January 2017 blog 3 — Our First Offer

Shepard with his sheep walking past Quinta Da Luz

Our last couple of days staying at Quinta da Luz up in the Serra da Estrela were spent looking at a couple of more properties, and revisiting the one that we liked most a few more times. 

Quinta Da Luz from back garden

Rory and Hugo hanging out in the Gazebo in Quinta da luz garden

The owners of the Quinta da luz bed and breakfast, Gregory and Caroline were also nice enough to bring us to their other project, where Harvey met another friend! This time a Vietnamese pig! So now he has a pony girlfriend — Carlotta — and a Vietnamese pig bestie. Hugo hasn’t been quite as social… I know, shocking.

Harvey and his new piggy friend

On our last morning in the Serra da Estrela, we arranged with the estate agent to meet the owner of the Mimosa overgrown property that we couldn’t stop thinking and talking about. The owner spoke only Portuguese, but Rory managed to communicate pretty well with him. The two of them traipsed through the property, the owner with a scythe/sickle in hand to clear the way. He pointed out 2 additional water mines and clarified some questions. We came to realize that we love the piece of property more every time we visit it, and this visit was no different.

view of river from bridge next to property

Overgrown river frontage of the property 

We decided on our way home, that afternoon, to make one last stop into the estate agent to make an offer on it. The agent called the owner and put him on speaker, and after some back and forth we agreed on a price. There are many more steps to take, of which I’ll spare you the boring details. But all in all we’re pretty excited about the potential of the hidden gem becoming ours.

Dirt track lined with Mimosa trees down to property

When we arrived back in Tomar on Tuesday night, although ecstatic with how our property hunt week had concluded, we were completely pooped! Harvey and Hugo included. 

Bags packed on our way back to Tomar

Car naps on our way home

Recuperating at our home in Tomar

 We’ve spent the week recuperating and resettling here in Tomar. There has been a cold front through southern Europe, so although it’s been nice and sunny it’s been a chilly week! Although Saturday it warmed up enough to justify taking a drive to the beach for a couple of hours in the afternoon.

Surf watching - Nazare

Saturday Views - Nazare

Beach kisses - Nazare

Playtime at the beach - Nazare

We’ve put property hunting on the back burner with hopes to take steps forward with the one we have an accepted offer on. Meanwhile I’ve also been teaching Rory and our friend Antony, who runs the campsite, some yoga in the afternoons. I also tried a different type of yoga I hadn’t tried before called Qigong with a friend I met at the concert last week. She has started teaching it every Saturday morning. 

It’s also about time we to put our energy and focus into learning Portuguese… So Bom Dia!!!!

😎😎 Nazare