(Post #9) Two weeks of fun!

Well, well, well- here we are two weeks later! I have been a busy gal on some adventures, but now I am here and excited to share! From visiting a new European country to then visiting a new Spanish city 3 days later, life has been fun!

Due to having lots to catch up on, I may summarize a little more- but I will still share all of the great parts! I have been simultaneously working on some scholarships and internships for back home, so when I am not typing away on my computer or in interviews, I am experiencing new views and new foods!

(Monday, February 21st - Thursday, February 24th) The highlights of these days included visiting some convents for my Culture of Food & Wine in Spain class to get some tasty treats like pestiños and yema muffins, visiting with my Spanish sister Alicia and friend Marta downtown and getting lunch/filming a video in front of La Torre del Oro for my high school, attending another Flamenco show, taking an acting class during class one day, and taking a field trip to Hotel Vertice for my Tourism Marketing class.

(Friday, February 25th) Hello! Today marks the first day of Portugal adventures. I hung out all day because my flight to Porto, Portugal wasn’t until the nighttime. It got to be a little frustrating because I was already arriving later in the day to see my friends, but then there was a problem with our original departing plane so we had to switch planes after everyone boarded the first one and settled in. It was all worth it though as I met with my friend Logan who I went to school with from kindergarten to senior year of high school, and then also his girlfriend, two friends also studying at St. Louis University-Madrid, and our mutual friend Andres from Guatemala that Logan hosted in middle school. We ate pizza and had a relaxing night in preparing for the next day.

(Saturday, February 26th) Happy Saturday. This morning we explored Porto and I fell in love with the city. From seeing the blue tiles everywhere to the Majestic Café that inspired J.K. Rowling's first Harry Potter book to their famous bookstore, Porto has so much charm. We then headed down by the river which was even better and we were ready to do the boat cruise we had previously bought tickets for. It was a little funny though because we did not know where to check in, so by the time we figured out what to do, we were 10 minutes late and running to catch the boat. Unfortunately, right as we got there, our boat full of people took off from the dock. We took another one 20 minutes later though so it all worked out just fine! I am laughing about it now when I picture how our faces looked as the boat slowly drifted away without us on it. Taking a cruise when we did get on though was such a great way to see the surrounding area.

After, we all hung out for a little bit before going to an all-you-can-eat Brazilian steakhouse for dinner. There were 13 types of meat, and I have never felt so stuffed in my life, but I would say it was worth it- it was so delicious! We spent the rest of the night catching up.

(Sunday, February 27th) Unfortunately the SLU-Madrid students had to leave at 4:30am, but Andres and I still had time so we went to mass in Portugese (quite interesting) and then got delicious lunch by the ocean. I tried francesinha which is a popular Portugese dish, and it was delicious. Also, speaking of the Portugese language, it is so weird to hear for the first time. It is not what I imagined it to be and it sounds more Russian, but it looks a little like Spanish on paper. After lunch, I took a 3.5 hour bus down to Lisbon where I met up with my brother Ryan and sister-in-law Kate who just flew in to spend the week in Europe! We hung out on the beach and then got some dinner in town. Our hotel was interesting and charged us 60 euros while checking in only to give us a 60 euro voucher back to use in their restaurant within 3 hours, so we went and got more appetizers, second dinners, and yummy desserts.

(Monday, February 28th) Hello! Today was one of my favorite days. Ryan, Kate, and I drove

40 minutes to Sintra to visit the Pena Palace. It is a large and colorful palace, and it was totally worth the drive. After, we came back to Lisbon and got a hotel in the Cascais region where we then went to get lunch at like 4:30pm (we were on a late schedule due to the day trip) but then no kitchens were open so we ended up sitting at a restaurant until 7 when the kitchen opened, and then we ate and chatted until 9pm. It was so nice to catch up with my wonderful family.

(Tuesday, March 1st) Hi! I woke up and said bye to my family and took a train to the other side of town. I waited around until 8:45am and then I got picked up for my day tour! I was in a van with our tour guide Igor, one man from Brazil, a family of 3 from New Jersey, and a nice Canadian couple. We first headed to Fátima, which is the whole reason I signed up for the tour if I am being honest- but the whole day was amazing. We stopped at the factory where they manufacture all of the religious goodies like rosaries and statues, and then we headed to the main site. At Fátima, there is the old chapel where they have the statue of Mary in the exact spot/coordinates of where Mary would appear to the three children of Fátima. There is also the old church that Mary requested to be built with the tombs of the children, a large place to light candles, and a newer church that can fit 8,000 people. The mass in the old church was packed so we went down to the confessional area in the new church to have our rosaries and holy water blessed (we bought bottles at the store and filled them up at the fountain in the center).

