A More Manageable Project

We drove Holly down to Madrid a couple of weeks ago. It was the first time I had left Galicia/Portugal in two years. We were dropping her off to her new owner.

We were selling her because we found this blue Smurf of a camper van online and were looking to upgrade.

Although a few years older, this one sleeps four comfortably, has a fixed bed, rotating seats, automatic transmission, and a solar panel. But most importantly, we can stand up in this one.

The house project has all but stalled, but this fall we’ve got other priorities: preparing the Molly to head south for the winter, new work responsibilities, and taking a breather from an intense summer at the finca.

Lagoa de Bodeiro

I spent the weekend in O Grove and finally walked around the north shore of the peninsula. I thought Foxos and A Lanzada were nice, but passing the uncrowded Pipas, Reboredo, Mexiloeira, Piñeirón, Barreiriño, and Carreiro beaches with calm and turquoise water felt like I was on a different continent.

Here’s the laguna near to praia Mexiloeira.

Flashback: Ali’s Worre

In late 2012 I was preparing to leave Sierra Leone. School was out for the holiday, the secondary school was almost finished, and I started taking my small digital camera around with me throughout the day.

This is from Ali’s family’s worre: a Fula ranch where the extended family lives in circular thatch roofed huts surrounding the herd.

Inside the myriad huts, you could see the smooth floors and detailed walls that the women of Ali’s family meticulously sculpted from mud. You could also see the pots the family uses for milking the cows.