St. James’ Park » Volunteering

An Alternative Campsite and Hostel in Bulgaria

Volunteering

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Some of the truly mad things that volunteers have said.......

See the travel information page for more information on getting here.

We have a bit of a change of plan this year - I won’t be needing any volunteers this summer. This is not because all the work is done…..far from it but I will be doing something a little different this year and I won’t be in Bulgaria. Things will be back to normal next year so maybe you could fit in a visit to Voditsa sometime next year instead? Please have a look through the site and especially check out all the info below on volunteering.

The only volunteering opportunity of the year!!!
From around 27th September to 15th October, I will be in Voditsa working very hard on the development of the barn. We are turning this space into an exciting place for groups and organisations to come and do their training, team building or whatever and where we will run courses and interesting projects.
The work will involve plasting the walls using traditional materials and methods, making a earth floor, making a kitchen - maybe building a clay oven - plus we will be doing the usual autumn work before the land and the plants go to sleep for the winter. So there’ll be lots of mud, clay, gardening, chopping wood and of course, eating good food. So if you are looking for a volunteering opportunity in the autumn, get in touch

2010 will be my fifth summer with volunteers - wow -what happened to the time and my Bulgarian is still terrible! Its been a great experience, I’ve met some wonderful people and made loads of new friends. If you read my blogs, you’ll see that some of my volunteers have loved it so much here, they now live here. Be warned! I’m hoping to continue that trend this year - I’m looking forward to many interesting conversations around the fire at nights and making long term friends. I hope you’ll be one of them.

Volunteering here is for anybody - you dont need loads of specific skills, although if you do, then thats extra great - I love it when builders or plumbers come! But there are always hundreds of things waiting to be done and I’m very good now at fitting the right people with the right job. Its mostly land based and of course, seasonal. In the spring, we’re planting. transplanting, tending seedlings and weeding. In the summer, its drought control as we make sure the plants survive the August heat and of course, we harvest things and eat them! In the autumn, its more harvesting and preparing the ground for the winter. So I can’t immediately tell you what you’ll be doing but its never tedious and, I hope, its always satisfying. Go to our People page and see some of the things that previous volunteers have done.people page

I prefer if volunteers come for around 3 weeks - it takes a while to fully get into things, but there are a few specific projects that are just waiting for someone who can only stay a week. I dont often say ‘no’ to people unless I feel that they wont fit in. Life here is fairly unstructured although I have a plan! The people who enjoy this place the most, are the ones who can be flexible, who are prepared to muck in, work hard and relax. Initiative goes a long way here. Scroll right down this page for more details of work times etc. I’d love to have someone or two staying here long term but that will wait till the right person comes along, meanwhile, I need volunteers with any or no specific skills to help me with the regular stuff and we’re starting a new buiness here in 2010 so there are some interesting short term projects.

If you are interested in coming here, contact me and we’ll find the right thing for you.

We’re developing the land and the Barn here as a Low Impact Events Facility and there is a lot of work still to do. I’m hoping to get a few people coming in March and April and we can really get into this. The Barn is a very old building that was leaning at a wonderful angle - thanks to two great guys and some ‘Bulgarian Technology’, its now straight and has been rebuilt using the old materials. I has walls made of mud bricks most of which are about 80 years old, oak roof beams and old gypsy tiles on the roof. Its a lovely space but we had to stop work at the end of the autumn when it got too cold. What we need to do now is make a smooth earth floor, scrape and paint the recycled window frames, fix up the outside, sort out some kind of drainage, and make it look pretty for the guests.

Then there’s the field. I’ve been turning this field into a lovely garden over the past 4 years and I’ve nearly reclaimed it all. I’ve planted lots of trees and hedges -fingers crossed that they come up this spring - and the field has a lovely shape to it now. There is a short window of opportunity for actually working on the land and its March and April when the ground is soft and there’s still time for the grass to grow back. We also need to tidy up outside the Barn, make some kind of terrace and plant lots of flowers.

