Our First Year Living In Portugal......

As I gaze out from our balcony admiring the lush, green, rolling hills of fertile farmland that blanket the landscape, the silence in my head is interrupted by a noise. A rusty green, tractor hobbles up the road with an old farmer at the wheel and a woman, presumably his wife riding in the rear. He nods his dusty grey head at me as I lift my hand in a friendly wave. A smile spontaneously adorns my face as I remind myself just where I am.

Views of the farmlands of Portugal

It's been one year already since we planted our feet on the ground in our newly adopted country of Portugal.

A neighbors dog comes to life barking out a warning of another passerby. A tiny, white haired woman comes into sight carrying a plastic bucket. Like many farm wives she wears a simple, house dress of black topped with a green and yellow flowery apron. I notice she wears black, rubber boots that cover her calves before she vanishes from my view into a nearby house.

We need not go far to find gardens of fruits and vegetables that grow plentifully all around. And the wonderful Portuguese people are always willing to fill our arms with plenty of free produce. A few days ago Clyde was outside chatting with our landlady and came back with three large grocery bags stuffed to the brim. Courgettes, also known as zucchini to some, tons of tomatoes, plums, lettuce, strawberries, and more.

From our Trip to the Market

Our first year in Portugal has been filled with the excitement of finding a place to live, getting our residency visas, buying a car, exploring our new town and making plenty of new friends.

Those of you who have followed this blog might remember that we left the United States 8 years ago and first retired to Panama. From there we decided to travel fulltime as house and pet sitters and enjoyed that lifestyle for two full years. It was house sit that first brought us to Portugal. We looked around, talked to people that had already made the move and decided to make this our next home.

We are leaving Panama, heading for adventure!
Hard to believe, it has been over 3 years!

Over the past year we have joined a gym and are back to exercising five times a week for ninety minutes to two hours each time. My goal was to lose 10 kilograms (22 lbs) but I ended up losing 13kg or 28 pounds. Two times a week I work out with a personal trainer who pushes me hard. Clyde has turned his excess weight into muscle and is enjoying his new body too.

We have, unfortunately tried out the healthcare system here with regular checkups and other ailments that we have had along the way. As part of our visa requirement we have purchased private health insurance at a cost of 250 euros per month ($278) for the both of us. It covers us at 90% if the doctor is in network and 80% if they are not. Some of you might recall that the major reason that we left the US was due to the high cost of health insurance. If we were still living in Texas today our monthly premium would be around $1800 per month!

So what are healthcare costs like in Portugal you may be wondering? To see a specialist we pay 80 to 90 euros, a general practitioner around 60, in private clinics. A month ago while doing a boot camp class outside, I was running and fell on cobblestone and broke my left elbow. First we went to a private hospital where I was seen quickly. Our cost was 75 euros. I was told by the doctor that he thought my arm was broke but since it was Sunday there was no orthopedic doctor on staff. I was sent to the public hospital where I saw an orthopedic in about an hour at a cost of just 18 euros. He confirmed that my elbow did have a slight break in the ulna and I was sent to buy a sling to wear for two weeks and could resume normal activity after three.

Caldas da Rainha Public Hospital

For me it was time for a routine mammogram which here in Portugal is followed by a routine breast ultrasound. Of course I had to visit a gynecologist first for a checkup of the lady parts. Then I decided it was time to be allergy tested again and began immunotherapy in the form of sublingual drops. I am being desensitized against dust mites, dogs and cats and should begin to notice results in six months to one year. Also had an eye exam followed by ordering new contact lens. Total cost after insurance: Gyno, 18,50, Mammo, 4,50, Echo 3,50, allergist 18,00, immunotherapy for 5 months, 260, bone density, 7,50, eye exam 16,00. Also needed to have a root canal done at a cost of 200 that was reimbursed by our insurance. Following this procedure all dental cleanings will be done free of charge, every six months for life.

For Clyde is was time for to have his pacemaker checked and first had to see a cardiologist for a referral. The cardiologist recognized us from the gym since he is there every morning also. Consult, 12,50, holter monitor overnight, 7,00, 12-lead ekg, 1,25. Then off we went to Lisbon to see a specialist that would check the pacemaker itself at a cost of 20,00. Everything with his heart is perfect and he was told to live life as usual and pretend that he does not have a pacemaker.

