For the Love of Lisbon
In October 2020, I went to Mexico for three months, “on a whim” with only about 5 weeks of planning. It was a truly life changing experience; in that I learned calmness, stillness, and how to be more spontaneous.
All of these lessons came in very handy when my aunt called and told me she had a friend of a friend looking for a 3 month sublet in NYC and asked if I was still interested in subletting to travel long term again. It was all I could do not to scream “YES” (just kidding, I really did scream).
I was linked to a woman from Brazil who was looking for a place from “September to December”, as this was in mid-August I was expecting late September and that felt reasonable. But, of course, nothing is reasonable and she was looking for a place the first week of September.
A logical person would have taken a moment, thought this through, and considered this a very tight timeline to “find somewhere to go”… for three months… in three weeks… But, when it came to the opportunity to travel while someone else paid my rent, I was far from logical. I drafted a sublet letter, and started looking for where to spend the next three months.
My bestfriend (and frequent travel buddy) has always dreamed of Lisbon, and it fit all my criteria: Europe, fiscally responsible, available, and accessible to other parts of the EU, so it became my dream too.
I planned to spend 6 weeks in Lisbon, then head to warmer weather in Mexico from Mid October to early December. I lucked out on a month long Airbnb in Lisbon that was a steal of a price due to the duration of the stay and construction noise in the building next door (I live in the Bronx, construction noise is soothing). I planned to either travel the last 2 weeks, or find another Airbnb for a couple of weeks before heading to Mexico.
With my 25” suitcase and a backpack in tow, I headed to the airport with nearly nothing planned. I had a place to stay and a few Euro on hand in case I needed to get a taxi. I was an anxious mess with so many thoughts of “Is this a bad idea?” “Am I in over my head?” “Where am I even going?” etc, etc, with a side of etc.
But then….
After an overnight flight, dragging my suitcase through cobblestone streets, picking the wrong place for lunch and thinking “WTF am I going to eat for the next 6 weeks, there is no flavor here?”… I got to my Airbnb. Up a hill, up 4 flights of narrow stairs, out to the terrace that opened to sweeping views of the terracotta rooftops of Alfama, I fell in love.
In that moment, I knew there was something magical about Lisbon. I didn’t know yet what it was, or that I would fall in love many, many times over while there, but I knew there was … something.
The something sank in, and stuck. Within two weeks, I knew I wouldn’t be going to Mexico. By the third week, I had canceled my flight to Mexico and booked another 6 weeks in Lisbon.
I dove in; head first and wholly. I ate, drank, danced in the streets. I made friends, dated, made friends with people I dated. I became a “regular” places. I chatted with my neighbors. Friends visited. I went to castles, and palaces.
I ventured to 5 other countries and to Porto, Portugal in that time, but each time I came back to Lisbon it felt like coming home. I have already been back, and will be again soon.
