MY PORTUGAL
THE STORY OF MATTEO
Sometimes they are small coincidences that completely change the course of a life. Or a flyer placed on a bar table. Thus begins the story of Matteo, who, to follow his team, ends up arriving in a new town, which will become his home. My Portugal it is the site where Matteo shows us this fascinating land, delving into the traditions, the cuisine and revealing destinations off the tourist routes.
Hi Matteo and welcome to Easy Travel Hosting! We read about how you landed in Portugal, specifically in Lisbon. Could you tell us this story?
Yes, as you may have understood, mine is one of those stories in which the hand of destiny played its part, and where one of the protagonists was undoubtedly fado (Portuguese word for destiny and which – not by chance – it is also the name of their most international popular music, born from the slums and full of saudade, another Lusitanian word that describes a widespread national feeling, which feeds on the nostalgia of a past, whether real or dreamed, which has been and which is no longer, a word so identifying that it is not easy to translate it into other languages).
Almost 25 years ago, during an afternoon work break (how good was the mushroom pizza at Mario's, under the architecture firm where I worked, in the center of Grosseto) I came across a small leaflet inviting the Viola fans (good times, those…) to follow their team right here in Lisbon, for the quarter-finals of a Cup that no longer exists.
At that time, Tabucchi's books were a fairly regular company for me, and those who read them know that they made you want to travel to get to know that strange and distant city, which at the time many Italians thought was in Spain: hence the phone call made with little hope to a friend who shared my footballing faith (now almost disappeared), his surprising adherence to the program, and the 3 or 4 day trip to the Portuguese capital, which welcomed us at the beginning of March with beautiful spring weather, with its light and with that aspect that seemed strange to me at the time, of a different city, European but also not, elegantly abandoned, alive and above all welcoming, not presumptuous.
And then the match, going out despite a terrible headache the following evening, a table that becomes free in a jazz music venue full of people, voices and colours, two girls right in front of us and then the vague memory of a fun night, in clubs that are always packed, music, smiles and happiness, so far from home.
The rest is perhaps predictable and in any case I keep it to myself, suffice it to say that after a year I packed my bags and said goodbye to friends and relatives, and that one of the girls is now my wife, as well as mother of Manel and Sara, our children, beautiful like all the children in the world, but be careful that in this case it is objective (as all the fathers in the world say…)
Your blog was born from the idea of giving non-touristy and non-obvious information to those who decide to visit Portugal. What are the things you absolutely recommend doing?
I have lived in Lisbon for a long time, I have traveled around Portugal far and wide, and I know it better than Italy, because it is logically smaller, but also because there is that curiosity of a foreigner, who falls in love with a city and a country and who sometimes ends up knowing them even better than those who were born there.
On my site, which I published 6-7 years ago and which is not really a blog but a cross between a blog and a guide, I have tried to put some useful information, advice and tips for Italians who would like to know Portugal better, trying to share my experiences and my knowledge, without ever giving up my personal vision – and therefore limited – so much so that I called him Ilmioportogallo.
I also work in tourism, and when I accompany Italian tourists I always try to convey the same enthusiasm and personal vision of my site, trying to also show less obvious or less traveled aspects of Lisbon and Portugal: in the last pre-Covid years, Portugal and Lisbon have been the protagonists of an impressive tourist boom, due to the numbers and the speed of their increase, which has given work to many, created wealth for some, and decreased the possibility of living in Lisbon for others.
Undeniable situations have appeared overtourism, especially in certain areas of Lisbon, with all the related problems, also from the point of view of safeguarding the identity of the city and its historical areas.
In reality, the problem of the tourism/sustainability balance is complex and not so easy to catalog and analyse, despite the fact that articles, posts, books, etc. have multiplied in recent years. on the change in Lisbon, on the irreparable loss of its identity, on how beautiful Lisbon was many years ago, often using clichés and without doing a real analysis of the situation: it makes me feel a little’ funny, in some cases they are written by people who don't even live here, who perhaps have only spent a while here’ of time, yet I notice a very peremptory tone, some talk about it as if they were born there, in
Portugal, with definitive sentences and analyses, while I don't have so many certainties.
However, returning to your question about the things you absolutely must do, perhaps the best answer is that there is no answer, also because people's interests and objectives in their travels are many and different.
However, I can tell you what for me is absolutely a must do, on a hypothetical trip to Portugal, then the choice will also depend on the time that people will have at their disposal: for city lovers, for example, Lisbon is objectively obligatory and – I'm suspicious, I know – the most fascinating of all, while admitting that Porto, where I always like to go, has a more marked historical identity (also because unlike Lisbon it was spared from the earthquake of 1755), which makes it – Perhaps – even more beautiful, but without having the light and colors of the capital, where I advise you to get lost, even without a specific destination, every now and then I just need to get away a little’ from the busiest streets to suddenly rediscover those sensations and that enchantment that I felt when I first arrived, Lisbon actually never ceases to surprise you.
Other cities to visit are certainly Évora, Guimarães and Braga, in my very personal order of preference; for those who want to travel on their own, the ideal is to rent a car, given that the network of roads and motorways is excellent, although the cost of tolls and petrol/diesel are, unfortunately, as expensive as in Italy (better if an electric car, therefore…)
Then I would recommend going to see and enjoy the sea, always and everywhere even if if I had to choose I would opt for the coast south of Lisbon, up to and including Sagres and the Algarve (but the latter outside the months of July and August, if possible): coming to Portugal and not seeing the sea for me, who am sea dependent, is worse than going to Rome and not seeing the Pope, so to speak. So here are some of my favorite beaches, from Lisbon downwards: Costa da Caparica, Coelhos (Arrabida), Brejos da Carragueira, Aberta Nova, Porto Covo, Malhão, Almograve, Amoreira, Arrifana, Cordoama/Castelejo, Beliche, Salgados, Falesia, Barril, but then it is also nice to look out from the cliffs, which in certain places (Cabo Sardão and Cabo de São Vicente, e.g.) are unmissable.
