Portugal travels – June 10 – June 17, 2016
I absolutely love traveling. It gives me such an immense
sense of joy and peace, and a feeling of belonging to a greater world than the
one that I experience day to day. I am challenged when I travel, and in so many
ways. At first it was the challenge of finding my way in foreign places, or
being able to adjust to a hostel setting when I’m so used to private space. I’ve
learned how to overcome language barriers, and to gain the confidence to depart
on a journey alone. However, even though I’ve become comfortable with those
things, there’s always something more that pushes me outside of my comfort
zone. This time it was about my beliefs about work and success. They are
constantly scrutinized by fellow hostellers, some of which are backpacking
around the world, others are taking a break from their 35-40 hour jobs. All
believe that the hours which I work are “not a way to live.” And yet, rather
than discourage me from pursuing my career, it just reminds me that I must live
life in balance of mind, body and soul and with intention to make each moment
meaningful. This trinity pervades throughout my life. Mind – to seek solutions
to problems, to be constantly challenged to stretch my capacity to understand
new things, to add structure to the obscure, and to communicate my thoughts
eloquently. Body – to stay in tune with the structure that carries me, to treat
it with respect and love, and to push the limits on what I believe to be my
physical boundaries. Rarely am I more at peace with the world than when I am
pushing myself to try a new sport like surfing, or working up the balance and
courage to twist my body into a new aerial. And soul – the core of my being and
the source of connection to the rest of the world (and the hardest one to keep
satisfied). It can be hard to feed my soul when I am indexing too heavily on
flexing my mind and strengthening my body, but that’s where travel comes in.
There is little (besides volunteering with people who can show you a different
perspective) that can feed my soul so forcefully as experiencing a new culture
with new people. So, although my typical week allows me less time to focus on
balancing my soul, the travels that I pursue can turbo-charge the void. Thus,
the incredible importance I place on getting out and experiencing new places.
If you know me personally you’ll know that I absolutely LOVE
hostels. Despite being a platinum member of SPG (Starwood Preferred Group)
hotels, if I am taking a trip for myself to a foreign place I will choose to
stay in a hostel. I love them because of the people who also stay there. They
have passion, goals, ambition and appreciation for the world – and they pursue
travel as a top priority for personal growth. When I travel alone (as I have
become quite fond of doing lately), I find instant friends in the hostel, even
though most people live in different countries, studied different things (or
didn’t study at all), and make a living in a different way. Everyone lives in
the moment when they are traveling, and they treat their surroundings with their
full attention and respect. I always feel honored to be a part of that moment.
2016 has been full of pretty incredible travel – I went to
Colombia and Norway with work friends and was able to experience unbelievable
adventures, and I had the awesome opportunity to travel to Brazil and Germany
for work, where I spent the weekends hosteling and having a blast. However,
taking this full week in Portugal by myself has been one of the best decisions
of the year. I have had the time to recharge my soul and to appreciate the
finer things in life, while regaining energy and motivation for pursuing the
career that I have chosen. Further, I have been able to fill my trip with
adventures that I love doing – even though many others would choose to spend
their time in a different way. Accommodating and being flexible with a group is
an incredible and important skill to have, but when your time is limited and
your soul is seeking adventure, you better go and listen to it. So, without
further ado, I will share with you some of my adventures this week has brought
me in Portugal.
Lisbon – Day 1: I
arrived in Lisbon early in the morning, and was able to make it to the hostel
by 10 a.m. I met a friend when I was traveling in Germany who decided to travel
to meet me for the weekend, and so as soon as I arrived we embarked to get to
know the city. We walked through the streets, enjoying the smells of the
bakeries and the vibrant energy of the people. The architecture in Lisbon was
also just stunning – the houses are bright, painted in yellows, blues and
purples, and arches are prominent in public buildings and roads. As we were
walking we happened upon a scooter rental place, and without a second thought
decided to rent one for the afternoon. We traveled up the coast to Belem, a
very beautiful part of the city, and gawked at the beauty of the Lisbon bridge
(which, oddly, looks quite like the Golden Gate Bridge in San Fransisco) and
the marinas full of sail boats. Belem has two stunning attractions as well, the
monastery and the giant statue that pays tribute to the explorers. Apparently
the monastery is where each explorer would stay the night before departing on
his voyage in the 1400s, and it would also host a mass to bless the journey.
