You are invited to participate at an olive pickingweekend that will take place at 1-2 November in the village of Fourka, Chalkidiki, Greece.
The project: My family owns some olive tree fields and we produce our own olive oil
and olives. We do not sell the olive oil but instead consume it
ourselves. Since it is too much for us, we also give it to friends and
relatives. The olive oil is purely ecological as we don'tuse any methods or fertilizers to increase the production (including watering!).
This year the plan is to invite friends and volunteers, also from outside Greece, to participate in the olive picking and make it a more interesting and fun experience. The volunteers will contribute to the olive picking and they do not have to pay for their food and accommodation.
When it will be: The weekend for 1-2 November is planned, but since some extra days might be needed (preparation, transport and chance that one day is lost due to bad weather) it would be best to reserve Friday - Monday as well.
What will you learn and bring home: During this experience you will learn more about the olive oil collection and production process and olive making process. You ll also bring home your own olive oil so preferably bring some bottles to carry it back home. You will also learn more about preparation of olives (it take some steps for olives to be prepared so that they are edible), but as this requires a couple of weeks, it is more likely that you take some olives back home with you and prepare them yourself.
Accomodation: Accomodation will be in our weekend house in Fourka, Chalkidiki, Greece (map) for 2-3 days. If you need to stay in Thessaloniki it is advisable to seek accomodation yourselves, as hosting at my parent's place is not possible. Finding accomodation in the city through couchsurfing is relatively easy.
How to get there: The closest airport is Thessaloniki (map). Some cheap airlines that fly to Thessaloniki are Easyjet, Germanwings, Airberlin. I will be flying to Thessaloniki from Dortmund on Thursday 30 October and returning Saturday 8 November. Air tickets to Greece are very cheap at this time of the year as it is the low season (mine cost 61 Euros return).
The drive from Thessaloniki to Fourka is around one hour. There are also 2 busses per day from Thessaloniki to Fourka. Depending on the number of attendees transport from Thessaloniki to Fourka will be arranged accordingly so the meeting point is Thessaloniki.
What to bring: Definitely work and everyday clothes and shoes (some warm ones too).
Weather: Weather is not as hot in Greece in November as it is in the summer. It can be nice and sunny but it is also likely to rain some days. The average temperature during the day is 15 degrees. The village of Fourka is 3 km from the sea but it can get quite cold during the night. The weekend house is warmed with fire place and has no central heating.
Interested? Get in touch with me (Rigas) somehow and I 'll answer your questions and let you know more. Hope to see you there.. :-)
View to mountain Olympos from our olives field in Fourka in winter
Even more interested? In case you would like to prolong your stay, if you liked the olive picking, you can continue to work during the olive picking season in the village, as there is a shortage of people that would do this seasonal job. After this weekend you will have become an expert and your experience will be really needed.