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Reading Matter

Naturally it is not difficult to find reading matter in Portuguese, but if you are looking for foreign-language materials, it can be more of a challenge. These are my own observations, dealing mainly with literature in the English language of course.

There are many English-language weekly papers published in Portugal, many of which target the Algarve especially. Most of these are available for free in shops and supermarkets. The Portugal News appears on Fridays and free copies are distributed in many locations even though it is sold at newsstands. The News, like many expat resources, is heavily oriented towards the British, and if you do not know the slang it is easy to get lost. It carries a classified section.

English newspapers are widely available, American papers are not. The International Herald Tribune is the closest to an American paper, and although it is printed in Madrid and presumably comes by air, the only place I have found where you can get it in the morning is in Cascais, not at the airport or downtown! As for Canadian news, the Embassy has some old copies of the Globe and Mail in its waiting room, but that is about it.

Papers in other languages abound - German, French, Dutch, Italian and Spanish papers are found in most tourist areas. If you know Russian, you are really in luck, as this has become the most popular foreign language on Portuguese newstands, and there are several local papers in Russian.

News magazines are also widely available, again mostly in tourist areas. Many bookstores carry a selection of books, sometimes used, in various foreign languages.

Topical magazines (computers, cars, that sort of thing) often appear in foreign languages, especially Spanish, even in shops that have mainly Portuguese clientelle.

There was an excellent foreign-language bookstore in Cascais, but that closed some time ago. There are still stores in that area which carry foreign books, and there are quite a few in the Algarve - for example, there are two in Almancil, and one in Tavira. There must be some in the major tourist areas, but since I try to avoid those I can't help you there.

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