Portugal is known as a safe country, for its beaches, Golf courses, mild climate in general and the sun that is practically always present throughout the year. But Portugal is much more than that, it is a country with a huge cultural diversity which is reflected in its festivals and typical costumes of each region.
In summer the streets are filled with festivals and color throughout the country. You can experience it everywhere from the college students whose costumes can be seen all over the country and which inspired the author of Harry Potter.
To the north of the country where brides display the gold that serves them as a dowry passing through the spectacle of men dancing with the sticks they used as weapons in the only region of Portugal where you can hear the country's second official language: Mirandês.
When the summer sun fills the country with flowers, they get arranged in different ways throughout the country.
In some areas they cover the streets in elaborate tapestries. In others, such as Tomar, flower-baskets on the streets surprise with abundant colors. The joy and the way the Portuguese receive foreigners is contagious and integrates them frequently which leads often to participating in their parties.
The traditional use of flowers as a decorative element is exacerbated on the Madeira island where the flower festival is a tradition that exposes all the richness of flora in this area of Portugal. But it is not only the flowers that fill Madeira festivals with color, the typical costumes of plant sellers in the markets of this region flood the streets also on normal days with color and joy.
This is a cheerful, helpful people, who like to receive foreigners and who are proud of their cultural diversity and history. We can't talk about Portugal without talking about its Mediterranean food and its exceptional fresh fish, which can be found in any market and restaurant at low prices. And the fish takes us to another interesting region of this small country, Nazaré is known for the costume of the women who traditionally waited, on the beach, for the boats where their husbands went to fish.
Due to the cold water of the Atlantic, they always wore seven skirts and he top ones served to protect their head and shoulders from the cold of the sea. Its on the coast where the fish reigns and in the interior, especially in the Ribatejo, it is the horses and bulls that dominate the landscape and with them the typical costumes of their caretakers.
On a single page only it is difficult to talk about all the cultural diversity that this country has to offer. The only way to know is to visit and you cannot visit Portugal, taste its food, enjoy the sun and mild climate without wishing to experience this quality of life – at low cost – and without wanting to live for good in this peaceful paradise.
