Great post FULL of things that are so very familiar... from struggling to find things in stores (I'm STILL looking for white vinegar and egg noodles) to trying to establish a routine, to struggling with the language, to trying to take advantage of all the great things that are available to see and do in this city. You are not alone, I'll tell you that!
On a larger level, I completely understand your struggles over the first few months, and agree with your solution. We always said we'd "give it a year", and I think it helps to have that kind of timeline. I also think it's important to understand the phases of culture shock and be able to recognize where you are on the line. It sounds like you guys have weathered the worst of it and have a great attitude which is an absolute necessity for things like this.
Finally, thanks for the tip on the speaking group website. I hadn't heard of it but any opportunity to speak with similarly situated language learners sounds fabulous. I'm going to check it out!
I might change my answer under oath but I feel like I saw egg noodles a couple of days ago at the supermercado in El Corte Inglês. They probably aren't with pasta, maybe in the "international food" aisle? I was getting tahini and naan so that may have been where I saw them.
Regarding vinegar, we have both white wine vinegar and cleaning vinegar so they exist. They both came from Pingo Doce (might be one of those items they seem to only stock in Saldanha).
Speak is pretty hit or miss. Depends on the "buddy" ( they don't have teachers and classes, they have buddies and ... something). My current one is amazing. The one I had before was Brazilian, which was not quite as I'd hoped. But if you run into a Basic II session that's online and starts July 3, I will be in that one. I don't know how you feel about hopping into Basic II...
Hello! On libraries with books in English, have you tried to join the library at the British Council in Lisbon? Their main aim is to teach (British) English. I believe that their library is not only for students, but open to the public: https://englishonline.britishcouncil.org/pt/ (near Príncipe Real). There is also the American School of Languages - they do the same with American English (https://americanschooloflanguages.com/) - Av. Duque de Loulé, "near" Marquês de Pombal. I don't know if they have a library... (Finding their physical address on their site was impossible! And it is NOT "there"!). By the way, if you wish to understand / compare Portuguese from PT to Portuguese from Brazil, just do the analogy with British English and American English: same differences in pronounciation, syntax, words and meanings.
I just got a response from the Council and thought you might like to be aware. This is what they wrote:
"...the British Council no longer has this library as it was removed circa 2001 and most of its contents were donated to an University and other teaching centres."
Happy Anniversary! We are recent permanent transplants to Madeira and can echo many of the topics you have touched upon in this post. We love the safety, the clean air, friendly Portuguese people. We are thrilled to leave behind the political unrest and extremely high healthcare and housing and food costs of California and the states in general. I appreciate your tip regarding the under the bed sheet warmer. Lastly, while we initally found the extremely laid back "nothing-is so-urgent-it-can't-wait-a-few-more-weeks" attitude frustrating, we have discovered that it IS liberating to approach life with this in mind, also. Thank you both.
Love seeing you so happy and settling in. My attempts to keep the game night alive has been an utter failure - except for Mike and it’s been great to become friends with him. Miss y’all and am a bit envious.
Oh man, the keys between the fingers. I don't have to do that much where I live right now, mostly because I am rarely walking in the dark, but yeah. That's so emblematic of a lot that's wrong with the US. What a joy to not have the political crazy we are living through over here!
It was somewhere about 6 months in and I realized I hadn't done that key thing in ages and I just realized how very different my life is here because I never have to think about that. I can just walk down the street by myself in the middle of the night and not have to worry. Sure yes, there are pickpockets in the tourist areas. But who carries a purse like that? I have a fanny pack and wear it in the front and have my head up and and on a swivel. Not that I need to do that here as much. Only for tourist areas. It's really literally life-changing.
Congratulations and thank you for all you share. As a long term retiree, I’m sorry to say that some of the issues — like not having a routine and never getting around to those art classes — might never go away. But life is good!
I'm as busy as ever. But I haven't been able to work with the migraines since I was 40. But I'm doing so much that it feels really hard to keep up with.
Thanks! Actually, I think it's a lot easier here in Madeira - it's so small. And everyone has been so patient with us. Most of our challenges are from unfinished business in the US or fixing all my teeth that I broke on a hiking accident the day before we got on the plane to come here. :-) Have fun at your parties!
So happy for you both, for prevailing and for learning and changing so much. You are still young enough to adapt to all these things, so it's good that you made the move now. I miss you all and continue to wish you all the best. Love and hugs,
"If the first bureaucrat says no, try another. Ditto pharmacists." yes, this is something everyone needs to learn. My rule of thumb is to ask three people the same question and pick which of the three answers is easiest
I relate to much of this. We live in a small village between Lisbon and Sintra, and there are not a whole lot of English speakers here, making it absolutely necessary to learn Portuguese. It is not an easy language to learn, at all. (when you tell someone estou a aprender Portuguese their response is always, always Nao e facil...even the Portuguese know their language is difficult!). Still I am determined, but it will take longer than I assumed.
