Portugal
Portugal!
So I’ve kind of had the urge to tell you about my fall adventure but haven’t made the effort until now to tell you more about it.
Think of living a life southwest of Portugal, in a little cottage just outside town surrounded by palms and farmland full of goodness (yes, picking your own figgs, oranges and pomegranate), being able to study in silence, surf everyday, skydive (I litterally hear the dropzone pumping from my casa), climb and whatever might come in mind.
I’m living that life, right now, here, and I feel so blessed!
After buying an old car and turning it into a surfmobile (with a bed, boards, a little library and all of that) me and my sister jumped in the car and starter our journey south. The plan was to leave Sweden and head down to the west coast of France to spend some days until she flew back to Sweden and I continued through Spain towards my final destination Portugal and more specifically Lagos.
The trip pretty much took us from Örebro to Ljungby (of all palces), through Denmark to Germany and Kassel, crossing the boarder of France with one sleep south of Paris and then finally reaching the west coast.
While on the west coast we visited Biscarrosse, Hossegor and our all time favourite, slash second home, Biarritz. We had such an amazing time eating baguette, checking out the ocean, different surfshops, the surf-outlet outside Hossegor, eating seafood, free camping with the car and finally treating ourselves with a night at the most stylish hotel.
Realizing that I wouldn’t meet my sister until December, or as I just realized probably next year -as she’s going to NZ, I gave her the biggest hug and totted on in my big little surfvolvo. From there on I was all by myself. Me, my car, and the highway dessert of Spain.
Spain, Spain, Spain. I only spent one night in this country, one of the absolute creepiest nights in my life. After driving for hours and hours I decided to drive off the motorway and free camp on the countryside (since I’ve heard all the dodgy stories of pulling over and sleeping at a truckdriver place). I drove through the only little village there was around (looking like a ghost town with all windows blocked – but honestly what place looks inviting during night time) and decided to park my car under a big tree facing the road so I easily could drive away.
When I got out of the car to brush my teeth under the stars I had this awkward feeling. But, instead of listening to it, I tucked myself into the car and fell asleep. Suddenly, around one hour later, I woke up realizing that something was shining right at me, with a bright light. Someone was sneaking around my car…
It took a few seconds until the state of mind started functioning but as I realized that that “someone”, blocking my way out with a car was a police, calling out “hola”, the police went back to the car and drove off.
After looking at the time and realizing that I was lucky enough to be found by the police and no one else, I decided that I could at least wait until the sun started to rise before continuing my journey. What could possibly be safer than having a police knowing where I was parked? Apparently my “mind” didn’t agree with me. I had the wildest, creepiest dreams I ever had meeting some people I’m not really willing to face, hearing voices. After waking up, feeling the car shaking to the sound of “kids-scream” and looking out the window trying to make up if the darkness behind the trees could be an old house, I had the feeling that I had to get away from the place, immediately.
Crawling into the front seat, turning the key while thinking, don’t look in the rear-view mirror–just drive, I drove off. Passing the village, I met the police circling around and when I finally got on the motorway again I could not other than long for the return of daylight. Around two hours later, exhausted from the night, I pulled over at a petrol-station, parked the car in the surveillance area and crawled back into the bed for a couple of hours of sleep. Ahh…
After that night, driving over the boarder to Portugal and turning off towards streets I know was literally pure niceness!
Since I hadn’t already found a place to live I spent two nights at my favourite hostel Casa Offshore aka Extreme Algarve. On my second day I managed to find my dream-house and after going on a successful house viewing with the kindest owners, I drove off with a key and a smile to wide to handle.
Since then I’ve settled in, started my everyday studies, explored different surfspots, seen dolphins, eaten to much fish, had reunion with the surfer from last night, thrown a burrito-night, experienced a real Portuguese dinner with the house-owners, found snakeskin in my garden and gotten my first tan with trillions of freckles in a long time (yes not only including head, hands and feet)!
The thing is. I’ve met so many people that is telling me that we'll never be able to fully live our dreams. That a dream is a dream and when it is set into reality, it will hardly ever turn out the way we imagine. But I want to tell you the truth. And, the truth is that every single damn thing is possible, if you believe it, if you work for it and if you remember to see the potential in everything. If you think it is possible, if you believe that it is, it will become p o s s i b l e. Like the famous Norwegian, Cecilie Skog, said to me: Hold on to your dreams, grab it, hold on to it with both your hands and never ever let go.
So, now I’ll get back to my writing so that I can fulfil one of my dream, of finishing my master’s degree in law.
Promisse to take care! I’ll keep you updated!
Wanna see more of my day to day life? Follow my instagram @madebywillyams
xxx Maddy
