Student Reflections on Week 1

From World Government Student, Edgar:

When I and many students first arrived, the feeling of jet lag had presumed over the first few days. However, the open terrace had provided us a space to breathe and enjoy the city at a safe distance. On Thursday, the students began to be more collaborative in our workspace, many students (I included) had productive conversations that ranged from our stances on multilateralism to our views on global economics. Throughout this experience, it’s been surreal. The contrasting differences between Portugal and the USA are noticeable, from the pedestrian walkways to the convenience of green spaces in the city. My experiences during the daily commute to our school were fairly enjoyable. The clean metro stations provided a great way of transportation to our school. At school, we met our amazing professor, Bruno, who allowed us to share our ideas while remaining respectful when disagreeing with a peer. These productive conversations helped me to build my own perspective by exposing me to the different perspectives of my peers. The past few days have certainly been amazing, especially since I met some very close friends that have accompanied us throughout our journeys of the first week.