US Influence.

I have railed against most things American but, sometimes one must give credit where it is due. The hamburger, for example. Named after the city of Hamburg, Germany, where it is argued to have originated. It has become a symbol of American food. And nowhere have I had better burgers than in Portugal. Ok, I admit that I have had some memorable burger moments in the US.

But as with many things, the Portuguese have taken a great concept and made it better. This is where I applaud the Portuguese affinity for things from America. In Porto, CURB burgers make outstanding examples. Simple 50s style with Angus beef. When random Americans say this is the best burger they have ever had, you had better believe it. Also, a word about the fries, in the US, I avoided fries like the impending heart attack that they were. I keep coming back to the fact that all the food in Portugal is better than that in the US. Chalk it up to freshness, preparation, lack of genetic engineering, and I do not know what else, but the fries in Portugal are delicious! An entirely different flavor animal. I try to keep the quantity down, but they are too good to pass up.

Image result for CURB Burgers, Porto. Size: 165 x 160. Source: www.tripadvisor.com — Curb Burgers, Porto, double bacon cheeseburger.

Rui Unas and the Like a Lord burger. From the US to your house in 30 minutes with free delivery!

And, this just in! Hambúrgeres à Lord. Like a Lord hamburgers. The Portuguese comedian Rui Unas has started a burger concern here in Portugal. Now being delivered by Uber Eats in Porto and Lisbon.

«Foi a sua paixão pelos hambúrgueres americanos que inspirou o menu do novo restaurante digital do Uber Eats. Peça irresistíveis smash burgers, loaded fries e brownies com bacon (sim, bacon!) – e acompanhe tudo com uma cerveja à altura: a melhor cerveja norte-americana Bud King of Beers.»

Translation: “It was his passion for American hamburgers that inspired the new digital menu of Uber Eats. Order irresistible smash burgers, loaded fries and, brownies with bacon (yes, bacon!) and accompany it all with the best North American beer, Bud, King of Beers”. The United States at your house in 30 minutes!” I have to laugh. I did use to like a good Smashburger. (Without the shooting du jour or political insanity, thank you very much.)

Ok, so the beer thing is where they lose me. Super Bock (Portuguese beer popular in Porto) is way better than Bud! Just saying. And I have the German heritage and beer drinking experience to make that statement.

In any case, I can’t wait to try a hamburger à Lord. And don’t forget the brownie and fries! And forget the beer, I will pair it with a nice Portuguese Tinto, red wine. Any of the three above would go nicely. Now that is a great mash-up, Portuguese wine and a good burger.

Portugal, what a country!

It is great to be here. We still wake up every day and pinch ourselves that it’s true we live in Portugal! The summer was wonderful. The weather couldn’t have been better, mid 70’s to low 80’s. Now, I’m told that this was a very unusual summer and it is usually much warmer. And to that, I say, thanks to the universe, and hope that cooler summers will be a trend.

And, of course, the food has been fan-freakin’-tastic everywhere we have gone. The same goes for the wines. I used to be such a wine snob. In the US, I would look at the wine list and sometimes not even have wine if there wasn’t anything that looked good. Here, the house wine is fine. They are nearly all good, and many are excellent.

As for the Portuguese bureaucracy, we have been extremely fortunate. At our visa renewal appointment, we only had to wait about 15 minutes. When we went to finanças (Portuguese IRS) to register after getting our resident visa cards, we waited five minutes tops. Incrível! So far, so good.

The DMV (IMT in Portugal) was another matter. You have three months after you get your resident card to turn in your foreign driver’s license for a Portuguese drivers’ license. (Although, I have been reading that that is about to change, and it will soon be three years before you must get a Portuguese license.) If you make the three-month deadline, it only costs 30 Euros. If not, it costs 60 Euros, and you must take a driver’s test. (Ugh!) Before you can go to the IMT and get your new driver’s license, you must register with the Centro de Saude, (national health system) and get a certificate of health. You must also get a certified copy of your driving record. To prove the validity of your current driver’s license. Three months, no problem. Right.

After wrangling with the Colorado DMV and the USPS for a month, we received the certified copies of our driving records by registered mail. At this point, we now had 10 days before the deadline to turn in our US licenses. It cost $64 and change to mail four pieces of paper to arrive in Portugal within a week. International logistics are still costly and time-consuming.

It took three trips to various Centros de Saude and a trip to the wrong IMT office before we arrived at the right office and spent the afternoon waiting for our numbers to be called. (It reminded me of the afterlife waiting room scene in the movie Beetlejuice.) Happily, though we spent the day from 9-5 between the health office and the IMT offices, we made it on the last day of the deadline! Whew! Got ‘er done. I guess long waits at the DMV are universal.

Now, theoretically, we should be Portuguese bureaucracy home free until next June when we will have to renew our resident visas again. It has certainly been an adventure.