Analyze the passage, and name the country that the merchant lives in. A spice merchant wants to join the precious gem trade. He's heard that the East is a rich source of gems. However, the merchant lives in
western Europe, and there is no direct route from his country to the East. The coast of his country faces the Atlantic Ocean, not the
Mediterranean Sea. His countrymen have already explored part of the African coast. But the merchant knows that he must travel all the way
around Africa if he wants to reach the East. An explorer from the merchant's nation recently discovered the Cape of Good Hope. The
merchant decides to take this route to the East.
Based on the passage, the merchant is from ?