We started our slow travel journey back at the end of February this year, where we had no idea, or were at least ignorant about what was about to hit as a global pandemic. We spent the first month in Lisbon before we moved to Cotovia nearby Sesimbra for the following 3 month. While we extended our stay for a little longer then initially planned, we were eager to explore new areas and while the borders between various countries are still closed, travel within mainland Portugal and its islands Madeira and Azores started to open up.
Madeira and Porto Santo opened to international tourists from July 1st, with the requirement of presenting a negative Covid-19 test done within 72 hours prior to departure or to be tested upon arrival. You can find more details on travel to Madeira at their dedicated website
We couldn't figure out how to get a test with the required time window at our previous location, so we took the test provided by the Madeira government and got confirmed negative around 6 hours after being tested. During this time we stayed at our accommodation which we were told is required procedure.
While we had no symptoms and were quite sure that we would be fine, it was nevertheless a big relief, having it officially confirmed. This is obviously just a moment in time that confirms that we were not infected at the time of testing, so we continue to be overly careful, avoiding any crowded places and protect ourselves and others by wearing masks and washing our hands regularly with soap or 96% alcohol while shopping or being in public places. We do whatever we can to stay safe and protect others, which I would think is a no brainer for everyone, but unfortunately I get proven wrong too many times.
This latest change of scenery is also a milestone in my professional journey, getting closer to the completion of my transition from my previous CTO role at a NYC startup to working full-time on my own project as well as on some interesting freelance work as iOS and web developer.
I've spent more than a year on building out an idea that started close to 10 years ago, and while it's not yet ready to be launched, I feel close enough to invest more time into this project, so that I get it out into the world. As I'm transitioning to making this project my main focus, there is lots to learn and figure out, which I plan to write more about here on my personal blog going forward.