After a very rainy 4 hour bus ride early in the morning, we arrived at our hotel, Hotel White in downtown area of the city of Lisbon. We walked in and were blown away by the fancy, clean appearance of our hotel, much different from the rustic lifestyle we were residing in, just hours before. We quickly washed up and headed out to find some food. We took a cab to the Museu Nacional do Azulejo, where we ate some food at a quaint restaurant inside the Museum. We explored the rest of the Museum, learning about the history and making of ancient tiles, paintings, sculptures, etc.

We moved onto the next museum of the day, which was more on the modern side, called Museu Nacional de Arte Contemporanea do Chiado. Although I enjoyed seeing the architecture and some of the pieces, this museum was more up Brandon and Larisha’s alley since their were more sculptures. Still, we got to see the work of some of the latest artists competing in the March showcase, so it was fun to see such current work.

Since it was still raining at this point, none of us really wanted to walk outside very much, so we opted to hit some stores to pick up souvenirs for friends and family. We stopped at a vintage bookstore, a modern soap and craft shop, a pottery store, a common souvenir shop for knick-knacks, and a few more. We also dropped in at the neatest t-shirt shop with urban designs on them.

Exhausted and hungry from the day, we went out to dinner at my new favorite place in Portugal called Time Out. This place is a food market for the newest and tastiest foods, and the best place for chefs to test out their new creations. Tons of shops were laid out around the center tables of the market, anything from sushi and Asian, classic Portuguese, fresh meats, Italian, and many more. I opted to go a little adventurous by ordering a salmon, cuttlefish, lettuce, and seaweed sandwich on a black bun, with sautéed veggies. Ugh, delicious! We then had to get fresh gelato of course! So I got a small cup of coconut, caramel, and hazelnut gelato. My week was made!

Stuffed from dinner, we headed back to our hotel to refresh and shower. It felt amazing to finally take a nice, long, hot shower after a week in the countryside. Though it was late, the three of us wanted to make the most of our last days in Portugal by adventuring out in the city and seeing the nightlife. Needless to say, Portugal people are night owls!