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[Odler]

After I wrote what I thought was a compelling report on the

society and lifestyle of Australia and New Zealand, last November, a

friend of this column wrote to me, expressing his thankfulness for

the erudition brought to him by the texts.

However, the reader made it clear that instead of geography,

anthropology, and micro-economy, I should place more emphasis on the

women.

"The women," he said, "this is what interests me. The rest is

gibberish. The Australian women are what I was expecting to hear

about. So, tell me: how are the women of Australia?"

I promptly acknowledged that "mistake was made", and promised that my

future endeavor will account for such an anxiety.

The women of Portugal are fine. Quite fine. It won´t matter if I say

they dress femininely, since only American women make an abusive use

of jeans and sneakers.

I am unable to ascertain which of their ancestors (Iberians, Romans,

Visigoths, or Moors) the women of Portugal inherit their comfortable

rear-end from. But, cross my heart, the part is carried with grace

and... promise.

Unlike their Cuban counterparts, the women of Portugal have boobs,

an evolutionary fact the Creator is to be praised for.

I may also confidently state that the women of Portugal demonstrate

no standoffishness. This observation roots on the smile they greeted

all my words with, even though they understood not a treat word of

English.

For some reasons, the women of Portugal make little use of computers,

and few are able to exhibit an email address upon request.

At parties and outings, the women of Portugal have been on a friendly commerce with me. But, that may be just ME, since, as you may have noticed, despite my heralding, disabling shyness, women of all walks can´t help being attracted by my good looks.

It is also my belief (a belief based on a three-day tour), that the

women of Portugal have room for progress on the friendliness front,

since not one of them tried to confiscate my passport, not one begged me to stay, to forgo America, America the Beautiful.

Any question?

(The Traveller, Monday, February 11, 2002)