June 21, 2017, bags packed and smiles on our faces, heading to an unknown land, "Albania", for a short two week vacation with Gaëtan's brother at the seaside. Living the good life... Our first glimpse of this beautiful country; warmth, friendly people, welcoming atmosphere... Although we don't understand a word of what people tell us, their enthusiasm to share their lives and experiences with us is strong, so we listen carefully to decipher this beautiful language. After two weeks of rest, sun bathing, beaches and fruit juice, our desire for a deeper adventure has arrived! We wish to explore this country more deeply, to discover it's secrets, the things that make this country so nice and so welcoming. We decide to leave with our thumbs out and cross the whole country hitchhiking. Great experiences await us: spontaneous meetings, friendships, warm memories ... Arriving at the capital we buy a tent to save expenses and, more importantly, stay longer. Continuing our trip, we take a break to volunteer on a beautiful wild beach (Sandra, bar-tending and Gaëtan, fabricating beach chairs). Here, around a bonfire, we meet Eduart, an Albanian guide who is touring with his group. He changes our plans and our ambitions. A dream home in the mountains is calling for us to be renovated. After adopting one of the many dogs scavenging around in the litter, a family to discover this paradise is formed.

Create a cultural, recreational and shared space in a small Albanian mountain village.

Qerret is a small village accessible only by an 8 kilometer stony path. The inhabitants are self-sufficient; producing fruits, vegetables, milk and meat. They live to the rhythm of the seasons. In love with this corner of paradise, we want to develop and flourish this place. Situated in authentic and mountainous surroundings, our stone house is bordered by a lake and vast, hilly terrain. A charming place where we find nature in all its splendor. The village incorporates a small mosque, a primary school, and 2 cafes / bars / grocery stores. The children marvel at new things when we involve them in some of our leisure activities.

We wish to invest in the education of children, giving language classes and developing sports and recreational activities, while welcoming travelers from all over the world to share and create links allowing the village to evolve (Participatory Tourism). Offering travelers a traditional meal at one of the villagers houses in return for a small monetary compensation or some help in the fields; milking goats, taking sheep out, repairing a leaking roof, washing clothes or cooking. We would also like to involve locals in our activities, by creating a permaculture garden, teaching a different approach to gardening or even by helping us entertain, welcome and take care of our future guests, schools or families who come to visit us.

We are creating this community project to pay thanks to everyone who gave us a ride.

Sandra, 22, a go-getter, dreams of discovering new cultures and living life to the maximum. A desire to help and serve has always been part of her life. Gaëtan, 25, adventurer, traveler in search of the truth, left for Africa, then Latin America to do voluntary work. He dreams about investing in big projects so he travels while learning about life. Together they planned to go to Malta to learn English. Beforehand however, they went on a small 2-week stopover in Albania. But this short trip rapidly transformed into a extraordinary community project with the creation of VIE NOMADE. Not having gone to Malta, their English improves slowly, which makes them even more eager to start receiving international travelers who are touring through this wonderful country.

A large stone house in a Natural Park situated at 900 m altitude in a beautiful mountain range. (A large living room, two large bedrooms, a bathroom with a hot shower, toilet, two large fireplaces and a kitchen). ·

A large lot of fruit trees. ·

A natural water source. ·

Access to a lake (200m). ·

A bread oven.

· A dining area.

· Three wooden cabins to accommodate more people.

· A camp site and camp fire place.

· An outdoor bathroom.

· An obstacle course (unique in Albania).

· A volleyball court.

· A petanque court.

· A vegetable garden with permaculture technique.

· A small farm (for local and organic products)

· Tug of war

· Lots of flowers.

· Handcrafting courses with re-used materials.

Theme nights and a lot of happiness

Maison de partage en Albanie.