After the tour, Yaneth and I decided to go get churros. Unlike Greeley, since we live so far and have been split up for the afternoon classes, Yaneth and I have not been able to hang out as much. It was wonderful to have her all for myself for the whoooole afternoon! We went to Valor, a chain churreria that is actually fairly good. We decided to sit outside, to keep up with our Spain style, and so that we had an excuse to use our new and handmade fans. We are truly blending in, and I know you are jealous.
Upon sitting down, I am immediately asked about my origin. Shortly after, I am immersed in a deeply political discussion about the situation in Venezuela. Turns out that our server, Ulises, is one of the many Venezuelans escaping the disaster left behind by Chavez. It was a wonderful evening, and the churros ended up being an almost three hour outing. We laughed, joked around, and enjoyed the cooler temperatures that salamanca had to offer us.
I walked home after churros to find out about my AP scores. My kids did well. I don't want to be dragged down by what I can't control, so I will enjoy my success in a higher number of fours and fives! It was a wonderful year and I would change absolutely nothing about it. After grades, I proceeded to finish packing for my trip to Lisbon. I went to bed at around midnight. That night, we were blessed with rain. Real, windy, ground smells like rain rain.... Oh how I missed it.
I woke up a 5 am on Friday morning and started getting ready for my adventure. I hurriedly finished up packing those pesky toiletries one can't pack til the last minute, and at six thirty I was calling up a local radio taxi company to pick me up. I arrived at the Oviedo residence at 640, twenty minute before go time. If there is one thing I can commend myself for this summer, is the fact that I have been consistently on time!
We got on the bus and off we went. I sat on the second row, aiming at avoiding motion sickness, yet staying awake for the ride. One sees a lot of a country on a road trip. My classmate Paul sat next to me, and we realized later on that we were the only people from our program on this trip. We made a couple of pit stops, but arrived in Lisbon about forty minutes ahead of what we planned. They gave us a little time to grab lunch, and we ended up with some of the Brazilian guys I had briefly met on the tour on Thursday. Their group is composed of military men who also got a grant from the bank of Santander, and they get sent to Spain for two weeks to take intensive Spanish courses. They were incredibly nice, and -I won't lie- very nice to look at!!! They taught me a few useful words like thank you, chicken and masters program. We had a roasted chicken that was to die for. I didn't realize I haven't had chicken in almost three weeks!!!
That night, our bus took us to the center of Lisbon and we walked around the main monuments of the city. It has a very interesting history, like the fact that there was a massive earthquake in the 1750s that practically destroyed the town. It is pretty shocking to see what was left over, like the gothic cathedral in the barrio alto. We visited the castle of San Jorge, a beautiful medieval structure that sits atop one of the MANY hills of Lisbon. We had beautiful views and cool temperatures. Can't beat that!!
After the castle, we had the choice of staying on our own, returning to the hotel or going with the guides. Paul and I decided to stick with Fernando and Angel, the dynamic tour guide duo. It ended up being an awesome idea. We continued walking through the city, I got to go on the 1905 iron elevator that overlooks the city, we had delicious Portuguese coffee, pasteles de nata, and an adventure around the barrio alto streets. We ate dinner at a small restaurant next to the ruins of the cathedral. We had one of their traditional dishes, bacalao. Nom nom nom.
Fernando and Angel are AWESOME. If I could take people back with me to the states, I would take them. They are incredibly well educated and cultured in topics that range from politics to architecture... We had amazing conversations and many many laughs. It really was refreshing to meet guys who are not constantly thinking of video games or the gym. We returned to the hotel at around 1030, but not without first experiencing the metro of Lisbon. It is fast, clean, and the station by our hotel is gorgeous.
We sat at the lobby talking some more until about midnight. They gave us a lesson on gothic vs romanic architecture, which is one of the topics of our art and architecture class. I was so thankful for this, as on Saturday we visited a gothic church and I knew exactly what to look for!
I ended up rooming with two Brazilian girls, since no one came from my program. We are the only triple bedroom. I am happy to say the language barrier has just been mildly noticeable!
On Saturday our call time was 930. I woke up, got ready, and ate breakfast with Daniela, one of the two girls rooming with me. The breakfast is super legit. The fruit is fresh, sweet and perfectly delicious, and I can't even tell you about the coffee! I have stopped using sugar, and the coffee is oh so delicious! I ended up having three cups that morning.
