The West Coast of Portugal is one of my favorite places ever. There is something magical about the rock formations, the wild Atlantic Coast, miles and miles of sandy beaches, high, undulating sand dunes and scruffy, wispy scrub land. This coastline also has some of the strangest plants I have encountered. In Spring time the colour of the blooms are stunning but they are not the easiest of plants to touch as they seem to want to bite back. Every time I kneel down amongst the rocks to touch petals, stems and leaves I always come away with a nasty scratch or sting – it’s as if they don’t want to be handled only admired in their wild, rugged state.