Portugal was an astounding experience. I can say my travel was a journey of a lifetime. My grandparents made this trip memorable; this is the first voyage outside of the U.S. that I have traveled with both of them. Throughout the excursion, I had to watch over my grandparents with my mother, my great aunt, and great uncle. There were times that they drove me crazy, but I would not have changed it for anything. They are babies, but much older and wiser. I have made wonderful memories with them.
Some of those memories included taking selfies with my grandparents and great aunt and uncle, my grandpa taking pictures of my grandma with his camera and joking around with my great aunt and uncle, during the guided tours. They had wonderful stories to tell during our car ride to different cities. The stories that they would describe would be about their childhood memories in Colombia. Other stories that occurred during the trip were the admission prices for senior citizens. Since my grandparents were above eighty, they were free. My great uncle asked in the next museum; “so all of us that are eighty could go in for free” knowing well, that he is only seventy-five. It turned out that in this museum; all seniors pay the same price. It was funny that he was increasing his age to go in for free. It was hilarious that he was raising his age to go in for free.
All of the "kids"; an endearing name for my grandparents and great aunt and uncle, throughout the trip, made us laugh like no tomorrow. Every time that I walked around the area, they disappeared. They would either be taking pictures of everyone and everything or shopping for more souvenirs. However, even though they acted like babies at times, there was a positive side to this. My family and I got lucky that our taxi driver in Portugal did guide tours around Lisbon. We used his taxi car to travel to the different historical sites of the town. It also made me realize that I want to be like them when I get older. I want to be in my late seventies or early eighties and still explore the world and travel with my grandchildren.
Growing up, I always thought history was boring. History was my least favorite subject in school. I always dreaded going to class. As I began to travel and began to experience history, I started to have an appreciation for the culture and history of many different places. The place that changed my view in history was the palace in Sintra. It is a village on a mountain, covered by forests Sintra is the capital of the nostalgia and romance of the past. Every design and detail in the castle; told a story and it gave me the desire to be a part of that story. I felt like I was in a fairytale.
The architecture in Portugal was aesthetically beautiful and had me in awe. Many of the buildings that I saw in Portugal; were churches and they were magnificent. With the technology in that era, the buildings were fascinating to experience at the moment. It amazes me how all of the architects built these buildings with very little to no technology. The structure and design of the buildings were hand-made. Some of the places that I visited took many years to construct. Those places were Jerónimos Monastery, São Jorge Castle, Belem Tower, Pena Palace, and Praça do Comércio. The architects had such creativity to build these treasures.
The majority of these treasures were made of stone and had vivid colors to represent a symbol of royalty or religious. The monuments in Portugal had Romanesque and Gothic influences in its architecture. There was a variety of styles such as; manuelin and baroque. In one of the cathedrals, the interior was made entirely of wood. It amazed me that the architects created this beauty.
Overall, the food was exquisite, the culture was divine, and the people were welcoming. The visit to Portugal is an excursion that I will cherish for life. I hope to make my way back to Portugal soon.
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