Ten years ago, my wife, daughter and I relocated from the Washington, DC area to Lisbon, Portugal. Living here has been one of the best experiences of our lives, so we’re not surprised that it’s the country Americans want to move to the most.
But once we arrived, we soon learned that some of our expectations before the move were unrealistic. For example, we thought we could fully integrate simply by mastering the language and making a lot of Portuguese friends. Ten years later, we still feel just as culturally “American” as we did when we first landed.
Now that we’ve fully settled in, our friends back home often ask about what living and retiring abroad is really like. Here are the top three myths about leaving the U.S.:
Create a budget of your current spending.
huge number of expat-focused group activities. There are co-working spaces that cater to expat communities and language schools. But as welcoming and friendly as Portugal tends to be, you may struggle to make new connections if you’re based in more rural parts of the country.
So how can you meet new friends and colleagues? If you’re traveling with school-age children, does the school organize parent activities? Do you have hobbies you can pursue in a group setting, especially groups that meet regularly so you’ll start to see the same faces over and over again?
Also important: What about your “helper” network? If you face a sudden need to take a return trip to the U.S., for example, who will care for your pets while you’re gone? If you get into an accident, who will notify your family back home if you’re unable to do so?
My best advice is to have a written contingency plan, complete with names and phone numbers for who will stand in for you if necessary. It’s okay if there are blanks in your contingency plan — you can fill those in as you develop new relationships in your new country.
As for the biggest myth about moving abroad that actually is true? “You’ll love living near the ocean on a glorious, sunny day.” A picture tells a thousand words.
