Join us in our sustainable handy project in the countryside near Montdurausse, France

Infos

• 

  Description

  Hello :)
  We are a three-generation family renovating an century-old farmhouse and several outbuildings in the beautiful countryside of southwest France.
  Our family includes: Odette (87), our grandmother ; Anne (60), our mother ; Adélie (37) ; Elise (34)
  A few years ago, we bought an old farmstead with the dream of creating a place where our family could live close to one another in the middle of nature.
  Our first goal is to renovate the original earth-built farmhouse so that Odette can move back onto the property and enjoy her home surrounded by family. For now, she lives next door with neighbours of her generation. Anne, Adélie and Elise already live on the property in separate accommodations, and over the coming years each of us will gradually renovate our own houses and buildings.
  This is a long-term project combining traditional natural building techniques with modern ecological solutions (such as solar-powered wall heating system) and we are excited to share part of the adventure with travellers from around the world. :)
  
  We are located in a peaceful rural area surrounded by organic fields, forests and wildlife. The nearest village with basic shops and services is about 8 minutes away by car.
  Nearby you can explore: beautiful forests and walking trails, historic castles, picturesque villages, vineyards and wine estates, lakes and leisure areas for swimming, local markets. The closest towns are Gaillac and Montauban each about 30 minutes away, Toulouse is just under 1 hour by road from our home.
  The area is ideal for people who enjoy nature, tranquillity and authentic rural France.

• 

  Types d'aide et opportunités d'apprendre

  Pratique d’une langue

  Aide avec des éco-projets

  Jardinage d'entretien

  Projets DIY créatifs

  Aide dans une ferme

  Petits travaux d'entretien
• 

  Centres d’intérêt

  

  Végétarien ou végan

  

  Dev. durable

  

  Animaux de compagnie

  

  Dev. personnel

  

  Ferme

  

  Musique

  

  Langues

  

  Soin des plantes

  

  Bricolage / artisanat

  

  Livres

  

  Jardinage

  

  Cuisine et alimentation

  

  Animaux

  

  Danse

  

  Montagne

  

  Yoga / bien-être

  

  Nature

  

  Activités en plein air

  

  Randonnée
• 

  Objectifs de développement durable de l’ONU que cet hôte essaie d'atteindre

  ...

  ...

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  Qu'est-ce que c'est ?
• 

  Echange culturel et opportunités d'apprendre

  Our project is built around sharing experiences as much as renovating a farmhouse.
  Workawayers will spend most of their time working alongside Anne, while Adélie will join 1 or 2 days a week. We usually have lunch together every working day and try to organise a shared outdoor dinner at least once a week. We enjoy chatting, exchanging ideas and getting to know people from different cultures.
  If our schedules allow, we also enjoy taking Workawayers to discover nearby villages, local markets, castles or natural sites at weekends. It's a nice opportunity to experience a little of rural French life beyond the farm.
  
  You can learn about traditional earth construction, natural clay plasters, eco-renovation, gardening, permaculture and everyday life in the French countryside. We are not experts, but we enjoy sharing what we are learning ourselves as our project progresses. In return, we love discovering other cultures, hearing about different ways of life, practising languages and learning new ideas and skills from our guests.
  
  We especially enjoy hosting people who are calm, respectful, reliable, independent, open-minded, environmentally conscious and able to work without constant supervision. This project is best suited to people who appreciate peaceful surroundings, meaningful conversations and nature.

• 

  Aide

  The work we need your help with is not technically difficult so no previous experience is required.
  Until the end of August, the main task is helping prepare earth for traditional natural plaster work. This mostly involves sieving soil in a shaded area and preparing materials for future earth plasters. Other occasional tasks may include: watering plants, light gardening, light brush clearing, simple help around the farm.
  After August, volunteers may also have opportunities to discover: natural earth plasters, ecological insulation using wood fibre, flooring installation + various farmhouse renovation projects.
  What matters most to us is: good humour, motivation, reliability and willingness to participate.

• 

  Langues

  Langues parlées
  Français: Courant
  Anglais: Intermédiaire
  Espagnol: Débutant
  Italien: Débutant
  Japonais: Débutant

  Cet hôte propose un échange linguistique
  Most volunteers will work primarily with Anne who understands English better than she speaks it and who will appreciate if you know some French. Otherwise, Adélie works remotely and is bilingual in English/French, so there is always someone available to help with communication and translations when needed.
• 

  Hébergement

  You will have your own private space inside one of our barns.
  The accommodation includes: a private living area with armchairs and coffee table, sink, gas cooking stove, mini fridge, storage wardrobe, Wi-Fi access and compost toilet. Sleeping accommodation is provided in a large tent structure built on a wooden platform. The tent contains: one 140 cm double bed and storage space for personal belongings. Showers are available in Anne's house.
  Please note that the accommodation is best suited to: solo travellers, couples, two friends comfortable sharing a double bed.
  
  We work about 5 hours per day from Monday to Friday, allowing everyone to enjoy full weekends off.
  Lunch is usually eaten together. For evenings and weekends, we provide food so that guests can cook independently in their own space. Fresh eggs from our chickens are provided regularly, along with vegetables from the garden when available. We also try to organise at least one shared outdoor dinner each week whenever schedules and weather allow.
  Most of our family follows a largely vegetarian lifestyle, as a result, lunches are mostly vegetarian, groceries provided are vegetarian and vegan diets can easily be accommodated. This said, during shared dinners, we still make sure that meat-eaters are not forgotten.

• 

  Autres infos...

  Cultural exchange played an important role in Adélie's life. Starting in 2009, she travelled extensively through New Zealand, Australia and Canada thanks to a network similar to Workaway and experienced some truly memorable exchanges. Those experiences left a lasting impression.
  Today we are very happy to finally have the opportunity to welcome travellers ourselves and hopefully offer the same kind of meaningful experience that this type of network once offered one of us.
  If you enjoy sitting outside after sunset, listening to the countryside and watching the stars, you will probably feel at home here.
  We look forward to meeting people from different backgrounds and sharing a small part of our family's adventure. :)

• 

  Informations complémentaires

  • 

    Accès Internet

  • 

    Accès Internet limité

  • 

    Nous avons des animaux

  • 

    Nous sommes fumeurs

  • 

    Familles bienvenues

• 

  Possibilité d’accueillir les digital nomads

  We have fiber optic internet but won't be able to provide an official dedicated area for you to work from. We can provide a desk in the outbuilding where the wi-fi box lives but it's not fancy as the room needs to be fully renovated .

• 

  Espace pour garer des vans

  There is ample parking but it will be in the sun.

• 

  Combien de volontaires pouvez-vous accueillir ?

  Plus de 2

• 

  Mes animaux

  

  Hector & Lily

  

  Abica, Osiris & Élixir

  

  Loca

  

  Pam

  

  Lyra

  

  Édil

  

  Mystic

  

  Diane

  

  Charlie

  

  Petite Minette

  

  Pépite

  

  Onyx

Sécurité du site