The Good Morning Portugal! podcast with Carl Munson

Is Crime Getting Worse in Portugal? What the Data (and Lisbon’s Periphery) Really Shows...

This episode examines whether crime is getting worse in Portugal by comparing headlines and lived experience with official figures. It notes that overall reported crime fell 4.6% in 2024 and Portugal’s homicide rate remains very low, yet highlights concerning shifts: 108 homicides in 2025 (highest since 2018), a 2.1% rise in general crime in early-to-late 2025, major increases in vehicle theft and bank robberies, and a 14.6% rise in group offenses concentrated around Lisbon and Porto. 

The monologue stresses crime is unevenly distributed, focusing on Lisbon’s peripheral neighborhoods such as Sacavém, Loures, and Amadora, where tensions between communities and police have been inflamed since the 2024 killing of Odair Moniz and subsequent riots. 

It contrasts tourist-area theft with localised serious violence, reviews government plans for body cameras and strategy updates, and concludes Portugal remains safe overall but not equally safe for everyone.

00:00 Is Portugal Getting Worse
00:39 Violent Weekend Headlines
01:36 Portugal Still Safe Data
02:37 Concerning Crime Trends
03:17 Crime Hotspots and Gangs
04:45 Cova da Moura Tensions
05:49 Expat Risk vs Reality
07:16 Government Response Limits
08:34 Final Verdict and Fairness
09:28 Thanks and Sign Off


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For Friday 28th August 2026, Carl Munson’s Good Morning Portugal! news reports that one of four Portuguese citizens missing after the Nepal flash floods has been found alive and well, with searches continuing for the others. 

Other headlines include the Polícia Judiciária director being accused of lying in court over allegedly unlawful surveillance, politicians downplaying the MAI controversy, the Defence Minister saying he will sue to protect his name, Prime Minister Luís Montenegro criticising current media practices and calling for journalism without “modern censorship,” CONFAP proposing year-round school opening to help families balance work and holidays, and the government’s housing tax package being described as ambitious on paper but dependent on execution.

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#GoodMorningPortugal #PortugalNews #NepalFloods #PoliciaJudiciaria #MAI #LuisMontenegro #CONFAP #HousingTax #Portugal2026


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On Thursday 27 August 2026, Carl Munson’s Good Morning Portugal! news reports that foreign direct investment in Portugal reached €6.7 billion in the first half of 2026. 

Other headlines include more than 100 Portuguese stranded in Cape Verde (EasyJet assisting passengers), confirmation that a Portuguese national died in the devastating flash floods and landslides in Nepal (another remains missing, while 16 Portuguese tourists in the Gorkha region are safe), Marques Mendes calling for political understandings rather than a “permanent election campaign,” the PCP defending its invitation to a Palestinian organisation classified as terrorist, safety concerns over the aging Fagilde Dam in Viseu, and the PSP director stating that increased crime figures reflect increased policing.

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On Wednesday 26 August 2026, Carl Munson’s Good Morning Portugal reports that Algarve hoteliers are calling for a crackdown on “booze tourism” and aggressive nightlife following a violent car rampage in Albufeira. 

Other headlines include the launch of a new progressive think tank (Instituto Progresso) chaired by Socialist deputy Miguel Costa Matos, yellow weather warnings for rain across 11 mainland districts, TAP expanding its maintenance business into defence while privatisation talks continue, Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel warning against demagogues and populism, the Minister of Culture commenting on the need for more active feminists, health unions preparing for a possible September strike, and Portugal’s largest solar plant (WeLink) entering insolvency after production issues, wildfire damage and lower electricity prices.

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#GoodMorningPortugal #PortugalNews #Albufeira #BoozeTourism #ProInstitutoProgresso #YellowWarning #TAP #PauloRangel #HealthStrike #WeLinkSolar #Portugal2026

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Rural Properties reflects on seven years of restoring neglected buildings in central Portugal and how its mission has broadened as it better understands the country’s housing challenge: not a lack of buildings, but a lack of livable homes.

Citing the 2021 census, it notes over 723,000 vacant homes and 238,000 buildings needing medium or major repairs, especially in aging inland communities, while demand for quality rural housing has surged from families leaving costly coastal cities, remote workers, and international buyers seeking permanent homes. 

Paul highlights renovation risks - scarce contractors, rising material costs, slow planning, and hidden structural issues - driving buyers toward completed homes. He argues renovation alone is insufficient and introduces bioclimatic timber-framed homes as an energy-efficient, climate-resilient complement to preservation. 

The speaker also connects housing to wider rural planning issues involving agriculture, forestry, renewable energy siting, mining impacts, and the need for a coherent long-term strategy to sustain communities.

00:00 Mission Origins
00:41 Vacant Houses Reality
01:20 New Rural Buyers
02:06 Renovation Reality Check
02:46 Evolving Projects
03:14 Timber Homes Solution
04:02 Old Versus New
04:19 Energy And Mining Tensions
05:03 Farming Decline Impacts
05:35 Integrated Rural Strategy
06:19 Future Vision

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On Tuesday 25th August 2026, Carl Munson’s Good Morning Portugal! news reports that a homeless man discovered a bag containing over 7,000 counterfeit €200 notes (worth around €1.5 million) near trash containers.

