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Today’s PrideNomad™ Quiz:

In Today’s Email:

Nomad News: Portugal is Calling You!

On The Channel: 10 Travel Mistakes

Experiences: How Can Love Be Offensive?

Edinburgh Update: More to Love…or not…

NOMAD NEWS:

🏳️‍🌈 Portugal Isn’t a Dream. It’s a Reset.

There’s this moment you hear about from people who move to Portugal.

It’s not about visas. Or cost of living. Or even the wine.

It’s when you realize you’ve gone several days without shrinking yourself.

You’ve held hands in public.

You’ve kissed your partner at a tram stop.

You’ve made eye contact with a neighbor, and they didn’t blink.

And that’s when it hits you:

You’ve stopped holding your breath.

💬 “I didn’t come here to be gay. I came here to feel safe.”

More and more LGBTQ+ digital nomads and part-time expats are choosing Portugal—not just for beauty or affordability, but for belonging.

Like Scott and Michael, a couple who left the U.S. after political unrest made everyday life feel heavy. They landed in Lisbon. They were open about who they were from day one.

They found a quiet-but-thriving queer community. They made friends. They started calling Portugal home.

🌈 Queer History Hidden in Plain Sight

It’s one of the most photographed sights in Lisbon—the towering Elevador de Santa Justa, with its wrought-iron balconies and sweeping city views.

But long before it became a postcard-perfect landmark, this Gothic elevator had a secret life.

During Portugal’s dictatorship years, when being gay could get you arrested (or worse), the elevator’s hidden nooks and nighttime shadows made it a cruising haven for Lisbon’s underground queer community.

For generations, it was one of the few places queer locals could find each other—if only for a moment—in a world that refused to see them.

So yes, it’s beautiful.

But more than that?

It’s proof that we’ve always been here.

Even when the world told us to disappear, we found each other anyway.

🏳️‍🌈 What queer freedom actually looks like in Portugal

• You can live in a beautiful flat for half what you’d pay in LA or London

• Same-sex marriage has been legal for 15 years

• Anti-discrimination laws are enforced—across housing, healthcare, and employment

• Trans healthcare is publicly funded

• There are no “Don’t Say Gay” laws lurking around a legislative corner

But even more than the laws, there’s something deeper.

People just let you live.

That’s the quiet superpower of Portugal.

🏄🏽‍♀️ “I came for the surf. I stayed for the safety.”

One queer solo traveler described their move to Porto this way:

That’s the pattern we keep hearing.

People arrive to try it out. Three months. Maybe six.

Then they find themselves walking slower. Breathing deeper.

Not just surviving queer life—but actually living it.

Just like my friend Qi, who’s bought a home in the middle of the country, is renovating it and splits his time between there and London. He considers Portugal home…and London as a place for business now.

💬 But 2025’s not without its fine print…

Of course, no paradise is perfect. And Portugal’s 2025 updates make clarity more important than ever.

Here’s what’s changed:

• The D8 digital nomad visa now requires €3,480/month in documented income

• Some cities now ask for both a NIF and NISS for long-term residency

• The Non-Habitual Resident tax break is gone—replaced by innovation-focused incentives

• And visa appointment delays are common for citizens of some countries (India, UAE, etc.)

If you’re planning a move, these shifts matter.

You need a real plan. Not just wanderlust.

✈️ Want to test Portugal—without blowing up your life?

That’s exactly why we created the Portugal Soft Landing Plan.

It’s a gentle, grounded way to figure out if Portugal could actually work for you—without quitting your job, giving up your apartment, or panicking about paperwork.

Here’s what’s inside:

• The “trial run” visa path for up to 6 months

• Housing picks in Lisbon and Porto you can book today

• Real queer budget breakdowns—both “pasta and wine” and “comfortable with extras”

• Legal + financial prep to protect your home country life

• A community connection guide (including groups + intro scripts)

• And a few bonus cities in Portugal that might surprise you

🎁 Plus: An early copy of No Closets. No Borders—a book about building a life without limits.

Final thought:

Portugal isn’t trying to dazzle you.

It’s just letting you live.

And sometimes, that’s more powerful than any rainbow flag or parade.

If you’re ready to stop researching and start feeling…
you know where to go.

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The best part? Their human team is free to focus on the complex, high-value issues that matter most.

👉 Curious how they did it? Read the full case study to learn how Papaya transformed their customer support

ON THE CHANNEL:

10 Travel Mistakes LGBTQ+ Nomads Make (But Nobody Warned You About)

EXPERIENCES:

How Can Love Be Offensive?

