Arrival & the first days

Three days ago, I arrived safely in Birmingham and after getting familiarized with everything by my workaway predecessor Tara, I am already fully integrated into the routine. When I arrived on Saturday, Jan and Dave (my host family) were at a wedding, so it was up to Tara to show me everything. And there is a lot to see. The two have a cat boarding facility, a dog boarding facility, sheep, lambs, chickens, ducks, a duck-chicken combination (oops), a cat, a garden, a field for dog training, and a huge amount of land behind the house. Out of the airplane, into the mud. Shortly after, I already had the first lamb in my hand. On the day of my arrival, there were six dogs in the dog boarding facility (what a welcome!) and they need to be exercised for forty minutes twice a day (playing ball, running up and down in a field). Turns out, it's not easier with six dogs. The French Bulldogs can't keep up, the Greyhound can't get enough, the Dalmatian would rather watch the sheep, and the Boxer wants love and hangs on my every move. On Sunday, Dave went to a competition with Star (one of their dogs), so we didn't get to know each other better there either. Instead, I went on a long walk with Jan and her three Retrievers and enjoyed the beautiful British countryside (like Jane Austen, but with a tractor). Jan is great to talk to, she is always interested and likes to talk about her life. Because her 92-year-old mother lives alone, we visited her for lunch on Sunday and had tea with her. She lives in a kind of retirement community (a separate residential area designed exclusively for older people) and her bungalow was so lovely that I would have liked to turn 70 immediately. She has a private park behind the house! She is a lovely lady, interested, and was happy to have company for lunch. Jan places great value on treating her volunteers like family members, and I was happy to meet her mother. Dave finally came home as the winner, Star and he are now in first place among the novices in a hunting dog competition (the dog has to complete various tasks and show with dummies that it has what it takes as a hunting dog. Apparently, very British.) On Sundays, Jan and Dave like to go out, and I got to join them this week. Finally, yesterday, I was able to do most of the tasks on my own because Tara went home. And when Sara from Spain arrived, I was already able to explain some tasks to her. Because there is a lot to do. The workday starts at eight, the animals are taken care of before breakfast. That means at eight, we put on our wellies and go to the field with the dogs, play ball, collect and move dog-produced balls. Then it's time for the cat boarding facility. Everything needs to be cleaned, the cats need to be fed, and every now and then I have to catch the climbing cats from the grids because they are too dumb to come down. We have a long-term visitor, Truffles, who has been here since December and demands a lot of love. Then, the food for the dogs is prepared and they are fed. Usually, it's already ten o'clock and time for porridge. The same program is repeated in the evening (without porridge). In the meantime, there are various tasks to do, yesterday we put ID tags on lambs, I practically pierced a lamb for the first time in my life. The little ones are not even two weeks old, most are only three days old, and some sheep are still pregnant. It's a busy time for Jan and Dave, they always have to be vigilant if, for example, Mable, the currently fattest sheep on the farm, is lambing. Jan wants to start cultivating the garden again, so we dug and weeded beds, harvested leeks, and chatted. In between, there is always tea. Tea. Tea. Tea. Toilet. Tea. Tea. Today, Dave showed us how a real Englishman makes tea: heat up the teapot with boiling water (always in the pot, not in a single cup!), then boil the water again and pour the tea. Milk first, then tea.

Today, Jan took Sara and me to a friend's house who manages a beautiful estate. There are supposedly some 'sights' in her house, and we were allowed to look at the buttery, a cold room where butter, cheese, and other dairy products used to be made. It is beautifully tiled, round, and darkened so that the sun doesn't shine in. Today, she took us to her choir rehearsal, which of course I enjoyed very much. A small choir with a married music teacher couple who lead the choir. It consists of many loving Dorothys and Ruths who were happy that Sara and I were there and sang along. Of course, there was tea. Throughout the week, I want to go to Leicester and Barwell, and together with Jan and Sara, explore a few local attractions. Cheers!