We are beginning to grow a lot of our own food. We were both vegan in the US, and found it difficult to maintain that here. A big California style dinner salad is not a thing in Portuguese restaurants, as I'm sure you've discovered for yourself. But I have neighbors that introduce me to traditional Portuguese dishes - including learning many ways to prepare cabbage, something that is now a staple in our diet and I like infinitely better than kale.
Glad you ended up finding the good outweighs the difficulties! We've been here about a year, and we love it, but like you we have not spent a lot of time exploring the country yet - we're swamped with a big renovation project. Y'all should come out and visit, we can have lunch and practice Portuguese with our midwestern accents lol
I actually have found about half the Portuguese telling me the language is easy, half saying it's hard. I was gently scolded in an Uber recently for having been in the country for two years and not yet learning the language. This was after what I thought was a pretty decent attempt to make conversation in Portuguese. I'm starting to wonder if there's a correlation between general political leanings and perception of the ease of the language.
And yes, dinner salads ... so not a thing here. Very disappointing.
Great post FULL of things that are so very familiar... from struggling to find things in stores (I'm STILL looking for white vinegar and egg noodles) to trying to establish a routine, to struggling with the language, to trying to take advantage of all the great things that are available to see and do in this city. You are not alone, I'll tell you that!
On a larger level, I completely understand your struggles over the first few months, and agree with your solution. We always said we'd "give it a year", and I think it helps to have that kind of timeline. I also think it's important to understand the phases of culture shock and be able to recognize where you are on the line. It sounds like you guys have weathered the worst of it and have a great attitude which is an absolute necessity for things like this.
Finally, thanks for the tip on the speaking group website. I hadn't heard of it but any opportunity to speak with similarly situated language learners sounds fabulous. I'm going to check it out!
I might change my answer under oath but I feel like I saw egg noodles a couple of days ago at the supermercado in El Corte Inglês. They probably aren't with pasta, maybe in the "international food" aisle? I was getting tahini and naan so that may have been where I saw them.
Regarding vinegar, we have both white wine vinegar and cleaning vinegar so they exist. They both came from Pingo Doce (might be one of those items they seem to only stock in Saldanha).
Speak is pretty hit or miss. Depends on the "buddy" ( they don't have teachers and classes, they have buddies and ... something). My current one is amazing. The one I had before was Brazilian, which was not quite as I'd hoped. But if you run into a Basic II session that's online and starts July 3, I will be in that one. I don't know how you feel about hopping into Basic II...
Hi Laura, Today I bought a bottle of Gallo brand white vinegar at Continente at the Large do Rato store.
Hello! On libraries with books in English, have you tried to join the library at the British Council in Lisbon? Their main aim is to teach (British) English. I believe that their library is not only for students, but open to the public: https://englishonline.britishcouncil.org/pt/ (near Príncipe Real). There is also the American School of Languages - they do the same with American English (https://americanschooloflanguages.com/) - Av. Duque de Loulé, "near" Marquês de Pombal. I don't know if they have a library... (Finding their physical address on their site was impossible! And it is NOT "there"!). By the way, if you wish to understand / compare Portuguese from PT to Portuguese from Brazil, just do the analogy with British English and American English: same differences in pronounciation, syntax, words and meanings.
I just got a response from the Council and thought you might like to be aware. This is what they wrote:
"...the British Council no longer has this library as it was removed circa 2001 and most of its contents were donated to an University and other teaching centres."
Thank you, though, for your suggestion!
Well, it is true that I knew about this a long, long time ago... Well, you can always try the English Department in the Lisbon University...
(Gosh, I hadn't realised I was this old...)
Thank you for these suggestions! I am reaching out to the British Council for more information!
Happy Anniversary! We are recent permanent transplants to Madeira and can echo many of the topics you have touched upon in this post. We love the safety, the clean air, friendly Portuguese people. We are thrilled to leave behind the political unrest and extremely high healthcare and housing and food costs of California and the states in general. I appreciate your tip regarding the under the bed sheet warmer. Lastly, while we initally found the extremely laid back "nothing-is so-urgent-it-can't-wait-a-few-more-weeks" attitude frustrating, we have discovered that it IS liberating to approach life with this in mind, also. Thank you both.
So glad to hear you are settling in as well!
Thank you for following along and for commenting. Looks like we have yet another reason to get to Madeira . . .
Love seeing you so happy and settling in. My attempts to keep the game night alive has been an utter failure - except for Mike and it’s been great to become friends with him. Miss y’all and am a bit envious.
Miss you, Jeffrey!
We miss you, too! So glad you've gotten to know Mike - he's a great guy!
Amazing. I love that for you!!
