it’s official

before the summer is over

i’ll be traveling

on my first trip as a retired person

 to visit portugal, the oldest nation-state in europe.

tchau.

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‘if there is one portion of europe which was made by the sea more than another,

portugal is that slice, that portion, that belt. portugal was made by the atlantic.”

– hilaire belloc, french/english historian and writer.

 

 

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*And the award for oldest nation-state in Europe goes to… Portugal. In 1139, Portugal appointed King Afonso Henriques as its king. Lisbon is said to be four centuries older than Rome. Due to its excellent trading location, the Phoenicians settled in Lisbon around 1200 BC.

 

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photo credit: planetware, the perched village of azenhas do mar at sunset, sintra, portugal