Clyde's Pacemaker

Next was a checkup of the manly parts, urologist 16,00, eye exam for him, 12,00 along with a dermatologist for 4,00. This was just a quick breakdown of our medical costs. Medication at the pharmacy is far less than our US counterparts also. Costs are listed in euros so it does add up to a bit more in US dollars.

As our first year comes to an end so does our rental agreement. But since we love living where we are we have decided to renew and ask for a long term, five year lease this time around. This agreement was contingent upon our landlady installing some type of heat source, other than the fireplace that we already have. Being warm blooded we both froze last winter since buildings here tend to have NO heat source and are old with no insulation. While Clyde was willing to absorb the entire cost of a heater, we asked our sweet landlady IF she would go half and she gladly agreed.

At her request we had quotes done from several different companies and we all decided that a pellet stove insert put into the fireplace would be the best choice. From there tubes will run through the ceiling into several other rooms, offering us central heat throughout the home. If you are not familiar with pellet stoves they burn cleaner and more efficiently than wood and are quite economical to run. The total cost for this project is around 4,400, and if we pay half that adds just 41 euros per month to our rent of 350 euros for the next five years. A great deal for a three-bedroom, fully furnished house in the country, just a ten minute drive from town.

What ours might look like

While are mornings are spent in the gym our afternoons for the past year have been spent, in part, working on learning European Portuguese. We are now at the point of being able to converse in Portuguese, somewhat anyway. Our first instructor was British and although we loved her and learned lots, we decided it was time for a change. Currently we are taking private lessons with a Portuguese teacher that we met in our gym. Although she does speak English, her classes consist of conversation totally in Portuguese to challenge us to speak more.

Life in Portugal is good and we are happy that we made the decision to settle down and create a home base here. Quite often we have to remind ourselves just how cool it is to say, "we actually live in Europe." Smile!

We will resume our travels soon and have some cool trips planned for the near future. In just a few days we are heading to Poland for over two weeks. Since I grew up with a Mother and Grandmother who spoke Polish but did not teach it to us kids, it's a country that I have always wanted to visit. I grew up eating delicious Polish foods that I will soon get to sample in Poland. In November we will be house and pet sitting in France and in March we will revisit Valencia, Spain for another house and pet sit.

Warsaw, Here we Come!

Stay tuned for details here and on Facebook of our travels around the world and throughout this gorgeous country of Portugal that we now call home. Tomorrow our adventures in Poland begin as we head to Warsaw..….along the gringo trail.

The Festival of Trays.....Once Every FOUR Years

Just an hours drive from where we live sits the medieval village of Tomar,(too-mAR) Portugal. While there are plenty of reasons for Portuguese people to celebrate, it's ONLY every FOUR years that Tomar hosts its biggest event. The Festa dos Tabuleiros, (fesh-ta doosh tab-lie-rossh) which translates to, "the Festival of the Trays," brings in literally bus loads of tourists and locals alike to experience this monumental street-party which is filled with much religious significance.

The origin of the festival is to worship the Holy Spirit, which began back in the 13th century, but the standards of the festival which are followed today date back to 1950, from what my research revealed. Although the entire festival runs for ten days, the largest parades and ceremonies are held on the two weekends involved.

Soon after we planted our feet on the ground in Portugal back in August, I read something about the festival and thought, "we need to find a place to stay in Tomar soon." After all, I thought, if we don't go see this festival now, surely we will forget the next time it comes around in another four years. So we booked an apartment on the outskirts of Tomar, close enough to attend the festivities yet far enough away to avoid the traffic jams. Our little apartment in the country was a ten to fifteen minute drive into Tomar.

With a festival of this magnitude, we found out in advance from our Portuguese teacher who lives near the area, that ALL roads into Tomar would be closed to incoming traffic. She told us about designated parking lots outside of the city where we could park and walk from there.

