Lisbon

Lisbon

Marina and I met my friend from uc Davis at the airport in Madrid. We took the short flight and bus to our hostel. We were greeted by five friends who were already there since the day before. Then my bestie from Davis flew in from London where she has been interning this semester.

The gang of nine set out for some authentic Portuguese dinner. We we recommended a restaurant within a few blocks. The menu was small but everyone liked what they ordered. After dinner we went for drinks.

Isabel enjoying her first steak in years.

There was a street lined with bars and people socializing in the street.

The next day we went to the beach the next day. It took a while to get such a large group together and ready, but we finally made it out of the hostel around 1pm. Our English friend Rebecca flew in that morning so we got enough sandwiches, snacks, and of course Portuguese wine for the day trip.

We had a blast. Swimming and sunbathing with friends on a beach in Lisbon... Who could complain?

We hopped the bus as the sun was setting. After a clean shower we had a chorizo and wine dinner. We sampled different chorizos barbecued on a small tabletop ceramic grill, while eating cheese and bread and washing it down with red wine.

Two hours later (bellies full of spicy meat and wine) we left the chorizo table and took a bottle of wine to the river. We relaxed for a bit then headed to bed.

The next day our group split into smaller groups. I went to see the castle on top of the city. The walk was a climb but well worth it. We stopped at a church and various little shops on the way. It was amazing and the view was beautiful.

After the castle, we had lunch, then we lost our friends. After a hopeless search we gave up and Marina, Rebecca and I visited Belém which is about 20 minutes by tram.

(Pictures to come - Sorry!)


We sampled some world famous pastries. The place could probably fit 250 people but it was still packed with a line out the door. However, it was well worth it.

For our last night with everyone we hit the bars one last time. But first we pre-gamed at our awesome hostel.

We met two girls from Bordeaux that came out with us and were really fun. In our drunken stupors I haggled 1 euro for a light up tiara and Aidan haggled 4 euro for a watch.

We ended the night with McDonald's (something I would regret the next day of course.)

Most of our friends left at four that morning. Marina, Isabel and I spent the next day sightseeing around our hostel.

The next morning we piled into a taxi. Marina and I said our goodbyes to our Madrid UC Davis friends and boarded our appropriate planes.

More Photos Here :)

Spain

Disclaimer
Sorry I have been enjoying the last of my time in Bordeaux. This has included visiting some places for the last time and saying goodbye to my californian friends who have left and soaking up the last of my french friends who can't fit in my luggage. Thus, my blogs have been lagging. I will try to post my Lisbon as soon as possible! 

Madrid, Spain


Marina and I met Lauren and her two friends from home Aidan and Brian in Madrid, Spain. We stayed in a hostel that was right in the city center at the metro stop called sol.

The first day we took this cable car across the city where snacked and relaxed on the other side which overlooked the entire city.

Upon returning to the city we visited a rose garden. While smelling the flowers we were told it was closing time. After we visited the oldest monument in Madrid - an egyptian temple.

We discovered this sandwich place called 100 Montaditos. It's a chain with 100 different tapas sized sandwiches. Each sandwich ranges from 1-2 euros, beer, coffee, and and hot chocolate are also a euro each. We returned several times.

We explored the night life and our friends that study abroad there took us around town. Our friend Rachel took us to this authentic family owned paella restaurant. We ordered a dish for 8 with chorizo, chicken and mixed vegetables. It was in the top 5 dishes I have ever eaten in my life.

The tall guy in the back is Brian, my coworker/friend from Davis studying in Madrid :)

The next day we visited the Museo del Prado after spending half the day in the Real Jardin Botanico. We saw works from Goya, Bosch, Valezquez and many more. After the Prado we did some touristy shopping.

The Garden of Earthly Delights - Bosch

We spent the last couple days going around the city and seeing different monuments. We paid the entrance fee to see the Royal Palace. It was hard to bite the bullet since we always get into museums free with our french student IDs. The ticket was well worth it. I unfortunately have no photos because it wasn't allowed.

On our last day, before leaving to Lisbon, Marina and I visited the Reina Sofia (more info here), the modern art museum in Spain. It is home to famous artists Dali and Picasso, including his Guernica. Unfortunately, in most rooms we were unable to take photos.

We left the museum, picked up our bags from the hostel, grabbed some last montaditos and headed to the airport for Lisbon, Portugal.

More Photos Here :)

Greece

Vacation: Yes Please.

I spent the week in Athens. It was a dream come true. Actually, it was better than I could have ever imagined.

Highlights

Paris
We spent a couple days in Paris before leaving for Athens. I love this city.

Our Apartment

We rented an apartment that had literally everything we needed and more. It was amazing. We even did laundry.

Acropolis

We visited the UNESCO World Heritage Site the second day in Athens. You can read about it here. I took a stone from the BC ruins. I feel so bad about it. I just had this urge to bring a part of one of the world's oldest monuments with me. Selfish, I know.. but there is nothing I can do about it now but enjoy the special rock.

The Beach

We visited two beaches. The first was in Sounion, Greece which is south of Athens. We visited the Temple of Poseidon and after soaked up some rays on a beach we pretty much had to ourselves. The water was crystal clear. We could see sponges and fish enjoying the warm water as we swam around.

The second beach was on the island of Athena. It was about an hour away by ferry. We rented bikes and biked around until we found a suitable beach. We tried ouzo, the local greek alcohol. It was... disgusting.

Open-Air Markets

Hand-made trinkets, leather sandals and bags, tourist souvenirs galore... I spent way over budget. I guess I will be eating less for the next month to try to balance out the damage I did in Athens shopping.

Around the city, there were tons of stray dogs. They were all pretty well-fed and cute looking dogs. We stopped to pet a few like this one:

Food
OH MY GOD. It's cheap and amazing. Can I live here???


Sorry for the quick blog entry but I am leaving for madrid in a few minutes I will update all when I get back! Bisous!