A Year Away!

Outside our home

This weekend marked the one year anniversary of us leaving the UK to go travelling around Europe and begin a new life in the sun. I thought it would be timely therefore, to write a post reflecting on the experience, recalling some of the highs and lows and share a few thoughts on how making a big lifestyle change affected me.

There are certain things I've learnt during our adventure that I think have been valuable lessons, nuggets of wisdom as it were. Firstly, I have observed that life is totally unpredictable, you don't know what is around the next corner, and the best laid plans can be turned upside down without a moments notice, so my advice is not to plan too much, and just roll with it.

At the vineyard, Bordeaux

When we left the UK last September and headed for Bordeaux for a rendezvous at a château with some grape-picking work lined up, we didn't predict breaking down on day one and arriving almost a week late, which somehow earned us the nickname 'the King and Queen of England'! Grape-picking was a fun and physical experience and a fascinating glimpse into two different worlds, that of the grand château as well as that of the field workers who we joined to harvest the grapes - a more eclectic range of people I doubt I will come across again. I would definitely recommend it as a working holiday to those up for it - the fabulous food, oodles of wine and great camaraderie made it totally worth while, plus the pay wasn't bad.

Making wine

 Who'd have thought back then, a year later we would have our own vines and be making wine - certainly not me! Its ironic that we were originally going to return to France this year to pick grapes but events here took over and last week we harvested our own grapes and joined together with some locals to produce our own wine, which should be ready next year.

Secondly, stepping out of a comfort zone into new territories forced me to be brave; l found ways to make myself understood and asked things of people; as a result I found I've become more sociable and upfront, am able to make friends more easily and I am less self-conscious. In the UK I tended to stay within my group, as you do, but being away and outside of the comfort blanket that is one's gang, you reach out more readily. We have made fantastic friends and acquaintances on our journey, more often that not when we got chatting at a bar or cafe 😂. 

New friendships being made

We have become mates with all sorts of people and heard many interesting stories, we have been welcomed into people's homes and hearts and feel enriched for it.

My next observation is how beneficial its been spending a lot of time outdoors. Having the sun on my skin and enjoying nature no doubt has a hugely positive effect. At the beginning of the year I endeavoured to photograph the sunset every day, I haven't quite fulfilled that one hundred percent, but more often than not I do, and taking the time to appreciate the sunset daily is truly heartwarming.

The outdoors life

We are so lucky too, that in our new home we are west facing and have a stunning view that I can't see myself ever tiring of. Being in a natural and peaceful environment makes its easier to be mindful and the flora and fauna here in Portugal doesn't disappoint. I am mindful about being mindful these days and relishing in the moment! Another plus point regarding the weather is that there is a lot less clothes washing to do, you wear less and wear it for longer!

We soon patched up this hole in the wall!

I am more practical since being away and have learnt to make do with a lot less. I used to be something of a hoarder, not quite that bad but definitely guilty of owning way to much stuff, nic-nacks, clothes, stationary, books, furniture, rugs, art works, pots and pans... You get the idea, the list could go on and on. Getting rid of items before we left was a very cathartic process and I have never once pined for anything I once owned. Admittedly, had we known we were going to buy a house, a lot of what I got rid of would be mighty useful, but hey-ho, hindsight and all that! It would've been especially handy to have kept the car, and brought it over; being without a motor during the hottest months and cycling to the shops was tough, on Nick, I hasten to add, as we only had one bike! but we managed somehow. Even whilst we were travelling we often shed things we found to be surplus to requirements. I'm more practical in a hands-on way too, drawing water from the well, painting windows, fixing things up and so on.

Minimal washing :)

I have simplified on a personal level too - I no longer dye my hair, and even though I am going grey 😳, I actually don't mind and feel ready to embrace the naturalness and not feel ashamed about ageing ( I am going to be fifty next year after all - eeeek!). Likewise, I have not stood on a pair of bathroom scales in over a year, whereas I used to weigh myself religiously. I'm pretty sure I'm not bigger than I used to be, although granted, I could probably cut back a bit on the vino and chocolate! I wouldn't say my standards of personal hygiene have lessened, just changed somewhat - living in a vehicle, travelling and now having to fetch water from a well or local font makes one very cautious with water consumption - I can virtually wash myself in a few thimble full's these days!

A major improvement to my life is my work-life balance. I enjoyed my work immensely back in the UK but had to relinquish one lovely client who required me to work with them in person and hence we couldn't have a remote relationship. At the start of our travels I was unsure how easily I could maintain my business as the Flying PA, but it's been surprisingly smooth and I've transitioned from being a virtual assistant to a digital nomad with relative ease.

Me, being interviewed for a Podcast

In fact, last week I was interviewed for a podcast about being a digital nomad, which was a little scary, as it was my first experience doing anything like that, but I'm all for facing my fears these days and jumping right in. The podcast should be published around October time so stayed tuned and I'll post the link to it when it's ready. In terms of work it is no longer essential to work for X amount of hours per week. Our outgoings are vastly reduced compared to what they were in England, and the cost of living is quite low in Portugal, so a nine-to-five grind, it certainly is not.

During the last year we had a few hair-raising moments on the roads, occasions when my heart was in my throat and panic spread through my body. These included getting tangled up and lost in traffic in Bordeaux city at night with the fan belt screeching, miss judging routes which took the bus around hairpin bends over nail biting mountain tops, a tyre blowing out on the motorway in Spain and a couple of times the back doors flying open when we were in transit.

Our bus has taken us to some fab places

I really love the bus, she is a great old girl but after a year of travelling I feel happy to put down solid roots and become a bit of a homebody. Fears about travelling paled into insignificance compared to the fears around buying a house though. It really was the scariest couple of weeks of my life, concerns over the falling pound, worries about the paperwork not being complete, anxiety over the the elderly owners expiring before the sale was finalised and nightmares over the funds getting lost in transfer. Of course all that angst was totally unnecessary and everything turned out just fine 😍.

Now that we have the house and land, what they call a Quinta (small farm) we want to concentrate on turning it into our dream home. Just the fact we are here a year on, and it was totally unplanned and unexpected is an un-describable feeling. Nina getting lost that fateful day last November which caused us to walk down our track, taking us past our house, where I now sit, with a glass of red and some nice tunes playing. Life is strange, huh.

Nick & Nina

On a final note, I'd like to sends thanks and love to our friends and family who have supported us, followed our journey and offered words of encouragement over the last twelve months. Whilst I miss you all, I hope to be welcoming you here at some point in the not too distant future.

Tchau! (as they say here) xx