Portugal Junkies Podcast

Meredith + Mark in Portugal

We are Meredith + Mark and we just said goodbye to the traditional “American dream” in Charlotte, NC to instead experience a life of adventure NOW in Portugal. It’s been a wild and glorious ride, full of ups + downs + change + discomfort - but man are we glad we did it and are excited to share ALL of it right here. If you’ve ever considered moving abroad, we hope hearing about our journey will help you too. And if you’re considering moving to or traveling in Portugal, stayed tuned for more content about our move, the visa process, Portuguese culture, destinations + travel tips! portugaljunkies.substack.com

  1. Jul 24

    Sharing Our Monthly Expenses In Portugal (30:11)

    Sharing Our Monthly Expenses In Portugal Because the finance details matter if you're considering a move! Hello, Portugal Junkies! This week we pulled out our bills and spreadsheets and banking apps - and created an episode for you focused on WHAT WE ACTUALLY SPEND EACH MONTH in Portugal. When we were considering a move, we had a hard time finding content creators that would share their real numbers - so here we do that just for you! In addition to our episode, a great resource for cost of living is www.numbeo.com - you can compare your current city to a future city and see details of what things cost in the new area. [We should really buy stock in NUMBEO - that’s how much I love that tool.] Other key resources and vendors mentioned in this episode: Vodafone - Cell phone carrier MultiCare - private health insurance (we recommend Ged Heaney at GED Insurance) EDP - Energy Rubis - Gas MEO - TV/Cable Numbeo - cost of living website BPI - our Portuguese bank Tello - our low cost cell phone carrier in the USA 🎙️Tune into this week’s episode where we open up our wallets + share all the details with you about our monthly expenses in Portugal! Next week we will bring you an episode focused on how much it costs to actually MOVE ABROAD in 2026. Next week, we will do a deep dive into the documentation that is required and how to be prepared for some documents that you may be missing! We hope you’ll listen in and subscribe (wherever you listen or watch) so you don’t miss out on our weekly episodes going forward! You can find us here on Substack, Apple and YouTube. Cheers, y’all! Meredith + Mark Other Ways We Can Help You Travel or Move Abroad 💫💫💫 ➡️If you have want to move abroad in the next 9-12 months and want to talk to Meredith about the She Thrives Abroad program, email her at Portugaljunkies@gmail.com ➡️If you’d like help designing the perfect Portugal Trip Itinerary from the world famous Mark “The Brit” Burns, book a FREE consult call here ➡️If you need help with visas or tax information, check out our partners Joao Pinto + Rui Borges (who are the experts) here Get full access to Portugal Junkies at portugaljunkies.substack.com/subscribe

  2. Jul 17

    Renewing Our Residency Visa - The Documents (34:16)

    Last week we posted our D7 Renewal Mini Guide article to help those who are approaching this pretty cool milestone in their Portugal experience. This week, we talked about this process in depth on the podcast too. 🎙️Tune into this week’s episode where we give you an overview of the residency renewal process, tips + tricks, how it all works and what to expect. Next week, we will do a deep dive into the documentation that is required and how to be prepared for some documents that you may be missing! We hope you’ll listen in and subscribe (wherever you listen or watch) so you don’t miss out on our weekly episodes going forward! You can find us here on Substack, Apple and YouTube. Cheers, y’all! Meredith + Mark Other Ways We Can Help You Travel or Move Abroad 💫💫💫 ➡️If you have want to move abroad in the next 9-12 months and want to talk to Meredith about the She Thrives Abroad program, email her at Portugaljunkies@gmail.com ➡️If you’d like help designing the perfect Portugal Trip Itinerary from the world famous Mark “The Brit” Burns, book a FREE consult call here ➡️If you need help with visas or tax information, check out our partners Joao Pinto + Rui Borges (who are the experts) here Get full access to Portugal Junkies at portugaljunkies.substack.com/subscribe

  3. Jul 10

    Renewing Our Residency Visa - The Overview (27:20)

    Last week we posted our D7 Renewal Mini Guide article to help those who are approaching this pretty cool milestone in their Portugal experience. This week, we talked about this process in depth on the podcast too. 🎙️Tune into this week’s episode where we give you an overview of the residency renewal process, tips + tricks, how it all works and what to expect. Next week, we will do a deep dive into the documentation that is required and how to be prepared for some documents that you may be missing! We hope you’ll listen in and subscribe (wherever you listen or watch) so you don’t miss out on our weekly episodes going forward! You can find us here on Substack, Apple and YouTube. Cheers, y’all! Meredith + Mark Other Ways We Can Help You Travel or Move Abroad 💫💫💫 ➡️If you have want to move abroad in the next 9-12 months and want to talk to Meredith about the She Thrives Abroad program, email her at Portugaljunkies@gmail.com ➡️If you’d like help designing the perfect Portugal Trip Itinerary from the world famous Mark “The Brit” Burns, book a FREE consult call here ➡️If you need help with visas or tax information, check out our partners Joao Pinto + Rui Borges (who are the experts) here Get full access to Portugal Junkies at portugaljunkies.substack.com/subscribe

