Cruising in Portugal, Madeira and the AzoresBackgroundFollowing its heyday as a world power during the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal lost much of its wealth and status with the destruction of Lisbon in a 1755 earthquake, occupation during the Napoleonic Wars, and the independence in 1822 of Brazil as a colony. A 1910 revolution deposed the monarchy; for most of the next six decades, repressive governments ran the country. In 1974, a left-wing military coup installed broad democratic reforms. The following year, Portugal granted independence to all of its African colonies. Portugal is a founding member of NATO and entered the EC (now the EU) in 1986. GeographyLocation: Southwestern Europe, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean,
west of Spain Coastline1,793 km Maritime claimsTerritorial sea: 12 nm ClimateMaritime temperate; cool and rainy in north, warmer and drier in south TerrainMountainous north of the Tagus River, rolling plains in south Elevation extremesLowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m EconomyPortugal has become a diversified and increasingly service-based economy since joining the European Community in 1986. Over the past decade, successive governments have privatized many state-controlled firms and liberalized key areas of the economy, including the financial and telecommunications sectors. The country qualified for the European Monetary Union (EMU) in 1998 and began circulating the euro on 1 January 2002 along with 11 other EU member economies. Economic growth had been above the EU average for much of the past decade, but fell back in 2001-05. GDP per capita stands at two-thirds that of the Big Four EU economies. A poor educational system, in particular, has been an obstacle to greater productivity and growth. Portugal has been increasingly overshadowed by lower-cost producers in Central Europe and Asia as a target for foreign direct investment. The government faces tough choices in its attempts to boost Portugal's economic competitiveness while keeping the budget deficit within the eurozone's 3%-of-GDP ceiling. TransportationAirports: 66 (2005) Waterways210 km (on Douro River from Porto) (2003) Merchant marineTotal: 113 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,121,828 GRT/1,475,213 DWT Sailing Specifics: Ports and terminalsLeixoes, Lisbon, Setubal, Sines Other Sailing Destinations in the RegionArctic Ocean - Bermuda - Spain and Canary Islands - Cape Verde Islands - Faeroes Islands - France - Greenland - Iceland - Ireland - Portugal, the Azores and Madeira - United Kingdom Further Reading |
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