My first volunteering experience in Italy

Volunteering is something I began to consider a few year ago, as it allows me to stay longer and learn more about the culture of a place. My first choice was Italy, and I discovered the WWOOF organisation. They are specialized in organic farming. I was able to volunteer on an olive farm in sunny Puglia after a little research and a check list.

I was a city girl with no previous experience in farm work. I had a long list of things to do.

In my research I focused on the following:

1. I avoided farms with animals and bees, as I didn’t feel comfortable working around them. I love dogs and cats, but I am not sure if I could establish a rapport with a donkey.

2. As I mentioned, I am a city girl. My checklist included a list of things I enjoy, such as a warm shower and a comfortable bed.

3. I was concerned about transport issues. I searched for an area that would be easily accessible from one of the local airports. You may be in a remote area if you volunteer on a farm.

4. Although I selected a rural location, I still wanted to explore the nearby towns. On my first trip, I visited Carovigno and Ostuni. Discover more places in the area in my itinerary for 7 days to explore Puglia.

5. Since I was traveling alone, I hoped that there would also be other wwoofers at the site.

For more information, check out my guide on how to travel and volunteer abroad.

What it does

I first checked the WWOOF Italy map and list. After paying the membership fee, I was able to reach the hosts. After choosing a few farms I wrote to three or four prospective hosts. I thought an olive farm in sunny Puglia would be a good idea.

I worked as a volunteer for an olive farm located in the southern region of Italy, Puglia. This beautiful land is owned by an older couple and has three houses built around their traditional Trullo. There are olive trees, and many different types of fruit trees. I shared a two-bedroom house with another girl from Argentina. The farm also had volunteers from the US.

Work on an olive farm in Puglia

The typical working day starts at 7:30 and ends at lunch time, which is usually 13:30 or 13:00.

The work of harvesting olives isn’t very difficult, but you may get a sore back or heavy arms after lifting buckets full. The early morning was very quiet. The grass was still damp. After cleaning the olives from the branches, we let them dry. I had time to organize my thoughts because no one spoke for another hour.Olives in a net

Olives are harvested mainly by hand. The olives are dropped from the branches using long sticks or machines that vibrate and cause the olives to drop without harming the tree. The lower branches are “combed”, using a small plastic instrument.

We had some fresh fruit from the tree and chatted more after a short time. There’s nothing better than a pomegranate straight from the tree. This is not the same as the stuff that I buy in the supermarket at home.A ripe kaki fruit

We started to collect the olives later in the morning and brought them in buckets into some large cassettes. Other things like moving the nets to another tree or collecting fallen branches and cleaning the courtyard are also needed.

What else did I do at the olive farm?

We ate lunch and dinner together, which was spectacular. Graziella cooks with passion and is a great chef. Before the main course, we’d serve a minestrone soup or pasta dish with polpette or salsiccia.

We had the afternoons to ourselves until dinner time at 7 p.m. On some afternoons I would go to the nearest town and spend an hour or so wandering around. We visited the Fratoio a couple of times to see how olives were processed into oil.

Some days I would just walk through the olive trees. The property was not located in a village but rather in the beautiful countryside, with Trulli scattered everywhere and olive groves covering the red soil of Puglia. The house, which was built around a Trullo, had a rooftop terrace from where we could read, talk, or enjoy the sun.The dancing olive trees

It was an amazing experience to volunteer at an olive farm in Puglia. I met people from all over the world, got to know locals and saw how they lived and worked.

Visit my blog for a quick guide on volunteering and travel. Also, check out my 7-day itinerary to Puglia in southern Italy.