Unhae & Bob

United States
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Travel information
We are currently
At home
Activities we are interested in:
Description
I'm a retired English teacher from Santa Cruz, California, who loves travel and cultural exchange. I'm also a climate and social activist concerned about the state of the world and the planet.

I've had wonderful couchsurfing experiences both as guest and host (we hosted a student for a few months in 2019). In 2018, I had a superb wwoofing experience for two weeks, making all kinds of cheeses at a goat farm in the French Alps. I travel solo, or with my partner Bob, a French-Canadian from Montreal, who, like me, is a longtime volunteer at a local nonprofit, where he fixes appliances and sewing machines. He can fix just about anything. He also does garden work and some construction. Some house projects we've accomplished are a deck, a car port, and most recently a shed.

I embrace workaway as a way to give back for room & board, but, more importantly, as a wonderful opportunity to experience, hands-on with open heart, the life of others in different parts of the world, as opposed to touristy travel. During COVID, I cared for my parents for three years. All the more reason I am eager to travel and to see the world again (respecting all COVID precautions)!

I caught the travel bug during my college years when I spent a year in Paris studying literature, art, and political science. A few years later I studied law in Germany! I had a great time but discovered I loved languages and cultures far more than I did contracts, law, and legal advocacy. I went back to Paris to study literary translation (as I was taking care of three kids as an AU PAIR), but eventually ended up teaching English (middle and high school) and literature at college. I have a Masters in English Education and a PhD in Shakespeare and Renaissance studies. I have published books and articles on Shakespeare and other literature.

Other than that, I love and pledge allegiance to Earth, my true home over any other national or ethnic tie. I hate the way humans are mistreating our privileged place on this beautiful planet and hope we can confront the environmental challenges ahead. Travel and cultural exchange, more than anything else, strengthen my conviction that we, of all races, faiths, and species, share equally this precious home and resource.

I love and admire nature--both sea and forest: I enjoy hiking, biking, and swimming. I enjoy eating and cooking all kinds of ethnic cuisines. I read voraciously and love to engage in deep conversations on literature, philosophy, politics to travel and pop culture. I speak 5 languages in descending order of fluency/skill: English, French, German, Korean, Spanish, Italian. I would like to improve my Italian. I know a little bit of Latin, Greek, and Persian.

The skills I offer are general house and garden work, child care and caregiving (spent most of the last decade caring for my parents), language practice, cooking/baking, professional sewing--all with a strong work ethic, a respectful manner, and a ready smile! My partner and I recently build a shed together. I sewed 100 masks for neighbors during COVID.

Thank you for considering us and hope to hear from you!
Interests
Music
Outdoor activities
Architecture
Farming
Culture
Cycling
Movies & TV
Yoga / Wellness
Writing
Politics / Social justice
Self development
Sustainability
Plant care
Nature
Languages
Fitness
History
Hiking
Gardening
Dancing
Events & social
Drawing & painting
Astronomy
Beach
Charity work
Cooking & food
Books
Carpentry
Art & design
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
French: Fluent
German: Intermediate
Spanish: Intermediate
Korean: Intermediate
Persian (Farsi): Beginner
Italian: Beginner
Skills and knowledge we'd like to share or learn
We're interested in:
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Babysitting and creative play
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Eco Projects
Helping around the house
Teaching
Hospitality/Tourism
Some knowledge of:
General Maintenance
Art Projects
Helping with Computers/ Internet
Being an elderly companion
Life at a Farmstay
Able to teach about:
Languages
More details about your skills
I have taught English for 20 years at the high school and university level (University of Southern California, Slippery Rock University). I have a B.A. from Yale, Masters in Education (UCLA) and Masters in English (UC Irvine), National Board Certification, Ph. D. in English from USC (specialty in Shakespeare and Renaissance Studies). I have a book published, along with many articles.
I can do professional sewing. I used to make a dress a day during my summer vacations (fashion designed and even men's suits). More recently, I use sewing for practical (curtains) and artistic purposes (quilts, altering clothing).
I've been cooking for many years and have become proficient at concocting something delicious out of limited stock. California offers cuisines from all cultures, so fusion cooking comes naturally for me.
My partner and I have restored many homes together (currently our 4th one), cleaning, painting, remodeling, landscaping, gardening. I am used to general maintenance as well as restorative work.
I am a parent, having raised a wonderful daughter. We hosted a student from Germany for 4 months and immensely enjoyed the cultural and intergenerational exchange. Years back, I really enjoyed au pairing in Paris for a family with three kids while I was pursuing a Maitrise in literary translation.
I cared for my parents for three years in my home.
Age
52 & 59
What else ...
I like to play Rummikub, or rummy tiles. I can draw and do beautiful calligraphy; used to play Chopin nocturnes on the piano. I also write poetry, and am learning swing dance. ;)
I had the wonderful opportunity to spend an academic year in Paris (twice); also in Goettingen, Germany. I have visited most of the western European countries from Granada to Bled to the Norwegian fjords; Vancouver, Montreal, and Quebec, Canada; Hawaii, New Zealand, Tahiti, S. Korea (a bit). On my prospective list is Portugal, Morocco, Denmark, and more of the Netherlands besides Amsterdam (which I wouldn't mind revisiting)!
Some more information
- Smoker
- Driver's licence
- Allergies
  no
- Special dietary requirements
  no

