I'm a Legal Alien: An American in Portugal

In December, the weather in Braga turned notably chillier and rainier. Although we enjoyed quite few lovely white Christmases during the years we spent living in Idaho, I grew up in coastal northern California, where this time of year usually brought gray skies and drizzle. Despite the snowy scenes we know so well from movies, rain is the type weather I most associate with Christmastime. Now in northern Portugal, I was ready to embrace a wet Christmas, once again. As it turned out, Christmas week brought clear blue skies and windless days, pleasant weather for strolling the holiday markets. An Iberian Christmas Braga has historically been the religious capitol of Portugal. In fact, some travel guides call it the “Rome of Portugal.” Even if that sounds lik e hyperbole, the number of ancient cathedrals and Catholic churches means they take Christmas pretty seriously around here.     For our first holiday season in Portugal, we planned a toned-down celebration. Jack meets with...

Braga welcomed us with ideal warm-but-not-hot weather, colorful flower gardens, striking Baroque architecture, and friendly neighbors. The night we arrived, we enjoyed the prato do di a of  bacalhau á Braga   (salt cod with fried potatoes, onions, and red bell peppers) at a family run restaurant a short stroll from our apartment. We toasted ourselves with the local vinho verde as we realized we would soon be regulars at this cozy dining spot. Between the jet-lag, wine, and relief to finally be in Portugal, I was a bit giddy. It felt like a dream.   A summer evening at Santa Barbara Gardens Seriously? We get to live here? We had the foresight to pack some essentials like bed sheets, bath towels and toilet tissue, along with a portable litter box and a couple of day's worth of pet food. That allowed us to get by until we could shop for groceries and home goods after a night's rest. Our real estate agent, Carlos, was kind enough to set-up our utilities before arrival so...

Jack recalls that we spoke of a shared goal to live abroad on our first date. I can't confirm the exact conversation but it sounds right. I have been afflicted with wanderlust for as long as I can remember. Suffice it to say, an interest in seeing the world is one of the things that bonded us as a couple early on. Throughout our marriage, our limited vacation days and scant disposable income went almost entirely to travel. Although those short trips to places like Mexico, Greece, and Japan were enjoyable, they never quite scratched the itch. We watched enviously as friends with more flexible work schedules and lighter family responsibilities spent months exploring and immersing themselves in exotic locales. Over the years, we hosted exchange students and sent our daughter abroad to study, vicariously experiencing the novelty and wonder, along with the occasional loneliness and frustrations that come with living far from everyone and everything they had ever known. Even when the rom...