One of my main dilemmas in life at the moment seems to be finding where I want to live. I don’t really want to be nomadic all the time for the rest of my life and that means I’m going to have to put some roots down somewhere at some point. I’ve always been torn between extreme city life and extreme country life. I love mega cities like New York and London but I also love quiet, natural places where people are able to live off the land and off the radar. It’s a bit of a contrast, to say the least and it’s made choosing a place to live a tricky decision.
Due to a lack of funds for that sweet New York apartment, it looks like a place in the country is more realistic. I mentioned in a previous post that I really feel an attachment to Uganda and living there is appealing for a lot of reasons. Land is affordable and super fertile, I have some well-connected and knowledgeable local friends, it’s a beautiful area in a part of the world I really like, people speak English, there’s a lively expat community, there are lots of opportunities for community involvement and, most importantly, it just feels right.
One of my many dreams is to create a beautiful place to live from nothing. Buy a piece of land, design everything from the ground up and get to work building it either with the help of friends, family, local workers, volunteers or all of the above. I’d like to design with permaculture techniques in mind and I’m currently on a course in Ethiopia, learning all I can.
I’m 8 days in and I’m inspired. The place I’m staying at, Strawberry Fields, has been built up into a fertile garden and lodge from lands that were thought to be unsalvageable. My teacher, Tichafa a Zimbabwean, has been involved nearly from the start and he’s an amazing guy. Not only is he a fountain of knowledge for permaculture stuff, he’s also super passionate about the topic and also about using permaculture to better lives of people in Ethiopia and around Africa.
He’s introduced permaculture to six primary schools in the area with the hope that they’ll be able to generate an income from the food they’re able to grow. We went on a tour around some of the schools and the two that have been going for two years were amazing. So many things growing in places you wouldn’t think would be able to sustain any life. He’s respected all over town and slowly but surely winning over the community as they see what he’s able to accomplish.
His passion for the subject is magnetic and the fertile areas he’s created speak for themselves. I love being around passionate people who get things done and being here has been a great experience both for the things I’ve learned on the course and by seeing what can be accomplished with hard work and a plan.
I’m inspired! I’m not sure how I’ll do it yet, but I can really see myself making this land-buying-and-building-a-place-in-Uganda thing work. I’m working on a plan of attack that I’ll post in the New Year. It might be just crazy enough to work!
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