Other headlines include a tourist robbed at gunpoint in Quinta do Lago, unusual weather systems making this one of the rainiest Augusts in recent years (with Lisbon recording record 24-hour rainfall), the PJ wanting to question André Ventura and Chega deputies about the alleged assault and ransacking of their parliamentary office, public-sector unions pushing beyond the multi-year agreement in the 2027 budget, the Ministry of Health reviewing the National Emergency Care Network (unchanged for over a decade), Cascais planning seven new museums by 2029, and political commentary linking Luís Montenegro’s PSD with Chega’s populism. 

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#GoodMorningPortugal #PortugalNews #CounterfeitMoney #QuintaDoLago #RainyAugust #Chega #AndreVentura #PublicSector #CascaisMuseums #Portugal2026

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On Monday 24 August 2026, Carl Munson’s Good Morning Portugal! news reports the peaceful death of Maria da Conceição, Portugal’s oldest person, at the age of 113. She was known for her humour and attributed her longevity to “not working hard.” 

Other headlines include the government cutting almost half of the contentious green map for renewable energy projects, the GNR seizing five tons of hashish and detaining seven men in the Algarve, continued calls for the resignation of Interior Minister Luís Neves (with President António José Seguro urging the swift conclusion of investigations), Euribor rises pushing savings certificates to a maximum yield of 2.5% in September, and growing concerns over security in Lisbon’s historic centre. Unseasonal rainy weather is expected across much of the country this week.

#GoodMorningPortugal #PortugalNews #MariaDaConceicao #OldestPerson #RenewablesMap #HashishSeizure #LuisNeves #Euribor #LisbonSecurity #Portugal2026

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How to Taste Olive Oil Like Wine (and Why Cold-Pressed Extra Virgin Matters)

Carl is taught, by Merkado's Haim, how to taste olive oil like wine by warming it in the hand, sniffing for fruity aromas, then sipping without swallowing to let air pass over it and noting sensations like heat and pepperiness and how long the flavor lingers.

They discuss early-season oil’s intense “alive” character with a gentler mid-season version, discuss using high-quality oil for dressing rather than cooking, and describe it as medicinal, with some people taking a daily shot.

The conversation contrasts traditional manual harvesting with damaging industrial methods, mentions large-scale tree losses linked to lack of genetic diversity, and explains olive oil grading, emphasising cold press under 27°C to preserve compounds, while lower grades and some extractions involve higher temperatures or chemicals.

Merkado Olive Oil - Produce & Retreats - https://www.merkadoolive.eu/

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Musing from above Alfeizerão on Portugal’s Silver Coast, Carl Munson is visting Atelier de Doces, a bakery with sweeping views featuring distant valleys, wind turbines, pine trees (pinheiro manso), and summer birds on a hot July 7th birthday breakfast date. 

Inside, he speaks of 21 meters of freshly baked treats, highlighting Bolos de Berlim - soft, fluffy Portuguese custard-filled doughnuts - sharing an origin story involving WWII-era German spies in Estoril. He teases an array of fillings such as lemon, tangerine, wild berries, apple, strawberry, cinnamon, multiple chocolates, doce de leite, Nutella, pistachio, plus Dubai-style and Biscoff versions, alongside pastel de natas and other cakes. 

The shop also offers Portuguese gin, local organic wines like Chinado (including orange wine), espumante, coffee paraphernailia, and the aroma of on-site coffee roasting, recommending a stop just off the A8.

00:00 Morning Viewpoint Intro
00:21 Inside the Bakery
00:51 Portugal’s Best Cakes
01:13 Bolo de Berlim Story
01:51 Wild Filling Flavors
02:27 More Treats and Drinks
02:55 Coffee Roasting Aroma
03:17 How to Visit
03:43 Final Farewell

Visit - https://atelierdodoce.pt/ (in real life!)



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Email Overwhelm to Digital Serenity: The 4 Ds and Inbox Zero with Steven Shewach:

On Portugal Talk Radio, host reconnects with digital serenity coach Steven Shewach to review his five pillars of digital health - passwords and security, email and communication, cloud and files, devices and backups, and legacy and access - and then focus on why email deserves special attention.

Shewach explains that email is meant for communication, not storage, a to-do list, or an archive, and that using it that way creates anxiety and “landfill” inboxes with thousands of messages, multiple accounts, and subscription bloat. 

He offers a simple inbox-triage framework, the four Ds - do, delegate, defer, delete - supported by a solid filing system for capturing and retrieving information within 30 seconds. They discuss bulk cleanup via search, saving key items as files (including PDFs for legal needs), using built-in unsubscribe tools, and the benefits of inbox zero, with a follow-up planned on communication beyond email.

00:00 Welcome to Digital Serenity
00:37 Why You Need a Pro
01:21 Five Pillars Overview
05:22 Why Email Gets Messy
07:30 Inbox as Landfill
10:15 Mindset and Systems
14:02 Four Ds Framework
18:03 Bulk Cleanup and Zero
23:22 Unsubscribe and Spam
27:33 Wrap Up and Next Time

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