American Moves to Braga and Absolutely Loves It

Kalie from ExpatsEverywhere sits down with Rafael from Not Your Average Globetrotter to talk about life as an expat in Braga, Portugal. Rafael was living in Italy and decided to move to Portugal. He chose Braga but why and was it a good decision? He's been living in Braga for almost two years and has thoughts on life here. What are the pros and cons? Is he happy with the move? What does life look like on a day to day basis for someone who lives in Braga? Let's find out!
Check out Rafael's channel here: / rafaeldifuria
* ABOUT US *
Josh and Kalie left the US for a life abroad in 2009 and haven't looked back. They have lived in Spain, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and are currently in Portugal. Yes, they realize they only moved to countries starting with the letter "S" until they spoiled that streak with their move to Portugal. Follow ExpatsEverywhere as we aim to get information to you through expat interviews, city breakdowns, expat life, travel, vlogs, and more.
* VISAS FOR PORTUGAL *
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* USEFUL RESOURCES *
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* TRANSFER CASH *
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* WATCH YOUR SHOWS
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*DIGITAL SECURITY
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* YOU NEED THESE FOR YOUR D7 & REMOTE WORKER VISAS *
Need your NIF and/or bank account for Portugal? Use our special link with Bordr to receive $10 off for each. No code needed. The discount will be applied at check out when using this link: www.bordr.com/?via=expatsever...
* INSURANCE ABROAD
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*LEARN A LANGUAGE
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Want something more intense?
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* FORWARD YOUR MAIL *
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* TAXES
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*AROUND PORTUGAL
Want to check out some awesome spots we like around Portugal? Check out our Atly Map: go.steps.me/hvX41KPnDwb
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[@RafaelDiFuria]

Thanks so much for having me on your channel it was such a pleasure to have you guys here at my place :) Looking forward to having you guys back over here! It was fun to see the footage along with the conversation :)

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

You're very welcome. We really enjoyed getting to meet up and sit in your incredible studio! We'd love to do it again sometime. Nice! We're glad that you liked the footage. Shout out to Rachel for taking most of it. 😊 - Josh & Kalie

[@elainemcguirk4993]

I loved this interview. Rafael is one of the more truthful and down to earth expat channels. No unicorns and rainbows for him. He tells it like it is, warts and all

[@RafaelDiFuria]

Thank you for your kind words :) And yes I definitely believe it's important to be aware of the good and the bad to have a full picture of life in another place... It's not fair to only hear about the rainbows, unicorns and butterflies.

[@MrJim911]

You guys were standing right outside my apartment in one of the clips! I could have waved hello! 👋 Braga is amazing!

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

We wished you had done so, Jim. - Josh & Kalie

[@Sergey_Mironenko]

6:00 Please, don`t tip too much !

[@suebowman7258]

Agreed! Tippings hurt my local friends.

[@DeanRamser]

Olá! Thank you for an excellent video. We are retired American educators in Europe now after helping a new school open in Lviv. We stayed in Krakow for 6 weeks and in Tallinn for one month. We plan on returning to Europe in the fall, exploring Portugal and possibly our next home location. This area has amazing towns, beaches, and boardwalks. We love a walkable and accessible city. Healthcare, transportation, safety, and reliability are our concerns. Obrigado!! Dean & Cindy

FYI, Braga has one of the most modern public hospital in the country. It’s located close to the university medical school (University is also a big part of the city vibe). For private you have 2 (Trofa Saúde and Lusíadas) with 3 locations, all high quality also.

[@stevel6420]

Interesting, Google Reviews show both private hospitals have poor ratings, about 2.5 out of 5.0.

@@stevel6420 I've personally used Trofa Saude, on consultations, exams and even surgery, so I'm giving my opinion. Others may vary in experience/expectations.

