While I love living abroad, exploring new cultures, and learning different ways to live. There are some creature comforts that I find myself reaching for. Some of these I’d happily cram into a suitcase if I could, but some I’m happy to miss and enjoy once I get venture back to the States. I can’t help that most of them are consumable. Like my boys, I’m entirely food motivated.
A couple disclaimers to get out of the way – I can hold two thoughts at once! I can miss things about my home country, while also being grateful for the opportunity to learn, as well as, cultural and food differences of our new home country. I did choose to move here after all! And I absolutely miss all my family and friends. That’s a given. 🙂
What I Miss (in no particular order)
- Not feeling like an idiot in every situation – Living in a new country means you’re learning a new language, new customs, new social norms, new everything. You’re learning something new almost every step of the way… which means at some point, it’s exhausting.
- Half and half/creamer – You can find milk and you can find heavy whipping cream, but half and half (my coffee crutch) is no where to be found. I was never really a big fan of flavored creamers (with the exception of Coffeemate Peppermint Mocha!), but you won’t really find any of that here. Good news though, vegan milks have been common in every major city I’ve been to so far!
- Trader Joes – need I say more? Best snacks, fun spice mixes, cheap flower bouquets. But don’t worry, Portugal has their own “2-buck-chuck” and it’s fabulous.
- Cheap & good Mexican food – We’ve finally found a pretty good Mexican food joint here, but tacos are €14+. To be fair, Seattle’s Mexican food scene was equally sad, so this has been missed for a while.
- Target – Do you only ever get what you only came for in Target? No. Is it a microcosm of American consumerism? Yes. Do I still miss it? Also, yes.
- Craft beer – This is also a Seattle-specific nostalgia moment, but I miss easy to find and amazing beer. Portugal’s beer scene is up and coming, so if you seek it out, you will find it. But, Seattle made me love beer and I miss hanging out at our favorite spots like Reuben’s and Ravenna.
- Spicy salsa – I’ve finally resorted to the fact that I’ve got two options for spicy salsa: I can either make it myself (if I can find peppers) or I can pay the significant import surcharge and buy decent (but not amazing) salsa from my favorite Mexican goods store in Porto.
- Spicy peppers – I have finally found a couple of stores that periodically carry jalapeños or serrano peppers, so I can whip up some decent salsa. But, for the most part, they aren’t easy to find. In a pinch I can use malaguetas or piri piri peppers. Though, it’s not the same and I still can’t really figure out malaguetas – sometimes they are spicy, sometimes they are mild and sweet, sometimes they are like thai chiles. Can’t figure them out!
- Activities in English for kids – Porto thankfully has a fairly large expat community, so we are able to find some activities, but not so much for kids. I need to get on my Portuguese lessons ASAP, so we can more easily sign up for things like swimming lessons or soccer club. We will get there!
- All my go to beauty/skin products – I am a lifer when it comes to beauty, skin, or hair products. Once I find a product, that’s all I’ll use. No joke, I’m still using the same mascara brand from junior high. Having to find new products gives me so much anxiety.
- Pumpkin puree – It is fall, y’all! I miss going to the grocery store, stock-piling cans and cans, just so I can make pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin streusel cream cheese muffins, or literally anything pumpkin. I can roast my own pumpkins, but I miss the convenience… which brings me to my next item:
- Convenience – America has figured out the convenience market. The pre-made everything. Stores open 24/7. There’s no mental gymnastics around stores closing every day for lunch or Sundays. Though, rationally, I know convenience is not the solution and I could get into a whole dissertation on the benefits of slow-food culture and god-forbid, letting shopkeepers take a lunch and day for themselves. But sometimes I forget, and I just need baby formula, on a Sunday, you know? Whoops.
- Yelllowbird siracha – I didn’t realize so much of my list would be spicy foods, but here we are. My dad definitely hand imported a bottle of this delicious sauce when he came to visit in August.
- Green chile – This one was also a problem in Seattle. I can’t tell you the stares we got when Josh and I would buy 15 pounds of green chile the one time every August that it would enter stores. But, you can’t make my family’s delicious, crispy, cheesy green chile rellenos without… green chile.
- Fresh herbs – I’ve resorted to an herb garden to address this one. I’m so proud I haven’t killed literally everything (just 2 mint , 1 sage, and 1 lavender plant). It’s super common to find parsley, mint, and sometimes cilantro. But, I’ve still never seen fresh dill ever (even seeds) and you’ve got to grow your own rosemary, sage, thyme, etc.
- No time zone math – The Europe to U.S. time zone change is a rough one. Forget all the mental gymnastics, but it’s so hard to schedule catch up conversations with friends because your only overlap is while they are working. All the technology in the world still can’t fix opposite waking hours.
- Fall in the PNW – to be fair, we still haven’t experienced Porto’s fall which I hear is beautiful. But, I miss the change of seasons in Seattle. You wake up one morning and the air is crisp, the leaves are changing, and you don’t totally despise the rain yet. It’s still welcome.
- Rao’s pasta sauce – I miss running to the store, grabbing an amazing pre-made pasta sauce and some pasta, and having a delicious 15-minute meal. In Portugal, you can probably find a single pre-made pasta sauce, but let me tell you, it’s not the same. Yes, I can make my own (and I do), but see #12 convenience.
- Coffee – I miss American style coffee anywhere you go. Bless the Europeans and their yummy espresso. But, I’m a coffee gal, always will be. Thankfully, Porto does have filter coffee at boutique (read expensive) roasters that make delicious brews, but espresso is the drink in these parts.
- Buying what you think you’re buying at the store: It’s the little things, like knowing what you’re buying that I miss. None of the surprise, all of the met expectations. Am I buying corn meal or corn flour? Chuck roast or brisket? Pinto beans or idk what beans? Google Translate can only take you so far. Sometimes I’d like some boring shopping, please.
Whew, that’s a few of the things I miss while living abroad. I love living here, but sometimes I miss the ease of knowing exactly what you’re doing. I wouldn’t change anything, but sometimes memory lane is fun to think about.
If you’ve traveled or lived abroad, are there any comforts from home you miss? Drop a note!
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