Author: jimlove

  • Leaving London for Portugal

    Thursday 9th February I left London after 2 weeks as a nomad having sold Wexford Road and moved out on 27th January. I was happy to leave Wexford Road after 36 years and many happy memories brining up my two daughters Anais and Zoe. Sad to leaving my kind neighbour, Mark – he and I…

  • Sale of Wexford Road – almost without incident

    Completing the sale of my flat on 27th January and moving out went smoothly apart from one oversight. In the week before the move I had given away a ton of stuff from the piano to Ikea cupboards to beds and bookshelves. I had also packed up all the boxes for Portugal and for storage…

  • The King of Mushrooms is here – two weeks ago nothing, now a feast!

    Wonderful to find the biggest Porcini that I have ever seen! Eaten by the quicker animals than me but still, what a find! This augurs well for the next couple of weeks and for future years. Gina has suggested a porcini hunting and cooking week at Quinta da Adarnela – what a great idea! More…

  • Hari and the Biotope

    At Sandomil market (first Sunday of the month I think) I had the pleasure of meeting many people for the first time. Hari was one such person. I visited Hari’s farm (Quinta) today and he gave me a tour. By the Mondego river, with a flood plain, terraces, streams, more terraces, you could not pick…

  • Building a permaculture duck pond!

    We planned it out, staked it out, Nick arrived with the mini-digger and job done!

  • Xavier and Aranxa’s Quinta da Libelinha

    What a pleasure to spend a day and night with Xavier and Aranxa,their adorable children Leo (2) and Ila (4) and Zeo, Or and Jimmy, their three volunteers. Summary I arrived just after midday and settled in at the community kitchen and dining area to wait for their return from the market. Upon their return,…

  • Random observations

    Driving down to visit Xavier and his partner on their permaculture farm today. Stopped off in Oliveira to buy some t-shirts and underwear (hadn’t packed properly when I left….remembered the important things though such as the frisbee and harmonica). Some of my first impressions:

  • Staying with Gina and Clive

    After quite some research on Google maps and booking.com I found the perfect place to stay for my 6 weeks getting the feel for Portugal and the area to the west of Serra da Estrela.

  • Regreening the valley

    This one has been a dream since I was 16, to be part of a movement that recognises that humankind is part of a greater whole. On 2nd October I fly to Portugal to spend 6 weeks in a small town called Lagares da Beia in one of the poorest areas of Portugal. In 2018,…