Lisbon is more expensive than Barcelona, Madrid, or Milan Portugal’s property market is booming but the damage inflicted on the social fabric of the big cities is profound. Unaffordable rents and purchase prices are hitting not just those on subsistence prices and pensions, but ordinary workers and their families. The actual situation can be traced […]
Has the golden visa program fulfilled its role? The Golden Visa program in Portugal is very lucrative and at the same time much-criticized residency by-investment program for people from non-EU countries. To obtain such a ‘golden’ permit one has to invest at least half a million euros in property, in exchange for permanent residency and […]
‘Basically same place, same art, different name’ Lisbon’s Centro Cultural de Belém (CCB) – the city’s main cultural centre – is to open a new museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, the MAC-CCB, in the space previously occupied by the Berardo Collection Museum. Besides a different name, visitors won’t be noticing any change. ‘It will […]
‘Consoada is free of meat, as required before Misa do Galo’ The Portuguese needed fish for religious reasons as meat consumption was forbidden during Lent and on the many fasting days in their Catholic calendar. These rules on fasting led to the tradition of eating bacalhau (cod) on Christmas Eve. The consoada is a humble […]
‘Migration is a right, not a privilege’ – António Guterres, UN Secretary-General The socialist-led government of Antonio Costawants attracts more immigrants to compensate for a declining population due to an extremely low birth rate. It moreover stimulates highly-qualified Portuguese – who have emigrated – to return to the homeland with bonuses up to 7500 euros. […]
‘Portugal’s best-kept secret’ Despite the fact that Portugal is European champion in bicycle production, as to physical exercise the country is at the very bottom of the league table. The Portuguese exercise the least in Europe. Almost three quarter (73%) say they never exercise or do any kind of sport – against 45% of the […]
Environmental noise is linked to depression, anxiety, and heart disease According to WHO, ambient noise is, after air pollution, the second biggest environmental cause of health problems. Prolonged exposure to noise provokes sleep disturbance, stress, headache, and concentration problems – eventually leading to chronic conditions such as depression, anxiety, and heart disease. Last month the […]
‘Someone who abuses a child cannot be priest’ Little by little it’s becoming clear that Catholic priests in Portugal have sexually abused children for decades. The scandal that hit the headlines in France last year encouraged the opening of an inquiry in Portugal in January. Since then the ‘Independent Commission to Study Sexual Abuse Against […]
‘Bottled water is a shame’ Portuguese are champions in the consumption of bottled water with 140 liters per person per year. That is 14 times more than the Swedes, 5 times more than the Dutch, and 3 times more than the British. Bottled water is not only very expensive, but plastic bottles also mean a […]
‘The Portuguese history is not just white, Mocambo may not remain forgotten’. Around 1500 King Manuel I decided to give the monopoly of slave trafficking in the Portuguese empire to Lisbon. For two and a half centuries circa 10% of the population in the capital consisted of black slaves, performing the hardest tasks. In one […]