The Last of the Expeditions

My last weekend here was spent in just the right way, walking around in colorful and bright Portugal. Lisbon was absolutely beautiful and so welcoming. Our Airbnb was in a really great area, right by all the major tourist attractions, so we spent the weekend in the most relaxing way possible.

A few of my friends and I booked our trip to Portugal with the expectations of sunny beaches, hot days, and lots of sangria. Well, we got one thing right- the sangria was great. It turned out the beach was not as close to us as we had thought, and the sun wasn’t too generous for most of the weekend. None of this seemed to spoil the trip at all, though! The sun was shining and the weather was perfect for the first day, so we explored the town - walking almost 13 miles in one day. All of the buildings were so colorful and different. I’ve found that every city has its own distinct feel, and Lisbon’s was bright and energetic. There was live music everywhere, and all of the houses looked like they were straight out of a coloring book.

There was lots of food eaten, sangria sipped, and miles walked during the weekend. I couldn’t imagine a better way to end my time traveling abroad. I got the chance to just slow down a bit and not worry about rushing to every tourist spot in the city. Lisbon is an awesome tourist destination, but it seemed like it was more about just enjoying yourself than seeing all the typical sights. I got to see a beautiful golden church, a castle with amazing views, a sparkly ocean, and tons more that made the trip that much better.

Lisbon made it so clear to me that every place I visited was extremely different, but all my favorites in some way or another. I loved Prague for its fairytale feels, Amsterdam for the winding canals, Italy for the amazing food and relaxed atmosphere, Barcelona for the beaches, Edinburgh for the people and architecture, London for the cool markets and cheap plays, and Lisbon for the amazing views. Each place holds so many unique memories that I was lucky enough to have made with great people. I am so blessed to have experienced each unique place, and I hope you all get so lucky to see some of these cities for yourself. It’s incredibly sad to think about my time here being over, but I am so hopeful that I’ll be back one day. After all, the travel bug is a hard one to shake once it’s caught.