Bruno António - ECOS For the first time, more than 140 young people between 15 and 30 years old, from 13 Algarve municipalities, got together to discuss ideas and policies in various areas - tourism, environment, education, employment, among other themes. Bruno António, […] » Four well qualified, but unemployed, youths decided to put their well attained hospitality talents together in a project called «Inovar com Produto Regional» (innovation with regional produce) and aim to stimulate the creativity among both students […] »José Gamboa José Gamboa is a mechanical engineer and specialist in renewable energies who has converted to agriculture. Around four years ago, he bought an orchard between Silves and Messines. He didn’t intend to start working it commercially straight away, […] » Almost 20% of the Algarve’s permanent resident population is non-Portuguese. That’s a huge number when you consider that none of these people have a say in the running of the country. Portuguese law prohibits non-Portuguese from voting in national […] » A new generation of entrepreneurs is emerging, promoting solid back‑to-basics Portuguese products. They see tradition as a potential goldmine, with Portugal right out there when it comes to quality. We speak this week with Alexandra Melo, 46, a former […] »Equinostrum, Faro Nelly Henrique de Brito waited 10 years to open Equinostrum - a horseriding centre at the entrance to Faro. The project got underway in May 2001 and at the time was considered “a priority” by the municipality. But due to its location on a six-hectare […] » Over the last couple of years, the Algarve has seen the slow but relentless move of the “99%” - the new expression for the majority of citizens who find themselves toeing the line laid down by a tiny minority. In Monchique, we’ve seen a group set […] »A minha Freguesia a Ler + Good things can come from times of crisis, and this is a story is about one of them. On the face of it, this is a reading project, reaching out to people in a small community of the Algarve - but beneath that significance, it is also an initiative […] »Annette Klasen In her native Germany Annette Klasen worked as a professional architect , with a speciality in urban planning. Here in Portugal she’s a cook. Not just any kind of cook - but a cook that delights in healthy, nutritious and delicious foods. […] »BJ Boulter, Kerstin Wagner & David Trubshaw Historically, times of crisis have acted as catalysts for the creative arts. Right now, in Greece, for instance, while society agonizes towards rock bottom, there is an exponential boom in artistic activity: galleries are thriving, street artists […] »Horses in the Sun One of the secrets for a happy life is the ability to live doing what you enjoy - but in these uncertain times, how many of us actually manage this? Is it possible at all? This week, we bring you the uplifting story of the Fry family, who arrived […] »Michael Pease At 82, Michael Pease, one of the Algarve’s most senior British residents, is a man on a mission. He wants to construct a monument in memory of Jaime Nunes and sailor colleagues who saved six downed World War II American aviators on the morning of […] » Good ideas, even in crippling recession, can pay off. This week we talk to a young couple who decided to “bite the bullet” at the beginning of the recession and open a unique boutique hotel, set back from Lagos with breathtaking views over the town […] » In a week when the petition to save Lagoa dos Salgados wetland passed 10.700 signatures - and TV personality Kate Humble tweeted it to all her followers - the Earth Party (MPT) has stepped into the controversy, side-swiping at the Masonic connection […] » Scores of uniformed police - some with guns, others with dogs - swooped on the sleepy fishing village of Salema, in the borough of Vila do Bispo, at 9am on Monday morning. Traffic into the village was diverted in what looked like a major drugs bust […] »Monchique Theo Noordeloos isn’t the first northern European to fall in love with the Monchique mountains, but he is one who has moved there to invest in a very different kind of rural tourism project. We met him the week before he opened his Spa d’Alma refuge […] »Quinta dos Lopes, Lagos Portuguese-owned Quinta dos Lopes, in the rolling countryside north west of Lagos, is unusual in that it has been a biological family farm since the 80s. José Lopes, now 77, purchased the 26-hectare property in 1979 and came into contact with organic […] »Miau Miau Mó Tiago Peres, 37, born and bred in Olhão, is an inspiring example of how to work with traditional commerce - a sector so ravaged by the onslaught of malls and shopping centres. Fanatical about the sea, this former bodyboard athlete, moved to Sagres […] » Since 5th March, and running until mid-April, there’s a new decree in force restricting fishing throughout the Eastern Algarve. It’s a consequence of the hunt for gas and oil, which currently involves a fleet of six prospecting ships. Fishermen and […] »Carl Zimmerling “It has been said that the 21st century will be a spiritual one - or not one at all”. We’re talking to Carl Zimmerling, 62, an ordained Zen monk who has been practising Zazen – the ancient form of Buddhist meditation – for 31 years. Carl, originally […] »Len Port Writers of all sorts have alighted in the Algarve – some to beat a very hasty retreat, others to extoll its virtues. Len Port is definitely one of the latter. Here since the 80s, he has documented life in the Algarve both as a journalist and an author. […] »Lagos Lagos is the last stop on the Via do Infante – and since the motorway tolls came into force on 8th December, it has taken on ghost-town proportions. The palm-tree lined avenida that used to be filled with parked cars is now a long road yawning with […] »Lagos Anchored in Lagos where she’s had her own mooring in the canal at the mouth of the Bensafrim River since 2005, the caravel Boa Esperança continues to attract attention from visiting holidaymakers. Made from 140 tons of wood, she is a modern replica […] » Houses made of gingerbread, to play with and eat. Cakes in the shape of a pregnant tummy “to announce the good news”. Childhood characters that look like toys or works of art, but are actually delicacies made by hand. “Bomboms” made with piri-piri, […] » Fernando Nobre, founder and president of “Assistência Médica Internacional (AMI)” in Portugal knows some of the planet’s harshest realities. Born in Luanda in 1951, the doctor has dedicated the last 30 