Making an international move isn’t easy at any point, but Moving to Portugal during a pandemic wasn’t part of the plan.
Never in a million years were we expecting a global pandemic in the middle of our move abroad but it happened.
We had been planning this move for a couple of years, making sure we had all of our ducks in a row. As a person deathly afraid of change, especially big changes this one had to go right.
My husband went ahead of us to establish residency, income, and legal issues that come with settling into a new country.
Only then, my son and I purchased our plane tickets and joined my husband in Portugal. What a relief that was.
Everything was going according to plan!
But you know what they say about planning, we plan, God laughs.
We had our immigration appointment all scheduled. Paperwork complete. All we had to do was show up! I will speak more about the path we took to become Portuguese residents in a later post.
Not to be overly dramatic, we moved at the end of January. We were able to do a few things before everything closed down.
We took the earliest appointment available with SEF (The Portuguese Immigration and Borders Service), which meant we took a flight over Terceira Island for our appointment.
Terceira island went on lockdown a day after we left, but we were able to complete our paperwork. See the article I wrote on our trip to Terceira here.
It doesn’t take too long for them to send your residency card, but ours took longer since all SEF locations closed down.
What I miss most?
Aside from that, the hardest part is not having family or friends in a new country. Having to deal with the loneliness of that on top of the pandemic wasn’t the easiest of emotions to navigate.
Thankfully in live in a world where we can communicate with our loved ones anytime! I had a quarantine birthday party via Zoom with my family which was lovely.
It’s still an ongoing process, places of business have opened up fully but with restrictions. Although social interaction isn’t happening we’re at least happier we can leave the house and see actual people.
Hardest Transition?
Not knowing anything about anyone or anything. New money, customs, brands, food, and others. I at last now know who the president is. But you feel like a child – lost but learning as I go.
What I’m most grateful for?
Definitely knowing the language! This has been such a relief! Although it’s quite different then the Brazilian Portuguese I’m used to. I’m still learning but I definitely have a leg up on the situation.
What I’m looking forward to?
A sense of normalcy and a schedule to follow. I can wake up when I want to, and do. I’m not a self-starter and getting a schedule down would be of great help.
My son’s bedtime has been the most affected. Being that I’m a stickler for an early bedtime, he’s mostly gone to bed closer to 10:00 pm (sometimes as late as midnight). That hasn’t been fun.
In closing…
Things are still in major transition, we have pending documents to procure for my son and I still since most offices were closed. It’s all a matter of time.
We look forward to having normalcy back, as I’m sure everyone around the world is too.
But I’m glad we’re on this side of the world during the pandemic.
Thanks for taking the time to read this, I’ll be writing more about our new life in Portugal in hopes that it will help guide any families wanting to make a move here.
Next on the list – tackling school enrollment! Wish us luck.
xo,
Ellen
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Moving is not very easy, it is one kind of disturbing work for anyone.