How to Clean a Fish describes an extended family stay in Portugal, full of food, adventure, and the search for home. Offered the opportunity to live in Costa da Caparica for an extended period, Esmeralda Cabral jumped at the chance to return to the country of her birth. Together with her Canadian-born husband, children, and Portuguese Water Dog, Maggie, Cabral makes new and nostalgic discoveries—a labyrinth of cobblestone alleys and beautiful painted tiles, a delicious bica and pastel de nata, a classic fado concert, the gentle ribbing of local fishmongers, a damaging high tide—translating words and emotions for her family along the way. Packed with local cuisine and customs, tales of language barriers and bureaucracy, and threaded with that irresistible need to connect with the culture of our birth, How to Clean a Fish is for readers curious about life in Portugal and for anyone who has moved from one place to another and is seeking their own version of home.
Authors
- Pages
- 304
- Published in
- Edmonton, CA
- Series
- Wayfarer
Table of Contents
- Front cover 1
- Title page 6
- Copyright page 7
- Dedication 8
- Contents 10
- A Word about Saudade 12
- Map 16
- Inverno (Winter) 20
- A Harrowing Ride 22
- How Did We Get Here? 27
- Passport Woes and Flight Plans 35
- Around Town 41
- The First Big Storm 48
- Portuguese Hospitality 54
- A Rainy Day in Lisbon 66
- Planning to Run 74
- Winter Market Days 80
- Ashes to Ashes 88
- Belonging 96
- A Phone Call from Canada 105
- Primavera (Spring) 110
- The Lisbon Mini Marathon 112
- Tracking the Passport 120
- Lost in Alfama 130
- Fado Concert 139
- 25th of April 146
- Reflections on Duality 159
- Our Guests 170
- Matt’s Arrival 182
- A Weekend in Aldeia 188
- Haircut 197
- World Cup Friendly 206
- Border Services 1 212
- Spring Market Days 219
- Verão (Summer) 226
- A Dog’s Life 228
- Border Services 2 239
- Summer Market Days 244
- An Inheritance of Loss 253
- Fado Bar 264
- Sardine Season 271
- Adeus Costa da Caparica 276
- A Vacation in the North 282
- Goodbye Lisbon 291
- Back in Vancouver 301
- Recipes 306
- Further Reading 316
- Acknowledgements 318
- About the Author 321
- Other Titles from University of Alberta Press 322