Fun Easy English - Travel abroad Portugal.

OFFICIAL NAME: Portuguese Republic

COUNTRY DESCRIPTION

Portugal is a developed and stable democracy with a modern economy. Tourist facilities are widely available.

PEOPLE

Portugal is one of the oldest states in Europe. It traces its modern history to A.D. 1140 when, following a 9-year rebellion against the King of Leon-Castile, Afonso Henriques, the Count of Portugal, became the country's first king, Afonso I. Afonso and his successors expanded their territory southward, capturing Lisbon from the Moors in 1147. The approximate present-day boundaries were secured in 1249 by Afonso III.

By 1337, Portuguese explorers had reached the Canary Islands. Inspired by Prince Henry the Navigator (1394-1460), explorers such as Vasco da Gama, Bartolomeu Dias, and Pedro Alvares Cabral made explorations from Brazil to India and Japan. Portugal eventually became a massive colonial empire with vast territories in Africa and Latin America (Brazil) and outposts in the Far East (East Timor, Macau, Goa).

Dynastic disputes led in 1580 to the succession of Philip II of Spain to the Portuguese throne. A revolt ended Spanish hegemony in 1640, and the House of Braganca was established as Portugal's ruling family, lasting until the establishment of the Portuguese Republic in 1910.

During the next 16 years, intense political rivalries and economic instability undermined newly established democratic institutions. Responding to pressing economic problems, a military government, which had taken power in 1926, named a prominent university economist, Dr. Antonio Salazar, as finance minister in 1928 and prime minister in 1932. For the next 42 years, Salazar and his successor, Marcelo Caetano, appointed prime minister in 1968, ruled Portugal as an authoritarian "corporate" state. Unlike most other European countries, Portugal did not play a combatant role in World War II. It was a charter member of NATO, joining in 1949.

In the early 1960s, wars with independence movements in Portugal's African territories began to drain labor and wealth from Portugal. Professional dissatisfaction within the military, coupled with a growing sense of the futility of the African conflicts, led to the formation of the clandestine "Armed Forces Movement" in 1973.

The downfall of the Portuguese corporate state came on April 25, 1974, when the Armed Forces Movement seized power in a nearly bloodless coup and established a provisional military government.

ENTRY/EXIT REQUIREMENTS

A passport is required for entry into Portugal. There are no immunization requirements. A visa is not required for tourist or business stays of up to 90 days. The 90-day period begins when you enter any of the "Schengen group" countries: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, and Sweden. Portuguese law requires some non-European Union foreign nationals to register with immigration officials within three days of entering Portugal. The law affects those who transit another Schengen area country by air en route to Portugal and stay at noncommercial accommodations. For further information concerning entry requirements for Portugal, visit the Government of Portugal web site at www.portugalemb.org for the most current visa information.

Travelers may also contact the Embassy of Portugal at 2012 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036, tel. (202) 350-5400, or the Portuguese Consulates in Boston, MA; New Bedford, MA; Providence, RI; New York, NY; Newark, NJ; San Francisco, CA; or Los Angeles, CA.

Note: Although European Union regulations require that non-EU visitors obtain a stamp in their passport upon initial entry to a Schengen country, many borders are not staffed with officers carrying out this function. If an American citizen wishes to ensure that his or her entry is properly documented, it may be necessary to request a stamp at an official point of entry. Under local law, travelers without a stamp in their passport may be questioned and asked to document the length of their stay in Schengen countries at the time of departure or at any other point during their visit, and could face possible fines or other repercussions if unable to do so.

QUICK FACTS

Geography
Area: 92,391 sq. km., including the Azores and Madeira Islands; slightly smaller than the State of Indiana.
Cities: Lisbon (capital, metropolitan area pop. 1.9 million), Porto (metro. area 1.7 million), Faro.
Terrain: Mountainous in the north; rolling plains in the central south.
Climate: Maritime temperate, average annual temperature is 16°C (61°F).

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Portuguese (singular and plural).
Population (2004): 10.56 million.
Population density: 113 per sq. km. (275 per sq. mi.).
Annual growth rate (2003): -1.3%.
Ethnic groups: Homogeneous Mediterranean stock with small black African and Eastern European minorities.
Religion: Roman Catholic, 97%.
Language: Portuguese.
Education: Years compulsory--9. Literacy (2004)--93.3%.
Health (2004 est.): Birth rate--10.82/1,000. Death rate--10.43/1,000. Infant mortality rate--5/1,000. Life expectancy--77.53 years.
Work force (5.48 million): Government and services--60%; industry--30%; agriculture--10%.

Government
Type: Republic.
Constitution: Effective April 25, 1976; revised October 30, 1982, June 1, 1989, November 5, 1992, and September 3, 1997.
Branches: Executive--president (head of state), Council of State (presidential advisory body), prime minister (head of government), Council of Ministers. Legislative--unicameral Assembly of the Republic (230 deputies). Judicial--Supreme Court, district courts, appeals courts, Constitutional Tribunal.
Administrative subdivisions: 18 districts, 2 autonomous regions.
Major political parties: Social Democratic Party (PSD), Socialist Party (PS), Popular Party (CDS/PP), Portuguese Communist Party (PCP), Left Bloc (BE).

Economy
GDP (2005): €147.8 billion (approx. $175 billion).
Annual growth rate: 1.4%.
Per capita GDP (2005): €14,100 (approx. $16,700).
Avg. inflation rate (2006): 2.5%.
Natural resources: Fish, tungsten, iron, copper, tin, and uranium ores. Agriculture: Products--forestry, fisheries, cork, wine.
Industry: Types--textiles, clothing, footwear, wood and cork, paper, chemicals, manufacturing, food and beverages.
Services: Commerce, government, housing, banking and finance.
Trade (2005): Exports--$38.14 billion: vehicles (not railway), electrical machinery, machinery, knit apparel, mineral fuel/oil, footwear. Imports--$61.17 billion: mineral fuel/oil, vehicles (not railway), electrical machinery, machinery, plastics, iron and steel. Export partners--Spain (25.8%), France (13.0%), Germany (11.7%), U.K. (7.9%), United States (5.4%), Italy (4.2%), Netherlands (4%). Import partners--Spain (28.9%), Germany (13.4%), France (8.5%), Italy (5.2%), Netherlands (4.3%), U.K. (4.6%).
U.S. trade (2005): Exports--$1.13 billion: aircraft/spacecraft, electrical machinery, grains, seeds, fruits, optical/medical, wood. Imports--$2.34 billion: machinery, electrical machinery, mineral fuel/oil, textiles, cork, beverages, footwear.

USEFUL LINKS

U.S. Government

Miscellaneous

ezilon.com - Europe International Web Directory and Search Engine.
tumba - Search engine for the Portuguese Web.