Lisbon
To celebrate the end of my first semester of teaching, I set off with eight of my colleagues to explore the westernmost coast of Europe: Lisbon, Portugal. If I had been able to anticipate the beauty that awaited us, the colors of the city and sky, and the joy of the Portugese, I would've thought twice about buying a return ticket. For years, I’ve dreamed of traveling to Central and South America where vivid colors are spread on every building, and I often wondered why I continue to return to Europe where the style of architecture, although admittedly striking and full of history, is grandiose, proper and less my style. I had no idea that Portugal carried such a vibrant style, and it amazed me that something so historically and eccentrically colorful exists in Europe. When we left Bordeaux, we left behind a rainy gray spell, and I was so grateful to be greeted by the clearest blue sky in Lisbon. The windows of the somewhat dilapidated buildings reflected the exact col...