Portuguese discovery of the sea route to India Portuguese discovery of the sea route to India The discovery of the sea route to India is the description sometimes used in Europe and among the Portuguese for the first recorded trip made directly from Europe to India via the Atlantic Ocean. It was undertaken under the command of Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama during the reign of King Manuel I in 1497–1499. Considered by Europe to be one of the most remarkable voyages of the Age of Discovery, it consolidated the Portuguese maritime presence over the Indian Ocean and that country's dominance of global trade routes. The plan for
Journey to Portugal wrong from the start; it is downright solipsistic", and concluded that the book was better as a guide to Saramago rather than as a guide to Portugal. The book was also reviewed in "World Literature Today", "The Washington Post", "New Statesman", and "The Spectator". Journey to Portugal Journey to Portugal ("Viagem a Portugal" in Portuguese) is a non-fiction book on Portugal by Nobel Prize-winning author José Saramago. It was first published in 1981 by Círculo de Leitores e Editorial Caminho. An English language translation was published in 2001. A review in "Publishers Weekly" praised the book, calling it a "monumental