#12 Under the stars

On Tuesday I was dropped off in Crofton and actually wanted to spend a few hours there before taking the ferry to Salt Spring Island, but it felt like a village with one street so I decided to take the next ferry. Within 20 minutes, I reached the island and now it was time to wait. For some reason, the bus company adjusted the departure times so poorly, but the bus always leaves exactly 5 minutes before the ferry arrives at the harbor. So I had to wait, but I could use the Wi-Fi and enjoy the sun. On the drive to Ganges, the bus driver asked me if I was new and it was obvious because I pronounced the name so wrong - as I now know - that it was clear I wasn't from here. He gave me a little city sightseeing tour on the way to the final stop - so sweet. Such a little grandpa who explains everything to you. In Ganges, on the other hand, it was waiting again, waiting and waiting again. The farmer could only pick me up in the evening and once the sun was gone, it got damn cold damn quickly. When I was picked up, we drove to the farm and I would never have found the way. The farm is really in the middle of the forest. The property is quite large with 32 hectares (Galileo would now say that it corresponds to 45 football fields) though. Two weeks ago, I uploaded a picture here where you could see the planned deforestation of the forests. This area is exactly such an area, which allows you to recognize very well by the size of the trees where trees have been cut down. Otherwise, this area is very energy-poor. Electricity and water are absolute scarce products and must be used very carefully. But that's another story. One resource that will definitely last for the next decades here is wood. Everything is heated with wood here.

I spent my first night in the Tally because it was too dark to take me to my sleeping place. The Tally is a small tiny house that is used as a living room, dining room and kitchen. The next day I moved into my own Yurt. This is a very large tent, which is definitely awesome in summer. In my first night, it was a horror. I couldn't get the fire started at first and when it was on, I watched a movie and during the whole movie, I could see my own breath. It was such a cold night, and I really wonder how people survive without a permanent residence, even if they don't have a fireplace or something. But I survived the night and on Wednesday was my first working day. At the beginning, a shelter was built for the compost and chickens before we went to the worms. Yes! To the worms. I always thought I understood the English word correctly, but they really have a whole trailer full of earthworms here that produce their compost. In the trailer there are 200 pounds (about 91 kg) of earthworms that live and reproduce between the different layers. It's so crazy. :D They even heat the room extra so that the earthworms have the perfect temperature to live and "work". Yesterday I also had to water them. It's so weird, I've never experienced that before :D Occasionally, the bottom layer is removed and then we had to collect the earthworms from there and put them back and collect the compost. After we briefly worked in the greenhouse (about the costs another time), the first day was rounded off by peeling garlic. I thought it would be a relaxed job, but when the first piece of hard shell rammed under my fingernail into my skin, I knew it could be painful. Fortunately, I lit my fireplace early, so I could go to a warm Yurt after dinner. The only problem is that my sleeping place is over 10 minutes away! It's sometimes really scary in the dark, but it's the first place where there are no bears because firstly it's an island and secondly it's winter time and thus bedtime (for the bears). On Friday it was time to continue peeling garlic. According to the farmer's mother, this is done so that there is no danger from mold spores that damage the bulb and thus do not allow ideal growth. In the end, we peeled almost 700 garlic cloves. These were then planted directly. The Friday evening was concluded with a sauna session.

When I then went into my Yurt, the moon shone directly through my window and it looked so beautiful. But then I went outside. Insanity! It looked soooo awesome. The absolutely bright moon, the fir trees and the clouds in between. The absolute highlight, however, were the stars. By now, everyone here probably knows that I absolutely love the stars because of the many constellations. Being in the middle of the forest here, this is the first time I've been in a really light-free region. The stars are amazing. My bed is right under the window and this view too! I fell in love immediately. The moonlight in my Yurt, the roaring fireplace on the right, and above me, just an awesome constellation of stars. A dream come true!

Today is Saturday and it's a day off. So I could finally clean up my Yurt and get firewood. I use so much that it's really crazy. However, it's a real workout and has to be done several times a week. Always think positive: Every hit on the wood is a hit for the upper arms :D

Otherwise, I work here most of the time with a couple who are also woofing here. They are really kind-hearted people. Especially the young man is incredibly likable and nice. He is also very interested in Germany (German swear words, for example :D), so it always leads to a conversation. I think that way I will gradually learn more and more English.

But now I'm going to take a walk. The sun is shining. Very rare here :D

So guys, go outside and enjoy the sun.

Until then.

Samuel