Reunion in Portugal (Originally Aug 29 - Sept 4)

It had been about a year since I was last dorming with my Portuguese roommates in Vilnius, Lithuania. That was my first time really living the dorm life with anyone so it was quite a new experience. Also for it being my first time in Europe and studying abroad it made for some great memories and remarkable friends. Living with three US students and five Portuguese students for a summer really makes you immerse quickly into a new lifestyle. Since I was coming through Europe again I decided to make a small trip to Porto, Portugal to visit them.

When I landed in Porto I was fortunate enough to have my friend Pedro pick me up from the airport. From there he toured me around the city of Porto for a while before taking me to his hometown Vila do Conde which had a beautiful seaside. He introduced my to a local Porto speciality Franceshina which was delicious. He was actually leaving to study in Lithuania again the next day, so I returned to Porto that evening to check out the city before meeting up with another Portuguese friend. The next day I spent exploring the historic old town of Porto which was beautiful and different than the other European cities I had seen. From the artwork to city architecture it was refreshing to walk through a totally different environment.

The next day my good friend Tiago came by to pick me up. Tiago was very kind to give me both a place to stay and transportation around the city during my stay in Porto. I couldn't have asked for a better tour guide as he showed me all the local hotspots and introduced me to many new people and food. Each night was filled with some new adventure or crazy party. That weekend also happened to be his parent's 25th wedding anniversary and he invited me to join in the celebration. His parents were great hosts and made sure to give me the full Portuguese experience from trying out various wines, to Portuguese dancing, and to having lunch on the Douro River.

Tiago also showed me part of his family's business which included growing kiwi's. We drove through his classic Volkswagen beetle and headed out to see the countryside of Porto which was really remarkable. From the old town homes and dirt roads it was definitely had a uniqueness of its own. I had never seen a kiwi farm before and he gave me the full lowdown on how the farm worked. As we were leaving the kiwi farm we also ran into a forest fire that had just started burning. I had never been that close to a forest fire before and it was definitely intense to see how fast forest fires can grow. After finally finding a road out that wasn't out Tiago realized his car was having issues. We realized on the highway that it was just about out of gas and hurried to find a station. Luckily, we reached one in time and made our way back to the city to see his school and have some scrumptious seafood snacks.

We were also able to see another one of our friends, Joao who studied with us in Lithuania last year as well. He joined us in doing activities around the city, having dinner, and showing me around the Port Wine district on my last day in Porto. We also joined a Sandeman tour where we learned some of the Port Wine history in the region and a little tasting as well of course. It was great being able to see some great friends once again and on my last night had a great night out. It was September 3rd and I was to fly out of Lisbon to Prague on Sept 4th. I took a bus out that morning to Lisbon and stayed in a hostel for a day before flying out the next day to Prague!