Recommendations
Sarah Y., north-american.
Setúbal, July 2025
I met Cecília not long after arriving in Portugal.
My family and I, clueless, English-speaking foreigners with bicycles appeared and were obviously in need of assistance.
Cecília is in the habit of helping wherever she can -- family members, animals, neighbors, you name it.
So Cecília started helping us. Taxes, forms, language difficulties, medical appointments, cultural misunderstandings. I could always ask Cecília. We started building a house here, and had to go back to America to sell our house there. We needed someone we could trust to work with the Câmara Municipal, the builder and architect if needed. Cecília became our «procuradora». We could go sell our old house and not worry about a thing. The new house was being looked after.
Cecília knows this area in a way that no foreigner never will.
So how Portuguese is she? Her entire family, save one, live in one village.
And now Cecília is offering a service to just help out foreigners who land here and, like us, are a bit clueless.
Taking government classes to get your A2 but still can't understand or speak? Call Cecília. Need help filling out forms? Dealing with the câmara? Need to go to the hospital?
Yes, the doctor probably speaks English but lots of the hospital staff don't.
Just getting to the doctor (or the x-ray or whatever) can be A Process.
Cecília can help.
I honestly can't think of anyone I'd rather have on my side.