After settling into our apartment on Friday we headed into Tomar to let the party begin. Clyde opted to take the back roads in and we managed to find a parking spot fairly close. The main event on Friday that we wanted to see was a parade of oxen and horses. According to tradition, the origin of this parade dated back to the days when oxen pulled carts of food to be delivered to the poor people. Soon after arriving we noticed locals perched along the roadside so we quickly found a spot to sit and wait for the parade to begin. As usual with this type of thing, the parade began about 45-minutes after it was scheduled to begin and lasted just 20-minutes or so.

We strolled around the streets of Tomar enjoying the beautifully decorated streets. In preparation for the festival, locals band together to make thousands of paper flowers and designs to decorate the city.

The following day was Saturday and according to the schedule of events, there was to be a procession of the tabuleiros into the park where they would be displayed for all to see up close. Traffic was much worse this day and we had to park FAR away from the city center and walk. As we approached the main area we noticed that crowds of people were once again lined up along the road. As luck would have it we found an open spot with a clear view of the parade, that would be starting soon.

First came the marching bands playing festive music, followed by the what we came here to see. Girls carrying "tabuleiros" on their heads that were carefully and elaborately decorated with bread, flowers, wheat and topped with crosses or crowns.

According to what I was told, each tabuleiro or tray needs to be the same height as the girl carrying it. So for someone who is 5'3" or 160 cm like myself, I would be expected to carry a tray of the same height. Each tray is built around a tall cage made of wire and consists of 30 loaves of bread that weigh exactly 400 grams each. A bamboo dowel is inserted through each loaf of bread to hold them in place. Paper flowers are then wired onto the cage with stalks of wheat in between. The whole thing is topped with either a dove, representing the Holy Spirit, a crown or Templar cross.

The 30 loaves of bread alone weight in at 24kg or (52 pounds) before the other stuff is added. Not to mention the height of the thing that must be SO awkward to balance. Each girl wears a padded, round ring on top of her head that fits underneath the wicker basket that holds the large tray. Wow.....impressive to say the least. Each girl is coupled with a male partner who helps her bear the load, should it topple or begin to fall over. Both are dressed in traditional costumes. Girls wear long white dresses symbolizing purity. Each has a large ribbon sash tied around her waist that coordinates with her male partner. The young men wear black trousers with white, long sleeved dress shirts with the sleeves rolled up.

While we surely could not count the number of girls carrying trays in the procession, we were told there were 700 of them. This year they were trying to get into the Guinness Book Of World Records by having more girls carrying "tabuleiros" on their heads then ever before. So apparently somewhere, at sometime, some other people in the world attempted to carry more trays on their heads? Be that as it may, it is quite the impressive endeavor for any female to balance a 50 plus pound 5 foot tall, flower and bread covered cage on her head in hot, summer temperatures parading miles around a town. Don't ya think?

And in case you are wondering about the temperature, this is July and temperatures during the parades were in the mid 80's (or 30 celcius).

After the procession into the park each couple had to carefully sit their tray down, so they could be viewed by others. The couples then hopped up into trucks that whisked them away. Caravans of trucks carrying the courageous couples paraded by, horns honking as the crowds cheered them on and waved.

Since we wanted to see the trays up close we waited to be able to enter the park, but this was taking  way too long and we were starving as it was lunch time. Instead we opted to find food. But with hoards of people all around, every restaurant we poked our heads into had NO seating. We walked further away from the hoards of merry makers, hoping to find a seat in some restaurant anywhere. Eventually we did and were grateful to be offered food. We asked for menu's but were told there were only two choices of food. We could have a bifana sandwich, which is usually a slab of meat on a dry roll with no topping and not something that we enjoy. Or "lomo" which is pork served with fries. We choose the lomo which came with home made potato chips and a few picked vegetables. We washed it down with a huge bottle of water and shared a dessert of sweet pineapple, (ananas doce) in a gel type of sauce with coffees. The total for all this was around 21 euros.

Back on the streets we mingled among the crowds again to take in the pretty sights. Eventually we made our way into the huge park to view the beautiful display of 700 tabuleiros that were all lined up neatly on display. There were rows of these tall, stately, gorgeous, floral masterpieces for as far as our eyes could see.

How impressed we were to see such a variety of flowers, styles and designs on these beautiful works of art that must have taken SO long to create. Wow!

