milestone moments.

“it seems that the more places i see and experience, the bigger i realize the world to be.  the more i become aware of, the more i realize how relatively little i know of it, how many places i have still to go, how much more there is to learn.  maybe that’s enlightenment though – to know that there is no final resting place of the mind, no moment of smug clarity.  perhaps wisdom, at least for me, means realizing how small i am, and unwise, and how far i have yet to go.”

— anthony bourdain —

“you haven’t been to spain?  what? why not? you have been to azerbaijan and not spain?! you’re so weird.”

yes. it’s true. my first time to spain was may 2018. i had just turned 15 when i first went to europe, now fast forward 22 years and i was finally on my way. took me long enough…..

i ended up finding an amazing deal on a one-way, direct ticket from boston to barcelona, not knowing when or where exactly i would be when i was ready to return. for me, one-way tickets are really the best way to travel. it makes your plans more flexible and when something ends up happening and you need to make changes (and something will happen, trust me) you only have to adjust one flight, not several.

despite my preference for solo travel, i asked my best friend from growing up if she had any interest in meeting me somewhere in europe since she lives in denmark now and is always up for a little girls trip. she had already been to spain and portugal so i threw out the idea of morocco, half expecting her to question my sanity. to my surprise, she immediately said yes and then minutes later began sending me links to beautiful riads all over marrakech. i was booked for spain, planning a day trip to andorra, would then meet my bestie in morocco – my 50th country in the world – and finally end in portugal, which would be my 40th european country. milestone moments indeed!!

on a warm night in may, i fell asleep in boston and woke up in barcelona, not a terrible way to spend seven hours of your life. the weather in barcelona was beyond beautiful, but the traffic was not. i was itching to get out and start roaming the streets but the gridlock i was currently stuck in had other plans for me. did i accidentally take a flight to LA because it certainly feels like i could be california dreaming on the 101. i always try to book a centrally located hotel so i have the ability to walk to most of the places i have an interest in seeing, and barcelona was no different (hotel regina http://www.reginahotel.com/en/). i was able to walk to the beach, to the la sagrada família, and was steps away from all the sights in the gothic quarter.

as much as i love being on the ground experiencing a city for the first time, one of the highlights for me in barcelona was sitting on the very small balcony of my hotel room watching the traffic and people go by. the view wasn’t necessarily anything to write home about but taking a few moments to just relax and enjoy a local beer in the sun is as important as trying to fit as many places of interest in during a trip, maybe even more. everyone has pictures of themselves outside la sagrada família and in park güell but i was just as happy with a balcony selfie in the sun as i would have been with any of the others. the magic of the unplanned, the unexpected and the quiet tourist-free parts of my trip really are the moments that keep me happy and content.

hello lighting!

balcony life

everywhere i looked there was something to see. shops selling everything from waxy brown soap to brightly colored shoes to hand hammered lanterns just waiting to be lit for a cozy nighttime glow. there were people going and coming in every direction, mosques beckoning the call to prayer, and donkeys pulling their daily hauls. it was chaotic magical perfection.

the days passed too quickly in the sunny sahara and soon i was off to portugal, my last stop and my european country number 40. this was my second attempt at lisbon. the first time i planned to stop by the city of seven hills was on my way back from senegal, but when your passport, cash, credit cards and cell phone all get stolen, you have to make adjustments. but as with spain, better late than never.

the second i arrived in lisbon i fell in love. the beautiful tile adorning the facades of buildings, the colorful houses on the steep streets, and the views from são jorge castle – it was like being in san francisco but with a european twist. i ended up walking around mostly during the evening my first day here because there were so many people visiting this wonderful city that it made it impossible to really fully explore. it’s always funny because the majority of the pictures i take, and have subsequently posted on instagram, have drawn in comments about how it looks as though no one else is there and i am the lone visitor. while this was true when i traveled to astana, kazakhstan in march, the same cannot be said for busy busy lisbon.

my plan was to find a grocery store first to grab a few beers and snacks and then to get to bed early so i could be up with the sun to avoid the afternoon crowds. i had no problem procuring beers and snacks, but it became a problem when i realized my hotel room did not have a refrigerator or an ice machine. plan b: fill my sink with cold water and submerge the warm beer until it was cold enough to consume. while my beer chilled, i snacked on all the perishable food i purchased that could not be refrigerated, and can highly recommend trying the local cheese and chorizo. both are phenomenal, and i should know, i ate about five pounds of each since it was either eat it or waste it at that point.

my favorite part of my trip to lisbon, besides the beer and my makeshift sink cooler (it worked, by the way, a new travel trip) was getting up as early as i planned and feeling like i had the whole city to myself. the crowds from the day before were gone, nestled in their beds dreaming of pastel de nata and i was up and out the door taking in the charm that is lisbon virtually alone. i roamed the streets all morning and was not done even as afternoon came around. there was so much to see and so many alleyways that deserved their moment of pictorial glory it was difficult to call it a day. i loved everything about my time in lisbon and my only regrets were not staying longer and not coming sooner.