Your host
Azra
I live in sunny Bushey, North West London which borders with Hertfordshire. The rail station is 2 minutes away from my house and it takes 17 minutes to get to the centre of London. My sons Stephen and Jake have moved out from our family home however they pop around often as they live close by. I’ve been helping students to improve their English for a few years now and absolutely love it. Each student is very different, and not just in their ability level. I strive to understand each person carefully, in order to identify the best route to facilitate their learning. I do this not only with methods (interactive puzzles and games, computer work, cooking and activities) but also with topics, often providing lessons tailored to their interests, motivations, feelings. I am consultative in approach and enjoy asking the students how they feel it is going and listening to their viewpoints.
I hold the English degree Diploma. In my Corporate Travel career I have managed team of 26 staff, coached and mentored them and I like to teach actively where possible. I’ve been delivering homestays for 10 years. I live on a very sociable road and we have lots of friends who have children of all ages and they have lots of pets! I love socialising with family and friends, cycling, swimming, walking, reading, cooking, films and travel. I would invite our students to become involved in all of these activities and Barrie and Ruben would do the same with theirs. For example, I have given students travel lessons in the past and I have cooked and baked with nearly all of them.
The home
3 bedroom detached house. There is an electric piano and a guitar in the student’s bedroom.
Location
Bushey North West London, the nearest airport is Heathrow or Luton 30 minutes away by car.
Things to do
Living in Bushey, is really a perfect location from which to teach English to adults and children. I am in a beautiful part of North West London called Bushey, which is surrounded by stunning countryside yet lies just 17 minutes from central London. It’s close to both Luton (30 minutes) and Heathrow (30 minutes), International train services into London Waterloo and of course all south coast ferry ports are 2 hrs away. We have so many lovely places to visit, things to see and do, that you need never be bored! The National Trust and English heritage own a wealth of beautiful properties here, with many: castles (notably Bodiam, Hever (Anne Boleyn’s childhood home) and Scotney) historical stately homes (Chartwell (Churchill), Bateman’s (Rudyard Kipling) and beautiful gardens (including Sissinghurst and Penshurst Place) I am just an hour and a half from the south coast and so day trips to beaches including Bexhill, Hastings, Brighton and Eastbourne are possible. Kent has vineyards and fruit picking farms which thrive in summer and all can be visited and their produce tasted and purchased.
The county has many outstanding restaurants, bars and cafes. Bushey itself has lots of green fields, beautiful landscaped park, Imax cinema, bowling, theatres, table tennis, two nightclubs and many town events showcasing food, music, arts and markets. It also has a museum which explains the town’s fascinating history. The town is perfect if you like to stay active. Cycling, running routes, sports centres, swimming pools, cricket pitches, tennis, golf and so on and on are plentiful. There is a wealth of stunning walking country. No wonder so many of the good and great settled in this area. London centre is only 17 minutes away and can be enjoyed during the homestay either self directed, or with me at an extra charge. There you can enjoy The London Eye, Big Ben, Madame Tussauds, world famous galleries, museums, opera, ballet, west end musicals and plays, restaurants, nightlife, unending shops including Harrods and Selfridges. London is truly one of the best cities in the world and has many things for everyone!
Local amenities
Golf, Tennis, Table Tennis, Swimming, Horse Riding, Water Sports, Sports Centre.
Other languages spoken
French but not fluent any more luck of practice
Spanish but not fluent any more lack of practice
Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian fluent
Other details
Wifi available, smokers ok only in the garden, garden.