Lisboa

If anyone is ever looking for a vacation destination on this side of the world, I have a recommendation – Lisboa (Lisbon), Portugal!!!! This has by far been my favorite trip so far this semester and honestly, right now I couldn’t imagine a better trip. This weekend I had the opportunity to visit this beautiful country and city. Lisbon is the capital of Portugal and is located on the Tagus River (which I thought was the ocean for the first day, haha - oops!) It is absolutely gorgeous and full of both history and phenomenal views of the river which include the view of a bridge that was modeled after the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco and a statue modeled after the Christ the Redeemer statue in Brazil. 

Besides enjoying the view, we spent the weekend getting a tour of the city, enjoying the fabulous weather, learning about its history (seeing statues of famous writers, monuments to kings, and the plaza where the headquarters to the Inquisition was located), shopping at the outdoor market on Saturday, walking along the water, and of course, trying the local cuisine! 

Local cuisine includes lots of seafood and meat. While there, we were able to try Gazpacho, Bacalao (cod), and the absolutely delicious Pastries de Belem! The recipe of the original Pastries de Belem is only known by 3 people in the world. The recipe is so secretive that these three people are never allowed to be in the same place at once. We were lucky enough to visit this bakery and try the pastry – it’s a soft croissant-y outside with delicious custard on the inside. 

Pastry of Belem

Bacalao

One of the last stops on the trip was touring the Castle of St. George. While there, we were able to climb up some of the towers and enjoy the phenomenal view of the city!

Next stop: Spring Break, meaning Italy and the United Kingdom!!!!! I'm so excited for this trip because not only does it mean visiting amazing cities, but being done with my four exams this week :P Hasta luego!

 

Side note: Lisbon has the oldest bookstore in the world!!!! We were able to see it, and the Guinness World Record certificate marking it as older than its competitor in Italy that it beat by only 6 months!