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Thanks for sharing Humberto. - Josh & Kalie

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Fair enough, but honestly, who Google Reviews hospitals apart from people that are upset about something? - Josh & Kalie

[@richardcoffman6794]

I was pleased to see 2 of my favorite PT vloggers together. We've been following both for the last year and a half, ever since my wife and I decided to relocate to Portugal. In fact we signed up for and used Josh and Kalie's D7 visa short course in order to expedite our move to Portugal, and selected Braga to live based on Rafael's vlogs of living here. So muito obrigado to you both for your inspiration and advice. 😊 We absolutely love living here and couldn't be any happier with our decision. As an English only speaker it has been more challenging for me to communicate with the local population here than in Porto and Lisbon, but the people in Braga are kind and patient with my rudimentary attempts to communicate. Fortunately we've made friends with Portuguese speaking expats and English speaking natives who have helped us with our transition, and navigating the residency process. We are also enrolled in a Portuguese language course which is offered for free from the government. So hopefully my ability to communicate effectively will be improving in the upcoming year. Keep up the great jobs that both of you are doing. You are both an inspiration to those of us that have moved to, or are considering moving to Portugal. 👍

[@Simblysaid]

Which course in Portuguese is offered free by the government?

[@paulogarciadesousa]

@@Simblysaid, www.acm.gov.pt/-/como-posso-frequentar-um-curso-de-lingua-portuguesa-para-estrangeiros-

[@richardcoffman6794]

@@paulogarciadesousa Thank you for posting that link. 🙏

[@joaocanela5875]

Yes, the Brazilian community in Portugal has been rising a lot in past few years. But from 2 years ago til now there was a big boom, specially in Braga. I was born in Braga and live here (37 years old). I really agree with everything that Sir said (sorry, i can't remember the name of him). Actually it is really cool beeing able to watch some videos/documentaries/expat videos about Portugal, and specially about Braga which i'm proud of. There are not many "other languages videos about Portugal" (it's becoming more regular since the content creators is a thing, tho), and it's cool I can show these kind of content you create to the friends from other parts of the world I meet online for years, because they are curious about Portugal. And some are lazy to read, they prefer watching something. Thanks for the videos :)

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Thanks for the input, João. Our origin story with ExpatsEverywhere has its roots in helping those lazy people that don't want to read blogs and would rather watch videos. 😁 Please keep sharing our videos. It helps us a lot. - Josh & Kalie

[@periscope7731]

@joaocanela5875, so you’d recommend Braga over Porto? I am going to check out both city options on my next fact finding trip to Portugal. Obrigado e força para aos Portugueses!

[@daylight5500]

Good conversation. Congratulations to the tech crew.

[@macypryrenees5531]

Awesome interview! Lots of great information for someone looking to live in Braga😀

[@mydogsmells1733]

Great interview! I've been following Rafael's channel since he first moved to Braga (I've been following Expats Everywhere even longer 😊) and really enjoy his insights on living as an expat in Portugal - both the good and the bad. We plan on visiting Porto and Braga on our next trip to PT and maybe 🤞relocating there. Thanks for the great vid!

[@RafaelDiFuria]

Enjoy your next trip over here! Hope you guys find the right place that fits you best 😁

[@danielsemyck7683]

Great information! Thanks guys!!

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Our pleasure! Thank you for watching. - Josh & Kalie

[@SirJackOcean]

Awesome interview!!!

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Hey! Thank you very much. As always we appreciate the channel support. - Josh & Kalie

[@suebowman7258]

Excellent interview! Shared it on my social media.

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Thanks, Sue! We appreciate the support. - Josh & Kalie

[@rebeccagutierrez1960]

Braga did someone to me emotionally. I really left my heart there. Greetings from sunny (and hot lately) Puerto Rico.

[@magbstyle]

Can't wait to visit Braga. Great interview.

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Thank you! - Josh & Kalie

[@moward301]

Wonderful breakdown and insight into Braga! Great interview skills, Kalie! You guys did not disappoint, as usual. Meaty content! Love it, thank you!❤😊

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for the love, Mo! - Josh & Kalie

[@user-cj9zx1me7b]

Katie, great job interviewing Rafael! And Raphael is a straight shooter so the combo of your questions and Raphael's clear and informative actions made for a winner video! Obrigada from NY! PS: Lovely footage of Braga included as well...