years of his life to humanitarian causes; he’s […] » | Soap Box Car Racing There are for boys and girls alike, environmentally friendly, and all you need is a good slope and gravity does the rest. They can be simple or sophisticated. We are talking about the Portuguese pastime of soap box car racing which is bound to attract […] »Folclore do Algarve Recently, during a visit to the ADAVA charity shop, in Lagoa, we happened to peek into box of vinyl records. We found a beautiful antique 45-rpm record, entitled «Folclore do Algarve» (Folklore of the Algarve), by a Folk group from Casa do Povo in […] »Monte da Casteleja It started with a wine grower with a dream and it has developed into a farm looking bravely towards a future where money is not the end result. Monte da Casteleja, near Sargaçal, is already famous for biological wines made from ancient grape castes […] »Rolf Osang Talking days before his gallery opens another exuberant exhibition of art for the Algarve, cultural entrepreneur Rolf Osang gives us the benefit of his winning philosophy for ‘getting ahead in the Algarve’. “Never ask anyone for any help, just do […] »Miguel Abelho The 61st World Bird Championships took place in the Belgian town of Hasselt last month, bringing together more than 23.500 birds and exhibitors from 22 countries. It was an event that attracted more than 110 thousand people, and was considered the […] »A Rocha It is a form of tourism that truly helps Nature - not a business, but a bid by a conservation NGO to move with the times and keep money circulating in a crisis. For just over a year, the Portugal branch of the International Christian fellowship A […] » Just before Christmas, a new initiative was launched in a bid to help small and medium-sized businesses survive swingeing austerity measures affecting the Algarve. “Deixem nós Respirar” is hoping to hear from anyone who thinks “enough is enough”; […] »Coworking @ Algarve A brother and sister team is about to open a new solution for entrepreneurs in times of crisis. Nurse, Sónia Neto, 31, and her architect brother Fábio, 28, will be opening the doors of their “Cowork Lab” - a space where all kinds of people can work […] »Natalie Galland A rather wonderful exhibition opened yesterday (Wednesday 14th) and runs until next Tuesday. It is exuberant proof that midlife crises are there to wake us up, and make things right in lives that very often are lived for the sake of keeping the peace […] » It was a bumper bird festival in every way this year: more people signing up for the wealth of activities; a greater variety of things to do, and in certain cases even more birds to see than ever before. But sadly, this may well not translate into […] »Phthalates Thanks hugely to the Internet, we can all do research these days from the comfort of our homes. We don’t need to go anywhere - but we do still need an idea of where to look. Things are not always conveniently laid out for us - otherwise people wouldn’t […] » As cash-strapped Italians sell their gold teeth to pay debts, here in Portugal hundreds of gold shops that sprung up in the wake of the crisis are closing their doors. “Business has gone from great to terrible in a matter of months”, a Lisbon gold […] » In a week when national news media stepped into the campaign to save the “last piece of the Algarve coast that is completely unspoilt”, at Praia Grande, near Lagoa dos Salgados bird paradise, we hear there could be “irregularities” in the plan giving […] »Kids in Safe Hands A unique rapid response system designed to trace lost and missing children has just been launched in Portugal, prompted in many ways by the disappearance of Madeleine McCann. The two key figures involved hope the internationally-patented system – […] »Frank McClintock “Sometimes you’ve just got to stick your head over the parapet.”
Frank McClintock is the latest individual to come out fighting for Southern Portugal’s last untouched lagoon. Over recent weeks, we’ve brought you news of the dirty business playing […] » Following on from our recent report on the ongoing death of traditional commerce in Portimão, reader Ann Albright sent us this insightful article - full of ideas on how to breathe life back into the ailing town centre. As is so often the case, her […] » One in five people will suffer from a mental health issue during their lifetime – but very few will ever feel comfortable talking about it. The reason: however many celebrities “come out” over battles with personal demons, and however many “greats” […] »Max Fire Meet Max Fire: dare-devil biker and fire-breathing circus performer. The 39-year-old who winters in Portugal when not working the summer fairs in UK has come up with a refreshing initiative for the western Algarve. It’s “all about giving people a […] »José Bruno Neto About a year ago, independent agricultural producer José Bruno Neto, 69, from Conçeição de Tavira, decided to call a halt to the price-hiking that went on when he passed his produce on to intermediaries to sell for him.
He contacted the In-loco […] » A second century Roman necropolis has been discovered next to Faro’s athletics track. The area was earmarked for roadworks last August - part of a new stretch of the EN125 to bypass the region’s capital – but the archeological digging side of things […] »Social Security meltdown It’s a daily drama – an apparent nightmare without end. Early every morning, lines of people turn up at social security offices throughout the Algarve, all of them needing help. Whether it’s help with unemployment benefit that hasn’t come through, […] »Joana Celine Guerreiro Many houses and buildings making up the Algarve’s architecture and popular culture are simply vanishing. They’re either empty, rundown or in ruins – and those that remain are often “tarted up” in the worst possible way, with cement and modern mass-produced […] »Cups for the Community - New project in Aljezur We’re all familiar with the new Millennium’s “3 Rs” - “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” but when it comes to plastic this is simply not enough. Plastic does not degrade – and contrary to what many people think plastic doesn’t disappear, either. Every bit […] »«Deep Divex 2010» For the first time, the international military diving exercise «Deep Divex» has been held in Portugal. Organised by the Portuguese Navy, it took place between 27th August and 8th October, five to ten miles southwest of Portimão. Divers from Portugal, […] » |
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