PORTUGAL: obrigado!

London had been the trip I had really been planning for quite some time, but Portugal was somewhere that Faith had expressed interest in for a bit. The same way Maddy planned Iceland, and I was just along for the vibe, it was the same with Portugal. When Faith had asked if I would be interested in going with her, the answer to see someplace new is always yes. She planned the entire thing, and we had the most amazing time in Lisbon and Lagos at the beginning of April.

When we arrived in Lisbon, we had gotten there late, so we hopped right off the plane and made our way to our hostel to find somewhere to eat. We essentially settled on a place where we had classic burgers and fries, making our mark on the wall. The hostel was beautiful and was very close to where we knew we would be sightseeing the next day in Lisbon.

The next morning, we grabbed some breakfast before doing a full day of sightseeing and taking everything in. It was the first time I had pancakes in a very long time, and I always have to start my morning off with some coffee. We took a long walk down Augusta Street and stopped in all of the shops where we grabbed some Portugal football merch, where it was apparent that they love and appreciate Ronaldo. I knew I had to try the famous Portuguese custard tarts, and they were so delicious, I think I could have had 10. For only 1 euro, they are definitely a must-try. We were able to see much of Lisbon, including time in Rossio Square, Praça do Comércio, Santa Maria Maior, and Largo Portas Do Sol. I think Faith and I may have had a combined 30,000 steps this day.

Later that night, we grabbed dinner, and of course, the two of us happened to find an Italian restaurant, so we got our pasta and as many Hugo spritzes as we could. After a long dinner filled with laughs and storytelling, we decided to head back to the hostel to get ready to go to a club that we had heard about online. We made our way to Lust in Rio, a club that was filled with disco balls and a mirror on the ceiling. The theme was neon, so everyone was covered in neon paint, which was super lively and exciting. We stayed for a bit and took it all in before ultimately leaving so we could prepare for our early train ride to Lagos the next morning.

The next morning, we said goodbye to Lisbon and took two trains all the way to Lagos, where we stayed in a quiet little hostel right in the middle of Old Town. Lagos is stunning with a calm sense of serenity that is so relaxing. We made our way to the São Gonçalo de Lagos, where the rock formations were otherworldly and the beaches were soft. The weather was not totally on our side in terms of rain, so the water was a bit choppy and not safe to get in and swim. Nonetheless, it was relaxing and we stayed as long as we could before we were rained out. We had spent the rest of the day walking around Old Town, seeing the quiet town, and watching little kids run around playing football was magical. We grabbed dinner and went into stores such as Ripcurl and Forca Portugal.

I have always wanted to skydive, and originally, when I spoke about it first, I was 18 and had wanted to go skydiving for my 18th birthday. When I was 15 I went indoor skydiving with my family which was super fun but I have just always wanted to go skydiving as a bucket list goal for me. I had talked about doing it in North Carolina in the summer of 2023 but just did not make it happen. And then in Iceland Maddy and I talked about maybe doing something like that but again, we just were not able to make it happen. I had said to Faith that it was something I wanted to look into and then two of my friends in Rome did it in Portugal so I knew instantly I was sold. I decided I wanted to sky dive over the Algarve and had scheduled my jump. I had gotten a call from them the day before my jump saying that the weather was not ideal and if I wanted to reschedule. We rescheduled it for the morning of the day we were leaving. We really went out with a bang leaving Portugal. When I arrived to the airport where I would be making the jump, we set Faith up in the lounge where she would watch and do schoolwork. I went back to get all set up and they had asked me if I wanted to upgrade from 10,000 feet to 15,000 feet. The difference would be 60 seconds of freefall instead of 30 seconds. Since I am easily convinced, my answer was a quick yes. I went back to get suited up in my one piece and watch all the training videos and whatnot. I had met this amazing girl who was also studying abroad in Spain and we instantly bonded over this experience. I met my instructor who immediately became my best friend for the next two hours and I had never been so wildly anxious in my life. It was finally my turn to go into the plane so we did my pre jump interview and then got me hooked up into my harness. I was sweating so badly it was actually embarrassing. We get into the plane and I am hooked up to my instructor and I am just watching us go so high where all you can see is just a pure bed of clouds. I remember at one point we were so high and I looked over at his altitude meter and it only said 9,000 feet. We still had 5,000 more feet to go, and I could not see the ground at all. I was shaking so badly that I thought my hands were going to fall off. We made it to 15,000 feet, and with the comfort of all the other instructors cheering us on, it finally came time for the plane to remain still, and one by one, I watched each pair fall out of the side. It was finally my time, and we slid our way to the side door where my legs hung over the side of the plane 15,000 feet up in the air. All of a sudden, I was not even falling; I was just floating. There is not even a thought, just pure bliss. 60 seconds of just flying. When I could finally see the ground shortly after the parachute was pulled and we spent another 60 seconds just flying around over the Algarve. My adrenaline was sky high, and I just wanted to do it again and again. Everything just seemed so small, and nothing mattered. We had finally put our feet on the ground, and it was an unbelievable experience that I will never ever forget. The day I convince my mom, who is deathly afraid of heights to go skydiving with me is the day that I will really believe in miracles.

And as my last departing message to Portugal….. obrigado!!!