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23 May 2024

Left by host (Come, help with gardening and ...) for Workawayer ()

Unhae and Bob were quite helpful around the yard, weeding , fixing fences and general cleanup. Having the extra sets of hands was very helpful to us maintaining the property. They were very personable and we enjoyed learning of their life journey. We would recommend them to anyone that needs help around the house.

(Excellent )

4 Jun 2023

Left by Workawayer () for host (Come, help with gardening and ...)

We had a wonderful workaway at Amy and Rick’s place. They are friendly and welcoming, providing for all our needs and offering tips on local points of interest. We enjoyed some meals together (breakfast, dinner), sometimes worked together. In the 2+ weeks we stayed there, we did garden work (weeding, trimming, potting), cleaning and/or repair of… read more

(Excellent )

30 Jul 2019

Left by Workawayer () for host (Live in a old residential ...)

I have had several inquiries about this workaway, so I am making this public for interested parties. My workaway was in early July 2019, but I actually left even before working. Please read further. Communication before the workaway was good, and I appreciated very much that Joao took me on, on a last-minute basis. When I arrive in the afternoon… read more after telling him of my ETA, I rang his doorbell but got no answer, so I went to a nearby bakery to wait. The owner was kind enough to call Joao (because I didn't have a phone) to leave a message, and Joao came shortly thereafter. He had me sign a contract (which was unusual but since its terms were very reasonable, I went along). Then we had a spare midafternoon meal of pinto beans cooked some kind of greens like collards. Joao is a kind person who likes to share cultural information about Lisbon and Portugal. After the meal, he explained the work involved, at least, one project, which was to do light sanding of the stairway banister. To me, the banister seemed in good order; I wasn't sure why it needed that work. I was to start the next day. I was not happy that the work schedule he explained called for a 30 minute in the morning and an hour for lunch. I would rather work through the morning and have my afternoon off.
The room I was to stay in was spartan, a collection of mismatched pieces of salvage furniture. There was a curtain to separate one side from the other, each of which had a single bed with motley furniture, mostly steel shelving. Joao's website had explained that you would share with another workawayer, if there was another. He explained to me then that there was no other workawayer at this time, but circumstances were such that he would be sleeping on the other side. Hmmm, I thought. He also explained that there was no wifi and that there was no security in the room, no lock on the door, that I would have to carry my valuables with me, in case something happens. (The door had an rough indentation as though someone had tried to break it down.) There were 2 other renters in the residence, (one of whom I met later and thought was a decent guy, an IT instructor).
Since I had the afternoon off, I went to tour the Belem quarter, which is beautiful, with a lot of historical monuments, parks, and nice walk along the water. It was when I got back around 9pm that things didn't go too well. Because I didn't have a phone and there was no wifi, I couldn't contact Joao. I ended up waiting for him in the room for workawayers. I tried to turn on the light. Apparently, the light bulb was dead, so I waited in the dark for 30 minutes, then thought to try to search for him in the building, thinking that perhaps he was one story lower, with which he was in charge or had some responsibility. But just then he came. I expressed some of my discontent. Also, I told him that I had a laptop that I could not carry around everywhere. Trying to be helpful, he tried to set up a locker, drilling away into the metal and finally concocted some way to lock the locker with a thin piece of chain. By this time, near 10pm, I was hungry and asked about dinner, and, lo and behold, it was the leftover from lunch. I spent one night there, but in sleep on the situation (no wifi, insecurity, scarcity of food, the oddness of the living and work situation), I decided to leave early in the morning, leaving Joao a kind note. Joao is kind, but should not take on workawayers until the living and work situation has improved to meet reasonable expectations of workawayers. I do hope that he can turn the place into a good workaway situation because it is a good location. Maybe he already has made improvements to address the defects I experienced. Workawayers should ask about these deficits when they make their request.

(Negative )

28 Jun 2019

Left by host for Workawayer ()

Very good:asterisk_symbol::asterisk_symbol::asterisk_symbol::asterisk_symbol:

(Very good )

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