About the project
The Ten Houses project
A village in Belarus by an old forest, with eleven wooden houses on one street. Seven of them are ours. We want to restore them, welcome guests and make food from what grows around.
Why
So that people live in the village again
Now
Today the village has no residents and no guests. The roofs leak, the gardens have run wild, the pond is overgrown with reeds.
In two years
But the most important things are already here: log walls of real timber, stoves that are still whole, old apple trees and the forest behind the vegetable plots. What is needed is repair, people, and food that guests can take home.
11 houses in all: 7 ours and 4 belonging to neighbours.
Drag the divider or use the arrow keys.
Who we are
The owners lived in Italy for 16 years
In recent years we lived in Tuscany and Calabria and saw how Italian farms work, where guests cook and harvest together with the hosts. We want to do the same at home.
The farm plan
What stands where
The guest houses and the garden are in the quiet part, the dining house, the horses and the fire pit in the lively part. The banya is by the pond, away from the houses. This is a sketch, the master plan will follow after the survey.
Our seven houses
Each has its own job
The allocation is provisional and will be decided after the log walls are surveyed.
- 3guests
- 1kitchen
- 2food
- 1owners
- guests
Guest house "Forest"
A small house with a stove and windows onto the forest.
guestsGuest house "Meadow"
For a family or a group, with its own garden.
kitchenThe dining house
A shared table for breakfasts and dinners, with a spit for sękacz in the yard.
foodThe cheese dairy
Klinkovy cheese (bag-pressed farmhouse cheese) and a smokehouse in the yard.
foodThe workshop and farm shop
Soap, herbs, kits and a shelf with all our products.
guestsThe guides' house
For those who get up before dawn for bison and birds.
ownersThe owners' home
We live here ourselves at first, later it will house the cider workshop.
One guest's day
How a day goes
A year in the village
Guests all year round
Winter
Bison in the fields, sleighs, the banya and snow.
Spring
Birch sap, morels, birds.
Summer
Bison grass, honey, Kupala Night, evenings by the pond.
Autumn
Mushrooms, apples and cider, juniper.
Why here
What works in our favour
Free-living bison
In Belarus, European bison live wild in several forests. In winter they come out into the fields.
Tree-hive beekeeping
Tree-hive beekeeping in Belarus and Poland is on the UNESCO list. Our honey will come from log hives.
Visa-free entry
EU citizens can travel to Belarus without a visa.
Get involved
Where we start together
In spring we will survey the seven log houses and begin with the ones in better condition. You can help with a donation, an investment in one house or your own business in the village.
09 /Questions
About the project
Where is the village?
In Belarus, by an old forest. We show the exact place to partners during a visit.
How many houses are in the project?
The street has eleven houses: seven ours and four the neighbours'. Three of ours will be guest houses, three workshops and one the owners' home.
When will the first guests arrive?
The plan is summer of the first year, when the first houses are ready.
What is the village like in winter?
Bison trips, sleighs, the banya and goose for Christmas.