  4. Jul 3

    Buying A Car in Portugal (26:01)

    Well. We are officially eating our words, y’all. We said for years we were not going to buy a car. That being car-less was pretty cool. (It is.) That walking everywhere was such a nice change. (It was.) That Ubers were so affordable. (They are.) And we didn’t buy one. For 2.5 years in Portugal we used public transportation - the metro, the train system, Ubers, sometimes even a bus! But after our first year in the Algarve (where the metro doesn’t exist and the trains do exist but are limited), we realized that we had not even done a “drive-by” of all of the southern coast, much less fully explored all the amazing places down here near us. ➡️And when we realized that our travels and adventures were being limited by not having our own car, we changed our minds. So, we bought a car. And we love her! 🎙️Tune into this episode where we talk through how we came to the decision to buy a car after 2.5 years without one + how the process worked for us in Portugal. We hope you’ll listen in and subscribe (wherever you listen or watch) so you don’t miss out on our weekly episodes going forward! You can find us here on Substack, Apple and YouTube. Shout out to Ricardo at Motors Group in Faro + Ged Heaney at GED Insurance for helping us with the insurance coverage. Cheers, y’all! Meredith + Mark Other Ways We Can Help You Travel or Move Abroad 💫💫💫 ➡️If you have want to move abroad in the next 9-12 months and want to talk to Meredith about the She Thrives Abroad program, email her at Portugaljunkies@gmail.com ➡️If you’d like help designing the perfect Portugal Trip Itinerary from the world famous Mark “The Brit” Burns, book a FREE consult call here ➡️If you need help with visas or tax information, check out our partners Joao Pinto + Rui Borges (who are the experts) here Get full access to Portugal Junkies at portugaljunkies.substack.com/subscribe

  5. Jun 26

    Did We Just Get Duped By Portugal? (33:07)

    Immigration changes, our reactions + how this changes things for us As of May 2026, Portugal immigration laws have changed. [Insert record scratch] Two of the major changes that have affected us personally are: 1️⃣ - The path to citizenship/passport in Portugal moved from 5 years to 10 years for us. That’s when we can APPLY for, not necessarily receive, our passport. 2️⃣ - The clock starts from the date you get your Temporary Residency Card, rather than the date of your initial application. For us that is about 6 months difference. For others, it can be years due to the AIMA backlog over the past years. There is no transition plan or grandfathering accommodation at this time for those who had already gotten visas, moved or started the process of moving. 🎙️Tune into this episode where we candidly talk about our reactions to the changes and what this means for us in our Portugal plan! We hope you’ll listen in and subscribe (wherever you listen or watch) so you don’t miss out on our weekly episodes going forward! You can find us here on Substack, Apple and YouTube. Cheers, y’all! Meredith + Mark Other Ways We Can Help You Travel or Move Abroad 💫💫💫 ➡️If you have want to move abroad in the next 9-12 months and want to talk to Meredith about the She Thrives Abroad program, email her at Portugaljunkies@gmail.com ➡️If you’d like help designing the perfect Portugal Trip Itinerary from the world famous Mark “The Brit” Burns, book a FREE consult call here ➡️If you need help with visas or tax information, check out our partners Joao Pinto + Rui Borges (who are the experts) here Get full access to Portugal Junkies at portugaljunkies.substack.com/subscribe

  6. Jun 19

    Things We'd Have To Give Up...Part 2 (35:32)

