Forest of Orchids

Enjoy learning about orchids, birds and nature conservation, get to know the organic farmers in the area and their farming techniques. Visit the nature reserve, the town's market, cultural center and many interesting people.

About us:
We are a Nature Reserve and non-profit initiative for the study, in-vitro reproduction and reintroduction in nature of native Colombian orchid species. As advocates of the nature conservancy, we initiated a process of ecological restoration in the area and socialize about the native fauna and flora trough different media (talks, leaflets, videos). As means achieve our objectives our objectives, we offer lodging in two cabins, all the buildings on the property are eco-friendly. We are located in an Andean mountain at 2700 MAMSL, 5 minutes away from the town of Tenjo - Cundinamarca and a 1 hour drive away from the capital city of Colombia, Bogotá. Surrounded by places of religious importance for our indigenous ancestors and rupestrian art as a reminder of them.

What we offer: - You'll be accommodated: in a cozy cabin with private bathroom, hot shower, biodegradable soap, shampoo; also towels and bed sheets. If you are travelling with a friend, we can accommodate up to 2 of you. - We'll offer you breakfast, a little snack at 10:30 am, lunch and dinner for 5 days per week (work days), full use of all the social zones in the property, unlimited filtered water, tea, coffee, etc. - You can wash your clothes with our biodegradable detergent. - We are vegetarian friendly and speak a little bit of German too. Your tasks: According to your abilities and preferences informed in the interview, your tasks can be: - Sewing foreing trees and replace them planting native trees. - Crafting of specific structures (for example, cabin) Maintenance (f.e. painting, fixed and repair greenhouse and cabin structure) - Upgrade the eco-trails (signalization, railing) - Gardening ((f.e.mantenaince of the gardens and trees planted in the forest, cut the grass, weeding) - You will not be attending guests, however. Please tell us if you have special skills that can be helpful to our initiative and are not contemplated. We'll rather have you enjoy your volunteer work e.g. cooking for the team, landscaping, crow funding... Requirements: - Age 21 or older - Respectful of different ways of living - Willing to respect and connect to nature -Have an appropiate travel visa - Have an appropriate travel-insurance - Our volunteers will not be allowed to remain in our property under alcoholic intoxication or consuming illegal substances - Allergy warning: We have four dogs. Please inform us beforehand of any allergies. - Having been vaccinated for covid 19 - Just foreing volunteers Please let us know a little about you. We are glad to know to about: -Do you have any experience with nature conservation? - Do you have an appropriate travel-insurance? -Do you have any experience with landscaping? -Do you have any experience volunteering? -How do you think you can contribute to our initiative? (skills, abilities o formation you think might be useful and you enjoy to use) -Do you have any dietary restriction, allergy or healt condition we need to prepare for beforehand? -What do you expect from your experience as voluteer with us? -Are you a smoker? -Do you has been vaccinated for covid 19? What to do on your free time: The town of Tenjo is a 17 minute walk away from our property, there you will find many restaurants, cafes, museums, a local farmers market, artisan shops, a church, and a nice bar. The tourist information office will be glad to inform you of the cultural events taking place. You can take the bus to the neighboring town Tabio to visit and enjoy the hot springs and horse-riding, which is a 15 minutes drive from us. Or take the bus to the town of Zipaquira and visit the salt-cathedral. If you wish to stay in the property, there is a billiard table, plenty of board games, a BBQ, chimney, plenty of books and various trails to hike in the nature reserve and learn from birds and orchids from us. Even hike all the way to the Peña de Juaica, a mountain famous for supernatural occurrences. We hope you'll be able to enjoy nature and connect with it and yourself.