Next, we headed to Batalha to see the big monastery they have there, and that is where we enjoyed lunch. After that we visited the coastal town of Nazaré which was amazing because it is where many surfing competitions are held as it is known to have some of the biggest waves in the world. Nazaré also has the seven skirt ladies who sell nuts and fruits, but the funny thing about them is that they give away so many free samples where they basically force them into your hand' sometimes I wonder how they make money. After that, our last stop was the medieval town of Óbidos. It is walled-in and it is known for the famous drink of ginja which has cherries. We walked around and I walked up on the walls to get wonderful views. I loved walking the uneven cobblestone roads and exploring all the little stores. Our tour guide told us that the population of this town is only like 20-40 people because most of the houses have been converted into stores or airbnbs.

We returned to Lisbon around 6pm and I then checked into my hostel. I met some girls in my room from Austria, the Netheralnds, and Canada, and then I did something I am not proud of. I need to let you in on a little secret. Instead of eating at a local Portugese restraurant exploring more of their cuisine, I was feeling the need for some American food. Luckily, there was a restaurant called “Dallas Burger Joint” that not only sounds extremely American, the food also tasted very American which I thoroughly enjoyed. I do wish I would have had some more Portugese food when I had the chance, but I also really enjoyed that burger and fries.

(Wednesday, March 2nd) Sadly, this was my last day in Portugal already! I went out to

breakfast with my Austrian friend Nikki, and then we separated and I walked all around seeing the main sights. I was by the ocean and also saw the really fun and colorful architecture of all the buildings. I went into St. George’s Castle and climbed around there (it kind of made me feel like it was an adult’s playground because there were so many random stairs and walkways to climb- I enjoyed it!). There were also peacocks in there that were fun to look at. I met a girl from Brazil name Catalina and we chatted while walking around. After that, I went to a few more lookout points of the city and then got some food before heading to the airport. The flight back was 40 minutes and very easy.

(Thursday, March 3rd) Ryan and Kate made it into Seville on this evening so we walked around Plaza de España and then I brought them to a restaurant with tapas so they could have a traditional meal. The best part was that my Spanish sister Alicia was able to join and she had never met Ryan and Kate so it was a great night! Alicia has not met my other brother either, but slowly or surely the whole family is meeting.

(Friday, March 4th) I walked around the city with Ryan and Kate for a few hours, but then unfortunately they had to head back to Madrid to catch their flight tomorrow. I spent the afternoon shopping and then a group of us went to the new Batman movie- it was 3 hours long but good! It felt so nice and familiar to be in a movie theatre with the smell of popcorn and booming speakers.

(Saturday, March 5th) My roommate Jillian and I were blessed with the best surprise this morning as we were walking to the bus to head to Granada. There was the most amazing sunrise. It greeted us as we began our 3 hour bus ride to Granada for the weekend with our program. In Granada, we immediately had a tour of the Albaicín neighborhood and then after, we walked around to find a lunch spot. The nice thing about Granada is that they always give free tapas/food with drink orders, so that is a nice touch. After eating, my friend Asia and I looked at the Corral de Carbón, a local market, and then we went into the Royal Chapel which was wild to me because that is where King Ferdinand II and Queen Isabella I are buried and have been for 500 years. I found it extremely amazing that they have their crowns and clothes available and on display after so much time has passed. This also just stood out to me because I remember learning as a kid that these are the royalty that paid for Christopher Colmbus’ journey across the ocean, so the fact that I got within 5 feet of their bodies was an eye-opening experience for me.

After this, we went up to some gardens and got more great views of the city. A few of us then went and got tea before going to dinner later for empanadas. I really like the vibe of Granada and it is so beautiful with the snow-covered mountains in the horizon behind the Alhambra.

(Sunday, March 6th) I am not sure what it is, but it is always hard to get up from hotel beds in the morning- they are just too comfortable. But I must say that it was definitely worth it today because we packed up, ate the hotel breakfast, and then headed to our tour of the Alhambra. We spent the three hours looking around at the grounds and gardens and I am simply blown away by the details. It is truly a work of art, and I am so glad that it has survived for so long.

After the tour, we all went out to different restaurants and ate before heading home. We had the 3-hour bus ride home and then I spent the night in. My host mom came home and walked into our room with a bucket of live coquina clams that the family picked at the beach that day. She cooked them up for dinner and they were actually very delicious. She knows I am not a huge fan of seafood, but the family was happy to see I liked these clams (even though the 11 year old son ate a majority of them in maybe 2 minutes total because he could eat them so fast). Regardless, I am really grateful to be with the family I have because they really do make everything an adventure.