We got on the bus and rode to Belem. We visited the monastery of San Jeronimos, a now empty monastery built in the gothic style with a MASSIVE church and an Alhambra style courtyard. Why is it empty, you ask? because the government of Portugal kicked them out! and what did the priests do? they sold their secret recipe of pasteles de Belem to a nearby shop and now that pastelaria makes millions while everyone tries to copy their famous baked good.
After the monastery, we walked to a 1950s monument that honors the men who helped spread the Portuguese colonies and traveled around Africa, and shortly after we walked to the tower of Belem, a building that used to sit in the middle of the river, where it becomes the Atlantic, and now sits on the beach after the earthquake dramatically changed the coastline.
Once again, we rode the bus. We stopped at the mouth of hell! I can't quite explain it, except for the fact that it is a big rocky hole surrounded by beautiful waters. We had about fifteen minutes there and then we rode the bus for another fifty minutes to Cascais, a beach town. Paul and I went to explore on our own. We went to the beach of the queen, a tiny beach surrounded by rocks. It was crazy to think our feet were in the Atlantic. The water was cold, so we just walked around and climbed a little, but did not swim. After the beach, we roamed around the main streets, trying not to get robbed in our attempt to eat bacalao again. We found a place that had a fair price and went in. The food was great, and the fish was superb. We talked a lot during lunch, and it is crazy how the more we talk, the more he reminds me of my brother. Even the mannerisms.
Anyway, after lunch we walked back to get on the bus to return to Lisbon. Cascais was nice but I was ready to return to explore the city.
We got back, and I talked to Angel and Fernando about sticking with them for the rest of the day. They were incredibly awesome and took me to places I would have never seen if not for them. I was thankful, still am. I got to see the rest of the Alfama, the monastery of San Vicente, the juderia, the national pantheon, a huge ship with navy guys in uniform, the old city wall, the run down neighborhoods, the church of Saint Lucia and the wonderful facades, the casa de Los picos - a similar house to one I saw the previous weekend in Segovia-, the lit up elevator, the monument to the Jews massacred in Lisbon.... I mean, I could have never seen any of that on my own. A few tips for those of you coming to Lisbon in the next few years: bring light weight shoes, but with traction... And be ready to walk UPHILL. The city hills are not kind, and they will bring you down, only to surprise you with marvelous views and an amazing skyline ... And you WILL be a sweaty mess!!
At 830, we met up with Paul and we all went to dinner. Again, like the previous night, it was a wonderful evening We ate good food and had great conversation. I picked corvina, since it is so freaking hard to find in Colorado. I am glad I did. It was delish.
On our way back to the metro station, we stopped for ice cream. Angel says he has a psychological pregnancy and is constantly hungry. The guy is skinny as can be. If I had his metabolism I would also eat like that. I had passion fruit sorbet. Freaking. Amazing. 1000000 points, don't care!!
We returned to the hotel at around 1130. We sat at the lobby and ran into two of the Brazilian guys. We sat down and the great conversation continued. At around 1230, I was dead tired. Up to my room I went, as today was to be a very busy day.
My alarm went off at 5 am, 505, and finally at 520, I got my butt out of bed and showered. Leia, Daniela and I sat down for breakfast and then packed up. Our bus was leaving the hotel at 8am to head to Obidos and get on our way back to Salamanca. Obidos was ok. I am currently on the bus from Obidos to Batalha. It was probably my least favorite city. Like Carcassone, Obidos is a medieval town surrounded by towers and a ginormous wall. Unlike Carcassone, Obidos was so full of people by the time we arrived that it was simply too overwhelming. I had a hard time enjoying myself, while also trying to tackle people out of my way. I did not climb the walls, I did not even buy a coffee.
We are currently heading to Batalha to see the monastery and then going to Fatima to visit the Santuario.
We should be arriving to Salamanca at around 9 pm, but we have been pretty early to everything this weekend, so maybe we will get there earlier.
I would like to stop for one second to say that the news of Cory Monteith have left me truly disturbed and saddened. How can someone who has everything be so consumed by an addiction? I will forever remember him and how he changed me the day I saw my first episode of glee. Thank you, Cory, for inspiring me on my return to theater.
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