One of the last weekends abroad I went to Lisbon and Sintra. Portugal had to be one of the most beautiful places I had the opportunity to see; we mostly did sight seeing at various castles and ate pastries..
View of Lisboa from the Castle of São Jorge
Palácio Nacional da Pena, in Sintra, about an hour train ride from Lisboa. The architecture was an eclectic mix of Medieval, Islamic, Gothic and Neo-renaissance (strange, but very cool). To get to it we had to take a shuttle up the mountain and then walk up further through the forest. It is gorgeous, definitely one of my favorite sites.The last week in Madrid was stressful with finals, but the last weekend was really fun and a nice send-off.
I finally made it to the Crystal Palace in the Retiro..We had a last Botellón and run around Malasaña, last walk to Sol and churros con chocolate. We were all glad to return to the States, though. I half expected to never want to leave Europe, but after those months I realized, jeez, I am so. American.
As one might expect, my time abroad seems surreal and distant, but I don't think I'll get into a retrospective now..
