Being our first time Wwoofing, we weren't quite sure what to expect. Two Australians from the city of Melbourne looking for a change in the English countryside. Were we going to be running around herding the sheep ourselves or havesting 500kg of vegetables each day? It was hard to be sure! However after the first couple of hours with Lee and Beth we were more than certain that the next five weeks were going to be a great load of fun and an amazing experience that we would remember for the rest of our lives.
So far I've learnt that you cannot rely on English weather. The week started well and harvesting, weeding and cleaning was enjoyable in the sunny, mild weather. Waking up on Friday morning to a bleak and grey day, described as 'horrible' by the locals, only reminded me of what my fellow friends and family back in Melbourne would be witnessing most days at this time of year.
We quickly had to get used to having four four-legged friends constantly around us after having no animal interaction for the past two months. Two black labs, a nutty Jack Russell and Sidney the new, not so intelligent, addition to the family have kept us entertained, annoyed and smelly since our arrival. Farm cat Fernley - probably the friendliest cat in the world - reminds me of my feline friends at home whom I miss so much. There is also Winnie the thoroughbred mare, the cocky cockeral (who we discovered to be the mastermind behind the kale harvesting), the lambs and ewes, and the pigs who of course, will eat anything.
The line 'we love good food and wine and we hope that you do too' in the G&S Organics Wwoofers advertisement probably caught our attention the most. After knowing this, the cooking had a lot to live up to! But I couldn't say a single negative thing about Beth or Lee's cooking - they have cooked us fresh, tasty and satisfying food each and every meal since we arrived. From fresh fennel to potatoes, lamb to sausages, and sourdough to breadworms on the open fire, we have throughly enjoyed every ounce of foods to hit our tastebuds. Having opened the 'Village Coffee House' eight weeks ago, Beth is busy baking and making coffees non-stop. I have eaten more cake this week than I had in 2009 so far! We painted the shop bathroom yesterday and have to say that the chosen shade of 'magnolia' and our Australian paintwork skills have come up an absolute treat!
We look forward to week two on the farm and hope the weather clears up enough so that we can spend a bit more time out on the farm. I have all faith that week two will be just as eventful and exciting as week one and hope to learn some new skills.
Skills learnt for week one:
coffee machine (now a master barista)
advanced painting skills (have been compared to Michelangelo)
Saturday 18 July 2009
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