New cars throughout most of Europe have pricing fixed by the manufacturer. It's refreshing to know what the car will cost and not to have to go through that time-wasting chest-thumping exercise of negotiation, never quite knowing who is taking more advantage of whom and whether you really did get a good price. Who needs that? Maybe someone who wants to brag to his friends about how bad he screwed the dealer on his new car (this happened to Gerrit).
On the last post we should have mentioned straightening out our utility and banking accounts. Setting these up from the US so we would have valid references for our visa applications involved using a Portuguese power of attorney (POA), and many things put on the forms were placeholders or temporary (like addresses and phone numbers). Sometimes if the account needed to contact someone it had to be the POA, too, rather than a couple English-speaking rubes with funny phone numbers eight time zones away.
This left the accounts needing updating once we had gotten here and obtained our Portuguese address and phones. This was more difficult than it sounds. The worst example was having to spend two hours at the bank (with a banker who was truly helpful and efficient) getting all the i's dotted and t's crossed, but the utilities have been hard too. We're still not quite done, but the bank was the big hurdle and it's nice to have that behind us.
Pat has been busy getting us connected, in many ways. She's learning about expat resources here, joining interest groups, and getting our credit and debit cards sorted out so they work with Amazon Spain and other online vendors. She has a coffee meeting (or tea in her case) with the International Women of Porto and Gaia on Tuesday. This will really help with references for insurance and real estate agents, what to watch for and what to avoid, and so on. She's already learned that when a parking spot is marked on a sign for emergency vehicles, police, etc., it's the spot AFTER the sign, not the spot which the sign faces. Some poor Americans found that out the hard way, after paying a nearly €200 towing bill.
Today our car rental period ran out, a little before our new car was in stock and ready, so we're going to see if we can get around without a car for a few days. Everything we normally need, and then some, is within walking distance, and if we have to drive somewhere we'll use Uber.
With our worldly two months of experience living here, we feel qualified to debunk at least a few of the Portugal myths in circulation. These canards are frequently seen on blogs and guides, where they should know better:
1. The Portuguese are aggressive and reckless drivers.
Not in our experience. Sure, you see the aggressive driver now and then, but you do everywhere. We see mostly courteous and skilled driving here. (but see our post here for a little revision to this.)
2. Portugal has some of the most expensive electricity in Europe.
Maybe they used to, but not any more. See our post here.
3. It's hard to find modern consumer items or supermarkets.
At least in the Porto area here, stores and supermarkets similar to those in the US are quite popular. Most things are readily available including up-to-the-minute modern conveniences, and if not they're only a click away online. The food even seems healthier and fresher in general, and there are helpful government guides to nutrition on package labels.
4. Restaurant help can be surly and slow.
Not at all. We've been to many now, urban and rural, and the service has uniformly been cheerful and quick. They're understanding and helpful with the language barrier too.
We haven't experienced much of the health care system yet, except for Pat's monthly blood work, but what we hear from other expats is that it is excellent: better than the US. Pat's experience has certainly borne that out. Don't let US politicians tell you that in "old Europe" health care is slow and inadequate. "The Healing of America" by T. R. Reid is a good place to start reading up on international health care. The author has a number of YouTube videos too.
photo credit Reifen-Groessen.de