Most of the information we needed about the country we already had from our vacations, the work proposed for my husband seemed to be a good career option for him and of course a well-paid one, so it was time to make a decision…

As usual, I made an Excel spreadsheet to analyse the financial impact: Compare our current situation with the scenario proposed, calculate the cost of living in each place and the net amount we could save in Portugal or in Bermuda. If the decision would be leaving Portugal, account for the costs that we will keep having in Portugal even if we aren’t living there and also account for the all the costs of relocation to another country.

If you have a similar decision to make, here you can find the Excel spreadsheet I made which was useful for us. If it can be useful for you also, great!

However, the decision to emigrate is much more than the financial aspect. We had to find a balance: On one plate is the people you will leave (family and friends) and on the other plate is all the new experiences (positive and negative) that you will experience.

It wasn’t the first time I left Portugal. My husband and I had already left the country where we were born, also because of a professional challenge and move to Angola. As a result of that I already knew that being an immigrant is choosing to sit between two chairs: in your own country you will be the ‘emigrant’ in the another country you’re moving to you will be the expat…

While I’m away the lives of those who are dear to me will continue and I’ll miss weddings, births and baptisms. I will not be there to share joys and sorrows, to help and be helped. I also know that it is a possibility that I cannot get a chance to say a last goodbye to someone who died.

So, it is a decision that should be thought and made very carefully. What is the price I’m willing to pay for something that is priceless: be surrounding by my family and friends, my cultural references and all the places I’m used to?

Although it can seem very materialistic, to put a monetary reward, most of the time it goes beyond the bank balance and, depending on the personality of each one, it may be associated with the security of having money if they get sick or to be able to retire in old age, or the prospect of having an adventure and having a taste of a new culture, having new experiences and friendships.

For me, after all the accounts made, there was still another decision to make … Was I – a career woman – prepared for not having a job for a while? At least for the first three/four months?

Of course after the pros and cons were weighed, our decision was to embrace the adventure and move to Bermuda, or this blog would not have any purpose.