Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Connect with Laura:
Instagram: instagram.com/elegantly_wild
Website: elegantlywild.com
Laura is a relationship coach supporting midlife women through dating and nervous system regulation. But her journey to Portugal took a decade - starting with a camper van, then attempting to walk from Belgium with a donkey named Robbie, building remote land in Alentejo, and eventually finding her calling helping women reconnect with themselves.
After traveling for years searching for home, Laura fell in love with Portugal and sold her 1985 Mercedes motorhome to pursue radical simplicity. She attempted walking from Belgium with her friend's Belgian shire horse and yurt, received overwhelming kindness from villagers offering food and shelter, then got a Pyrenees donkey for €2,800 and set off alone. On the first night she lost her tent sticks and slept for weeks with bags propping up her tent. After waking up swimming in water with a shivering dog and soaked donkey, she stayed at a baker's zhite waiting for replacement sticks that never arrived.
Eventually she drove to Portugal in a gifted van, bought remote Alentejo land near Almodóvar with one shepherd neighbor, and spent three years installing solar power, water systems, outdoor kitchens, and compost toilets with no plan. After a relationship breakdown and getting mauled by her neighbor's Portuguese guard dog requiring crutches for weeks, she was walking up hills in pouring rain at night fixing electricity - the lowest point before transformation.
Perfect for anyone romanticizing simple living who needs reality checks, women navigating relationship transitions and identity shifts, or people drawn to radical life changes and healing journeys.
CHAPTERS
00:00 Introduction: From Donkey Journey to Relationship Coach
01:02 Searching for Home: Camper Van Across Europe
04:26 Belgian Friend's Yurt: Walking Villages With Shire Horse
05:35 Navigation Challenges and Village Kindness
09:14 Donkeys Are Very Different From Horses
12:42 First Night: Lost Tent Sticks, Woke Up Swimming in Water
16:58 Friend Called: "You Can Have My Van for Free"
17:48 August 2020: Finally Driving to Portugal
19:19 Finding Remote Alentejo Land Near Almodóvar
25:52 Land For Sale: 40 Minutes to Nearest Shop
27:00 Elegantly Wild: Supporting Midlife Women in Dating
28:35 Clearing Past Relationship Residue and Trauma Responses
30:10 Four Decades to Find Soul Calling Work
31:15 Portuguese CCTV: Old Ladies and Community Connection
➣ CONTACT US for relocation assistance
algarveaddicts.com/contact
Check out our Instagram: instagram.com/algarveaddicts
Connect with Laura:
Instagram: instagram.com/elegantly_wild
Website: elegantlywild.com
Laura is a relationship coach supporting midlife women through dating and nervous system regulation. But her journey to Portugal took a decade - starting with a camper van, then attempting to walk from Belgium with a donkey named Robbie, building remote land in Alentejo, and eventually finding her calling helping women reconnect with themselves.
After traveling for years searching for home, Laura fell in love with Portugal and sold her 1985 Mercedes motorhome to pursue radical simplicity. She attempted walking from Belgium with her friend's Belgian shire horse and yurt, received overwhelming kindness from villagers offering food and shelter, then got a Pyrenees donkey for €2,800 and set off alone. On the first night she lost her tent sticks and slept for weeks with bags propping up her tent. After waking up swimming in water with a shivering dog and soaked donkey, she stayed at a baker's zhite waiting for replacement sticks that never arrived.
Eventually she drove to Portugal in a gifted van, bought remote Alentejo land near Almodóvar with one shepherd neighbor, and spent three years installing solar power, water systems, outdoor kitchens, and compost toilets with no plan. After a relationship breakdown and getting mauled by her neighbor's Portuguese guard dog requiring crutches for weeks, she was walking up hills in pouring rain at night fixing electricity - the lowest point before transformation.
Perfect for anyone romanticizing simple living who needs reality checks, women navigating relationship transitions and identity shifts, or people drawn to radical life changes and healing journeys.
CHAPTERS
00:00 Introduction: From Donkey Journey to Relationship Coach
01:02 Searching for Home: Camper Van Across Europe
04:26 Belgian Friend's Yurt: Walking Villages With Shire Horse
05:35 Navigation Challenges and Village Kindness
09:14 Donkeys Are Very Different From Horses
12:42 First Night: Lost Tent Sticks, Woke Up Swimming in Water
16:58 Friend Called: "You Can Have My Van for Free"
17:48 August 2020: Finally Driving to Portugal
19:19 Finding Remote Alentejo Land Near Almodóvar
25:52 Land For Sale: 40 Minutes to Nearest Shop
27:00 Elegantly Wild: Supporting Midlife Women in Dating
28:35 Clearing Past Relationship Residue and Trauma Responses
30:10 Four Decades to Find Soul Calling Work
31:15 Portuguese CCTV: Old Ladies and Community Connection
➣ CONTACT US for relocation assistance
algarveaddicts.com/contact
Check out our Instagram: instagram.com/algarveaddicts
