August & Europe is on Vacation

Important update...

Depending on where in the world you are as you read this, Denise and I are either on a flight to Milan or have just arrived in Milan. (I supposed there are some that don’t click on the email link the moment it hits their inbox. You may wait a day or two. Frankly, I can’t understand how anyone could wait … mas, assim seja (but, so be it).

VRSA beach last week on a Wednesday. Still relatively empty!

August in Europe

I wrote about August in Europe and how it impacted the timeline for purchasing our property in VRSA. Unlike last year, Denise and I are adopting the European tradition. After a few days in Milan, we travel to Lake Como. Every time we have mentioned Lake Como to someone they have exclaimed, “Oh you will love it!” I hope it lives up to the pre-travel hype. We then take a train to Zurich … spending a week in Switzerland. We are fortunate to know a Swiss citizen that we met when he lived in the States and he has offered to act as our tour guide. Cooler weather and a local….SCORE!

After Switzerland, we return to VRSA for a few days. We don’t want Onix to think we have abandoned her…though I am confident she will have happily adjusted to her sitter. We then have plans to take a road trip to Portugal’s Silver Coast. Cooler weather and lots of golf are anticipated.

Taking Time Off

I have told you all this to let you know that this month I am taking time off. In fact, over the next five weeks, I have decided to institute my version of the “best of” posts, reminiscent of one of my favorite podcasts, Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me. Some of the best of’s were written by me. As our readership has grown, I receive questions like why/how did you move to Portugal, how did you decide where to live, what most surprised you about Portugal, etc. All these things are answered in prior posts but I don’t expect you to go searching for them. So I will compile and create a single post each week on specific topics.

I also have come across other bloggers/websites that I believe provide helpful information for those who are considering moving to Portugal or recently did so. I will share a few of these as well. (Perhaps the most important is how Americans Overseas can vote…if you are not already registered, I urge you to read that one!)

Let’s Begin

Throughout the month of August, you will receive only one email each week. (I suspect this is a tradition I will continue.) We begin this week by answering the first questions above, why and how did you move to Portugal:

• In this post, I write about my personal why.

• Our original plan was to live in Europe for 4-5 years, then return to the States. But within the first year, we decided to stay in Portugal. The #1 Reason Why we Plan to Stay explains how we reached this decision.

• We surveyed a few of our immigrant friends about why they planned to stay in Portugal … here are their reasons.

• In this, my first post, I write about how we decided on Portugal.

• And finally, though some of this information is dated, I share how we got a D7 visa during a pandemic. (NB: some requirements, e.g. you now need a 12-month lease to qualify, have changed. There are many excellent sites with up-to-date information. Permit me to suggest documents that can be found on the Americans & Friends in Portugal Facebook group.)

Next Week: perhaps the most important thing any American needs to know when living in Portugal…how to make their vote count.