life: examined invites curiosity—it's a newsletter, a love letter, a post card—a collection of ideas & thoughts about living a creative, slow & intentional life in France (formerly Portugal). Everyone is welcome—no paywalls, here!

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As promised in my last post, I’ll share the reasons that inspired my move to France from Portugal. But first, a bit of backstory.

I moved to Portugal in October 2018 from San Diego, CA. I wasn’t a part of the first big wave of Americans to do so, but I did move before English was as commonly heard around every corner as it is now.

My first two apartments were in Almada in the barrios of Cova de Piedade and Cacilhas, which is across the Tejo river from Lisbon (and one of the best places to view street art). When I lived there, these towns were very Portuguese. So much so that locals would ask me why I was living in Almada (insinuating that Americans live in Lisbon).

Although most Americans who come to Portugal move to Lisbon, I didn’t want to live there. I’ve always preferred second, even third, cities to name-brand ones.

My aim in moving to Portugal was to integrate and meet locals, so off-the-radar towns, like Almada was then, appealed to me. I already knew plenty of Americans; I didn’t want to live in an anglophone expat city like Lisbon, which sadly Setúbal has become, too (people will hate me for this, but just telling it as I see it).

Side note: People I’d meet, Lisboetas and the newly arrived to Lisbon, would make fun of me for living in Almada. A few years later it became the place to live as Lisbon real estate prices continued to climb. Once an early adopter, always… 😊

life: examined

life: examined invites curiosity—it's a newsletter, a love letter, a post card—a collection of ideas & thoughts about living a creative, slow & intentional life in France (formerly Portugal). Everyone is welcome—no paywalls, here!

By shanna trenholm

Portugal’s Growing Pains

Over the past several years Portugal became a media darling. She was pushed hard as the destination for retirees, expats, and digital nomads and anyone looking to escape their life in the U.S. and elsewhere. The election of 47 fueled the surge.

Travel and lifestyle magazines, bloggers and journalists, sang the praises of Portugal’s sunshine, beaches, and low cost of living.

Every damn Instagrammer and their partied-up posse pose in the street and in praças blocking Portuguese families and others quietly enjoying life.

They do their stupid human tricks without regard for trolleys and buses just to get the photo that would enter them in the social media please like me pageant.

Over-tourism is a drag. Don’t do it. Don’t rent Tuk-tuks if you do.

Locking Down in Sétubal

I purchased my first apartment in Sétubal in December of 2020.

Few knew in December of 2020 that our lives would be changed in ways we’re just starting to grasp now. COVID-19 was lurking around the corner ready to change everything.

I had just enough time to familiarize myself with the essentials like the grocery store, fruitaria, farmácia, and veterinário for Milo before the mask and distancing mandate came down. I became even more of a hermit than I’m naturally inclined to be.

I lived masked for nearly two years—in a town I didn’t really know. Today, I barely remember much about pandemic time in Sétubal; the lost years I call them.

As COVID-19 wore on my health and well-being shifted. It wasn’t all bad.

With anxiety about the future and my language-learning progress at a standstill, it felt like my growth was stunted. A scant two years prior, I had started my Portuguese adventure, now I’d just moved for the third time to a new town.

Not being allowed to wander and discover my new city, except for sanctioned “sanitation” and dog walks, took the biggest hits to my overall wellness.

Although, and in what may seem contradictory, like many introverted neurodivergent people, I fared pretty well in lockdown.

I like being alone, I can manage being low energy throughout the day, working hours that align with my needs, when not under scrutiny. Wearing an actual mask supported the other masking I did to escape detection as a human with invisible disabilities.

I could make all the weird and pain-wincing faces I wanted behind those N-95s.

SEF AIMA SEF

Let’s talk bureaucracy. Let’s talk about SEF.

The Agência para a Integração, Migrações e Asilo or AIMA came about from the restructuring of the former Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras service known as SEF. They handled immigration and border control.

SEF became AIMA1 after the death of a Ukrainian man who was held in custody at the airport—and other internal problems. This is an oversimplification of the process, but I don’t want to bore you with more details.

AIMA was supposed to streamline the already growing backlog of applicants who wanted to move to or legally stay in Portugal, but it only made things worse. At one point last year, the agency admitted to a backlog of applicants in excess 400,000 waiting for appointments and/or determination of their legal status.

My residency card expired in January; C’s expired in December 2024.

Yes we called, emailed, and tried all the tips and hacks, etc. AIMA told us wait for their email and not to make any more contact—they would email us. They did not.

AIMA issued a decree that all foreign nationals with expired residency cards would be legal until June 30, 2025, but this only applied to Portugal territories and the card holder’s home country. Travel for residents with expired cards who left Portugal were not assured of exit and reentry. AIMA has extended this decree until October 15, 2025.

We could have sued AIMA, many people did, and only until they sued did they get their appointments. I don’t want to sue a country to get them to play by their own rules, and I didn’t want to wait around for another three years or so for my citizenship after submission of my application (I could have applied last year).

Accepting there are fewer grains of sand left in the top of my hourglass than the bottom, I cut my losses and moved on. It was time to try something new. I’d rather spend the next three years in France gaining the ability to travel freely as a legal resident (renewable each year—a simple online process).

I don’t follow Portuguese news much anymore, but I did read that AIMA will be turning back into SEF and that they now have an online portal for renewal.

Summary, Please

Bureaucratic issues, glossy travel magazines selling Portugal as the top retirement and digital nomad (gak) destination, often with less than accurate facts about migrating, costs, etc., and some changes that weren’t for the best in Sétubal contributed to our decision to leave.

Moving to France offers us a better quality of life, especially as non-drivers. The train network was a big draw. The infrastructure and one of the best healthcare systems in the world (although healthcare in Portugal was stellar) is a plus. Also the proximity to the rest of Europe. France is in the middle of it all—for better or worse.

Did I mention France does not tax U.S. Social Security Benefits or pensions? We’ll find out as time goes on if we’ll still have benefits, but while we do…

The reasons above and feeling like we don’t have a lot of moves left in us (so why not now) brought us to France. I may live to eat those words, but right now, we want to find our French home. We’re tired and just want to set up our new place—even though we have no idea where that place will be!

Do you love a walkable French town or small city with a train and good healthcare and a weekly veg market? Extra points for charming? If so, let me know in the comments!

Thank you Sharin, someone, Mai, Peg, and Paul for supporting life: examined through Buy Me a Coffee. I’m grateful to have you along on this adventure.

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