Go Feel the World

Go  See  Feel the World!

Come to think of it, if you are an avid traveler most of the tourist attractions seem to all become similar. One old European town is like any other, churches all look the same, and the next beach doesn’t differ from the one you went to a few weeks ago. And let’s not get started on museums. Yes, somehow everything just blends into one. Agree? So how do jaded travelers see the beauty of each place? What makes one suspension bridge uniquely different from all other suspension bridges? What makes that medieval castle just as worth visiting as all the others before it? What’s there to see? 

 
I believe it has less to do with actually seeing a place and more with feeling it. When I go to a new country I don’t start comparing it to all the other places I’ve seen. I want to experience it as though I’ve never left my small hometown before. I love those moments when I realize that this is more than just a tourist attraction and I am not just another tourist passively walking through. When I go up the stairs in the Coliseum in Rome, I think about the ancient Romans walking up the exact same steps to see an actual gladiator fight. On these very steps hundred of years ago, history was taking place, and what connects the present to the past are these stairs that so many tread upon and see but do not feel.

One of my favorite sculptures is “Psyché ranimée par la baiser de l’Amour” by Antonio Canova. When I looked at it for the first time I saw beyond Psyche and Cupid. I saw Antonio Canova. I saw the artist bent over his masterpiece. I could almost hear the chiseling of marble and see the sweat on his furrowed brow. I felt his passion.

Then there’s Juliet’s balcony in Verona. A complete anti-climax if I ever saw one. The garden before her balcony is small and crowded with tourists. The beautiful brick walls that in the movie “Letters to Juliet” were stuffed with letters are in reality full of graffiti and bubblegum, and the alleyway leading to the house is narrow and dingy. And yet, I will tell you to go and visit it! Shakespeare lives on in that place as life was breathed into his fictional characters. Looking up at Juliet’s balcony I don’t just recall that tragic love story but I think of how a young English playwright sat in his room weaving a plot with his inky fingers - and what magic he created with words! 

So the next time you visit a country, don’t just see the place and walk on. Make it alive. Connect with it on a personal level; let it speak to you. Then when you go home you can tell your friends that you didn’t just see the world, but you felt it as well.

Thanks for reading!

Travel Tips :: Lisbon

Here are a few things I find noteworthy when going to Lisbon. 

     1. Weekend Subway

----> During the weekend the subway has only 4 instead of the usual 6 cars, so go to the front end of the platform if you don't want to make a mad dash for the nearest car. If you don’t know where the front end is then check where most people are waiting or go wait in the middle. 

     2. Fee Admission

----> Go to Belém on Sunday because most of its main attractions like the Tower of Belém, Jerónimos Monastery and the Maritime Museum are for free until 2pm.

     3. Save up on the Metro 

----> A lot of Lisbon’s top attractions are situated in the old town. Instead of riding the metro to every destination, I just bought two single tickets per day (to go to the town center and then back to my hotel) and walked between attractions.

     4. Wear Comfortable Footwear

----> Lisbon is probably the cobble stone capital of the world. Comfortable footwear is a must! Plus it’s also very hilly. You will be walking up and down all day long. 

     5. Food

----> Try their seafood, it’s one of the best I’ve tasted in Europe. Then for dessert, grab those local custard tart specialty of theirs -- divine! Meals are relatively cheap compared to other European countries. For €10-€15 you can have a complete meal (drink included). A local told me that if a place charges more than that then I should run the hell out of there. 

     6. Appetizer Trap

----> It’s a local custom that can turn into a tourist trap. I dined at a restaurant and the waiter just so happened to speak German. We started to chat and he told me that in Lisbon it is customary to put appetizers on the table while the customer waits for his order. It can vary from bread sticks to an assortment of cheese, and it’s NOT for free. If you eat anything then you have to pay for it. In many countries I’ve visited, if they put something on your table it’s on the house. It was good to know because no other waiter bothered to tell me this. While unknowing tourists curiously take a bite, locals already raise their hand in refusal as a waiter approaches with the appetizers. 

    7. Santa Justa Lift

----> You don’t have to pay to see the view from the top. You can easily get there for free if you walk your way up. Locals willingly point the way.

Hope this post helped someone. :) Have a great time in Lisbon! 

Thanks for reading!