Having lived in Timor, Brazil and Portugal, I never really ‘got’ lusophonia. That is, what unites people who speak Portuguese. Now, while in London — living in Brixton and working in neighboring Stockwell — for the first time it’s starting to make sense.

There is no ownership of the language here. There is no correct version. Portuguese are the majority of Portuguese speakers here, yet even among them there is huge diversity (Azorean, Madeiran and all kinds from the Continent). I’ve overheard Mozambicans, tons of Angolans. And of course Brazilians who are making their mark in London.

I hope to hone my accent radar through this exercise of recording and mapping what I hear. As for me, I grew up and studied in the US, but have spent the last seven years in and out of Portuguese-speaking places.

This blog is dedicated to Jean Charles de Menezes.