Locals about Portugal: He who warns you is a friend
After the great success of Locals about Greece, the Flythomascook team decided to gather a panel of seven Portuguese men and three Portuguese women and ask them the same questions about their country, culture and cuisine.
The most popular words to describe Portugal were sunny, beautiful, small, historic and welcoming – fabulous ingredients for a superb holiday if you’re asking us! If you’re especially interested in the countryside, the locals think spring is the best time of the year to visit Portugal. If you’re booking flights to Faro because you fancy a beach holiday, they say the weather won’t disappoint you between April and October. One young mand added that the beaches and roads will be extra crowded in August because most Portuguese people don’t have to work during that month. The beaches will stil be beautiful, though. “I’m only mentioning it because in Portugal we say: Quem te avisa, tue amigo e. He who warns you is a friend.”
The Portuguese are very fond of tourists and will always try to give everyone a warm welcome. They are happy to answer your questions in English and don’t mind at all if you don’t speak Portuguese. The only thing they don’t like is when people seem to think that Portugal is a part of Spain. If you don’t want to insult anyone, don’t try to speak Spanish and don’t ask about siesta time. There is no siesta tradition in Portugal. If you want to show them that you’re prepared to make an effort to speak their language, the first word you need to know is ‘ola’, which means ‘hello’. It is pronounced as ‘oh-laa’, with the emphasis on the second syllable.
When it comes to alcoholic beverages, all the locals recommended Vinho do Porto (Porto Wine) and Cerveja beer. Their favourite local dishes included Bacalhau (codfish),Portuguese cozido (a rich stew made from shin of beef, pork, Portuguese smoked or blood sausages and vegetables), Feijoada (a stew of beans with beef and pork) and Pastel de Nata or pastel de Belem (traditional egg tart pastry).
