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Profile information
Travel information
We are currently
Travelling
Activities we are interested in:
Currently in New Zealand for a 6 month stay.
We are mature,skilled and experienced volunteers and housesitters who have been travelling for 7 years
www.glhousesitters.comOur next destination:
France - from May 2024 until Oct 2024 View all
Description
We are probably not your typical workawayers, we are a mature married couple who are both 60 + 🥴 we are extremely young at heart, who enjoy the company of all age groups.
We like to have fun in good company whilst producing good quality work with attention to detail.
In May 2017 we both quit our jobs, and retired early, this was the start of our adventures, our journey has taken us to 40 countries so far.
Ged was an award winning construction site manager and spent 30 years in construction starting his working life as a carpenter.
Ged is a great organiser and natural problem solver and commits 100%
Thanks to Ged's varied skills we always had an up to date modern home to live in we did all our own carpentry dry walling, ceramic tiling, wall papering, and painting and decorating.
We were both keen gardeners and spent a lot of our spare time creating and cultivating our lovely landscaped garden which included decking, fountains, terracing, and vegetable plot and raised beds.
Laraine worked for most of her career in Oxford University as an accommodation officer.
This involved arranging/organising accommodation for over 400 students living on campus and over 150 students living in Oxford in privately rented properties, the role was akin to being a hotel manager with responsibilities covering all aspects of hotel management.
Laraine is computer literate and is comfortable with Excel spreadsheets etc, outside of work Laraine is extremely passionate about gardening and getting involved in any home improvement
Laraine enjoys getting stuck in and does not mind getting dirty she is also a dab hand at a many aspects of building including wall paper stripping, sanding, painting and varnishing we like to work together and have become a very productive partnership.
We are parents of one son who is an Electrician and adventurer who loves to travel, and has done so extensively he is putting roots down in New Zealand.
We are animal lovers and in the past have had our own dogs, cats, parrots, chinchillas, Tortoises, and tropical fish, we have our own website showcasing our animal care and housesitting.
We have provided house and pet sitting for workaway hosts who were taking vacation or away on business, we are always happy to hold the fort, we have been caretakers and looked after hostels, vacation rentals and Airbnb’s
We are both fit & healthy, (except for carrying a bit too much weight,) we take no medication, we enjoy walking and exploring on foot.
When we can we like to swim, snorkel and scuba we both have our open water PADI certification, we are both non smokers, we both love good wine and good healthy food.
We also both possess British and two other international driving licences each
We plan to keep traveling , meeting nice people, see new sights and add to our adventures
We have no real plan, we can go anywhere the mood take us, but we want to be active
We really want to see new sights and experience different culture and immerse ourselves more in the local life and customs, ( wherever it may be) working closer with nature if possible.
We are both 100% trustworthy and take the greatest care of other people’s property and possessions , we like clean,organised and tidy, and everything in order.
We have been a host family in Oxford for foreign students and travellers for over 20 years many of our students remain friends to this day.
We have also both worked in 3 different pub/restaurants for over 10 years and ran and looked after them when the owners took holidays,, we have also managed several Airbnb’s, vacation rentals and a backpackers hostel.
In the pubs we ran Laraine was cooking in the kitchen and helping out in the bar and Ged was running the bar and cellar, we have always been hardworking and for much of our early working life we both worked 2 jobs
If you think we can help you in whatever project you are undertaking, regardless of where you are in the world, please get in touch, this may help us make some plans for our travelling, maybe we are destined to meet, who knows ?.
We are happy to spend anything from 1 week to 1 month or maybe more anywhere in the world, there is no real plan, we are making it up as we go, please do not hesitate to make any sort of suggestion or offer.
We both thank you in advance for taking the time to read this far , you can also view our web site here www.glhousesitters.com
Laraine & Ged Mahon x
www.glhousesitters.com
Interests
Self developmentGardeningAstronomyCharity workPlant careCooking & foodNatureFarmingDIY & craftsPetsCultureCarpentryAnimals
Languages
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Spanish: BeginnerMore details about my language interests
This workawayer has indicated that they would be interested in sharing their language(s) or learning a new language. You can contact them directly to discuss this.
Skills and knowledge we'd like to share or learn
We're interested in:
Being an elderly companion
Languages
Teaching
Some knowledge of:
Life at a Farmstay
Eco Projects
Hospitality/Tourism
Charity Work
Able to teach about:
Gardening
DIY and building projects
General Maintenance
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Helping around the house
Animal Care
More details about your skills
We are a friendly mature married couple, carpenter by trade, painter, tiler, dry wall, gardening, most aspects of building and renovation, pool maintenance, problem solver, planner, organiser. computer admin, reception, hotel,office cooking, help with English,
Reliable, trustworthy and adaptable, PADI scuba qualified.
We e have undertaken over 25 houses sitting assignments on our travels
We have our own website for potential hosts. www.glhousesitters.com
Age
65 & 64
What else ...
We would like to get involved in projects where we can make a positive contribution, we would like to help out in any type of works or projects and come away with a sense of achievement
We are looking for a complete change of lifestyle and environment, we are very quick to learn new skills, are up for a challenge and willing to try almost anything.
We are hoping to have lots of fun as we travel the world.
Some more information
Smoker
Driver's licence
Allergies
No allergies, non smokers, moderate drinkersSpecial dietary requirements
We do as our hosts do we adapt to all diets, we each have UK and international driving licence
Feedback
We were made very welcome by Steve and Judy to their amazing property, and a workaway which turned into a housesit.
