Entries by Lusolobo

Jamaica

Portugal is one of the most racist countries in the EU – European Social Survey Once again police violence against an underprivileged community has hit the headlines. This time the battlefield is called Jamaica. Not the home of Bob Marley’s reggae but a ghettoized neighbourhood of merely black Afro-descendants in the southern outskirts of greater […]

Sugarloaf

For about 70 years Madeira was the most important sugar producer in Europe The introduction of sugar cane farming by the Portuguese into Madeira towards the first half of the 15th century – some decades before Columbus discovered America – meant that sugar could be exported, at first through Lisbon and then directly to the […]

Epiphany

January 6. Epiphany – Kings Day – Dia de Reis. In Portugal the day to eat Bolo Rei, a ring-shaped cake with a small hidden surprise inside. Also, the day to put all Christmas decorations away. In neighbouring Spain, the presents under the Christmas tree will only then be unpacked as it were the three […]

Portrait2018

Five years after the peak of its economic crisis, Portugal’s future looks bright. There is more confidence, more consumption and there are more young people in college. In December the country succeeded in paying off the last installment of the 78 billion euro loan to the EU and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The accelerated […]

Impairment

‘Assistance, work and independence’ ‘We aren’t  2nd hand citizens!’ Last May, Joao Rodriguez – a 95% physically restricted and wheelchair dependent quadriplegic from Figueira da Foz – was happy his brother could bring him to Lisbon, to attend the nationwide demonstration of disabled people, demanding a raise in the budget for the Support Centres for […]

Zé is dood                                                  Zé is dead stond op de App                                       the App said dinsdag                                                      on Tuesday om half twee                                    […]

Violation

‘Sex without consent is rape’ – Istanbul Convention, 2011 ‘Violence against women is a crime and a shame for the country’ – Rosa Monteiro, Secretary of State for Citizenship and Equality Although in Portugal verbal sexual harassment is a crime – with penalties varying from a fine of up to 120 euros to a year […]

Doggies

Chained dogs suffer from stress and behavioral problems and are also more vulnerable to being attacked by other dogs November is the month of Magusto – the traditional autumn festival –but from now on November will also go down in history as Month of Summits. Earlier on tens of thousands of visitors invaded the Altice […]

Conference

‘The best technology conference on the planet’ – Forbes ‘Where the future goes to be born’ – The Atlantic ‘The giants of the web assemble’ – Wall Street Journal ‘A great conclave of the tech industry’s high priests’ – New York Times What do have 70.000 visitors (from 170 countries), 1200 speakers ( one third […]

Traffic

The Lisbon metropolis – with 18 municipalities –  accommodates about 2.8 million inhabitants, who all seem to have the same addiction: their car! Unfortunately, a still growing number of Portuguese use the car at the expense of public transport,  5 times less utilized for commuting. Each day 370.000 vehicles drive into the capital, in general with […]