The questionnaires answered by real expats have a nice combination of practical travel and living info and stories of the interviewee's background and journey. Below is an excerpt from an interview of a New Yorker who moved to Salvador, Bahia and lived there for 6 years. Very cool!
-Where were you born?
I was born in New York City, New York, USA., and moved to San Francisco when I was twenty.
-In which country and city are you living now?
Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.-What is your age?
54
-When did you come up with the idea of living in Brazil?
One of my great passions is Latin America. I had visited almost all the countries in Latin America and Brazil was one of the few that was still on my "to visit" list. In 1999 I went for a short trip and I fell in love with the country. I started coming every year for six-month stays, until I finally made the leap and made Brazil my full-time home.
-Was it hard to get a visa or a work permit?
For the first seven years I was able to stay for six months a year on a tourist visa. Now I am in the process of getting legal residency and I have permission to live here until it is processed. Residency based on domestic partnerships is a new concept in Brazil, so I am using a lawyer to get through the paperwork and the bureaucracy. It was relatively easy to apply for the residency, but the wait to get the final paperwork can take up to two years.
-Was it difficult for you to get medical insurance before you went there or when you first arrived?
I didn't have medical insurance during the first seven years. Fortunately I am healthy as well as lucky and I never needed it. Now I have medical coverage through my partner's job.