Oh and we need to build a little shower block - ideally I’d like a little team of people to take this project over. I know what needs to happen and I know what the issues are but plumbing makes me ill so I’d love to explain this project to someone and then come back in a week’s time and its done. It involves fitting a pump to the well, creating a wooden structure, pumping the water up the hill to the tank, fitting wood boilers etc and making a system for the run-off to water the vegetables. What a sense of satisfaction for when you’ve done this in a week - call me now if you’re interested.

The Japanese Tea Room is still waiting to get done.
Last year one of my volunteers, Daniel Arens who is destined to be a famous author, dismantled a very ugly cornstore. We then discovered that underneath the old metal was a lovely symetrical structure. I then wandered about the field until I found the right spot and decided to resurrect it as a Japanese Tea Room. All the bits are there, there are photos and its labeled. I just need it put back together.

I reckon it would take 2 people a week to do this. But I think you would need to be quite strong - there are some big pieces of wood. This could happen at any time but I dont think it would work in July or August - too hot and the ground will be too hard.

I mostly get my volunteers from Helpx.net, Workaway, WWOOF or from this site. The deal is that you work 30 hours a week and I provide accommodation and food. There is one bedroom in the house with 3 single beds and plenty of tents for the summer if you prefer the lovely field -and we share the domestic chores. If you can cook, then you can share those skills with everyone and cook dinner sometimes. The food is usually great, even if I do say so myself! There is no shortage of it and cooking involves seeing what is available in the house or garden and thinking of a great way to use it – different to the idea of thinking-up a dish and then going to buy the ingredients from Tesco…. Eating and cooking is about celebrating all aspects of food and I must be honest and say that I have little time right now for people with food hang-ups or food disabilities. So if there is a list of things that you “can’t” eat or there are loads of things that you think you “shouldn’t” eat, or if you dont believe in seasoning food, then you are not really going to enjoy being here. Enjoyment and appreciation of good tasty food that is cooked with love, is essential if you want to spend time living here.

Please don’t book a volunteering spot unless you’re definitely coming – or if your plans change, which they may do, please let me know. A couple of people just didn’t turn up -how rude and those places could have been taken by someone else.

The neighbours are increasingly interested in volunteering and there will be many opportunities to help them – I’m working on this – let me know if you’re interested.

THOUGHTS AND GUIDELINES ON BEING A VOLUNTEER AND A HOST.

Volunteering.

This basically means working in exchange for food and accommodation but it is so much more than that. It’s a way to:

see a part of the world that you might not normally see on a regular trip – it’s the chance to see what goes on in the little villages that you pass on the bus or train
meet interesting people that you might not normally meet –eg. local people farming in traditional ways and ex-pats who have chosen to live a different life and other volunteers
learn new skills – for instance experiencing biodynamic farming or learning traditional methods of house building and how animals are cared for
share skills and experience that you have
surprise yourself with what you can do!

So how does it work?

There are a few organisations around the world whose job is to facilitate the matching up of people who want to volunteer with people who need help. The main ones are Willing Workers on Organic Farm and HelpX.

WWOOFing is about recognising that organic farming is very labour intensive but many people share the ideology that growing food should be as natural as possible. Some countries have their own WWOOF organizations but many come under the umbrella of WWOOF International. It’s a great idea and has been going for a long time but still there are some areas for debate-for example:

There is a fee for WWOOF International but there is also a fee for the counties which have an independent organisation. Travellers on a very tight budget often have difficulty with this.
What constitutes an “organic farm”. The use of the word ‘farm’ is more about land management. There are many people who manage their land organically and ethically but who are not farmers in the sense of growing produce to sell. Much more difficult is the term ‘organic’. Many people take this to mean simply not using chemicals but in fact it is more of an overall philosophy – for example it may seem contradictory to work the land organically yet pay no attention to recycling or the generation of waste.

There is no regulatory system in WWOOF – it works on trust and it works for the most part but you will always meet wwoofers with interesting stories to tell about hosts – but essentially, it does work, because people want it to.

HelpX is a similar idea but does not restrict itself to organic farms. The website also allows prospective volunteers to advertise themselves and the hosts can then take a more active role in the process. The site also allows feedback and references. You can join on 2 levels and membership is fairly immediate. In my experience, this site work best for both hosts and volunteers.

Guidelines for Hosts and Volunteers.

