I spent the past few weeks at our farm, located on a corner of Europe where life is simple, neighbors are generous, people are happy, the air is clean, and the food is delicious.
There are no McDonalds or Starbucks, no dry-cleaners, nowhere to be at a certain time. No TV, no computer, no dishwasher,... heck, we don't even have a kitchen sink! (the house came with large, old fashion, clay bowls, where the old owners washed their dishes).
The closest town, 2 miles away, has 1 market the size of my small living room, 1 carpenter (the husband of the lady that has the market), 1 magazine/newspaper store, and 1 cafe. And one bench where all the locals hang out, right in the center of the village.
The second closest town, 5 miles away, is a beach town with restaurants and couple other small stores, where we buy our bread, eat out once in a while, or go to the beach.
When living on a farm, we only go to the supermarket to buy meat (if the neighbors didn't stop by, generously, to give us a chicken they just killed for us, or ribs from a pork they killed the week before), drinks, butter, milk, and some treats like cheese or yogurts (I guess we need to invest on some cows to resolve that).
The farm has a wide variety of vegetables and fruits that are available all year round. When we go there in the winter, all the citrus are ripe and sweet. This time of the year I found a lot of vegetables for salads, melons and watermelons, green and dry beans, onions, and garlic. Other things were planted and growing, but were not fully grown or ripped yet.
I find it so peaceful to be surrounded by nothing but the sounds of the wind, the smell of the salty air, the sandy dirt on my shoes, and the open fields. Oh yeah, and the neighbors' donkey.
I find it inspiring to see all the food growing right out of the earth and be reminded that cucumbers and watermelons do have a flavor. It's also so much fun to say "I'm going to make a salad" and instead of going to the fridge, run outside.
Here's some pictures I took of some of the goods.
