My wife & I have reached our 7th decade of life as humans on planet Earth. It's time to think about where we want to spend our remaining years. We are remotely considering retiring abroad & Portugal is first choice, mainly for the weather. Of course, we would cruise over from USA to visit Europe & then spend some months renting a home at wherever suits us, before deciding to stay.
I've been reading for a couple years & somehow still feel uninformed. Actually, I did learn some things. But some other things I would like to know are still wanting. Undoubtedly this is because I'm somewhat unique. Please allow me to describe a little about what kind of person I am & what attracts me to Portugal, at least from a distance.
I have traveled to Europe but it was the early-1980s & not extensively. I was touring in a band, so rushed through major cities in England & Germany mostly. I do have Euro heritage: grandfather was Romanian, grandmother from Moscow. I am a classically trained Jazz pianist by profession (recording session musician on film soundtracks for many years) & also have extensive experience as an orchestral percussionist at university & in community orchestras.
Although I am thoroughly American, I am considered, for example by friends here in Hollywood, to be distinctively European in personality. (not verbal accent, in sensibility, particularly musically)
Obviously there was a time not so long ago when most American Caucasians were European immigrants. In this way, I am a kind of conservative, without trying. Probably what these people at Hollywood are referring to, is an eastern European thing, as compared to Anglo-American heritage. As everyone knows, many eastern Europeans were/are musical & it's this distinctive personality anyway which apparently stands out about me even though I've never been to my ancestors' nations.
My father, for example, was a classical piano child prodigy who was destined to become a concert pianist but became estranged & then died of cancer before I ever had a chance to know him. My uncle was a violinist with NY Phil & Pablo Casals Fest Orch etc
I was born/raised in LA & have spent most of my life here. Of course, this makes me a weather brat. Reason/priority one for a retirement destination: similar weather to LA.
Why not stay in California? Because, frankly, LA is a hell hole of traffic & overpriced real estate.
Why Portugal? Again, the weather more than anything else. This can't be overstated, in terms of my aesthetic.
During the past two decades, I spent more & more time at home, in the home recording studio, and then in the past few years, even less time in there because I've been working on commercial projects less. This is a good thing, because it has allowed me to focus on my art, my original childhood interests: composing for orchestra & chamber music (Modern classical) which I do in a lovely window room looking out on nature, without any electronic equipment, using acoustic piano & a long table to spread out the scores. It's a healthier environment than spending so much time inside a recording studio & I also take walks or spend time in the garden, which allows me to get plenty of sun (very important for health)
This is kind of a way in which musicians "retire," at least from gigging so much. It keeps you busy & is similar in many ways to the typical writer's life, particularly writers who are inclined toward poetry & nature. As we live now in Woodland Hills, which gives us at least a partial retreat away from the city hustle-bustle, which I despise. I am NOT a city person. Although, I must admit that living near the city has also spoiled me in terms of the culture & other conveniences. It's a love-hate thing.
As a California boomer, I have hippie sensibility, left politically, liberal etc. This is also a factor for my interest in Portugal. It appears, at least from a distance (press, films) that Portugal is the hippest nation on the planet. Is it true? One news report stated that Portugal recently went for a week or so entirely powered by sustainable energy. I have seen photos of the giant wind mills at Lisbon.
I am drawn, to some extent, toward the inland areas where I noticed people have built solar powered homes with gardens or small farms & I also noticed the environmentalist summer festivals in at least one area.
The hippie fests are interesting, but the youth & music is probably not so much suited for me. I am interested, however in the possibility of connecting musically. Probably through Jazz, which I also noticed exists to some extent there.
So far, the best dwellings I could discern which might fit my liking/budget were found in Argave region. Which brings us to the subject of community.
Basically, socializing is not so important to me. Nor is it important to my wife, who is also artistic (sculptress, chef, designer) and a quiet, generally not highly sociable person. We are very content to spend almost all of our time at home involved with our personal creative endeavors and our loving relationship.
Really, the only social needs are for my music relationships. As music is a universal language, I rely on that ability to make connections with other humans. You may or may not be surprised at how much communication is possible between musicians without having the same verbal language. So any language barrier is not so much of a worry for me, other than the basic necessities, for which I understand it's important to find a translator. I imagine someone could be hired?
But there are things, needs we have that are similar to other folks. One is that we love fine cuisine. My wife is such a talented chef, that we don't need restaurants, but it is of course appreciated when we find a good one. Remembering that her cooking spoils us, so we are very picky & usually end up preferring her dishes over most every restaurant we've gone to. She's that good. (she used to be a pro caterer)
However, you can't cook good food unless you have access to good food markets. We are not fish lovers so much as we are beef/chicken lovers, and that is my first hesitation about retiring at primitive islands (Caribbean, Mallorca, Tahiti etc) and possibly Portugal(?) So if someone can assure me that there is quality local cattle, where we are not paying too much for imported beef & poultry because everyone eats mostly fish, that would be reassuring.
Another worry is corruption (business fraud). This is one of the things which has deterred me from considering Mallorca, the corruption I heard about there. As we are not adventurers, we would be easy marks abroad for thieves. Safety is a priority.
Similarly, infrastructure is a concern. Health care, which I understand is actually better, in some respects, than here in USA. Good. But what about water & power? Roads aren't so important to us, as we're not big on auto travel, other than what is necessary. I've had more than my fill of cars after living my life in LA. Frankly, I would not mind if I never saw another car again.
But living in a remote area is really not an option for us, either. We are spoiled. Basically, what we want is the best of both worlds: no traffic but not to be so cut off from civilization that we wont have access at least to affordably well stocked food markets & basic resources like water, electricity & the luxury of a good natural gas stove.
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