I've always been rather enamored with the culture of Brazil: friendly, gregarious, honest and outgoing. So, Portugal's people and their mannerisms was a slight let-down for me. They're more introverted and calculating.

Lisbon's weather in the winter months is cold and rainy (at least compared to north Brazil, where I've been residing recently). It is now January 13th and the last four out of five days it has either rained or been fully overcast. I love warm weather year-round.

Lisbon is your typical large European city in terms of fundamental spacial dynamics: overcrowded and cramped, small chairs and tables and fitting too much in too little space. And you see that all over. The roads can often barely fit one car let alone a two way road. I'm a US westerner, mainly Washington state to be exact. So I like elbow room, and I generally seem to get it even in Rio de Janeiro. Rio is overcrowded but they've made their roads wide and their sidewalks too.

Portugal very much has an old world feel, and when it comes to historical little bookshops it beats out Brazil any day of the week.

The pronunciation is different: vowels in European Portuguese are NOT first class citizens. I like the large and prominent role vowels play when Brazilians speak: the language feels more intelligible to me and sounds much nicer.