Portuguese discovery of the sea route to India of the "São Gabriel" and its sister ship, the "São Rafael" that were used by Vasco da Gama to sail past the Cape of Good Hope and continue to India. One of the sailors, Bartolomeu Dias passed the southernmost point of Africa known as the Cape of Good Hope in 1488. He declared it possible to travel to India by going around Africa. The Portuguese were then able to make an immense profit by using their own ships to retrieve the spices. This global expedition was launched on 8 July 1497. It concluded two years later with the entry of
Time in Portugal to work under a completely dark sky and at 9:00, when school classes started, the sun was still rising, which eventually had repercussions on students’ school performance and their safety during morning trips from home to school.<ref name="Decree-Law 309/76"> Decree-Law 309/76, 27 April 1976 (in Portuguese). Retrieved 12 May 2013.</ref> Furthermore, in the 1970s, the idea of reintroducing DST as an energy saving measure gained strength in Europe as well as in Portugal. However, although there were so many complaints in the country with the use of year round, it became clear to policymakers that if DST was to be