Ukram you are are good example of the error that too many expats make when choosing to move abroad.
Some after a couple of good holidays move thinking that real life will be the same when obviously it is very different.
Others base their move on simple economic reasons , price of rents, properties, possible tax breaks etc not thinking that living in that area 24/7 , 365 days of the year needs much more forthought.
As you will read many, many times on forums from those of us who have made the decision to rent or buy where we have is to spend time visiting those parts of Portugal that appeal.
Make contact with other expats in those areas and ask for their honest opinions and experiences.
Clearly your chosen location has not met your expectations but that is not the fault of Portugal or the Portuguese.

The topic is about what we miss and this is what we miss most. Our quality of life has improved dramatically even though we miss the interaction with English speakers. This does not in anyway make us resentful of our move.

I do not suggest that you are regretting your decision to move but that your life in Portugal would for you be even better if you had done more research and visited more of Portugal before deciding on your current location.
An example is the " fish and chips " topic, we can get fresh hake and even cod in our large supermarkets and fish markets.
They will clean and even fillet the fish for us if asked.
You can if you want buy UK brands of frozen fish in some shops and many Expat focussed restaurant serve acceptable battered fish.

Perhaps that is one reason why the attempts by Brits to open fish&chips shops fail. There is little need for them.

Hi all, it's great to hear from different experiences of living abroad full time, it has all been really informative, I wondered what the tradesmen are like on the whole and is it easy to find timber to work with, on small projects, many thanks Louise

I researched for over 2 years before our move. I also miss driving on the other side of the road. Does that also make me resentful? No.

Hi Louise, tradesmen on the whole great here (same as most countries some bad most good) For example: we took our car in to a fella in Moncarpacho. We got it back, washed, cleaned and vacuumed..we were in happy-shock AND he went with me dear Pat to a tire place to help him get a good price. All this was done with my dear Pat speaking not more then 6 words of Portuguese and our mechanic speaking zero English. When the language became a problem Mechanic called a friend to help him....a real pleasure and he has all of our business now.

Research is very different from visiting and getting first hand experience.
I think that the many returnees made their initial decisions to move after just looking at the internet.
Would you have chosen your current location if you had spent a couple of weeks there out of season and discovered that you are one of a few expats and that there are very few English speakers ?

Ukk I am wondering --along with others I am sure. How you made the decision to move to Portugal and to a very out of the way area of Portugal ..in the first place?Was it to work?

It might help others thinking of moving here ,to do a bit of historical research first.
Portugal was a somewhat isolated country before they joined the EU. A country controlled by a dictator called Salazar who kept the population on a tight reign ( read poor and ignorant).Everything from Education to how you voted relied on who you knew.It's only since the revolution in 1974 that the country has started to blossom again.Albeit with the hangover problems of heavy(corrupt?) control from the Capital Lisbon.Education has been the biggest leap forward for the country.So the fact that anyone speaks English is a mega plus point.The Algarve is the centre for English speakers.Mainly because it was the English who spent the money necessary to develop it from the small clusters of poor fishing villages to the major tourist area it is today.(as far back as the 1960's)In partnership with Portuguese and Spanish Investors and builders etc.I have actually met more Portuguese speaking English ex-pats here than Dutch speaking ex-pats when I lived in the Netherlands.I do recommend persevering though and learning Portuguese.It's the polite thing to do after all.I leaned Dutch --painfully...over a period of three yrs.Older now but still regard it as essential so plough through lessons once a week.If it's the price to pay for the privilege of living in this beautiful country..It's a small price isn't it

I think we are off thread and need to start a new topic for this conversation....
This particular thread started as : What do we miss from the UK, yes? Or (my interpretation) what do we miss from our home country even though we love and CHOOSE to live in this wonderful land, Portugal.

We often go 'off piste' Munster part of the conversation

Not at all off subject Munster, not been directly said so I'll translate for you "we miss moaning!"

You mean you don't moan about the weather?

I have been trying to think of something we miss and all I can think of is the English countryside a result of our climate and 100,s years of agriculture and management.
Almost everything else we can get if we really do have a craving.

Ahhhh yes, 'off piste' such a fine 'snow-based' analogy .....got it.

@GeniB. I have retired here and not looking for work. More than 2 years of research led me to PT.
I realised that the north is not as conversant in English as the south but I have my reasons for choosing the north.
Mainly, I cannot take the hot weather and expensive cost of living in the Algarve.