ginovandewalle.com

This country is not one of the richest in Europe. As a matter of fact, the economy is going backwards, and due to some of the politicians running this country, Portugal is becoming poorer and poorer. I like to think of myself that I am an intelligent man. And yet, sometimes there are things happening in this country that I really do not understand. I was in Leiria last weekend, doing some business meetings in that area, the center of Portugal.

I have been there many times over the past five years. I specifically remember one Friday evening some time in the fall of 2003. It might have been winter, I can’t remember the exact date, but I had been living here very shortly. I had been working and prospecting in the beautiful Porto region for a couple of days, and was driving back to the Algarve at the end of that working week. It was raining cats and dogs, driving conditions were really terrible, it was about 10.00pm and I was in the Santarem region, about 100 kilometers north of Lisbon. I needed to get back to the Algarve that night, as I had some business meetings scheduled the next Saturday morning and after all, it was only another 400 kilometers of driving (no wonder that I had a heart-attack on my 46st birthday - now I don’t do this anymore!)! I did not have a GPS system in my car at that time, but I had a brand new map! I had taken a close look at it, and had seen a motorway besides the A1, going south from Santarem, which would not take me into Lisbon. I saw it was a kind of a shortcut, so the choice was easy: I was going on that motorway.

I left the A1, and headed a little east on a national road, being sure to find that new motorway. Thirty kilometers down that road, I discovered that the new one was still in construction, so I had to turn back, and get back on the A1 that took me to Lisbon, and then further down to the Algarve.

The following times I was heading north, I took the new one until about 30 kilometers north of Lisbon, where I took another national road for about 15 kilometers to take me back to the A1. But I did not have to pass Lisbon, which was an advantage. The new motorway only got finished about two years ago. It is a beautiful road, and everytime I am on that one, I am all alone. Almost no other traffic on it! It’s a pleasure to drive a car on these kind of motorways.

Last Saturday, I was on that one again. All of a sudden, about halfway that road, I saw a sign for another new motorway, taking me to the A1. As I am sometimes a bit curious, and I like to discover new things, I really discovered something new. Another brand new motorway had opened again. A motorway? No, it’s a twenty kilometers long bridge, with three lanes in each direction. Millions, probably billions of euros have been spent on that new road starting in Alenquer, and heading east.

I asked myself why that was necessary? When I was on that new road last Saturday and Sunday afternoon, I was literally the ONLY driver on it! Billions of euros have been spent by the Portuguese government for letting me drive on that beautiful piece of architecture.

I can’t stop thinking that some businessmen, builders, architects AND politicians who approved to build this rediculous new motorway have received a hell of a lot of euros in their pockets.

This all is taking place in this beautiful country, in the early years of the 21st century! What a shame!

Share on Facebook