Those who love trekking and the sea must absolutely follow some of the stages of the Fishermen's Path of the Vicenza Rota, along the Alentejo and Algarvian coast, up to Sagres; while for those who want to learn more about nature I would say that the regions further north, i.e. Minho and Trás-os-montes, for example, offer peculiar and different landscapes, with very beautiful paths and routes, which can also be traveled by bike (in this regard I would like to point out the existence of various cycle paths in natural landscapes, often obtained from the reuse of ancient sections of disused railway). Also interesting are the historic villages (aldeias históricas) and the schist villages (aldeias de xisto), in central-northern Portugal, where tourists are rare and where it is easier to discover an even more authentic Portugal, which may also surprise you with some pleasant surprises in terms of artistic-architectural heritage.
And then there is also the Alentejo, a fascinating region with its cork groves, vineyards and olive groves, the ancient granary of Portugal, with its hills and plains where time seems to stop, and where you can travel tens of kilometers without seeing houses or a living soul, only large herds of cows in the wild…
I would say that this is enough as main recommendations, although there are many other places, and also many monuments, especially churches, museums and monasteries, not to be missed…
Let's talk about food and drink. What absolutely to try and where?
Even in this case a book would be needed, such is the richness and diversity of Lusitanian gastronomy and its history: each region has its dishes, each village its specialty, ranging from fish, often very fresh and grilled to perfection – in this case, in addition to the more noble fish such as sea bass (robalo) and sea bream (dourada), I also recommend more popular but delicious fish, such as sardines (sardinhas, but only between May and October) or sticklebacks (carapaus) – all'”faithful friend” of all Portuguese, namely cod (bacalhau), cooked in many different ways (my favorites? “to the mill”, “with cornbread”, “cooked with grains” or in “pataniscas”, a kind of cod fritters), preserved and consumed since the distant Middle Ages, for the many days a year in which meat was not allowed for religious reasons, and also fished directly by the Portuguese, in the distant Northern Seas, first in the 16th century and then in the 20th century.
Still remaining in the sea, how can we forget the delicious and always present octopus, and also the marisco, or seafood (from prawns to crabs, from lobsters to clams and percebes which many of you don't know what they are and therefore don't know what they're missing…), which requires greater effort on the wallet but which rewards the soul…
As for the meat, you can go from the classic kid in the oven (cabrito no oven) proposed a little’ everywhere, even if more typical of the inland areas, to the suckling pig (leitão assado) in the town of Mealhada, near Coimbra, from the stewed lamb (ensopado de borrego) of the Alentejo to the delicious veal of Lafões, or a succulent posta mirandesa from the Trá-os-montes region, without taking anything away from the traditional Algarvian roast chicken (franguinho à moda da Guide).
Then if you are greedy here you risk harming yourself, because they too are greedy, and they have preserved many centuries-old recipes, often coming from the convents that existed since the Middle Ages and remained in operation until the mid-19th century: here the nuns used egg whites to lighten the wine and to starch their clothes, and with the leftover yolks they made desserts, thus explaining the reason for so much orange in the windows of Portuguese pastry shops. Frankly, I give up sweets without great sacrifice, I prefer fruit (oranges, apples and pears are normally good choices) but with a coffee every now and then a pastel de nata or a travesseiro, for example, I end up eating them…
Moving now to drinking, Portuguese wines were a revelation for me: from the wines of the Douro to those of the Alentejo, passing through the lively wines of Minho (the so-called “green wine”), but with interesting proposals also in other less known regions, the panorama is waiting to be discovered, also because Portugal is a great producer (and consumer) of the nectar of Bacchus, offering a great variety of native vines, and an incredible difference in terroir and therefore in proposals, with a quality/price ratio that is often truly competitive: if you then want a wine like they drank in the Middle Ages, you can try the “medieval wine” of Ourém, in the Lisbon Region, while if you are intrigued by the thousand-year-old traditions of the Romans who planted a lot of vineyards here, you can try the talha (amphora) wines from the Alentejo Region, e.g.
Without forgetting the fortified wines, Porto and Madeira above all, but Moscatel is not bad either…
One last thing to close the gastronomic section: if, like me, you can't eat without bread, you're in the right place, for me Portuguese bread is a marvel (it's no coincidence that Portuguese emigrants abroad often end up becoming bakers, just as many Italians propose themselves as pizza chefs or ice cream makers…).
How is the Portuguese situation regarding recycling and respect for the environment?
Although Portugal is not a rich country (indeed), it is quite at the forefront in various aspects, and in terms of production of renewable energy, for example (wind and solar, above all, but other possibilities are also being studied and analysed, such as the exploitation of the power of the tides), they represent a significant percentage in the total production of electricity.
Where it still has a long way to go is precisely in the field of recycling, and even more so in the disposal of waste at a macro level, given that methods that are already widely outdated in countries that are more attentive and sensitive to the issue are still in use: fortunately the mentality, especially of the younger ones, is changing, and the intentions are there, it remains to be seen whether they will be fulfilled, and whether it will be possible in some cases to fight all those interests that represent the real obstacle to a real process of improving environmental conditions.
Easy Travel Hosting thanks Matteo very much for telling us about his Portugal
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