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You wish to live in Portugal, but not in a big city or a small country town. And you’d love to be near the coast though any beach area is going to be dramatically costlier. Have you heard of Caldas da Rainha? A small historic city in Portugal’s Silver Coast region with a 20 minute drive to the water. Diane Jacobsen moved there from Seattle, Washington. Caldas da Rainha is no longer a secret, as many Americans now call it home. Learn more about this lovely city on Episode 133 of Retire There with Gil & Gene.
Also, check out Diane’s townhouse rental, which is inside a castle, that she renovated in Castelo de Vide, Portugal, now available on Airbnb as Romance Inside Castle Walls with Private Garden.
Diane highly recommends Martin Page’s The First Global Village, How Portugal Changed the World, a 2006 book that explains in depth the rich history of Portugal to appreciate the country in modern times.
Diane is originally from the Chicago area. She left in the ‘70s for college in Virginia and Seattle, and returned to Chicago for Grad school but spent most of her adult life in Palo Alto and Seattle.
She’s had several careers, including architecture, adjunct college lecturer and big 5 technology consulting. In early 2020, while loving her life in Portugal she was diagnosed with breast cancer, just as her adopted country was going into lockdown. She hunkered down in Portugal, received treatment there, among her friends and with her newly adopted rescue dog, Grey, and she kept volunteering at the local animal rescue center.
Diane has enjoyed worldwide travel for years. She’s an avid long distance walker, having completed multiple Camino walks to Santiago de Compostela, Via Algarviana and Via Francigena. And has a daughter and grandchildren in California.
