Day 1 : HelpX in Pontremoli

For the next week I've decided to try my hand at HelpX (exchange). It's a website that was recommended to me when I originally at home. The premise ... "HelpX is provided primarily as a cultural exchange for working holiday makers who would like the opportunity during their travels abroad, to stay with local people and gain practical experience. In the typical arrangement, the helper works an average of 4 hours per day and receives free accommodation and meals for their efforts."

I'm staying in Northern Tuscany, way up in the mountains, in the town were Ponocchio is famous . I'm staying with a retired English couple, who have lived here for almost 11 years. They have their own house here and prefer to live off the land. So they have lots of vegetables gardens, fruit trees, wood stocks, animals etc.

I arrived yesterday afternoon and was given a short tour, by my hosts David and Helen, of the small town before heading up to the mountains. Pontremoli was the last Pagen viillage in Italy and it also has the oldest working theatre here.

David and Helen live in a beautiful old home, which they are constantly renovating or changing. The houses here all live on top of each other and there are no dividing yard lines. It reminds me of Beatrix Potter's farm and I forget sometimes that I'm in Italy. They have a double storey house and upstairs is a 3 bedroom apartment, which myself and a Canadian Helper, Diva (pronounced Diver) are staying in. The view from our balcony over the valley are just glorious!

Last night we had apivertors downstairs before enjoying a lovely meal of pasta with local prochinni mushrooms, second course was a salad and third course was dessert. We also drank local red wine. The wine is served in those typical Italian wine bottles and has a dry cork on top. Due to the dry cork, when bottled, oil or vasaline is put in the neck of the wine to prevent the air reaching the wine. David tells us that when the wine is ready to drink they used to put horse hair (but he used paper towel) into the neck to scope out the oil.

I have a lovely huge room with a massive bed and am basking in all it's glory at night!

Today it's raining, which is a problem as a lot of the work David needs help with is outside. We have a delicious breakfast of croissants and cereal before we tempt the weather and head outside to dig up the patch for the potatoes.

Unfortunately, the weather has other ideas and so we head inside to break up a concrete floor with a drill.

Tonight we play some card games; scoupa, chase the ace and one other.

Dinner is:
Soy fillet in rescue of chicken
Vegetables
Peaches in liqueur with a cream thing & biscotti biscuit crushed in

I also handsome lemonceklo

http://ciaolunigiana.com/activities-children-po…Read more