Oh man, the keys between the fingers. I don't have to do that much where I live right now, mostly because I am rarely walking in the dark, but yeah. That's so emblematic of a lot that's wrong with the US. What a joy to not have the political crazy we are living through over here!
It was somewhere about 6 months in and I realized I hadn't done that key thing in ages and I just realized how very different my life is here because I never have to think about that. I can just walk down the street by myself in the middle of the night and not have to worry. Sure yes, there are pickpockets in the tourist areas. But who carries a purse like that? I have a fanny pack and wear it in the front and have my head up and and on a swivel. Not that I need to do that here as much. Only for tourist areas. It's really literally life-changing.
There's plenty of political crazy here, too, but less violently so. Hope your summer is off to a great start!
Isn't this almost your bed time?
My summer is off to a surgical start - had my ACL and two menesci repaired last week. Not the most fun June ever, but it's getting better!
Oh no! I hope you heal well!
Ugh! The blown out knee. I hope the rehab/healing is quick and relatively painless.
And yes, pretty much bed time :-).
Congratulations and thank you for all you share. As a long term retiree, I’m sorry to say that some of the issues — like not having a routine and never getting around to those art classes — might never go away. But life is good!
I'm as busy as ever. But I haven't been able to work with the migraines since I was 40. But I'm doing so much that it feels really hard to keep up with.
Thanks (?) for the tips :-D.
I used to borrow books to read from Christopher's school. Have you tried Project Gutenberg or Obooko?
Great tip!
We have not. But they look as though they have potential. Thanks for the tip!
What a great post! We are a few months behind you and not in Lisboa, but we value your stories of your experiences.
Thanks! Actually, I think it's a lot easier here in Madeira - it's so small. And everyone has been so patient with us. Most of our challenges are from unfinished business in the US or fixing all my teeth that I broke on a hiking accident the day before we got on the plane to come here. :-) Have fun at your parties!
I wish you could be at our party!
Maybe at 2 years. :-)
We just moved to Funchal from California!
Another west coaster also in funchal. We should get coffee sometime.
Just want you both to know this cracked us up. 😆 Glad to help y'all make connections!
Sorry about that!
Sorry for making us laugh?! Why! We think it's awesome you're connecting in this way!
Yes. Are you by any chance going to the Atlantic Restaurant on Monumental Saturday for the dinner get together that James Sullivan orgaized?
Can you whatsapp us? 924-120-041.
I hope your first months have gone smoothly!
So happy for you both, for prevailing and for learning and changing so much. You are still young enough to adapt to all these things, so it's good that you made the move now. I miss you all and continue to wish you all the best. Love and hugs,
We miss you, too!
Happy anniversary. I am so happy that things are going well for you both. ❤️
I love this post. Thank you for your honestly, humor and reflections.
Thank you for your encouragement!
"If the first bureaucrat says no, try another. Ditto pharmacists." yes, this is something everyone needs to learn. My rule of thumb is to ask three people the same question and pick which of the three answers is easiest
That's a good idea! :D
I relate to much of this. We live in a small village between Lisbon and Sintra, and there are not a whole lot of English speakers here, making it absolutely necessary to learn Portuguese. It is not an easy language to learn, at all. (when you tell someone estou a aprender Portuguese their response is always, always Nao e facil...even the Portuguese know their language is difficult!). Still I am determined, but it will take longer than I assumed.
We are beginning to grow a lot of our own food. We were both vegan in the US, and found it difficult to maintain that here. A big California style dinner salad is not a thing in Portuguese restaurants, as I'm sure you've discovered for yourself. But I have neighbors that introduce me to traditional Portuguese dishes - including learning many ways to prepare cabbage, something that is now a staple in our diet and I like infinitely better than kale.
Glad you ended up finding the good outweighs the difficulties! We've been here about a year, and we love it, but like you we have not spent a lot of time exploring the country yet - we're swamped with a big renovation project. Y'all should come out and visit, we can have lunch and practice Portuguese with our midwestern accents lol
I actually have found about half the Portuguese telling me the language is easy, half saying it's hard. I was gently scolded in an Uber recently for having been in the country for two years and not yet learning the language. This was after what I thought was a pretty decent attempt to make conversation in Portuguese. I'm starting to wonder if there's a correlation between general political leanings and perception of the ease of the language.
And yes, dinner salads ... so not a thing here. Very disappointing.
A pan idea for your next post. Loved this article about Portuguese soups. What has been your experience. Soups is a favorite experience when I travel.
https://www.wsj.com/arts-culture/food-cooking/the-magic-of-portuguese-soup-few-ingredients-incredible-results-067e7827?st=n3d3sgylqub8zms&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
Thanks for the idea!
Typo — An idea…
Happy Anniversary 😊 ❤
Thank you!