A small farm, a big dream, and a diary to hold it all together. Here's what this place is about, what you'll find here, and why we started writing.
Hello, and welcome. If you've found your way here, you've probably got a soft spot for olive trees, rescue animals, or the kind of life that runs on seasons rather than schedules. You're in the right place.
My name is Sarah, and together with my husband Victor, I'm building a life on a small farm in the Beira Baixa region of central Portugal. We have olive trees, cork oaks, a growing tribe of rescue cats, a handful of sheep and goats, a vineyard that refuses to cooperate, and more plans than daylight hours.
This blog is our diary — an honest record of the quiet, unglamorous, sometimes heartbreaking, often beautiful work of tending a piece of land and trying to live from it.
The Olive Grove Diary isn't a polished lifestyle blog. It's muddy boots and real numbers. You'll find:
We spent almost five years waiting for paperwork before we could properly move in. During that time I kept notes but never published anything — it felt too uncertain. Now that we're here, living and working the land every day, I want to gather those stories and set them alongside what's happening now.
Partly it's for us — a record we can look back on when the days blur together. But it's also for anyone thinking about a similar path: moving abroad, taking on a smallholding, starting from scratch in a place where you don't speak the language fluently and the nearest shop is a twenty-minute drive.
I won't pretend it's easy. But I will tell you what it's really like.
If you're new, here are a few good places to begin:
You can also browse by category using the links above, or sign up for the newsletter at the bottom of the page to get new posts by email.
We're working towards making this farm sustainable — not just environmentally, but as a livelihood. That means olive oil, preserves, honey (one day), and perhaps workshops or farm visits down the line. As those things develop, you'll hear about them here first.
For now, though, it starts with the writing. Pull up a chair, pour something nice, and stay a while. We're glad you're here.
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More from the diary that shares the same themes.
We've fenced off the middle section of our land — the most fertile area where the horta and the well sit. With the ground freshly turned and blue skies overhead, it feels like the farm is breathing again.
The fire left our fields bare and our animals without grazing. With fences destroyed and hay stores gone, we've had to move the sheep and goats into a smaller pen while we slowly rebuild.
The fire came fast. But somehow — through courage, luck, and stone walls — our house survived. So did every single animal. This is the story of those terrifying two days, and of what comes after the flames.