[@RafaelDiFuria]

She really was such a great interviewer and had some great questions/topics for us to talk about :)

[@mashanti_worldwide]

Nice interview

[@matthewrubaii7051]

Thank you for the frank interview and the honest response. 🙏🏻

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

You're welcome, Matthew. We're glad that you liked it. - Josh & Kalie

[@MarthaReynolds]

Loved Braga! It would have been our home, if only….. You’re both still people I follow. We might not be relocating to Portugal, but we’re traveling back next spring.

[@cdm0707]

Muito informativo... obrigada ❤..

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Thank you for watching. - Josh & Kalie

[@trave7644]

I went to Bragra, on a Sunday, was there for a few hours and walked around in the scorching sun; my impression was it was ok, but isolated; I took the train from Porto. Note it was my impression. Another impression: I could hardly find any restaurants that had good food; hardly any fish. I guess, but I saw everyone just eating ice cream, perhaps because it was a hot day! I am serious. And a very few people speak English there (before anyone tells yes, yes, they speak Portuguese in Portugal hahaha), of course compared to other cities like Porto and Lisbon. It was just unbearably hot in the summer. BTW, Really helpful tip about tipping. I tipped too much I guess when I was there. Kalie, thanks again for a fabulous interview.

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Thanks for sharing your experience, Abey. - Josh & Kalie

[@cdt996]

ICA meets EE! Rafael and Marco provide such great videos on Italian citizenship and real estate. Watch all their videos religiously. Can’t wait to get my Italian citizenship by descent. Can live anywhere in EU.

[@KeithMillsD7]

Love both your channels. Just an FYI: If you have a grandparent born on the island of Ireland, you can claim Irish citizenship.

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Thank you, Keith. Great shout about Ireland. - Josh & Kalie

[@marioandre7351]

Tipping in the US is a must. Servers get half of the federal set wage amount.

[@m000Theevilcow]

Working in the hospitality business for a long time now, I would say the following; Tipping comes from the heart, not the wallet meaning if a service surpasses your expectations please do tip..amount? whatever you think you can or it is appropriate but only when it does surpass your expectations, forget the old US practices of percentage. On the downside, there are rumors that the Portuguese government is thinking about a fixed tip taxation similar to the one in the US, so please proceed with that in mind. Regarding the HNS well considering that other countries have been poaching our best doctors and nurses with more attractive salaries we do now have a staff shortage nationwide meaning that is now considerably worse to get healthcare when needed than like5/6 yrs ago, especially in the public system and that requires a whole lot of patience. The matter of bureaucracy well just do appointments in the countryside city districts and you'll do well.

[@ninarosaphotography2039]

I agree. Don’t pay in advance. And learning the language is more respectful and the Português will happy to see you efforts. And when you learned the language also you learning the culture, are the great benefits to appreciation and gratitude where you’re . .Bragazil bravo!!!!! We love culture, entertainment, good food, music, mixing with others culture and traditions. Life is wonderful and can be awesome, when we are willing to do the best and get the best. Viva a vida.

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Thank you for the comment! 😃 - Josh & Kalie

[@kayf7073]

Braga is Way too rainy in Winter (4-5 Month of heavy rain) and too hot in summer. I wonder why the climate was not mentioned in the interview

[@tikabijo]

I wondered that too

[@richardcoffman6794]

The weather in Braga is very similar to the weather in Portland, Oregon. Not quite as hot in the summer, nor as cold in the winter, but just as rainy. It's not for you if you want warm and sunny year round, but if you like real seasonal changes and a green landscape, Braga is a great place to live. 😊

[@alannahprestaynofbraavos5759]

Rafael: "...why is it my problem as a customer that your boss is not paying you enough..." Exactly. And yet we are made to feel terribly guilty. I just went to a dine-in theatre with my daughter today. The tipping percentage on the food receipt started at 18%. I paid 15%. On the other hand, I use a drop off laundry service. Those women work hard! I make sure to leave a dollar or two in the tip jar when I pick up my laundry. Maybe I should rethink my tipping to give more to the laundry workers and less to the servers. Oh, and if you go out with six or more people you automatically are charged a tip of 18-20%^.

