Moving...

Heading South towards the land of Daily Mail reading wronguns. I'm told the journey will be very beautiful. It had better be.

I'm very close to eating solely what I pick and fish. Lime juice is the only thing I am adding which hasn't been picked from the tree by my own hands. Perhaps there is an alternative.

Using small paper bags collected in Setubal, I am drying all the herbs I find inside my backpack. It seems to work, and herbs can make a big difference to flavours. Eating from the land is nothing new (believe it, or not :D). Many thousands of years ago nomadic life was the norm. I am cheating in that respect - much of what I pick is cultivated. There is plenty of wild stuff available, but the offer of picking a red pepper, or leek from a kind person's allotment is too good to refuse.

Why am I doing this? Very simply; because, I enjoy it. There is no real financial saving. With Two fishing rods and tackle costing over €70, I have caught just One mackerel. It was a very delicious mackerel mind. There is something very rewarding about catching your own fish, picking your own fruit, harvesting vegetables with your own hands. Then, preparing it, and cooking it all yourself. You become so much more aware of the nutritional value and the whole process involved in the growing. And, as it is so fresh, it tastes much better and has a far greater nutritional value. Every apple picked from a tree starts to die as soon as it's life source is cut off. As it fades, it loses nutritional value. How long does it usually take an apple to reach your mouth from the time it left the tree?

I am hiking for much the same reasons. It costs about 10x as much to hike from A to B than it does to take a bus. However, the rewards are immeasurable. I love it for all sorts of reasons. Pain in my foot is comfortably being ignored.