As PrideNomads, we do more than just live a borderless life. Like it or not, we’re ambassadors of our fabulous lifestyle and the countries that we call home.

This is why our position has always been that we’re here to inspire peace in the world—where we demonstrate that as queer nomads, we’re not a threat. In fact, we bring more kindness and understanding to those we interact with.

That said, not everyone may appreciate the way you express yourself.

The other day, I sent an email that ended with four innocent words:

Love you. Mean it. :)

It was my way of saying thanks — a little warmth, a little wink. I’ve said it a hundred times to friends, strangers, baristas, taxi drivers… nobody’s ever fainted.

But a few hours later, I got a formal reply:

“…your language has strayed into a territory I would deem unprofessional. Please consider this going ahead.”

Wait. What?

We’re in a world where “love you” is now a workplace offense?

So I replied simply:

Noted. Apologies. Never my intention to offend.

And that closed the book. Or as the love police put it:

“Much appreciated. Happy to draw a line under this.”

Which, let’s be honest, is the corporate equivalent of a royal wave from a benevolent king: “I hereby grant you permission to move forward.”

Apparently, even kindness gets boundaries in certain inboxes.

Here’s the bigger thing: We’ve somehow built environments where human connection is suspect. Where we strip language down until it’s cold, sterile, and safe for HR — but not for the soul.

The truth? The more disconnected and “professional” we become, the more we starve the one thing we all need — to feel seen, valued, and yes, loved.

So no, I’m not going to sanitize my personality. I’ll adapt to context (you don’t hug in an operating room), but I won’t delete kindness from my vocabulary to fit into someone else’s comfort zone.

If the worst thing I ever get accused of is “being too loving,” I can live with that. Happily.

Love you. Mean it. :) —Ken

P.S. Has this ever happened to you? Hit reply and tell me — I’m collecting “friendly crimes” for a future piece.

EDINBURGH UPDATE:

🎭 Seven More We Missed Last Week

Because apparently 37 Fringe reviews wasn’t enough…
Here’s the balance of the performances that PrideNomad Mom and I saw on our annual adventure. Want to join us next summer? Respond and let us know!

Golden Time (and Other Behavioural Management Strategies) ★★★★☆ Well-acted and clearly resonant with the UK audience — but as Americans, we were totally lost. Centered around school discipline strategies we’ve never heard of, the whole thing felt like watching someone else’s inside joke. Still, the performers were sharp. We’d give it five stars if we understood what the hell was going on.

Tom Brace Saws Himself in Half ★★★★★ A magic show disguised as a comedy hour — or maybe the other way around. Tom Brace was effortlessly charming, hilariously self-deprecating, and gave us a tightly executed hour of illusions, banter, and genuine joy. Not quite Ben Hart-level, but honestly? Not far off. Fringe family fun at its finest.

Dangerous Goods ★★★★★ Picture this: feminist circus meets high-velocity cabaret. This all-woman cast from Australia delivered jaw-dropping physical feats, slick storytelling, and a refreshing queer-centric perspective. It was loud, proud, and powerful. Pride Nomad Mom called it a “women’s empowerment hour.” I called it a five-star knockout.

Brunchtime Best of Broadway ★★☆☆☆ Oh honey. No. We were promised showstoppers — we got sleepytime cabaret. A low-energy married couple, some uninspired Disney picks, and a version of Memory that made us wish for amnesia. We love Broadway. This made us reconsider. “Best of Broadway”? We think not.

Kinder ★★★★☆ (Mom) / ★★★★★ (Me) A solo drag-ish show that’s not quite drag — it’s a beautifully layered monologue on childhood, identity, and queer resistance. The twist? It’s all framed around a story hour at a children’s library. Gutsy, grounded, and unexpectedly tender. I loved it. Mom liked it but didn’t quite connect as deeply.

Grooming My Ass ★★★★☆ Covered in shaving cream. Talking about twink trauma and psychedelic self-destruction. Yeah, it’s a lot. Raw, chaotic, and hard to watch at times — but also undeniably brave. This is what “Fringe” means when it’s not trying to be pretty. Uncomfortable, yes. But unforgettable.

Bombshell ★★★★☆ Three sparkly Vegas showgirls. A failing nightclub. A climate change musical cabaret…? This earnest, goofy, and slightly undercooked production gets points for heart and message, but the execution felt a little “off-off-off Broadway.” That said, they clearly loved doing it — and that joy was contagious.

Answer to Today’s Quiz

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