[@bartstewart8644]

Thanks for the honesty! How about the availability of long-term apartment rentals and the overall cost of living elsewhere in the country? Like central Portugal, or further inland?

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Costs are certainly lower. We've not heard to shortages or level changes the way we have in larger urban areas. Housing quality might be an issue in central though. - Josh & Kalie

[@AB-kd9et]

Rafael/Expats Everywhere please consider doing an update on the costs of renting in Braga, such as what 1000 euro gets you on Braga etc. I'm trying to get a realistic idea of what i could afford but most content is from Lisbon/Braga.

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

The really difficult thing about doing walk-throughs of apartments now is that agents just don't care to show things because they get sold so quickly. It's not worth their time to walk us through a place so we can film. Otherwise, we'd love to. Best way is to see what's on offer on sites like idealista.pt - Josh & Kalie

[@AB-kd9et]

@@ExpatsEverywhere thank you, I appreciate that. However, the prices that I see on idealista seem to differ from anecdotal evidence of my PT friends from the region of how much rent is. In any event, thanks for a great video!

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

@@AB-kd9et it could be a matter of outdated information. Idealista of course shows the owner's/pm's asking price and things are negotiable to an extent. You're welcome. We're glad to post it. - Josh & Kalie

[@lucchese20]

Great interview and Braga overview. Pleased my favorite PT KZbinrs meeting up.👏🏻 Appreciate comment on allergies. Curious about two things: (1) What is the food being prepared at 6:15 ? (2) Wasn’t clear why at 18:00 Rafael makes a point that having financial statements “hurt (him) at the bank” when opening a personal account. Any additional clarification would be helpful. Cheers. 👋🏻

It's called Pao com Chouriço. "Chorizo Bread". Really yummy, specially the one with cheese. Fun fact, the owner of that stand is actually a friend, I need to show him the video 😀

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

It was great getting to hang out with Rafael. We've got a podcast recorded with him too as well as a video for his channel. - Josh & Kalie

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Tell him to watch the whole video though, Humberto! :-) - Josh & Kalie

@@ExpatsEverywhere Oh yes!

[@loriem5908]

Hi, living in portugal as a abroad student years count for citizenship as 5 year?

[@johnmbhjg7681]

Where are the river beaches that you showed? Obrigado

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

They're north of the city on the Cávado river. Check out the area around Praia Fluvial da Ponte do Bico e Parque de Lazer. Thanks for subscribing, John. - Josh & Kalie

[@samirdjama167]

Wich city is better braga or aveiro?

[@fatimavillajoaquin94]

Hi. If you want to live within a city center, and be able to walk to the beach, what town would that be? Thank you! All the best!

[@kayf7073]

Have a look at the map. There are plenty of towns in Portugal that are at the Atlantic coast, most of them have one or more beaches in the town itself or in walking distances. Braga is NOT one of them.

[@rosalindhb]

Good interview. A local told me people don't tip alot, because they can't afford to. So they leave change or 1 euro. What is the weather like in Braga during the winter? I would love to see an interview with a Black or Latin person who lives in Portugal. I'm curious if they experience any racism or if its as bad as the U.S. I've heard wonderful things.

[@kayf7073]

In most of Portugal, the winter is rainy. However, in Braga it is *very* rainy. Google for “braga climate” or similar to find the statistics in a nice graph. You might want to reconsider your choice of moving to braga after that.

