Lisbon

The final destination of our Spring Break trip was Lisbon, Portugal. We started the morning with a visit to Jeronimo's Monastery and the Tower of Belem, both located near the coast. We happened to come across the Monastery on a free visit day, so the experience was slightly less than spiritual, but that's tourism. A little ways down there is a cultural center with lots of random exhibits, but it was probably one of my favorite museums that I've been to in a while. A simple yet moving collection of worldwide artists' photograph series and rooms filled with maps representing literal and broader themes were a nice change from crowded museums of people looking at pieces solely because they feel that they have to.

After some exploring, we stopped at Pasteis de Belem, famous for their custard tarts. The bakery looked like a tiny, local spot from the outside, but the inside was literally like a large cafeteria - only filled with sweets. Wonderful.

On our last full day of vacation, we took a tour of Sintra. Our trip northwest of Lisbon was led by Nunu, the guide associated with our hostel. The four of us and four others hopped in a van and stopped first at Palacio de Pena. The weather wasn't too great to begin with, but being so high up (we drove at quite the angle for quite some time...) created an insane fog. We skirted around the palace's upper balcony. The fog made it appear as though the palace was housed in a space of complete nothingness.

After touring the palace, Nunu took us to lunch. At first sight, we found ourselves at a restaurant/gift shop, but the food was beyond most things that I've ever tried. Many of us had the traditional Portuguese pork on a bed of perfectly cooked potatoes and salad. Lunch was the best possible way to warm up for the next couple of legs of our journey.

We walked from the restaurant to Quinta da Regaleira, a palace with labyrinths and exotic gardens. Nunu handed us flashlights to guide us through the damp and pitch black tunnels. Spelunking wasn't exactly what I had imagined getting ourselves into, but I really enjoyed all of the hiking and tunneling, especially since I can't say that really happens in London.

On the way back to the hostel, we stopped at the beach and Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point of Europe. The rocky coast, wildflowers, clear ocean and (verrrrry) powerful wind made it seem like a scene from a movie, but the purity of the nature is something that I don't think could be accurately depicted.