Profile information
Travel information
We are currently
Travelling
Activities we are interested in:
We are homesteaders/artists in Maine(USA) looking for inspiration from visiting others who live simply. Happy to share our abilities and learn, but mostly want to experience the daily lives of others.
Our next destination:
Portugal View all
Description
Hi there!
We are Rachael and Hanee, both 44 years old.
Hanee is a classically-trained realist sculptor (figures and portraits), and he's beginning to explore painting as well. Rachael's interest has been doing ceramics/pottery in the last few years. She works with a self-powered kick wheel.
After many adventures (since we got together as young adults in 2000) we moved to a wild piece of land near the coast of Maine in 2018. Starting from nothing on the 13 acres (5 hectares) of hilly forested land, we cut trees, found water, dug the earth, and constructed a wooden cabin (still in process) with just the two of us and a lot of patience.
Our motives have been to live close to nature, and to step out of the economy of consumption by living simply and going without unnecessary things. We enjoy our simple life with its various outdoor chores and would be glad to join in on your projects & chores while staying with you.
Although we don't have children ourselves, we were foster parents for a few years and also helped to homeschool our nieces & nephew over the years. We very much enjoy the company of children, finding them to lighten & brighten any day. (Rachael was a high school Latin teacher for 5 years before going "off-grid" to Maine.)
We both follow a principle of not causing harm and have been vegan (no use, harming or consumption of animals) for the past 25 years. We are broad-minded, though, and know that everyone finds their own ways to be compassionate and ethical and we have no problem living with those who eat meat or use animals (as all of our family and friends do). We are always happy to take care of our own meals if that's easier for everyone. In all cases, we are happy to share a table with you side by side as part of a mixed shared meal. (Note that we don't need any specialty products or ingredients -- we are content with any form of beans, grains and vegetables)
Winter in Maine can be challenging. This year we have had many nights where the temperature gets down to 0 Fahrenheit (-18 Celsius). It is hard being stuck indoors a bit too often. We're excited to do some traveling to be more active and spend more time outdoors when it has been difficult to do so here. We're also excited to meet people in other cultures and other places who are also motivated to live simply and close to nature.
Interests
Plant care
Dancing
Cooking & food
Writing
Carpentry
Camping
Farming
Music
Vegetarian or vegan
Outdoor activities
Nature
Culture
Languages
Hiking
Gardening
Drawing & painting
Art & design
Languages
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Latin: Fluent
German: Beginner
Greek: Beginner
French: Beginner
Portuguese: BeginnerMore details about my language interests
Rachael especially enjoys studying languages. We are happy to share our knowledge of English & Latin and would love to practice French, German, Spanish or Portuguese with you.
Skills and knowledge we'd like to share or learn
We're interested in:
Babysitting and creative play
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Helping around the house
General Maintenance
Being an elderly companion
Some knowledge of:
Teaching
Gardening
Able to teach about:
Art Projects
Languages
DIY and building projects
More details about your skills
Hanee's experienced with:
- Representational Art (trained as a figure artist, enjoy teaching too)
- Any type of work with clay
- Carpentry/Home-building (conventional light frame construction)
- Basic woodworking skills
- Clearing/chainsaw work/bucking&splitting/land work
- Electrical (we live off solar power, but I've redone mains work in past)
- Childcare (newborn and young children especially -- former foster parents)
- Homeschooling (mostly literature)
- Cooking (sourdough/ferments, mostly italian/french/mexican and some asian)
- Music theory and basic musical aptitude (come from a family of musicians)
- Basic mechanical abilities (I fix my own vehicles)
- Fairly quick-learner and broad-thinker. I'm a generalist.
Rachael's experienced with:
- Teaching (taught Latin & English Literature at the high school level)
- Childcare at all ages
- Amateur Potter (can teach the basics)
- Gardener (currently working as an ornamental gardener on estates)
- A capable helper with construction and homestead projects
- Cooking
Age
44 & 44
Some more information
Smoker
Driver's licence
Allergies
Special dietary requirements
We are vegan (nothing that comes from an animal or insect). No specialty products needed. Happy to cook or help cook.
Feedback
The work was satisfying as we felt we were really making a difference helping with their garden, trees, and home improvement. It was cool to see the garden beds take shape and know they are on their way to self sustainability!
Blanca and Robert were… read more
Hanee and Rachel are… read more
Photos
Friends
Feedback
The work was satisfying as we felt we were really making a difference helping with their garden, trees, and home improvement. It was cool to see the garden beds take shape and know they are on their way to self sustainability!
Blanca and Robert were… read more
Hanee and Rachel are… read more