A lovely unique hand built by owner home with amazing features, we haud a really good time looking after their beautiful playful kitten Andorra, we… read more
Ged has a great sense of humour, multi talented in all things to do with construction, power tools etc. Is incredibly strong, hard working, seriously thinks each & every project/task through thoroughly to get the best result/s.
Laraine is a ray of… read more
An amazing 5 week stay at the chateau with beautiful people.
From the get go we were welcomed as if we were family, we were treated with lots of love and respect and could not have had better hosts than Simon and Tracey
We had our own large airy double room with our own shower and toilet next door we were… read more
Friends
Feedback
We were made very welcome by Steve and Judy to their amazing property, and a workaway which turned into a housesit.
A lovely unique hand built by owner home with amazing features, we haud a really good time looking after their beautiful playful kitten Andorra, we… read more
Ged has a great sense of humour, multi talented in all things to do with construction, power tools etc. Is incredibly strong, hard working, seriously thinks each & every project/task through thoroughly to get the best result/s.
Laraine is a ray of… read more
An amazing 5 week stay at the chateau with beautiful people.
From the get go we were welcomed as if we were family, we were treated with lots of love and respect and could not have had better hosts than Simon and Tracey
We had our own large airy double room with our own shower and toilet next door we were… read more
Amazing accommodation better than any Airbnb, lovely large gardens with lots of wildlife and a huge pond.
We spent nice evenings eating Al fresco and enjoyed interesting conversation with Sue and Patrick over dinner and shared a few glasses of wine 😁
Sue is… read more
We cant recommend them enough to house sit , look after your pet and to help around gardens projects.
They literally… read more
Grant and Polly are real super hosts who made us very welcome.
Grant and Polly have a beautiful new and stylish home where we were treated to amazing home cooked meals and sampled several types of Polly’s home baking she is a real great chef.
Our accomodation was a huge fully air conditioned R.V. with everything you need for a… read more
Jerome and Susan made us very welcome from the get go, their… read more
Ged and Laraine are among the creme-de-la-creme of workawayers, coming with a vast amount of life experience and high level of skill. As other reviews have said, hosts should not be put off by their age (we weren't, as they are only 15 years older than us!), as they are thoroughly capable of pretty much anything.
We were… read more
Their lifestyle block is situated in beautiful countryside surrounded by fruit orchards but only a… read more
We were lucky enough to have them for 2 weeks and they were so helpful that we were able to get ahead of “the list”. Don’t be fooled by their age, they will out-work any 20-year-old, and with their years of life skills and knowledge almost no task is unachievable.
They made a real impression on our… read more
Two dear and super friends made through workaway.
Robyn and Davo are two of the most kind,generous and considerate hosts you could possibly hope to meet, we were made to feel like long lost friends from the get go.
We were made to feel part of their family and became friends with all of their staff.
Super hosts like these two are pure gold… read more
Caroles home is in the woods which gives the lovely feeling of being immersed in nature, we had a lovely big comfortable bed… read more
We are experienced workawayers who have volunteered in many countries and stayed with many hosts, Jude and Damo at the Village was our most enjoyable experience by far, they provide a level of care and kindness to their volunteers and show great appreciation for a job well done.
We were treated as family from the… read more
You did so much more than expected so a huge thank you. Although our time was short, you made a huge impact & I am looking forward to your return.
Highly recommended couple.
We enjoyed every minute of the month on board Shadow. We were lucky enough to be crew for him for 6 days on a charter and we sailed to Tobago’s Cays, stopping at Bequia, Canouan and Mayreau where we enjoyed snorkelling… read more
We were immediately welcomed to the farm and felt part of the family right from the get go.
An amazing experience in this lovely part of the world on a lovely farm, immersed in nature surrounded by trees and wildlife, a great place to feel at ease and breathe the fresh… read more
Our initial 2 week workaway evolved into a prolonged stay and housesit as Mary needed to travel abroad and we had the pleasure of looking after… read more
We stayed in Janet’s beautiful home for a month, right from the outset we were made incredibly welcome.
Janet is a lovely person who cares about her volunteers and guests,we were introduced to Janet’s friends and spent some time with them.
Most of the work was yard work,… read more
They were polite, likeable and fun to have around. I sincerely hope that they will come back one day for another stay with us.
Highly reccommended!
The work was mainly maintenance and painting, and some tidying up, Steve and Rita
are very relaxed and give minimal instruction of what is required and leave you alone to get on… read more
We ourselves are extremely busy and often dont have the time to supervise.… read more
Kim and Lynette are very special people indeed, 100% passionate about the island of Grenada, it’s people, and their chocolate enterprise.
We loved our time with Kim and Lynette, their land manager Gabri and all their friends, not to mention their lovely dogs and cats.
We basically… read more
We spent two weeks at his hostel and the work was easy, checking guests in and out, helping with the cleaning, taking and collecting laundry, making up the beds etc.
The hostel is right in the centre of town, easy… read more
Highly recommend and are welcome back anytime.
Extremely positive, passionate and adventurous spirits, determined and hardworking, we were both made very welcome and felt right at home on their beautiful ship right from the get go.
It is a captivating ship and we quickly fell in love with her, we really enjoyed helping keep her looking at her… read more
