
The family farm in St. Vincent. Photo courtesy of HelpX.com
“On mountaintop. Great view. On a small Caribbean island. Pineapple and wax apple farm. Building in construction. I live with my 3 kids. 3 German Shepherds 1 Dobermann, in the unfinished building. This is a child friendly environment. St.Vincent is a lovely island, non touristic. I can offer food and lodging for your help. I appreciate your assistance. Please come and help out with farming, construction, creating greenhouse, landscaping, plumbing, carpentry, organic planting, house stay, restoring antiques, handyman, domestic work, kids homework, kids activities, decoration, home reorganization….We speak Flemish, English, French, Dutch, but all nationalities are welcome to apply.”

The family in St. Vincent. Photo courtesy of HelpX.com
The above is just one of hundreds of listings found on HelpX.net (short for HelpExchange), a website that connects host organic farms, non-organic farms, farmstays, homestays, ranches, lodges, B&Bs, backpackers hostels and even sailing boats with volunteers who exchange short-term work for food and accommodations. This particular listing is for a property located on the island of St. Vincent in the Caribbean, and the family has already hosted numerous volunteers, some of whom have posted reviews of their experience. Kurt wrote:
“I loved the saltfish and bread fruit. Accommodation is very nice, your own room and bathroom. There is plenty of work, maintenance of the pineapple fields and landscaping around the house and odd jobs. Trips to town are often and you will get to mingle with the locals. When taking the local bus…hold on
it is a ride.” Read the rest of this entry »
It is rare that I cannot finds words to describe my travels, but my wanderings through Vermont today left me speechless. Each time I discovered a scene of spectacular beauty I believed nothing could top it; yet the landscape continued to offer up the most astonishing views throughout the day. I think it best to just show my photos from today, since no words can possibly do justice to Vermont in the fall:

Vermont Fall Foliage
The older (or should I say more mature) I get, the more interest I have in environmental issues. Since moving to Sarasota I’ve become a fan of the Saturday morning Downtown Farmer’s Market, where local organic and traditional farmers sell fresh-picked fruits and vegetables. Not only does everything that I buy here taste delicious, it lasts longer, because it hasn’t been on a truck for three days, crossing the country. The last bag of spinach I bought at the Farmer’s Market was from Worden Organic Farms and it lasted a full three weeks without a hint of slime appearing. Can you imagine that happening with a store-bought bag of spinach?
There’s so much to be said for buying locally. It supports the area farmers; it makes available fruits and vegetables that were picked at the peak of ripeness, rather than just before their prime; and Read the rest of this entry »



















































