First Impressions | Lisbon
The pressure to love Lisbon is on and it is fierce…
You know when someone has a YouTube video that they want you to watch sooo badly and they SWEAR it is hysterical and that you are going to absolutely LOVE it?
And somehow the more they tell you how much you’re going to love to it, the more it kinda makes you want to not like it out of stubborn principle?
By the time you finally say “fk it” and watch the damn video to get them off your back, you’re forced into one of those super awkward fake laughs just so you don’t hurt their feelings and look like a huge asshole.
Yeah, that’s kinda how I felt about Portugal going into month 3.
The Pressure Is On
I’ll preface this by saying that following Prague would be unfair for any city on our itinerary in my opinion. I had just gotten into a groove by the end of last month and was feeling all of those homey vibes I talked about in my recap post.
It sounds dumb, I know, but I have been feeling the pressure to love Lisbon this first week. I think it’s a combination of how bummed I was to leave Prague, how every site seems to have Portugal in its “Top Destinations for 2017”, and how much people who have been here before told me how much I’m going to like it. Whatever the reasoning, it just didn’t wow me right off the bat.
I’m that annoying kind of person who likes things less when people tell you how you’re going to react to them. It applies to most things — YouTube vids, songs, TV shows, and apparently cities.
I’m fully aware that it’s so stupid and that Lisbon really is incredible…it just took me a couple days to forgive it for being #notprague.
All of that being said, after spending more time in Lisbon and a weekend in Porto, it’s easy to see why Portugal belongs on all of those lists.
Color Me Impressed
Lisbon is the most colorful city that I’ve ever been in. From the purple jacaranda trees to the colorful buildings decorated with brightly colored paint/tile/street art to the rainbow-like sunsets, there’s a ton of things to stare at. I mean, there are even peacocks everywhere.
The Peeps
The vibes from the people in Lisbon have been really incredible. People are friendly, speak good English, and are extremely social.
One of my favorite things so far has been seeing the big groups of people organically congregate around sunset at this spot called Santa Catarina which has an incredible view of the city. Every night people go there to have some drinks, play random instruments, and even sing. It’s a lot of fun to be around.
#NewMonthNewMe
One of the best parts about moving from place to place every month is the opportunity that each new month gives you to hit the reset button. A lot of people, including myself, were feeling a little doughy leaving Prague because of all the bread, potatoes, and beer that we consumed. Before leaving Prague, our Program Leader, Mama Jen, proposed that mayyyybee this month we put some focus on getting kai-razy fit. Everyone nodded in agreement (and shame) as they took another sip from their Pilsner.
Lisbon has been the perfect place to hit the reset button with the awesome gym that we are all going to, the hills (oh, sweet Jesus, the hills…), the surfing lessons, and the lighter food and beverages.
Personal Growth
I’m excited for this month because as a group we are focusing more and more on setting our goals for the year and supporting each other in achieving them. Looking back during the Pre-RY days, I wish I spent more time planning on how to get what I want out of this year and less time on what size of GoToobs I should get (“…but the 2oz ones have the little suction cup thingys and the 3oz don’t!” ← a real internal struggle for me *face palm*).
Also, next month Valentina and I will be going to a weekend retreat that brings together Remotes from different programs for sessions about creating change and developing new habits. Really excited about this.
WiP Lisboa
Fortuitous timing gave us the opportunity to use Remote Year’s newest work space, which just opened last month. It’s got a similar feel to the WiP workspace we had in Split, but it’s different enough to make it feel like its own unique place.
Most importantly, it’s got a quiet room that is reminiscent of the quiet room (called “the library”) that I basically lived in at in the office back in Austin.
Photo cred to Sean Marier (IG: @839photo) for the pictures that actually look good
