Journey to Portugal

In Pursuit of Portugal's History and Culture

José Saramago

• Publisher: Mariner Books
• Year: 2002
• ISBN:
  9780547541044
• Topic: Personal Development
• Subtopic: Travel

The Nobel Prize–winning author explores his homeland in “this monumental work, a literary hybrid” of cultural history, literary nonfiction, and travelogue ( Publishers Weekly ).
 
In 1979, José Saramago decided to write a book called Journey to Portugal —and dedicated himself to obtaining the fullest meaning of his title. More than merely journeying in or through his native country, he wanted to achieve a deep encounter with it, foregoing the conventional assumptions and the routines of tourist guides. Instead, he scoured the country with the eyes and ears of an observer fascinated by the ancient myths and history of his people.
 
Recording his experiences and observations across the length and breadth of Portugal, Saramago brings the country to life as only a writer of his brilliance can. Whether an inaccessible medieval fortress set on a cliff, a wayside chapel thick with cobwebs, or a grand mansion in the city, the extraordinary places of this land come alive with kings, warriors, painters, explorers, writers, saints, and sinners.
 
Infused with the tenderness and intelligence that have become familiar to his readers, Saramago's Journey to Portugal is an ode of love for a country and its rich traditions.

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Contents
• Copyright
• Dedication
• List of Maps
• Author’s Preface to the English Edition
• FROM NORTHEAST TO NORTHWEST: THE DOURO AND THE DUERO
• The Sermon of the Fishes
• The Wicked Ways of Dossel
• The Fiery Waters of the River de Onor
• The Story of the Soldier José Jorge
• The Devil’s Temptations
• The Stately Home
• The Tame Wolf’s Cave
• Passionate Animals
• Where Camilo is Not
• Sleeping Beauty’s Castle
• Of Headaches and Other Miracles
• An Even Bigger House
• The Girls of Castro Laboreiro
• St George Sets Forth on Horseback
• Food for the Body
• Mount Everest of Lanhoso
• “Beside the River They Call the Douro . . .”
• LOWLANDS BESIDE THE OCEAN
• Endless Waters
• At Home with the Marquess of Marialva
• Not Every Ruin is a Roman Ruin
• Coimbra Climbs, Coimbra Falls
• A Castle Fit for Hamlet
• At the Mountain’s Gateway
• SOFT-STONE BEIRAS, BE PATIENT
• The Man Who Could Not Forget
• Bread, Cheese and Wine in Cidadelhe
• How Malva Got its Name
• A Grain of Corn Away from Being Lisbon
• New Temptations of the Devil
• King of Cards
• Highs and Lows
• The Town of Stone
• The Ghost of José Júnior
• “Hic Est Chorus”
• FROM MONDEGO TO SADO, STOPPING ALL THE WHILE
• One Island, Two Islands
• Arts of Water and Fire
• Friars, Warriors and Fishermen
• The Oldest House
• So Near and Yet so Far
• Captain Bonina
• The Name in the Map
• There Was Once a Slave
• Paradise Encountered
• At the Gates of Lisbon
• They Say It’s a Good Thing
• Chimneys and Orange Groves
• THE VAST AND BURNING LANDS OF ALENTEJO
• Where the Eagles Rest
• A Rose Flower
• One Ancient Stone, One Man
• The Destruction of Nests is Prohibited
• The Night the World Began
• Looking and Leaping
• The Italians in Mértola
• OF THE ALGARVE, SUN, DRY BREAD AND SOFT BREAD
• The Director and his Museum
• Portuguese as She is Not Spoken
• The Traveller Sets Out Again
• About the Author
• Footnotes