WWOOFing in Italy

Traveling is great! Visiting landmarks and attractions are wonderful. But for some travelers, they feel like they are missing on that authentic side of the country. Where would you meet these interesting characters you see in travel magazines? Where is that beautiful child holding a lamb in her arms? And this old woman weaving baskets?

Sometimes, touristic spots are not the most authentic. 

Then again, you could get off the beaten path and explore some country side. But let's face it, being a stranger in another country, the only clue you have is a map...

Enjoying the beautiful mountains of Italy

Learning the art of bottling olive oil

But if you really want to interact with locals, find out about their way of living and seeing the unseen, wwoofing might be a good option.

I discovered this organization a few years ago. WWOOF stands for (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms). As the name pretty much describes it's an organization that connects organic farm owners with volunteers all over the world.



The idea is pretty simple:
The volunteers and hosts joint the community by registering on the country's WWOOF website.
The hosts post information on their farm and the volunteers browse through the listings to find a farm where they will stay and help.
Hosts will give you accommodation and food in exchange of 4-6 hours help on their farm.
Most of the times, you live with your hosts. Usually you would stay in their house, share meals and join in the daily activities.

Before arriving you arrange the dates and length of your stay with the host you contacted. It is usually one or two weeks but it could be anything between a couple of days to a few months, depending on the host.

No soft hands on a farm

I met a lot of people who woofed in different countries. And I spent a little more than a month woofing on a farm in Italy.

This is a great way to meet locals, understand the culture, learn a new language, learn about organic farming, explore beautiful places that tourists will probably never see.

In order to enjoy wwoofing you need to have an interest in farming and the countryside.
Farm work is hard work. And it is a difficult task to grow your own food. For someone not used to manual work, this could be tiring.

Then again it depends where and when you go wwoofing.
But expect to live like the people from the country, work hard and enjoy the fresh air and nature.

Working hard to weed a garlic field

Often farms are literally off the beaten path, so it might be a disadvantage if you were planing on go sightseeing. The truth is wwoofing is not meant to be a vacation or tourism. Even though you will definitely see a lot of beautiful things and probably explore the area a bit.

I think wwoofing is wonderful for the traveler who is looking for more than the usual sights. It's a way to connect to the locals and learn about their way of living. You will be living the country instead of visiting it.

Cooking our lunch on an outdoor oven

If you are looking for the authentic, for the 'national geographic' picture you see all the time... then wwoofing might set you on the right path.
I have wonderful memories of the family who hosted me. They talked about their country, their farm, their life in this small village in the mountains. They taught me their culture and made me understand their view of Italy.
It was interesting and wonderful to be part of the daily mountain life of this Italian community.
Would I, as a tourist, had sat in the shade of an olive tree? I would probably have never seen the beautiful valley and mountains, nor shared Italian meals outdoors with wonderful people. And I would have missed on a little known, yet so beautiful, region of this country.

It might be a good idea to include woofing in a trip. Maybe between visiting different cities or regions.
Whatever the way you do it, it's worth giving it a try.

You can learn more about WWOOF on their web site: www.wwoof.net

Have fun!