When we had enough of the festivities, the heat of the day, and the people we walked miles back to where our car was parked to end our happy day. Back at our rented apartment we enjoyed cool showers and relaxed. The nice thing about having an apartment instead of a hotel room is that we were able to cook a healthy dinner for ourselves. I made us chicken with vegetables along with some carrot soup and bread.

Our plan for Sunday, the following day was to head back into Tomar to see the BIG parade. But when we thought about it we realized that we had ALREADY seen the procession of girls carrying trays, so why did we want to fight even BIGGER crowds to see it again?

Many of our friends were taking buses into Tomar just for the day to take in the big event. There were reports of caravans of busses along the highways and side roads, ALL headed into Tomar.

We decided to NOT go see the final parade which would leave room for those who had not seen it yet, since we already had.

Instead we took in some other ancient sites: some Roman ruins, a castle in the middle of a river, a cave, and the house of a famous Portuguese photographer. Before heading back to our apartment we stopped to pickup a few groceries for dinner. Traffic coming out of Tomar was SO heavy with police directing traffic that it invaded the parking lot of the grocery store near our apartment. We were thankful that we opted out of the BIG DAY and instead enjoyed it a day earlier with far less crowds.

Another busy weekend getaway, with so much to do and see here in Portugal.....along the gringo trail.

Properly Probed And Buying Produce In Portugal......

It was early on a Saturday morning in Portugal, as I stood in line behind another women in the medical clinic. I was a bit perturbed to see only one receptionist behind the counter since the check in process was taking forever. Just then two more women wearing scrubs bearing the clinics logo on them walked in the front door and went behind the counter. A thin, young woman with her hair pulled back sat down beside the one who was checking in the patient in front of me. To my surprise she leaned over to the working receptionist and gave her a kiss on each cheek before logging onto her computer. Another younger girl went behind the desk and stopped to greet both of her co-workers with double kisses as well. 

I had to smile as I realized that this was not a doctor's office in the US, but here I was retired at an early age and living my life happily in Europe. 

Since the receptionist was expecting me she looked at me with a smile and said in perfect English, "you are next and I'll be with you in a minute." 

An older gentleman wearing a bright green golf shirt and jeans walked into the room to join his wife who was already sitting down. Almost like he was greeting a room full of people he already knew, he said a loud, "bom dia," or good morning, to everyone in the room. Everyone looked up and replied before going back to what they were doing.

Soon the receptionist who was also the nurse moved from behind the desk and called me to follow her into the exam room. I was just there to have blood drawn for routine, fasting lab tests. This was the office of my new gynecologist who I met for the first time the previous day.

Do Not Remember IF Any Gloves Were Used Here

Since we left the US almost 8 years ago we have seen doctors around the world, when needed. While it's never easy meeting with a new doctor it's even harder when we are not sure whether or not they speak English. Even while living in Panama for 5 years with a decent understanding of Spanish we still preferred to see only those doctors that spoke English. And having lived in Portugal now for just 9 months our language skills are still in the early stages of development. While we both feel confident that we CAN get our point across in Portuguese, our listening skills still need 

improvement. 

As the nurse escorted me into the exam room the prior day to see the doctor, I was a bit nervous. I did know the nurse from the front desk spoke decent English and if needed I knew that I could summon her for help, I thought to myself. The older, gray haired, cute, little gentleman sitting behind the desk greeted me with a handshake and a smile. He was Dr. Estêvão Ferreira, which translates to Stephen. Here in Portugal doctors seem to be called by their first name with the word doctor or doctora for females added as a prefix. "

Dr. Estavao Ferreira, OB GYN

"Bom dia," I said to Dr. Estêvão who replied back with the same. "Estou aprender Portuguese e nao falo ou compreendo tudo. Fala ingles?" Translated this means that I am learning Portuguese and don't speak or understand fully. Then I asked him if he spoke English? He said that he speaks a little English and we agreed that I would speak a little Portuguese and he would speak a little English.

Unlike doctors in the US in other countries the doctor's typically enter all of the patient information into the computer. He asked the normal health history questions and pecked away at the keyboard using two fingers until finished. He escorted me to a small, corner of the room draped with a curtain for privacy and handed me a gown to change into. The gown was merely a paper wrap skirt that closed with Velcro to cover me from the waist down. I was instructed to keep my shirt and bra on for the exam. 

