Portugal Archives - Page 2 of 2

Photo Essay: Lisbon’s Road to the Orient

Lisbon is famous for the old medieval quarters and romantic balconies with fresh washed laundry... But the city also has a more modern side to it: The former industrial area in Lisbon's east had a bad reputation until it was completely remodeled for the world exhibition Expo in 1998. Since 1998 was the 500 year anniversary of Vasco da Gama's famous reaching of India via ship - one of the proudest moments in Portuguese history - the district was dedicated to him and Portugal's Golden Age. The fancy new train station there was named Oriente after da Gama's discovering of the [...]

By Julika|2013-05-07T04:34:33+02:002012/11/19|Categories: Art History, Photo Essay|Tags: Europe, Lisbon, Photo Essay, Portugal|4 Comments

The Dilemma of (Fake) Fantasy Travel

I few weeks ago, I finally gave in to the social media circus and signed up for Pinterest. One of the very first things I did, naturally, was checking out the travel category. Besides the 4569 photos of different angles of the Eiffel Tower, I found places I've been to, places I'd like to go to, places I miss... I do love me some proper wanderlusting! Then, however, I stumbled over this gem: At first glimpse, I just thought "Oh my gosh! Where is this?? Need to go there ASAP!!", but then I read the picture's caption - Dublin, Ireland. I was [...]

By Julika|2013-05-07T04:35:19+02:002012/11/15|Categories: Specials|Tags: Algarve, Italy, Paris, Portugal, Rome, thoughts|12 Comments

5 Things You Really Should Do in Lisbon

I love Lisbon. I fell in love with the gorgeous Portuguese capital more than four years ago and this love has been growing stronger ever since. The five months I lived there in 2011/2012 have been filled with enduring sunshine, wonderful people and abundance of indescribable beauty. I dream of moving back every day! Although Lisbon is the capital and largest city of Portugal, it is still pretty small compared to the other Western European capitals. To be honest, if you wanted to see all major sights, you could do that in less than two days: You would go see the Castelo, take [...]

By Julika|2022-01-05T15:04:09+01:002012/10/25|Categories: Destinations, Europe, Portugal|Tags: Europe, Lisbon, medieval, Portugal, study abroad|76 Comments

Photo Essay: Porto’s Colorful Ribeira

Although nothing compares to my beloved Lisbon, Porto may be just as pretty... It's so Portuguese, yet so different from Portugal's capital that it repeatedly took my breath away. The Ribeira do Porto is the old heart of the city on the riverside of the Douro river. I think I will never get sick of staring at the bright colored, slightly decayed of Porto houses against the clear blue sky...

By Julika|2013-05-07T04:37:27+02:002012/10/01|Categories: Art History, Photo Essay|Tags: Europe, Photo Essay, Porto, Portugal|0 Comments

Photo Essay: Flying Umbrellas in Évora

This was just one of those perfect little moments when you enter an unknown street in a city you have never been to before and it surprises you - with an installation of colorful umbrellas hovering over a little square to offer the restaurants in it shade from the hot Portuguese summer sun... In Évora, a pretty medieval square is turned into a fairy tale through this wonderful and surprisingly brilliant idea! I just loved this!

By Julika|2013-05-07T04:37:36+02:002012/09/24|Categories: Art History, Photo Essay|Tags: Art, Europe, medieval, Photo Essay, Portugal|2 Comments

What Happens in Lagos…

During our last weeks in Lisbon my friend Kathi and I really wanted to see one of THE most famous places in Portugal that everyone has been raving about... After having fallen in love with the Algarve in October, we were eager to return and looking forward to finally experiencing Lagos - the city with the most gorgeous beaches, the hottest surf teachers and its non-stop party. There was just one little hook - we were going down there in mid-January 2012! Honestly, we really didn't know what to expect of a beach city in the middle of the winter [...]

By Julika|2013-05-07T04:44:58+02:002012/08/08|Categories: Destinations, Europe, Portugal|Tags: Algarve, Europe, Portugal, study abroad|4 Comments

10 Things I Love Most About Portugal

Without further ado - I love Portugal. Here are the ten things I adore the most about this amazing country Sunsets. Portugal has the most gorgeous sunsets I have ever seen… I never got sick of taking pictures. Especially in combination with palm trees. Pastries. Pastéis de nata – so heavenly, no words could describe... if I could eat these for the rest of my life, I would be the happiest girl in the world. Beaches. Absolutely no need to explain any further. Seafood. Grilled fish dishes – to die for! Manuline Architecture. Late Gothic, one-of-a-kind-Portuguese, simply beautiful, my art [...]

By Julika|2013-05-07T04:56:48+02:002012/07/18|Categories: Destinations, Europe, Portugal|Tags: Algarve, Architecture, Europe, Lisbon, Portugal, study abroad|20 Comments

Portugal’s Algarve – A Dream Come True

Do you have this one spot in the world, where you would like to spend your retirement? I do. Definitely. Portugal's most gorgeous coastline is where all dreams of surreal beautiful beaches, rough sublime waves and the most incredible rock formations combine... I know, there a bazillion amazing beaches out there, but I’m convinced that you can’t find any beach within Europe that compares to the ones on the Algarve. During my semester in Lisbon I took two weekend trips down to the Algarve, and ever since swore to myself that I will so have to come back for a [...]

By Julika|2012-12-04T11:13:22+01:002012/06/25|Categories: Destinations, Europe, Portugal|Tags: Algarve, Europe, Portugal, study abroad|2 Comments

My Semester Abroad in an Undeservingly Short Summary

Oh, how should I ever be able to summarize my semester in Portugal adequately, and squeeze one little blog post – even my original tumblr on my time in Lisbon didn't even cover half the wonderful experiences I had in those sun-filled five months. I will try to keep it short: After a rather elaborate application process, I got offered a place to study at Universidade Nova de Lisboa in the fall semester 2011/2012. Having fallen in love with Portugal, and especially Lisbon, during a vacation in 2008, I always knew that I would eventually have to come back for a longer period of [...]

By Julika|2014-01-28T16:25:53+01:002012/06/05|Categories: Destinations, Europe, Portugal|Tags: Europe, Lisbon, Portugal, study abroad|3 Comments

Portugal – Love at First Sight

My good friend Carola and I had been thinking about a grand vacation for a while back in 2008, when she remembered that she met a Portuguese girl at an international youth event a few years back: Cláudia had invited her to come visit her in her home town Porto, in the north of Portugal, and we more or less spontaneously booked our flights. We naturally also wanted to spend some time in Portugal's capital Lisbon, so we booked a one-country Eurail ticket to be able to spend some time in both places, and get around easily. In Lisbon, we explored all [...]

By Julika|2013-09-05T08:30:28+02:002012/05/15|Categories: Destinations, Europe, Portugal|Tags: Architecture, Europe, Lisbon, Porto, Portugal|1 Comment