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| Merry Christmas! |
This post is brought to you
in photos from multiple days here in the mountains of Portugal to provide a
seamless retelling of what a day is like at Casalinho.
(We always wear the same clothes, thus the need to tell you the photos were
taken on different days).
We wake up and it is
freezing cold! We get dressed and head over the the training room for porridge
and corn flakes with coffee for Brandon and tea for Jen.
Whatever, is not eaten is
soon pre-washed the permaculture
way. And maybe another cup of tea...
Finally, we start our day of
work with the animals. The ducks are particularly glad to be back out for the day.
Jen milks the goats while Brandon feeds the chickens, ducks, and rabbits.
Once the goats are milked we walk them up so they can self forage.
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| Hammering in the stake to hold the goats to a particular patch of ground. |
Then we go into the woods to
collect additional goat food which they'll eat through the coming night.
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| Cutting goat food is FUN! |
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| Lady Goat Food |
Here is where the hard work
begins...
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| CHICKEN TRACTOR! This ingenious idea is to have the chicken put their natural scratching to good use by putting them on beds that need weeding. They will eat some of the weeds and dislodge the rest in their hunt for insects. |
Currently, Brandon has been
working with another volunteer on the tire terrace. Its purpose is to stop the
gradual erosion and sliding of the beds above.
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| The farmhouse is on the left, and our group of caravans for the volunteers are on the right. Beds of strawberries are above the terrace. |
Jen has been at work at
weeding beds, transplanting strawberry plants and lettuce, planting asparagus
and also helping on the tire terrace when extra braun and brains are needed. We work all through morning,
the bells from the village telling us what time it is.
After a 2pm lunch, work is done for
the day. Some afternoons we walk to Unhais-o-Velho to use the internet
at the public internet hub and then relax by Tia Sue's wood stove while sipping
wine.
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| Unhais-o-Velho |
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| The Bar |
hello! im just a simple girl from coimbra, and my grandfathers lived in unhais o velho! i was searching things when i saw your image, and i just want to say that im feeling so happy for you who had the opportunity to know unhais o velho. its so full of history,past and nature that my eyes became i river if i continue this! i dont know who u are and u dont know me either, but today i smile with your experience! good luck and come to unhais everytime u want again! daniela
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