Hosts

Be a host! Its great fun, you meet interesting people and you get lots of work done and you get to share experiences with a load of new people. You don’t have to be a farmer to take volunteers. If you are managing your land ethically and organically, volunteers will want come to you. Some things to think about to make the experience a good one:

Be clear how it works in terms of time – for example: volunteers work 35 hours a week and there is flexibility about how it works out – 5 or 6 hours a day for 5 or 6 days a week or its 9-4 Monday to Friday
How long do you expect people to stay – it can be a hassle having someone for only 2 or 3 days – do you prefer people to stay at least 2 weeks for instance so they get an understanding of how you work?
How many volunteers will you take at any one time? Is this flexible?
Be prepared to be frustrated by the unreliability of volunteers’ plans! Maybe the first line in an email response could be “are you reliable?” Although people do not usually intend to be unreliable, volunteers tend to be young people traveling and having some kind of adventure. Flexibility and the opportunity to change your mind is part of that adventure but sadly they often forget that people who need volunteers actually really do need them!
Be clear about what you want the volunteers to do and how you want it done –is it a task oriented approach eg picking fruit or weeding or is it an occasion to use some initiative; try to find out if the volunteer has any particular skills you can use. People get more of a sense of satisfaction from their work if they can see what they have accomplished. In my experience, I usually give volunteers at least one ongoing task, like weeding, but also involve them in some other project that they can see an end to.
Make sure they put the tools back at the end of the day and tidy up around the job.
How does the food work – can they help themselves; is cooking communal; do the volunteers live separately from you; do you all eat together; who clears up etc. Can you handle specific dietary needs eg vegan.
Make sure the volunteers have a comfortable space to sleep; is there a communal living area; is there a TV, games, Internet access? None of these are necessary – I have none of these and in fact for the past two years, I haven’t had a bathroom –nobody has been bothered about that. Just be clear about what is available.
Say thank you! These people are giving you their time for free and often they are doing a task for the first time. They will be trying their hardest to do a good job so praise and encouragement go a long way.
If the volunteers have come through HelpX then make sure you give them a recommendation or more pertinent comment if they didn’t turn up!
Make sure you have public liability insurance cover.
Neither WWOOF or HelpX are responsible for the volunteer when they are with you – they just facilitate the meeting so if there is a problem, its pretty much up to you to deal with it. Of course you can comment via HelpX and contact your WWOOF representative to inform them (WWOOF BG may not be interested!) but for anything serious, contact the police.
Always take the name, home address and passport number of every volunteer. Do this as soon as they arrive.
Contact me if you want some more encouragement.

Volunteers

Be a volunteer! It’s a great way to see the world, meet interesting people, learn new skills and be of use to someone. Some things to think about:

Be reliable! The worst thing you can do is make arrangement to do some volunteering and then not turn up! It happens often and usually means that the Host is left with no help perhaps when they seriously need it. Hosts take volunteers because they need the extra help- its not a game – they will be relying on you and will probably say ‘no’ to other volunteers after agreeing to you coming – so if you don’t turn up, everyone has lost out. Organisations like HelpX have a reference section and Hosts will comment. And its nice to know that you are needed!
Be clear about your role, the work you have to do and how the food works – are you expected to cook? Do you want to cook?
Try to be flexible if you have some specific dietary requirements. It’s possible that your Host has never heard of a vegan!
If the Host has a website, make time to check it out – is this really where you want to be?
Some places are very isolated – are you OK with this? How does transport work, how easy is it to get to the Internet?
Do it! You’ll enjoy it and you’ll see a side of the country that will stay with you after you’ve forgotten about the tourist sights.

Main links:

Respecting the Peace and Quiet

There has never been a campsite here before and Voditsa is lowly getting used to having foreign visitors around. Up to now they like us and we want you to help keep it that way. This is a quiet and peaceful village where most people go to bed early and get up early. You can help us by respecting that – its not appropriate to walk along the street in a noisy group coming out of the bar at 11 o’clock after a good session – actually the only bit that’s not appropriate is the noise – just talk quietly!

There’s a shared outside living area with a BBQ and a fire circle where you can sit up all night if you want but we ask you at all times to respect other people’s space and sleep.

Thank you.