    After being in Portugal now for almost 2.5 years, we spent time on this episode reflecting on the things we’d have to give up if we ever moved back to the USA. (Hint: It’s A LOT.) And while some things we discuss are funny, small + even, shall we say, a bit ridiculous just so we can entertain you…many of them are no joke, y’all. Serious stuff like: ✅ Affordable (sometimes even FREE) healthcare, especially as we get older (ahem) ✅ Personal safety - how do you go from the 7th safest country in the world to 132nd?✅ Flying to the UK to visit family in 2.5 hours and less than 100 euros round trip ✅ 99% calm nervous system on most days And some fun ones like: 💫 Traveling less than 30 minutes to be in Spain for tapas 💫 The amazing bread cutting machine at the grocery store💫 Never looking at our credit score We hope you’ll listen in and subscribe (wherever you listen or watch) so you don’t miss out on our weekly episodes going forward! You can find us here on Substack, Apple and YouTube. Cheers, y’all! Meredith + Mark Other Ways We Can Help You Travel or Move Abroad 💫💫💫 ➡️If you have want to move abroad in the next 9-12 months and want to talk to Meredith about the She Thrives Abroad program, email her at Portugaljunkies@gmail.com ➡️If you’d like help designing the perfect Portugal Trip Itinerary from the world famous Mark “The Brit” Burns, book a FREE consult call here ➡️If you need help with visas or tax information, check out our partners Joao Pinto + Rui Borges (who are the experts) here Thanks for tuning in! This post + podcast episode is public so feel free to share it with anyone considering a move abroad! Get full access to Portugal Junkies at portugaljunkies.substack.com/subscribe

  7. Jun 12

    Things We'd Have To Give Up...(45:09)

    After being in Portugal now for almost 2.5 years, we spent time on this episode reflecting on the things we’d have to give up if we ever moved back to the USA. (Hint: It’s A LOT. So we did a part 1 + 2, so stay tuned for next week!) And while some things we discuss are funny, small + even, shall we say, a bit ridiculous just so we can entertain you…many of them are no joke, y’all. Serious stuff like: ✅ Affordable (sometimes even FREE) healthcare, especially as we get older (ahem) ✅ Personal safety - how do you go from the 7th safest country in the world to 132nd?✅ Flying to the UK to visit family in 2.5 hours and less than 100 euros round trip ✅ 99% calm nervous system on most days And some fun ones like: 💫 Traveling less than 30 minutes to be in Spain for tapas 💫 The amazing bread cutting machine at the grocery store💫 Never looking at our credit score We hope you’ll listen in and subscribe (wherever you listen or watch) so you don’t miss out on our weekly episodes going forward! You can find us here on Substack, Apple and YouTube. Cheers, y’all! Meredith + Mark Other Ways We Can Help You Travel or Move Abroad 💫💫💫 ➡️If you have want to move abroad in the next 9-12 months and want to talk to Meredith about the She Thrives Abroad program, email her at Portugaljunkies@gmail.com ➡️If you’d like help designing the perfect Portugal Trip Itinerary from the world famous Mark “The Brit” Burns, book a FREE consult call here ➡️If you need help with visas or tax information, check out our partners Joao Pinto + Rui Borges (who are the experts) here Thanks for tuning in! This post + podcast episode is public so feel free to share it with anyone considering a move abroad! Get full access to Portugal Junkies at portugaljunkies.substack.com/subscribe

    Things We'd Have To Give Up...(45:09)

  8. Jun 5

    Portugal Junkies Podcast is back!

    Happy June, Portugal Junkies - After a bit of an unplanned hiatus, Mark + I are back with new podcast episodes starting this Friday! We give you an update on what’s new for us since January, like: * We finally gave in a bought a car * We’ve done lots of traveling - USA, UK, Spain, Italy, Prague, just to name a few * We successfully renewed our temporary residency here in Portugal - good for another 3 years! * What we have planned for the upcoming episodes of the pod * And more perspectives about reaching 2.5 years in Portugal We hope you’ll listen in and subscribe (wherever you listen or watch) so you don’t miss out on our weekly episodes going forward! You can find us here on Substack, Apple and YouTube. Cheers, y’all! Meredith + Mark Other Ways We Can Help 💫💫💫➡️If you have want to move abroad in the next 9-12 months and want to talk to Meredith about the She Thrives Abroad program, email her at Portugaljunkies@gmail.com➡️If you’d like help designing the perfect Portugal Trip Itinerary from the world famous Mark “The Brit” Burns, book a FREE consult call here ➡️If you need help with visas or tax information, check out our partners Joao Pinto + Rui Borges (who are the experts) here Get full access to Portugal Junkies at portugaljunkies.substack.com/subscribe

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5
out of 5
19 Ratings

About

We are Meredith + Mark and we just said goodbye to the traditional “American dream” in Charlotte, NC to instead experience a life of adventure NOW in Portugal. It’s been a wild and glorious ride, full of ups + downs + change + discomfort - but man are we glad we did it and are excited to share ALL of it right here. If you’ve ever considered moving abroad, we hope hearing about our journey will help you too. And if you’re considering moving to or traveling in Portugal, stayed tuned for more content about our move, the visa process, Portuguese culture, destinations + travel tips! portugaljunkies.substack.com

Information

  • Creator
    Meredith + Mark in Portugal
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    69
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Meredith + Mark | Podcasters
  • Show Website
    Portugal Junkies Podcast

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