Possibly the best, most hilarious British phrase ever
So wait, did you travel Aus at all? Or did you just hop on over to Asia? What are you doing for money there?
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Has anyone tried WWOOF-ing?
- Thread starter Sawboss
- Start date
Possibly the best, most hilarious British phrase ever
So wait, did you travel Aus at all? Or did you just hop on over to Asia? What are you doing for money there?
yo_bot
Bluelighter
after reading part of the first page this sounds like a chance for an awesome adventure that i'd never forget.
yehhh go for it ~ you'll see some amazing sustainable living in action
you'll also see some dodgey business activities seeking cheap labour ... be very clear in where you stay, clarify your work commitments before hand and don't assume anything ....
you'll also see some dodgey business activities seeking cheap labour ... be very clear in where you stay, clarify your work commitments before hand and don't assume anything ....
ikkyu
Bluelighter
I've done this once, spent a whole season on a small farm in the Pacific Northwest. Easily one of the best experiences of my life. 
lol, I bounced off of a farm early in Japan cause I felt like this. I think the guy running it was a bit embarrassed and took me to a really nice dinner. He was actually a stellar guy..just had a lot on his plate and wanted harder work then my lazy, drunk ass could give at the time
![:\](https://bluelight.org/xf/BL_Images/Orig_Emoji/wrygrin.gif "wry grin :\")
...plus he just took all of his garbage and burned it like no big deal!That is a good thing about wwoofing, if you don't like it, you can leave. Careful though cause the hosts will probably put it on their message board so that other hosts are warned about you. I don't really know if he did this.....the Japanese have a very "foreign" culture that was hard for me to understand.
Everyone go wwoofing! I fully intend on both going out into the world again and eventually hosting wwoofers on my own farm...once I buy one that is :D
DarthMom
Bluelighter
this is an awesome concept. i have dreams of sending my son away when he graduates high school for a few months or possibly up to a year, but the expense worries me a bit. i really want him to explore and mature on his own in another culture. this is a great idea to keep in mind.
DarthMom
Bluelighter
i meant the expense of sending him off away without an idea like this or backpacking. that is why this intrigues me. backpacking scares me, this is more of safe option.
Jamshyd
Bluelight Crew
I planned to do this locally a few years ago and registered (and didn't like the attitudes of the admin in Canada), but some of the responses I got made me raise my eyebrow a little.
Now that I have a white-sounding name, I might try going for it again!
I do note that this is a revived thread that was started 5 years ago. From what I understand, WWOOFing, at least in Canada, ain't what it used to be.
Now that I have a white-sounding name, I might try going for it again!
I do note that this is a revived thread that was started 5 years ago. From what I understand, WWOOFing, at least in Canada, ain't what it used to be.
Jamshyd
Bluelight Crew
Because, contrary to common misconception, many Canadians remain extremely racist. Particularly the ones in the countryside.
I'd even go as far as say that anywhere outside of Toronto, Montreal area, and Vancouver area, you'd be hard-pressed to find a White Canadian who doesn't think lowly of immigrants.
Heck, I've had a BRITISH lady complain about being shunned by people in a nearby country area named, ironically, Exeter.
I'd even go as far as say that anywhere outside of Toronto, Montreal area, and Vancouver area, you'd be hard-pressed to find a White Canadian who doesn't think lowly of immigrants.
Heck, I've had a BRITISH lady complain about being shunned by people in a nearby country area named, ironically, Exeter.
QT_McWhiskers
Greenlighter
- Joined
- Oct 16, 2010
- Messages
- 4
WWOOFing or TESOL?
I want to spend the next several years traveling.
So in addition to living cheaply, I'll need to work at the places I wish to visit; and I'd like to see as much of the world as practically possible.
As well as having enough money saved up beforehand, I'm trying to toss up between starting my adventures with WWOOFing (Willing Workers on Organic Farms: no pay but taken care of by a family and taught about permacultures, organic farming etc) or Teaching English in Asia (to begin) - I'm in Australia right now.
The major tension arises because I imagine it would be easier to get a good TESOL job if I apply now, whilst I still have a respectable job and have only been out of university for a couple of years, rather than in a year or two after I've gone all grenola on alternative farms. Of course, I much prefer wide open spaces and physical activity, and whilst I'm not averse to other cultures, I'm not especially fond of them either; that is, I'm fairly introspective, which I don't imagine would work well in a crowded, busling Asian city.
So...what do?
I want to spend the next several years traveling.
So in addition to living cheaply, I'll need to work at the places I wish to visit; and I'd like to see as much of the world as practically possible.
As well as having enough money saved up beforehand, I'm trying to toss up between starting my adventures with WWOOFing (Willing Workers on Organic Farms: no pay but taken care of by a family and taught about permacultures, organic farming etc) or Teaching English in Asia (to begin) - I'm in Australia right now.