The architecture is absolutely stunning.
After our adventures in Belem we continued up the coast to
Cascais, which is where I have been attending surf camp for the last three
days. We only drove along the coast, but there are some beautiful beaches,
fortresses on the water, marinas, and terribly expensive hotels (like the Farol
Hotel, which is a part of SPG’s Design Hotels portfolio). If I ever outgrow
hostel life, these place looked like an absolutely incredible escape. I had
heard that Portugal had some beautiful natural parks, and so we drove until we
left the city, and ended up at a beautiful park by the sea. It’s hard to
explain the beauty of it, so I’ll just leave a picture for you…
We made it back to the rental shop in one piece, and went
back to the hostel to get ready for dinner. My boss had recommended a couple of
restaurants, so we had a reservation at one of the restaurants she had
recommended. It was a nicer place, so we made sure to dress up a bit before
heading out. The food was fantastic, and we were lucky enough to be there on a
night when the original chef was in the kitchen. After dinner we went back to
the hostel and joined a pub crawl. The world became a lot smaller when, while
on the pub crawl, I ran into a friend’s boyfriend and his med school classmates
from Houston. There were literally 15 people on this tour, and half were
Texans. I love it when that happens.
The pub crawl was fun, but nothing crazy. Which was good,
because while we were there Lisbon was celebrating a HUGE festival honoring Santo
Antonio, the patron saint of the city. The big festivities were on Sunday, so
we needed to save our energy.
Lisbon Day 2: What
an epic day. We slept in a little bit (after all, we had been out till about 4
and I was still recovering from my overnight flight from the US), but all in
all my sleep count didn’t exceed 6 hours. When we left I realized that I needed
better shoes to make the walk for the day, so I acquired a pair of nifty
Adidas, and we set off on a 3 mile hike to get the “Pasteis de Nata” that my
boss had recommended from the original bakery. About 2/3 of the way we ran
across a bike rental shop and decided that the remainder of the journey would
best be done by bicycle. It was a great decision. I haven’t been on a bike in
years, so the experience of merely riding it was joyful. We made it back to
Belem and the statue (where I stopped for a Portuguese Hot Dog – which is SO
good, the toppings are extremely different from the U.S., and include corn,
lettuce, crisps, and a variety of different sauces), and then made our way to
the original bakery “Pasteis de Belem”. The line was super long, and it
reminded me a ton of “Café du Monde” in New Orleans. However, the line went by
quickly and the wait was well worth it. The tarts were UNBELIEVABLE. It was a
heavenly experience. Thanks Nai for the recommendation!
Afterwards we kept the bikes, because we still had a ways to
travel before our next destination – our 15 minute helicopter tour. It was my
friend’s idea. While I wouldn’t have chosen it for myself per say, I’m glad he
did, because it was a delightful experience. I fly commercially almost every
week for work, but in the helicopter I actually felt like I was hovering above
the earth. It was a very similar sensation that I get while scuba diving, to
know that I can be a part of the layers of the world that are so often
unexplored. The views were also incredible. I’ve posted a few of my favorite
photos below....
After the tour we were pretty short on time, so we grabbed a
cab back to the hostel and rushed to get ready in time to depart the hostel
with the staff and all of the other guests for the festival. The entire city
was partying in the streets, and there were food stands selling sardines (practically
the national symbol of Portugal), and other treats. There were also vendors
EVERYWHERE selling sangria and beer. The one thing that wasn’t readily
available… bathrooms. That part kind of sucked. The night was awesome though.
We hung out with all of the different people from the hostel, got to chill on a
hill top overlooking the bridge, and saw an outdoor concert by a popular
Portuguese band. I would say the night rated 10/10. Again, I didn’t get to
sleep until 4. Europe, you kill me.
