The land of explorers

Portugal lies at the southwest extremity of continental Europe, forming the western edge of the Iberian Peninsula. The country's only neighbor is Spain, with whom the River Minho forms a natural border in the north. Eastwards a backbone of craggy mountains divides the old adversaries, while expansive plains stretch down to the sea. Portugal looks out to sea. Portugal is roughly rectangular, 560km (350 miles) long from north to south, and 215km (133 miles) wide. Two great rivers, the Douro and the Tejo, which flow across the country to their mouths at Porto and Lisboa respectively.

The greatest of all Portuguese influences, however, is the sea. The Atlantic Ocean seems to dominate the land not only physically, producing the consistently temperate climate, but mentally and historically, too. The Portuguese are very conscious of themselves as a seafaring race. Marines like Vasco da Gama led the way in the discovery of Africa and the New World, and until comparatively recently Portugal remain a colonial power.

The real joy of traveling in Portugal is that it is still one of the least discovered corners of Western Europe. Portugal is a country whose national character has been shaped by history, geography and centuries of warfare with Spain. In 1139, D. Afonso Henriques wins battle against the Moors and becomes the first King of Portugal. In 1910 the end of the Monarchy and the Republic proclaimed. Several factors had affected Portugal's accessibility earlier this century: Spanish Civil War, the Second World War and the long dictatorship of Salazar. The dictatorship of Salazar began at 1932 and only end in 1974. Only twenty-five years have passed since Portugal had her 'Revolution ' in April 1974, which although bloodless, shook the country to its foundations.

Today, Portugal is a modern country and a member of the European Union. The current population is about 10 million.

The Climate in north of Portugal is very different from the south. In the north we have the cooler temperatures years round, and the strong possibility of rain any time between autumn and spring. In south enjoy a Mediterranean-type climate with long hot summers and mild winters.

Portugal provides many things you might expect if you're familiar with Spain, including Fine Food and wine, spectacularly sited castles, medieval hilltop villages, and excellent beaches. A traditional Portuguese meal is a big, lusty affair involving several courses. Our traditional and national plates are dried salted cod fish (Bacalhau) cooked in different ways and the Portuguese boiled (Cozido à Portuguesa). The dried salted cod fish can be fried in layers with diced potatoes, onions, a lot of olive oil and olives (Bacalhau à Gomes de Sá) or can be roasted cod fish creamed with very thin diced potatoes (Bacalhau com Natas) or only boiled together with potatoes and carrots. Because Cod fish is very traditional in Portugal we have one more hundred ways to cook it. The other traditional plate - Cozido à Portuguesa - is very easy to do, only put every thing in one big pan, like potatoes, carrots, cabbage, beef, chicken, pork, veal, smoked sausage, smoked ham, smoked pork fillet, bacon with a little water and salt and let it boiled for a long time very slowly.

Wines! From a very big kind of varieties depend of witch one you want choose. But the more special is the Oporto wine, produced around the river Douro, it's the most sweet wine, used for aperitif, desert, cheer or … The secret is in the grapes and how it is treat in the years it is stored in large wooden vats, made of oak for the best wines, and chestnut for the others. Others are Vinho Verde from north and Vinho Maduro from south very good for drink during the meals.

The flag design:
Two vertical bands, one green (hoist side, two-fifths) and one red (three-fifths) with the Portuguese coat of arms centered (yellow sphere) on the dividing line.

Meaning of the symbols and colors:
The green color represents hope.
The red color represents courage and the blood of the Portuguese fallen in combat.
The yellow sphere represents the world that Portuguese navigators discovered in the fifteen (XV) and sixteen (XVI) centuries as well as the people with whom they exchanged ideas and trade.
The seven castles around the white shield represent the fortified locations that Don Afonso Henriques conquered to the Moriscos.
The white shield with the five small blue shields inside represent the Armour of Don Afonso Henriques.
The five blue shields represent the five Morisco kings Don Afonso Henriques defeated in the Ourique battle.
The dots inside each of the blue shield represent the five wounds of Christ. The total of thirty dots in the shields represent the thirty silver coins Judas received for having betrayed Jesus Christ.