The major tension arises because I imagine it would be easier to get a good TESOL job if I apply now, whilst I still have a respectable job and have only been out of university for a couple of years, rather than in a year or two after I've gone all grenola on alternative farms. Of course, I much prefer wide open spaces and physical activity, and whilst I'm not averse to other cultures, I'm not especially fond of them either; that is, I'm fairly introspective, which I don't imagine would work well in a crowded, busling Asian city.
So...what do?
fizzle
Bluelight Crew
Homeless ---> SO
MynameisnotDeja
Bluelight Crew
Well I've never done the teaching thing. I have done a little wwoofing. My personal experience wasn't that great but I only went to one place. The other wwoof workers I met there were really cool and I enjoyed talking with them and being around them, but the lady in charge of the place was just... ughhh. It was a really crazy time trying to deal with her.
A lot of people have awesome experiences working on farms. I definitely think you should try it if you are interested. Your experience could range from the worst of the worst to the best of the best, there really is no way of knowing how it will be until you try.
A lot of people have awesome experiences working on farms. I definitely think you should try it if you are interested. Your experience could range from the worst of the worst to the best of the best, there really is no way of knowing how it will be until you try.
hobhead
Bluelighter
farm hands have always been boffed . there is nothing good about stoop work . it usually is all that one can find .
learn something, learn it well and make your bones doing it!
learn something, learn it well and make your bones doing it!
MynameisnotDeja
Bluelight Crew
Yeah, the situation on my farm wasn't that we were being worked too hard doing nasty work or anything like that. It was more that the lady was this passive aggressive drunk with NO structure. Like, she wouldn't tell us what to do. At all.
No, instead she'd demand that we find things to do, and then suddenly appear and yell at us and act like we were morons for "not doing it right". She'd say five hours of work were expected of us a day but then she wouldn't give us any direction whatsoever, we'd get up early ready for work and wouldn't see her until 1, 2 in the afternoon. Then she would just act really crazy and mean and then get drunk and start giving us all hugs and stuff.
She was also very difficult about the food. We were hungry and she wouldn't explain what we were supposed to eat. She'd say, "take something from the kitchen" and then scream at you for taking a "whole apple". When asked directly about all of these issues she'd avoid the conversation, act weird and passive aggressive toward you, etc.
The thing that sucked was we all WANTED and were very willing to work. But she wasn't teaching us shit about working on a farm. I think I had maybe one HOUR of the entire week there where she actually did something garden related with me. It was disappointing but what can you do. Maybe I'll try it again sometime somewhere more organized that actually needs workers to work.
No, instead she'd demand that we find things to do, and then suddenly appear and yell at us and act like we were morons for "not doing it right". She'd say five hours of work were expected of us a day but then she wouldn't give us any direction whatsoever, we'd get up early ready for work and wouldn't see her until 1, 2 in the afternoon. Then she would just act really crazy and mean and then get drunk and start giving us all hugs and stuff.
She was also very difficult about the food. We were hungry and she wouldn't explain what we were supposed to eat. She'd say, "take something from the kitchen" and then scream at you for taking a "whole apple". When asked directly about all of these issues she'd avoid the conversation, act weird and passive aggressive toward you, etc.
The thing that sucked was we all WANTED and were very willing to work. But she wasn't teaching us shit about working on a farm. I think I had maybe one HOUR of the entire week there where she actually did something garden related with me. It was disappointing but what can you do. Maybe I'll try it again sometime somewhere more organized that actually needs workers to work.
TESOL for damn sure. i've been thinking of doing TEFL myself but i need to get back to school and get a fucking degree before anywhere nice will let me in to work 
i know that in austria you can get paid INSANE amounts to tutor or teach english. austria is surrounded by countries where the cost of living is a lot cheaper so i could be banking ROLLS right now if i were tutoring in a border town for 30 euros per hour and bussing it home to a flat that has a monthly rent worth just a few days of earnings.
another place i'd be interested in going, personally, is japan. i'm also an introspective person who truly appreciates quiet but i also like being within commuting distance of a city for the culture and nightlife. despite japan having a massive population the people themselves are fairly respectful of each other and there are plenty of nice quiet suburbs close to the major cities. it's also a beautiful place, or so i hear
i know that in austria you can get paid INSANE amounts to tutor or teach english. austria is surrounded by countries where the cost of living is a lot cheaper so i could be banking ROLLS right now if i were tutoring in a border town for 30 euros per hour and bussing it home to a flat that has a monthly rent worth just a few days of earnings.another place i'd be interested in going, personally, is japan. i'm also an introspective person who truly appreciates quiet but i also like being within commuting distance of a city for the culture and nightlife. despite japan having a massive population the people themselves are fairly respectful of each other and there are plenty of nice quiet suburbs close to the major cities. it's also a beautiful place, or so i hear