Desperately Seeking Sofa
The search for furniture is on.
Hi friends and family!
As the winter storms continue to dump rain on Porto, we are starting to see some rays of sunshine on the horizon, both for the weather and our remodel. It’s been a busy couple of weeks, and here’s what we have been up to:
The search for furniture is on
Next-level wine tasting
Quick hits
Let’s jump right in!
The search for furniture is on
As mentioned in a previous newsletter, we have been on the hunt for furniture for our new apartment. The one we currently occupy is fully furnished, so the only things we’ve purchased in Portugal are a couple of end tables, a bed frame/mattress, a patio set, and a grill.
We are trying to maintain a somewhat minimalist lifestyle so we designed our new home with plenty of custom cabinetry including wardrobes. Our guest room has a built-in Murphy bed and our kitchen island is doubling as our dining table. So all we need are a couch, some lounge chairs, bar stools, and a couple of other pieces.
Fortunately, Portugal is home to a huge furniture industrial base for most of Europe. This means we have almost endless options.
We paid a visit to ‘furniture town,’ about 35 minutes from Porto, which has an overwhelming number of showrooms and manufacturers. You can buy premade or just show them a photo of what you want, and they will make it to order. We were able to secure a couple of quotes and prices for custom pieces.
The down-sides?
First, the furniture sales business here is just as used-car-sales-y as it is in the States, with prices and quality varying drastically (and not always in sync). Also, we’re instantly seen as “rich foreigners” and prices seem to start on the high side in any quote/negotiation situation.
Second, every expat we talk to who has ordered custom furniture says it takes WAY longer than quoted.
Fortunately, Hilary found a local interior design and furniture studio with a style she likes and some pretty genuine people running the place. We’ve been talking to them for over a year about a variety of things and asked them to quote us for what we need.
The prices are the same or less than the big department store, and way less than the ‘furniture town’ quotes we got. We picked our fabrics, wood, style, and everything, and they came to our apartment to measure the space for a custom build.
We’ve got a couch, bar stools, and bench for our front entryway on order – all built to suit at a relatively reasonable price.
Now we cross our fingers that it all shows up on time!
Next-level wine tasting
Until recently, we’ve been a bit slow to learn about Portuguese wine, which certain readers of this newsletter will know is out of character for me.
Listen Chuck… there’s a lot to learn, and I’m starting from almost zero knowledge about Portuguese wines! But I promise I’ll focus more. 😉
Some friends who are more knowledgeable about Portuguese wine (one is a former winemaker) have unlocked a lot more opportunities to up our game in recent months. We’ve attended a few informative tastings together, leading up to a massive wine experience called Essência do Vinho, which took place just last week.
I’ve been to quite a few wine-tasting expositions in my life, and this one was dialed to 11.
Over 4,000 wines from across Portugal were showcased by hundreds of wineries, collectives, and distributors over 4 days, with everything from light whites to aged port wines on offer. It all went down in the stunning Palacio da Bolsa, the former stock exchange, a huge, ornate building down in old town.
The cost of entry was 25€ and that included unlimited tasting and a branded Riedel glass.
That. Is. A. Steal.
It was crowded (not an “exclusive” experience) but we met tons of local winemakers, learned gobs about various regions, and of course drank plenty of wine. For about the cost of a single Willamette Valley wine country tasting experience, we got the whole of Portugal in our glass.
Yes, we’ll be back next year.
Quick Hits
I was able to score tickets to the recent Champions League knockout round match between FC Porto and Arsenal. It was an absolute blast, and Porto won with a stunner 94th-minute goal to break a 0-0 tie. Nobody thought they could do it, and we lost our collective minds when it happened. I continue to be blown away by the caliber of professional sports I get access to here.
Cork floors have gone in. The countertops are in. Appliances are mostly in (more to come on the American fridge next newsletter). We’re getting down to a punch-list. That’s how close the apartment is. We can’t wait to actually move in during the first week of April!
Hilary hosted another very successful event for her vegan facebook group - this time it was brunch at one of our favorite haunts, A Padoca. 15 people (and one adorable rescue dog) showed up to commune over vegan eggs benedict and mind-blowing pastries. The group has been growing online and Hilary is committed to hosting once/month offline meetups to strengthen the community. It’s so fun!
What have you been up to?
This week’s music is another gem that Won M introduced me to. Sounds Like Home has a funky, global groove that’s both lounge-y and upbeat at the same time. Enjoy!