp counsellor, and various other odd-jobs over the years. I currently also have a very strong interest in learning about animal behaviour and positive-reinforcement training. Taking several online courses on this topic (and practising all this with my cat), has been a great means of procrastination from my PhD work for the last couple of years!

I love travelling and hiking! I’ve done everything from day hikes to 2-week treks (including camping), in countries such as the UK, US, Ireland, Iceland, Norway, India, Nepal, Afghanistan, Armenia, Georgia, Turkey… Basically, I’ve got plenty of travel stories to share with anyone who would like to hear them!

Since late-2020, I’ve been sharing my life and (less exotic) travels with Percy, my young cat. Percy (who’s part of this WorkAway package!), is a 3-year-old, male-neutered, playful and curious explorer. He’s harness & leash trained and can do all sorts of tricks. He’s been to 6 countries thus far and is great at getting used to new environments. Although he comes across as a little shy when he first meets new humans, he gets used to most people very quickly and is actually an extremely social cat. He does need some help and guidance when being introduced to other cats or dogs, but he has recently become good friends with another cat and really loved hanging out and playing with her. Farm animals, like sheep, cows, goats, horses, chickens, etc. are absolutely no problem for him. Fun fact: His first animal friend was a wild squirrel!

Interests

Languages spoken

German: Fluent
English: Fluent
French: Intermediate
Hindi: Intermediate
Persian (Farsi): Beginner

Skills and knowledge I'd like to share or learn

I'm interested in:  

Life at a Farmstay

Gardening

Being an elderly companion

Eco Projects

Charity Work

---

Some knowledge of:  

General Maintenance

Hospitality/Tourism

Helping with Computers/ Internet

Helping around the house

Creating/ Cooking family meals

Babysitting and creative play

Animal Care

DIY and building projects

Teaching

Art Projects

---

Able to teach about:  

Languages

More details about your skills

Although I’m mainly a historian now (which has also included teaching college students), I have previously worked as a pastry chef in a restaurant kitchen, a barista, in customer service, as a housekeeper, as Au-Pair, as a camp counselor, and various other odd-jobs over the years. I currently also have a very strong interest in learning about animal behavior and positive-reinforcement training. Taking several online courses on this topic (and practising all this with my cat), has been a great means of procrastination from my PhD work for the last couple of years!

Age

35

What else ...

I'm travelling with my cat.
I have my own car, so can easily get to remote locations myself.

Some more information

• 

  Smoker

• 

  Driver's licence

• 

  Allergies

• 

  Special dietary requirements