Lisbon/Cascais Day 3:
Recovery day needed. Not really from a hangover, which was awesome, but
rather from an immense lack of sleep. 10 hours is my natural cadence, and I had
been getting less than 6 for the past 4 days. Rough. Times. But, day 3 was a
Monday and a transition day, so it was a great time for rest. I took an uber
from the hostel in Lisbon to my surf hostel in Cascais, got to know my new
friends for the week, rested, and took a leisurely walk around the city. No big
adventure, but it was a lovely day.
Cascais Day 4: Sore
throat… no fun. I deserved it though with the pace I was taking. Luckily this
was the first surf day, so I really didn’t have to dedicate my day to much else.
I rested and surfed, and it was glorious. Day 1 of surfing went pretty well! I
got up a number of times, but there were a couple of things with my form that
could use some adjusting – I didn’t bend my knees enough, my front foot was
often straight, and my back wasn’t straight enough. Luckily we had good
instructors, so I left the day knowing what I could work on for the next day. We
had a group dinner at the hostel where I got to know a woman from Norway who
was traveling with her husband and her 9 year old daughter. I really
appreciated her world view, and it was great to learn from her attitude about
travel and raising kids.
Cascais Day 5: I slept 12 hours. Win. Also, I made a lot
more friends at the hostel. There are two other girls who are solo travelers.
Our ages are 22, 24 and 26, and we seem to have a nice balance with each other.
All of us are from different backgrounds but we seem to appreciate travel in a
similar manner. Also, tons of confidence. Girl power. Surfing was much better –
I wasn’t feeling as crummy, and was starting to catch a few waves with more
stability. I went to dinner with one of the girls, and then chatted with a
couple of other people over drinks back at the hostel. Another early night, because,
you know, vacation.
Cascias Day 6: The
best day! We woke up early and caught an uber to Sintra, a small town about 30
minutes from Cascais known for its beautiful castles. Apparently it was a
summer vacation spot for a lot of Europe’s nobility in the 16-1900s. While
there are ~8 castles in Sintra, we decided to only see one since our surf
lesson started at 2. We couldn’t have picked a better castle. We choose Quinta
da Regaleira, and it was SO EPIC. The architecture was fantastic, and we could
even go inside to see the beautiful mantle work, wooden ceilings and innovative
library design. We were also able to climb a tower 3 stories up to the roof and
caught an incredible view of the entire town – we could even see the sea! My
favorite part, however, were the gardens. They were, by far, the coolest
gardens I have ever seen. At one point, we were hopping across stones in a pond
with a waterfall in the background, only to walk through cave tunnels to end up
in the bottom of an ornament well. I told you – awesome. The gardens blended
human design and nature so beautifully, and it truly felt like an adventure
getting to explore them all. Some of the cave tunnels were not lighted, and so
we had to feel our way along the wall until we made it to the end. There were a
number of different structures on the property as well, from stables to a chapel,
“the virgin’s grotto” and the “initiation well.” All blended together with the
gardens and the mountain beautifully. Oh yeah – from the roof and some of the
other points in the garden we could also see 3 of the other castles on the hill
– which was nice, because the castles were all really spread out from one
another (about a 55 minute walk), and we didn’t have time to see each one
individually. After exploring the grounds we had a quick bite to eat, and then
RACED to catch our bus back to the hostel in time for our surf lesson. We
literally sprinted up a couple of hills to make it in time, but we succeeded.
We are champions.
The surf lesson today was GREAT! I got to surf with my
friends, and we all progressed a ton. I was able to get up on almost every
wave, ride stably, and make a few turns. It was a great last day. I’m sitting
in the park by my hostel in my hammock writing as the sun goes down, waiting
for the big BBQ tonight. Life is pretty darn good. Tomorrow morning I head to
the airport and take off for Brussels and Bain World Cup, where I will be
playing on the Texas-LA soccer team. Fingers crossed my surfing skills can
translate a bit to the field J
