St. James’ Park is in the little village of Voditsa where not a lot appears to happen everyday except that people get their lives together in pretty much the same way that they’ve done for years. There are about 450 people living in this village and for most of them, life is about subsistence living – each family will typically have around an acre of land where they grow all the vegetables that they need for the year. Spring and Summer are about planting and tending the crops and Autumn is about preserving them for the long cold Winter. Few people have any additional income and it is difficult to generate any other business.
But this is not a poverty stricken village – the people in Voditsa have good land and they know how to use it – they are experts at recycling. Nothing is thrown away and things get reused in quite ingenious ways. I’ve been living here since August 2006 and I have learned so much and I now look at the things around me that I may once have called rubbish, and see their many different uses.
We’re not in a typical tourist area – we’re offering a different perspective on Bulgaria but its also different because we’re trying as much as possible to minimise our ecological footprint. We use compost toilets and the shower block was built from the old chicken shed by two local builders using mostly the materials that were available around the site. We use a wood burning shower but in summer, nobody really feels the need to heat up the water - a cold shower is the most delightful end to the day.
I’m learning about Biodynamic growing and I’d eventually like to keep bees. meanwhile, I’m growing lots of flowers for them to feed on.
BeehivesEverything produced on our land is organic and of course seasonal – so if you come at the end of September you’ll have peaches with everything. You can pick walnuts and apples from the trees and cook your own food if you wish - we’ll help you to build a fire.
October ApplesWe’re trying to be as ethical as possible with our investment which is as much about investing energy as money and hoping that this venture will have a positive effect on the local economy. We buy our eggs and milk from the farm down the road and meat from whoever has just killed a pig or a goat. This all provides valuable income for people who live a subsistence life – that includes drinking at the local bar!
Information for Volunteers here: http://www.stjamespark.biz/helping-us/