Back to Portugal

In February 2026, I set out on a journey of discovery to Portugal, with my dogs Panka and Gerbeaud as my travel companions. After the great tragedies of 2024 and 2025 (my father passed away in 2024, and my darling husband David in 2025), I felt I had to try to bring new color into my life; it was time to set out in search of new memories—I didn’t want to get stuck in the past. I’ll carry the beautiful memories with me anyway, no matter where I end up. Our trip in February went so well that the day before yesterday I packed all my belongings into the trunk, and on the morning of August 21, my two dogs and
I set off for a farm near Torres Vedras — 3,025 km away — to start a new life in this beautiful country. This blog will be about that: the adventures we experienced on the way there, and after we arrive, what it’s like to start over in a country whose language I don’t yet speak — and on top of that, two dogs are making it even harder to settle in. It won’t be easy or simple, but then again, nothing that’s good or worthwhile ever is. The dogs are a complicating factor — I experienced that firsthand while looking for an apartment — but without them, I might not have even embarked on this great journey that lies ahead of us, both physically and in a more abstract sense. I feel no fear, only pleasant excitement, optimism, and enthusiasm.