Living the Dream: Zen and the Art of Navigating Bureaucracy (a Cramooztopia update)
Many of you are probably wondering what we are up to, where things stand with our project, and what we are doing with our days. I have to admit, I have been pushing off the writing of this blog for months in the hopes that instead of a lukewarm update, I could share some epic and exciting news. Today, I have decided to rip off the Band-Aid and share the frustrating truth – but rest assured, all that means is that the big news is on hold. Let
A Double New Years Celebration to Ring in 2018
While I am not one to swoon over epic plans for December 31st, I have to say that if you are hell-bent on bringing the New Year in with style, the best way I have found to do that is twice within an hour, traveling between Spain and Portugal. First, a disclaimer: if it were up to me, I would start a tradition of a low-key party every 30th of December – because no one ever has any plans for that day or expectations of what should or shouldn’t
The Olive Harvest
When we agreed to participate in the Vinha da Manta olive harvest, my mind conjured bucolic images of a team of volunteers bundled up in the cold November mornings but stripping down to t-shirts as we worked in the warm sun throughout the day, shaking down olive trees and gathering the fruit they delivered on nets placed on the ground. We had a great team, with eight people flying in to help for the week. Most were Dutch, with two Canadians thrown into the mix – and us, of
The 7 Stages of Bureaucracy
Portugal is an amazing place, and there are many, many reasons why we chose to relocate here. However, I would be crazy if I said it was perfect, and delusional if I did not mention the biggest challenge we have had to deal with: bureaucracy. We knew this going in, of course, and accepted it as a small price to pay in the grander scheme of things. That helps, but unfortunately does not make us immune to the challenges of dealing with the issue. This week has been particularly frustrating,
After the fires
Background This year, Portugal has as usual suffered from innumerable fires. Some had natural causes, linked to how dry the year has been, and others were initiated by human intervention – whether unintentional (such as a government worker cleaning the side of the road, his blade hitting a rock and creating a spark, and voila) or criminal (yes, apparently that’s a thing). This happens every year. What is different this year is that two particularly nasty fires, one mid-June and another just a few weeks ago on October 15, have ravaged
The Ups & Downs of Living the Dream
Are you wondering what we’re up to? Curious as to what has been going on after the year of traveling around the world and the summer spent learning new skills & volunteering on glamping sites in Portugal? Fair enough. Looking back, I notice that I have been posting very irregularly. Once, maaaybe twice a month. I harbor no misconceptions that this blog is going to turn into daily reflections (we can both breathe a sigh of relief now) but I think I can do better. I want to do better. With that
Senses Camping: Riverside glamping, woodworking, and wedding planning Senses camping
Senses is a camping and glamour camping (or “glamping”) site that sits between the village of Faia and the Mondego River (coincidentally, they are almost neighbors with our last epic hosts Vinha da Manta! #smallworld). Run by Michel, a sand and ice sculptor, and Natasha, a hairdresser, DJ, and yoga instructor, it is a study in contrasts. The pool area looks like it came straight out of a design magazine, with a weeping willow watching over the kiddie and adult pools, and wicker lounge chairs with white cushions and
Woodworking & growing our tribe
Last summer Francois looked up interesting projects in Portugal that we might want to visit or connect with once we landed there come Spring 2017. One caught his eye in particular, and he encouraged me to check out their website – but I kept being distracted (classic) and so the tab stayed open for months. Earlier this year, it finally got to me to have this tab giving me the judgey eye every time I used Chrome. So I finally took a look, and Terra Alta had just started
Glamping for Foodies: the Vinha da Manta experience
The Vinha da Manta experience starts with the drive there. Skirting Guarda*, you head to the Mondego Valley which hugs the Serra de Estrela mountain (a natural park and the only place you can go skiing in Portugal). Through a few picturesque villages – including Chaos! – that boast a gorgeous view of a dammed (not damned) lake, you then turn towards Faia before finally seeing a sign for Vinha da Manta that takes you up a dirt track lined by old stone walls. Arriving at Vinha da Manta,
Costa Rica: More Bark than Bite
The last official stop on our around-the-world honeymoon was Costa Rica, the country so renowned for its breathtaking nature and a government that manages to stay at peace with its neighbors in spite of not having an army. Having been there however, Costa Rica to me is a bit like prom – or a high school dance for those who did not grow up in the US. It’s something you hear so many stories about, see in movies, and have such high expectations for that when the day comes