[@HMSMBA]

Braga aka "Penico do Céu" or Chamber-pot for the Heavens, because of the amount that rains in comparasing with other regions in Portugal, in the other hand, it is a very "green" part of Portugal. You might want to watch Black Mom Rainbow Life or Driven Spice, they talk about the experiencie of living in Portugal.

[@wwlt.trevor0512]

Love your videos! Have you run across Portuguese immigrant Retirees who are now paying the full tax burden? How are they coping with this? How are they able to incorporate the high tax into their income and do they still find living in Portugal affordable? Can you recommend reputable CPA's and attorneys to help with this who would be willing to work with individuals in or outside of Braga?

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Thanks for the love. We actually haven't come across any retirees that have been here for more than 10 years. Please email Kalie at [e-mail] for tax and legal recommendations. She's got a little list going. - Josh

[@user-bf7wp2tu2t]

Why does the interviewer use the term ‘expat’, why not use immigrant? How did you both learn Portuguese when you moved here?

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Hi Kerry, we're studying using Portuguese with Carla. We do have an affiliate link in the description section of our videos. There are a couple other courses that we recommend so if you'd like more information, email Kalie at [e-mail] Happy studying. - Josh & Kalie

[@wilfredobenitez7275]

Sorry to hear rents are also on the rise in Braga.

[@ganotube]

about the hospitals thats not true, you have the best hospital and newest in the country and the best privates builded in the last 10 years

[@Jacob-tp3sw]

He is right on the spot. MOL Portugal asked for 150 euros per hour just for a consultation call. This is NOT normal. Portugal is a very poor country and people make 1500-2000 euros in a month.

[@papiyonmov]

Any reputable people to dig up ancestry proof?

[@hatersgonnahate4343]

This guy scammed us out if thousands telling us how easy we would be able to get our Italian citizenship. Btw 3 years later and 15.000.00$ later NOTHING

[@ExpatsEverywhere]

Did he sell you business services?

[@RafaelDiFuria]

That is quite an extreme and defamatory claim... I've NEVER accepted money to help anybody get Italian citizenship, nor have I ever assisted anyone to get Italian Citizenship. I have created a lot of content about Italian citizenship on my youtube channel and have been involved with creating content on other channels/platforms about getting Italian Citizenship. But again I have never offered services or direct help in that area, paid or voluntary. Again I've never accepted money from anyone EVER to help them get Italian citizenship or any related consulting services. I'm so sorry if someone offered you services and didn't hold up their part of the bargain, but I can tell you, that even though I have no clue who you are, I know for a fact that we never worked together and I was never in contact with you privately or otherwise regarding any offer of services to get Italian citizenship because I don't offer any kind of services like that, nor have I ever. It's also odd that you would say that someone told you it was easy because I can tell you that if you spoke to someone who said that, it definitely wasn't me... Even on my channel, I've spoken a number of times about how it took me roughly 14 years and how it's not easy to go through. I can only assume that you're confusing me with someone else or that this comment isn't sincere.

[@GeraldFigal]

About Brazilians in Braga, in May I met a Brazilian photographer who moved to Braga a couple years ago and I asked him why, and besides having compatriot connections in Braga, his main reason to move to Braga was to escape Brazil’s crazy right wing government. We commiserated together over that as a reason to leave one’s home country.

[@m.goncalo5672]

portugal could use some right wing. right now

[@lickedcat]

i know brazilians who moved to portugal to escape its crazy left wing government. obvious they move for security reasons.

[@publicminx]

'right wing' is a left wing projection. it is not an existing ideology. and the Nazis are left wing. Its racist, antisemitic/antizionist Nazis like Lula or Manduro who are the problem = not just in Brazil. People also really need to learn why Latin America is behind the US, Canada or Australia. the REAL reasons not stupid antiwestern/antiliberal/anticapitalist bullshit (which is already one reason why they are behind) ....

[@antardayal298]

Way too greedy!...Not looking for another rat race!!!

[@paolocirelli8937]

It's so sad to live in a country where you have no roots...