Into the forest - the start of a 3-week workaway in Germany

I knew this trip would be much more expensive than traveling alone and couldn't afford accommodation for two months, so I reached out to several workaways that looked right up our alley and ended up choosing two. Our first one was 3 weeks in western Germany in the Eifel region. Literally in the middle of nowhere.

Having never done a workaway before, I can safely say now that I'm addicted. I do work about 4 hours a day 7 days a week but the work is pleasant and the trade-off is totally worth it. In the afternoons my job is to take the dogs on a 5km hike and in the evenings I help with the service and clean-up of dinner. Once I got into the swing of things it was hardly like work at all and doing the dinner help became enjoyable to me because I was a waitress for many years and I guess I somewhat miss that type of work.

What I get for working in this campsite / hostel called Strotzbuscher Muhle is a private room and 3 meals a day. That means I get to partake in the gourmet 3-course meal offered nightly to guests for 15 euros for FREE! They also totally cater to vegetarians and have a new chef every week so meals are all special and well-thought out. I am also allowed to use one of the owner's cars to explore the region. We've seen castles, quaint villages and many volcanic crater lakes (maar) local to the area.

I think the only one more stoked on this workaway than I am is my dog Olive. She has spent her days being petted by different people, hiking and playing with kids and dogs. It's basically doggy paradise. And of course she doesn't have to help with anything because... she's a dog.

It's nice as well with a dog to have a sense of establishing a routine for a short while. It has made Olive feel more comfortable and in exchange she eats more regularly and listens better. Not to mention for me it's great not having to pack and unpack a backpack every day and actually put stuff in drawers for a while.

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