COLOURFULWORLD

Sunday 9 June 2013

Celebrating Portugal Day in Perth

Portugal day is celebrated on the 10th June in Portugal, but in some Portuguese emigrant communities around the world, it is celebrated on the weekend closest to the day.

This public holiday commemorates the death of Luis de Camões on the 10th June 1580.
Camões was a poet that wrote "Os Lusiadas"  (The Lusiads) - an epic poem that celebrates Portuguese history and achievements of the 16th century.

Here in Perth, it was celebrated in both Portuguese clubs on the 8th June - The WA Portuguese Club in Hamilton Hill, near Fremantle and the Portuguese Social Club, which has no club facilities or headquarters but hires a couple of halls for it's functions throughout the year, usually in the Northern Suburbs.
There are around 8000 Portuguese in Perth, and the first club caters more to the older generation that came from the Island of Madeira and from Portugal, while the Social club has a younger membership, that lived mostly in the Portuguese African colonies or South Africa.

Last night's dinner/dance was attended by about 200 people, and the food cooked and served by volunteers was quite delicious. We had Caldo Verde (Kale soup) with chourizo, then Grilled chicken legs, Baked potatoes, Slices of meat and salads.
The dessert tables were covered in wonderful cakes and puddings, baked by some of the ladies that attended the dinner. I baked a Gluten Free Chocolate tart, that was well liked as it was almost finished by the time I collected the plate when we left at midnight.
In both clubs a lot of wonderful volunteers give their time to make sure these events run smoothly and are enjoyed by us all.

The club's President giving a speech, before we sang the Portuguese Hymn


Kale Soup with Chorizo
Grilled Chicken, Baked Potatoes, Vegetables and Meat (hidden under the salad)
Dancing after dinner
One of the Cake tables , with my Chocolate tart on the left
The other Cake Table
The Coffee and Tea table
My chocolate Tart
Looking forward to the next event in September.

On Sunday, 9th there was another celebration, this time I was to meet up with with a group of young Portuguese who have recently moved to Perth, for a beach barbecue. Sadly the day dawned gray and rainy, and I was later informed that the celebration had moved to the backyard of a couple that lived nearby.
The day was spent barbecuing, eating and talking about our experiences of life in Australia, jobs, visas, kids, marriage, etc. I met some new people, and so the circle of friends grows...


The newer generation of Portuguese in Perth (I am the fifth on the left, with the pink scarf)
If you are Portuguese living overseas, how did you celebrate Portugal Day?

17 comments:

  1. Thanks for sharing the great pics and for this bit of Portugal's history and day!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ai essa tarte...:-) Que aspecto delicioso! Fiquei com água na boca! :-) Feliz Dia de Portugal para amanhã, Sami! :-) Beijinho.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks Lynn.
    Sandra - ficou boa a tarte e foi bem facil de fazer tambem...

    ReplyDelete
  4. Caldo verde e frango assado. Só faltam as sardinhas! :-)

    ReplyDelete
  5. http://www.celestecortez.blogspot.com/Monday, June 10, 2013

    Sami fico muito feliz ao saber que a minha filha se preocupa em celebrar este dia que para todos nós portugueses, é o maior. Através do tio Nelson, meu irmão, sei que também durante alguns dias na semana finda, se celebrou nas comunidades dos E.U.A., assim como se celebrava no tempo em que estive na Africa do Sul (espero que continue). No entanto, penso que se deveria acrescentar, ou no próprio dia fazer-se, eventos de poesia de Camões, Fernando Pessoa, Alexandre Herculano, etc. com alguma música portuguesa apropriada. Embora concorde plenamente que haja o convívio nos clubes com comida e dança - bom para compartilhar. Beijos

    ReplyDelete
  6. A belated happy Portugal Day Sami, sounds like you had a wonderful time. Your chocolate tart looks divine..

    ReplyDelete
  7. Looks like a lot of yummy fun!

    ReplyDelete
  8. JM - sardinhas seriam boas, mas talvez para um proximo picnic na praia.
    Celeste - pois, em nenhum dos clubes se celebra com poesia. Musica Portuguesa sim.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Thanks Grace and Flavia. We had a lot of fun.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I don't suppose there's any of that lovely chocolate cake left? Always too late- that's me! :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Se eu soubesse tinha-me juntado a vocês no Portuguese Club! Estou em Perth há um mês e ainda tenho muito para descobrir:)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Ssol - que pena, fica para a proxima. O jovem casal que estava na nossa mesa estavam em Perth ha 2 meses.
    Se precisar de algo, ou se quiser juntar ao nosso grupo contacte-me pelo email: sami.veloso@hotmail.com.
    Ate breve. Sami

    ReplyDelete
  13. O belo do caldo verde com chouriço não pode faltar e a sua tarte estava com óptimo aspecto!

    Comentou no meu blog, que eu ainda não tinha postais da Austrália e é verdade.
    Como também faz parte do postcrossing, podíamos trocar postais.
    Se estiver interessada em fazer troca de postais pode-me responder para o e-mail: margarida_antunes_@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  14. Happy Portugal Day! June 10 is also my sister's birthday, so I will have to tell her she was born on this important day. :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Obrigada pela visita Margarida, ja lhe enviei um email sobre os postais.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Thanks Robyn. A double celebration!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Thank you for sharing the great pics and for this bit of Portugal's history.We bring for you Function Rooms Perth for all kinds of parties and celebrations that you may have.

    ReplyDelete

I would love to hear from you, please leave a comment.