Cork

The Portuguese are mad about cork. It’s one of those facts that the Portuguese like to drop on the unsuspecting foreigner,

Portugeezer - “Did you know that Portugal is the world’s biggest cork producer?”

Me – “No but I will store that in the part of my brain only accessed during pub quizzes and the annual family Christmas Trivial Pursuit Deathmatch. Thank you!”

If you actually live here then the love of cork slowly begins to seep into your everyday life. At first you begin by noticing that pretty much every woman is wearing cork wedges. This slowly builds and builds, next you might notice an attractively cork tiled floor. Head to Alentejo and most things there seem to be made out of the stuff.

There’s a novel by Jose Saramago called The Stone Raft in which the Iberian peninsular breaks off from Europe and floats into the Atlantic. If the unlikely happens and life imitates fiction then Spain is screwed but Portugal will just bob happily along.

Portuguese shoes



Portuguese handbag



Portuguese umbrella



Portuguese cap



Portuguese tie



Portuguese chair



Portuguese car