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In our continuing series on i sustainable tourism, ' Donald Greig travels the 3 length of Portugal looking through local keyholes.
‘Drugs'?‘ whispers a voice as I‘m seized offthe bus at Lisbon‘s waterfront Praga do Come’rcio. ‘You i want drugs? Hashish, marijuana, cocaine. . . C"
‘You sell watch?‘ he interrupts himself. A moment‘s pause.
; ‘Camera!’ he continues. producing a f camera from beneath his coat. It’s a bargain at the price he‘s asking, but I‘ve been in the country less than an hour and all I want is a room and a
bath.
This is hardly an uncommon scene. It occurs regularly throughout Europe as each new batch of tourists arrives in holiday mood, wallets at the ready. looking for somewhere to offload their cash. It is also often the only type of contact tourists have with the local population and can leave some fairly unappealing impressions.
Bridging the gap between visitor and host can be a tricky business. In
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man of Europe‘, tourism is a vital lifeline to the outside world. But what way is there of breaking down
difference between whether you really enjoy a place and feel as if you‘ve got to know it or not? Homestays have taken off around the world. In some former Eastern European countries they’ve gone as far as producing directories ofwilling hosts, complete with his or her age, interests. and anything else that might be of relevance — a sort of instant pen-pal to put you up (usually for a small fee) and show you round. Portugal‘s scheme is more formal. Operating mainly in the rural north of the country. an area ofstunning beauty not unlike the Highlands
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76 The List 23 October — 5 Nave—fiber 1992'
; (albeit with terraced vines), Turismo ' de Habitagao (‘Tourism in the
Country’) is an organisation which holds details of old manor houses which have opened their doors to the public. Although similar to B and B, the chances are the house will be considerably more grand, but not always much more expensive.
I found myselfstaying with the local count near Ponte de Lima, a
In the evening we burned candles and sat underthe watchful eye of Mrs Thatcher.
higgledy-piggledy Roman town, sleepy enough to be relaxing, but big enough to offer interest. The house — or mansion — was built in the 17th
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Paco do Calholros, Ponte de Lima century and looks out over the Lima valley. The count was a formidable man, late 30$, imposing stature and grace, with dark eyebrows which almost met in the middle, and a measured walk and tone. Slightly laconic, his expression was that of a man contented with his lot, while his satisfied, bemused look often made me wonder if he’d just had his way with the servant girl who brought me breakfast in my room each morning.
He was charming and gave me a history of the house and grounds (his grandfather used to leave barrels of wine for the peasants at the gate), and suggested places to visit. Since the house was fairly isolated and public transport infrequent, he drove me into town in his Alfa Romeo, on the way explaining the
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