Besides working in the kitchen (and the many other areas of a finca-hotel, I also help out here and there in the vegetable garden, run by Hartmut. He is going strong in his 70s, eating plenty of raw foods and keeping himself fit with hard labour. His latest project is the huge vegetable garden of the finca, and he worked hard to make it into a flourishing green lush kale and lettuce heaven! Lotta, our new working guest, is helping him currently, and we are having lots of fun seeing the tiny little cucumbers grow :)
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So my dad and sister came over for a visit! We did quite a few trips, the first one to Gibraltar. It's the British enclave in Spain, and it feels indeed very British there. Highlight was of course the cable car up to the rock of Gibraltar, home of it's many monkey :)
So one of my jobs at the finca was helping out in the kitchen. As I was a raw foodist at that time I was meant to make the salads and some raw food creations from a recipe book.
I really liked the work in the kitchen and started creating my own raw food creations which everybody loved so in the end they offered me a paid job as the official raw food chef of the finca!! One of my first excursions as the new volunteer at the Finca El Morisco was a trip to La Maroma, a 2000 m high mountain in the region of Malaga. My boss Alex went with his son Mika and a guest with his son, and I could join!
It was a 3 hour hike up to the top of the mountain, and it was breathtakingly beautiful! On the way back down Alex' shoes gave up and he almost lost his soles, but he managed to fix them with some tape until we reached the car :) In February 2010 I left Germany. This is when it all started, this Living Somewhere Else Thing ;)
Why did I leave? I was not happy. The weather was grim and grey, I was unhappily in love, my work was ok but not my dream job, I didn't like my apartment, I didn't like my studies, my heart was calling out for CHANGE. Sunshine. South. So, South I went. I found a little place in Benajarafe, a little village 1 hour from Malaga, where a German family was running a little hotel at the Costa del Sol, and they were looking for volunteers. I contacted them, and we agreed that I could come and work for food and accommodation. I quit my job and my apartment, sold or gave away most of my stuff, and made the big step into the unknown. I remember arriving at Malaga airport that day, walking down the gangway, and instinctively knowing, I did everything right. I loved life at the Finca immediately. My new home was now an old caravan, standing in the middle of fig trees overlooking the sea. The German family was super nice, and the place stunning. In February I was walking around in T-Shirts, I was surrounded by nature, and they had great vegetarian food.I loved my work and often worked more hours than I was supposed to. Finally being outdoor all day, helping int he garden, with the trees, renovating rooms and so much more. This was the best decision of my life because it showed my anything is possible if you just take that leap of faith, trust and jump into the unknown. Listen to your heart. |