Getting the Lay of the Land (and Sea!)

We've seen, learned, and done so much in our first few days here!

On Monday We explored downtown Lisbon on a city tour, which brought us to a beautiful lookout point (a perk of Lisbon's sevel hills), the main square, the Tower of Belém, and Padrão dos Descobrimentos. Lisbon's main square looks out over the water, with a great view of the main bridge, Ponte 25 de Abril. It shares many of the same creators as the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco - and it shows! Students had a bit of free time downtown to take photos, explore the shops, and get a taste of Portugal's famed sorbet and pastéis de nata. 

Monday night was our welcome dinner, where students enjoyed a lovely Brazilian restaurant. There was a salad bar and buffet, plus an endless stream of meats (and banana and pineapple) carved right at the table! 

On Tuesday we had our first science class to introduce us to key terms and ideas that will follow us through the course. We also learned about The Global Goals for Sustainable Development. Students had a chance to brainstorm around how to take action toward 17 goals like responsible consumption and production. It was inspiring to see what students came up with!

Tuesday afternoon we got to witness one of Portugal's beautiful ecosystems firsthand with a hike through a coastal reserve. We studied a variety of plant species and focused on smell and texture using blindfolds! Other aspects of the ecosystem we studied include wind direction, ground temperature and canopy cover. The views were breathtaking.

Our morning on Wednesday brought one of our biggest adventures yet: surfing! Many members of the group had never surfed before, but every single one of them gave it their all. We went in two groups for about an hour each, with three amazing instructors accompanying us. Surfing is no easy task, but every student paddled back out again and again to keep working on catching a wave and standing up on the board. 

Between these outings we've managed to also squeeze in orientation, intercultural activities, Portuguese language classes, and free time at the beach and around the hostel. Students are forming great connections and making the most of their time! Tomorrow we will head up to Aveiro to continue our adventure. 

xo,

Libby and Jing