Emigrating...
Loving, Leaving and Recreating Home
It’s autumn and the leaves are gathering all their energy for one last burst of brilliance before they die and let go of the tree where they’ve spent their entire life. This explosion of red, orange and yellow is a surprise this morning, as I look out our window. We have waited late in the year for fall colors to arrive.
Debra and I will be emigrating from the United States in 2024 with our family: Tess and Simone, our greyhounds. But emigrating where?
Portugal
We chose Portugal. Portugal is a beautiful and welcoming country that Deb and I believe is safer than the United States. Barriers to emigration are fewer than in many other European Union countries. From Portugal, we would have easy access to France, Italy, Germany, Spain and so many other countries we would love to visit.
In size, Portugal is sometimes compared to the state of Indiana. Despite its relatively small size, it has considerable geographic and cultural diversity: From calm barrier island beaches by Tavira on the country’s southern coast to massive waves and rocky shores by Nazaré along its western coast. Culinary experiences vary from Lisbon, where vegan creations or Lebanese dishes are easily available, to smaller towns where traditional Portuguese dishes are on the menu.
Portuguese Cities and Towns to Consider
We researched several cities and towns where we believe we could live comfortably. I’ve written about a few of these locations: Tavira, Sagres, Lisbon, Viseu and Braga. When we left Tavira last February, we wanted to live there. The beaches were pristine. We had found our favorite cafe for a coffee and pastry each morning. The azelujos on homes throughout the town were just stunning.
After a visit to Viseu in September, Deb considered this city with tree-lined streets the ideal place for us to relocate. I had some reservations.
Just a few days later, we were both in agreement that Braga was our future home. The city has so many cultural events throughout the historic city center. We loved the easy accesibility of the remarkable mercado, cafes, train station, and nearby hospital, all of which were within walking distance of the historic city center, where we had decided to live. We appreciated the flat cobblestone pedestrian streets in the historic area. So, Braga it is, we decided.
We were glad we had created a list of what we were looking for in a city and had filled in a spreadsheet documenting what we found in each city or town. Yes, this was a logical way to approach such an important, life-changing decision.
Finding an apartment
As soon as we returned home, we began searching for an apartment in Braga. Some of the sites we searched daily included: remax.pt; idealista.pt; imovirtual.pt; and supercasa.pt. Social media groups for particular cities or regions may also have listings for homes to buy or rent. We looked daily and forwarded the few places that looked promising to our relocation company. The company provided us with virtual walk-throughs of the apartments that looked most appealing.
We learned that sometimes apartments listed as unfurnished were actually fully furnished. Some apartments seemed to have very little natural light, based on published photos; however, a video walk-through showed us the apartment had walls of windows and plenty of sun light during the day.
Kilometers, Grams, and Wunderground
To help prepare for our anticipated move to Portugal, my wife changed her Google maps to kilometers from miles. She also included Braga as the default city on her weather app, so that she would see its weather daily. I’m using grams instead of ounces, whenever I can, on the cooking scale.
I recall during sixth grade, our teacher told us that the U.S. would be switching to the metric system soon, so we all learned metric units. That change, of course, never occurred. Now, though, I’m trying to understand these different units of measurement in all areas of life.
Forms, So Many Forms
While searching remotely for a place to live in Portugal, we’ve also started filling out the forms and gathering the documents needed to apply for a long-term temporary residence permit in Portugal. I’d like to say I have a folder or notebook with all our papers neatedly organized. I don’t, yet. Our documents are spread out on our dining room table and I’m adding to this pile as we complete and receive additional required paperwork.
Portugal recently created a new agency to handle requests for residency. This agency, Agência para a Integração Migrações e Asilo - AIMA replaces the Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras or SEF. When the AIMA website went online at the end of last month, it just included phone numbers. Now, week by week, the agency is adding content. Still, this is a time when those applying for a long-term temporary residence permit do not know what timelines to expect for each step of the process.
Listening
I’ve been looking at and listening to the work of older creatives. One of my favorites is Patti Smith, a musician, poet and winner of the National Book Award for Just Kids. This week, I’ve listened to her song “People Have the Power” which came out 35 years ago. The song includes the lyrics:
People have the power
The power to dream, to rule
To wrestle the world from fools …..
I believe everything we dream
Can come to pass through our union
We can turn the world around
Here’s a link to Patti Smith performing this song back in 1988. Below, is Patti Smith’s live concert at Madison Square Garden on August 18, 2023. “People Have the Power” is the first song. I find her words so encouraging and I hope you do too.
The American South <-> Portugal: Loving, Leaving and Recreating Home is a reader-supported publication. To support my work, please become a subscriber.