About Us — How an Israeli Family Found Their Home in Portugal

To be honest, when our adventure began, we weren't even aware of the size and the impact it would have on our lives. It all started as an innocent one-year self-relocation plan that completely changed and evolved into what it is today.

But first, allow me to introduce us.

Meet the Kimhi’s — A Family From Israel

We are the Kimhi’s. Hagi and Effie, a couple from Israel, parents to Adi, and twins Ori and Noga.

We had a normal life in Israel — if you could call it normal. We owned a home (and a 30-year mortgage) in a small, peaceful community on the front line of the Mediterranean sea, next to one of Israel's most beautiful nature reserves. We had two cars, a steady income, kids in a school they loved, and family and friends close by.

From the outside, it must have looked like a dream life. Honestly? It wasn't.

Financially, we were struggling. We converted our downstairs apartment into an Airbnb to bring in extra income — four years of working around the clock, with our busiest periods falling on national holidays, which meant quality family time became something rare and precious.

And then there was the constant lack of safety. Every few months, a new conflict would erupt in the Middle East. Running to the shelter room became routine. One day, I simply had enough.

The Conversation That Changed Everything

The first time Portugal came up between Hagi and me was when he came home from an environmental protest, where he'd met a friend whose family was applying for Portuguese citizenship and planning to move there.

I'll be honest — I knew almost nothing about Portugal at the time. Europe. Beaches. Portuguese. That was about it.

The following day, Hagi had already done his homework. He made calls, collected documents from his mother, and within weeks had everything sent off. His ancestors had been deported during the Spanish expulsion hundreds of years ago, and that gave him the right to apply for a Portuguese birth certificate. Then we waited.

Life is hectic — work, three kids, reality — and then one day, two years later, the confirmation email arrived. Hagi's Portuguese birth certificate had been approved.

"Now what?" I asked.

"Now we go to Portugal to collect it," he said simply.

Our First Trip to Portugal — December 2019

In December 2019, we all flew to Portugal for two weeks — partly a vacation, partly to collect Hagi's birth certificate and apply for Portuguese citizenship.

We arrived at night in the middle of a storm in Ericeira. The wind was stronger than anything we'd experienced. Rain. High seas. The next morning we walked the seafront, watching enormous Atlantic waves roll in. Growing up on the Mediterranean, this felt completely different — raw, powerful, and thrilling. A strong sense of adventure took over me completely.

We spent a week in Ericeira before driving toward Cantanhede, where Hagi had his appointment.

Dona Leonora — The Woman Who Stole Our Hearts

Little did we know, we were about to fall in love with the first Portuguese lady who would capture our hearts — Dona Leonora, our host at her home in Tentugal, Coimbra.

Leonora's home was the most charming and magical place. A beautiful lawn stretching over a little creek, flowers in bloom despite the winter weather, a little water mill surrounded by a colorful garden — and Leonora herself, whose warmth and personality captivated us from the first moment.

She guided us to hidden gems, historical spots and local secrets that no travel guide would ever take you. Every single recommendation was perfect. We loved our stay so much that we returned multiple times — but that's a story for another chapter.

After two weeks, flying home, we already knew: we were coming back. For longer. Much longer.

2020 — Covid, Chaos, and a Caravan

It was 2020. Covid-19 was at its peak in Israel and we were exhausted by it. Kids in school, then not. Zoom school, then not. Hagi's 3D visualization business was suffering as he threw himself deeper into activism against a gas rig planned for our beach. The cost of living kept climbing. The walls felt like they were closing in.

We sat down one evening and talked honestly about the near future — about wanting a fresh start, about dreaming of traveling for a year before coming home when things settled down.

Then Hagi said something that would turn out to be the most consequential sentence of our lives:

"Let's travel in a caravan."

He said it simply, innocently, as if it were the most obvious idea in the world.

We had no idea, sitting there that evening, that those five words were the beginning of an extraordinary family adventure that would lead us here — to Portugal, to a Quinta, to a completely new life.

What You'll Find on This Blog

This is where we share all of it — the caravan year, the decision to immigrate, buying our Quinta *small farm), renovating it with our own hands, raising teenagers in a foreign country, learning Portuguese, flipping properties, and reinventing ourselves professionally in the digital world.

If you're dreaming of a slower life in Portugal, considering immigration, curious about buying property here, or just love a good family adventure story — you're in the right place.

A Few Practical Notes From Our Experience

Over the years we've used a handful of services constantly that we genuinely recommend to anyone traveling or relocating to Portugal, we will post our recommendations here in the future, so stay tuned. 

In the meantime….

Have questions about our story or life in Portugal? We'd love to hear from you — head to our Contact page or leave a comment below.