Then he informed me to wait until his assistant came into the room before climbing onto the exam table. The table was a chair with stirrups that tipped backwards, leaving me a bit on my head upside down for the exam. He performed a normal pap test and then proceeded to perform a vaginal ultrasound. This was NOT something that was routinely done at any previous Gyno appointment ever.

As part of my health history I informed the doctor that I had a full hysterectomy in Panama about 7 years earlier. Since one ovary was left intact he wanted to go in and view it for some unknown reason to me. With the help of the ultrasound he was able to locate the ovary and said that everything looked good.

He then printed out two photos of my insides, yes my vagina from the inside out, including the photo of my ovary. Later he presented me with these photos in an envelope to take home with me. Unlike healthcare in the US, in other countries there are NO patient charts kept in the office. Instead all tests, x-rays and such are given to the patient to keep.

At the end of the exam Dr. Stephen shook my hand and said, "muito prazer," it was nice to meet you and sent me on my way. The total for one hour of the doctor's time along with the two in office tests came to 165 euros ($185). Since he is in network with our health insurance we paid just 16.50 euros, and the insurance will pay the other 90%. When we see an out of network doctor we have to pay the full amount upfront and later are reimbursed 80% of the total cost. 

And if you're wondering about our health insurance cost, we pay around $250 per month for BOTH of us to be on this policy. It also covers us in other countries when we travel, including the US.

Next we had to go to a nearby private hospital to schedule my routine mammogram, which here will be a digital mammogram along with an ultrasound. Again I am not sure why he scheduled both, since there are no problems, just routine checkups. Perhaps that's the way they do things in Portugal? Also had to schedule a routine bone density test to be done.

We took a "senha" or ticket with a number on it and waited for our turn. The receptionist spoke no English but we understood what she way saying and managed to schedule both exams rather easily. One is scheduled for this week and the other for later in the month.

After my morning bloodwork I was starving and needed coffee so it seemed like the perfect time for breakfast out. Since this is Portugal we dined outdoors at a small café, overlooking the bustling market. Eggs, bacon, toast and coffee for just 4.50 euros each.

Next we bumped elbows with the locals as we took in the sights, smells and culture of all that surrounded us. We shopped as the Portuguese do at the daily fruit and vegetable market. While I admit that we usually are too lazy to go out of the way to the market, it's easier to buy our produce at the large grocery stores. Add to that the best produce can be found early in the mornings when we typically are working out at the gym. But since this was Saturday, our day off from the gym,  and we did need plenty of produce, it was the perfect opportunity to indulge. 

Praca de Fruta, Caldas da Rainha, Portugal

This Market is Open Everyday Here

And boy did we indulge in the succulent strawberries, fresh apricots, juicy peaches, cherries, oranges, bananas, and plenty of veggies too. A quick stop along the way at a nut kiosk for some sesame seeds to grind up for homemade hummus too. The price for all this stuff was less than 20 euros, and enough to last us a week or two. 

Our Purchases

That Cut Up Orange Thing Is Spaghetti Squash

The Thing Was Huge So It Was Cut Up And Sold By The Kilo

With Small Refrigerators In Europe Much Of Produce Is Stored In Our Pantry

Nearby at a local fish market we picked up some fresh salmon steaks, enough for two meals for around 14 euros.

Fresh Salmon

Our two grocery bags were so heavy with our purchases that we decided I would stay with the bags while Clyde went to get the car. 

Later in the day we stopped at a local Chinese store to pick up a shopping bag on wheels that are commonly used and seen throughout Europe. Our next trip to the market will be easier with our purchases in tow.

Grocery Bag On Wheels For Just 10 Euros

After a lovely day of shopping and relaxing our sore muscles from 5 days in the gym, we are headed out tonight to dance the night away. With so many choices of things to do here for expats, tonight is just another one of those many events. A dance with a buffet dinner including drinks for 18 euros a person. Proceeds will go to help local families in need of items like clothing and food. 

We are enjoying our new life in Portugal a little more each day. The sun is shining and the weather has warmed up to a balmy 85 F or 29 C. Time to shed the layers of winter clothes, show off our new bodies, and continue to enjoy life in Portugal.....along the gringo trail.