A warm, firm handshake and an easy smile is your welcome in sunny Portugal. Friends hug and “kiss the air” while brushing cheeks, reflecting the true warmth in greeting Bom dia (“Good day”) and Boa noite (“Good evening”).
Portuguese culture is closely related to the Spanish culture, with major influences from the Latin of ancient Rome and Muslim societies throughout history. The 10-million population of Portugal speaks Portuguese, a Romance language which derived from “Vulgar” Latin. Galician and Mirandese, which are technically classed as separate languages, are spoken by a few thousand people in the north of the country, along the Spanish border.
