Looking back on the last year and a half i think its fair to say i had a LOT of signs or resistance to doing this. Even just flying here to Portugal from Holland was a huge issue during the peak of Covid lock downs, crazy prices, and un contactable customer services.
When i came here in March 2020, I came to check Portugal out with a view to buying some land for the ecoVillage project. Whilst i was here on my second week i received news that India (my home for 15 years) had locked down all flights and incoming people. Even until today they are not letting tourists in, and so in a heart beat i lost everything i had, all my possessions, and life as i knew it.
It was barely even possible to see land let alone buy any, but i was lucky enough to see one plot that I bought very quickly due to the insane circumstances. Since Portugal were also going into lockdown, i went to the Netherlands to stay with my X wife and see how things went with the whole pandemic. After three months of spending all my savings in Holland, and India still not relenting on letting in any non Indians, i decided to come to the land i had just bought and start life again!
Starting life again with a view to building an earthship here was not easy that’s for sure. When i came to this land there was nothing. No water, no power, no structures.. It has some trees like oak, mimosa, and many olive trees also. I was not prepared for the climate, and the heat made it extremely difficult to erect my first temporary home, a yurt. I built this Yurt on a 6 meter wooden base. All of that sits on around 40 earth rammed car tyres, and pounding those tyres full of dirt took me WEEKS of hard work.. I loved that part, after having sat in lock downs for months on end i was delighted to be starting life again and working towards building an earthship.
I have spent the last year and a half pouring all of my time, energy and money into this land. I had a borehole dug in September last year, and that was successful. I also have a very good solar power system installed that provides enough power to run all the water pumps, fridge / freezer, washing machine, home, office etc. That in itself is very liberating! There are 100s of meters of electrical wires and water pipes buried all over the place, and I think its fair to say i have everything i need to be very comfortable.. except a proper home!
The yurt has been a pleasure in many ways. Winter is much easier than summer because i have a fireplace. It seems there no getting away from the heat during summer. Without the air-conditioner it was reaching 45 degrees Celsius in here, which is intolerable. Having said that, i have felt quite vulnerable here in the storms and great rains. It still amazes me that this Yurt holds together and water tight so far, even in the harshest storms! Even still, it doesn’t feel good, and im just waiting for something to go wrong. Im already nervous because i now have two cats and they have already been on the roof! I pray they didn’t put holes in it!
So Portugal was an amazing experience for me. It was the first time that i have been back in the system in 15 years. I have spent 99% of my time previous to last year in India, on the side of a mountain either building Earthships or appreciating them! I had gotten very used to Indian culture and they way things work. This has been a learning experience, and one that i will never forget. After a year and a half living as a citizen of this country, i have to say, it SUCKS!
Im not sure if we have a name yet for the kind of relationship we have with our government. I would call it Predatory Capitalism. Here in Portugal there is another layer of inefficiency and disconnection that means that people can get into big problems without much effort at all. Just figuring out how to take a drive down their highways is a challenge greater than you might think. Make one mistake and you will pay.
In fact, one ridiculous example is the fine i am holding here for $600 USD. This fine is for someone who owned my car before i purchased it, who didn’t pay their highway toll. The fine is 10x the cost of the ticket, and they don’t really seem to care that i didn’t even own the car. It will take months to resolve, and in the meantime i am in breach of the payment plan that my government set up for me. Bad thing’s could happen im told if i don’t start paying. wtf!
This system is so dark, so inefficient, so corrupt., so disconnected that it is hard for me to bear. Just daily living is very complicated, and I need so much legal and other help just to stay on top of all my responsibilities. Its really make life shit, that is the only way i can explain how i feel about it all. I have many issues that are going to take me time to resolve before i can leave here.
So, with all of this.. oh wait no there’s more.. One more thing.. Might be of interest to you. You see, i was also under the impression that Portugal was some kind of crypto tax haven.. well let me just tell you its really not like that at all! They want it, as much of it as they can get!
So yes, with all of this i think its fair to say im going to leave this country.
Where will i go?
i do not know!
I am trying to sit with it all. Make new directions, and start life again somewhere that i can be happy and doing what I love. ..i would say that at least visiting India is very likely in the near future.. and after that.. lets see where I go from here!!?!?
