I’m an Australian and been working outside Oz since 1988, mostly in Asia, but work has now moved me to the other side of the World. On holiday in Portugal (2011) we fell in love with the place and went back 6 months later (Dec. 2011) and bought a lovely home in Guimaraes. Now comes the job of packing up our residence in Oz which we’ve used as a holiday base, and moving to Portugal.

I’m trying to find assistance on the bureaucratic process so that we can uplift our household possessions in Oz and ship them to Portugal. We have Portugal Tax Registration and take possession of the house in March 2011, but now guess we need a Residency Permit before we can ship our things to Portugal, or do we?.

Is there a service company in Portugal that assists with such things to make the move a little smoother?, it would not be great if the ship arrives with our personal effects and not allowed to unload, or, if everything winds up in Bond store until our paperwork is in order.

any advice on this would be much appreciated.

look forward to hearing your comments.

by the way, I love your photographs

Cheers,

Peter

I am still amazed by the cool, but conscient, naivety of Portugal. Sometimes i also feel that there is no other country in Europe where people are so stupid. I can say that because i am Portuguese. And only Portuguese’s are allowed to speak trash about themselves and their country. And they do it all day everyday.

Strangely enough, they rarely praise what there is to be praised. They only do so when needed. When something is treating it’s honor.

A Portuguese always think that another city is better than their own. Any other place is prettier. Any other country is better. There is a mix of a forced humility and self critique in us. Nevertheless, is someone really starts being rude about Portugal, a Portuguese will always fight back with everything they love about it.

All this to say one simple thing:

Portugal is a really good place to live if you are not Portuguese, and have conditions to do so without working. Portugal has always been a country for rich people. (i am not saying you are one).

Do you really know why there are thousands of abandoned iconic houses and villages?

-Because people lived like in the middle age only 50 years ago. No power, no running water, no shoes, no doctor. Only a priest and the heaven above them.

My father left is village with 14 yo and walked is way to France only to escape total misery and a colonial war. 60% of the population in villages did so and they only came back when they had money enough to live here without having to be a slave of work. And only then, after their prime, they started to discover their country. Their region and, sometimes, their cities! Before, they couldn’t. Had to survive first!

And then, today, youth is still leaving the country at an even more alarming rate than they did in the 60′s. All this because they have no future. We always were a country of super hard workers and respectable people and, nevertheless, we had to fled the country.

Some say that you only get to be a real Portuguese the day you leave it to live somewhere else. Nothing as change and it will never do.

90% of Portugal lived, 50 years ago, in total harmony with nature. They where totally sustainable despite the harsh and, today considered, inhuman living conditions. Working sun up to sun down, all days of the year, only to manage to survive.

50 years ago, only descendants of noble families, rich traders, politicians etc had a real civilized way of life. They lived in the historic town centers and palaces that we see all over the country. All the rest were poor or poorer farmers.

In 50 years the country turned itself down thanks to enormous amounts of money coming from UE. Most of it corrupted, stole and poorly used in stupid unplanned projects with no future.

This is why, in 20 years, you will be the only person in the village. The older people will die and the young people already live in another world. A rift killed the society interrupting a natural evolution.

Has i said, Portugal is beautiful when you have conditions to look at it has a permanent visitor. Only then you are able to appreciate the little treasures that do exist. But, for most Portuguese’s, the daily life is just filled with other thoughts.

We do know what we have, what we COULD have, what we should do to have it. But, and their is always a but, we also know the reality of the country we live in.

As many Portuguese emigrants say:

“Portugal is beautiful. But it is even prettier wen see at distance.”

This our “Fado”.

just found your blog, i am loving it , we are a bit further north than you in the valley just between of Santa Comba Dao and Tondela. been here two years now…and have had similar experiences re: building rule regs etc etc..

keep up the good work…love the photos..

steve & vannesa

ps. where you in films or tv ?? anything we would know ??