Top 5 of Portugal 

1. “We Hate Tourism Tours”. Developed by a young guy, the company takes travelers to the most beautiful and hidden treasures of Lisbon! It was a 10 hour tour, but the day flew by. We had the most adventurous and fun tour guide, Miguel.  His passion for the city of Lisbon was contagious!

2. On the tour we went to Sintra, which is a small town on top of a mountain outside of Lisbon.  At the very top of the hill is an estate that a very wealthy family built their summer home- the estate is all green, filled with castles, towers, and underground tunnels! It was a natural amusement park! 

3. The Westen most point of Europe. What everyone thought was the “end of the world”. Miguel led us to the edge and we were climbing rocks and cliffs to the furthest we could.  He told us that he comes there everyday on his tours and each time he feels the amazement he did the first time he saw it. It was one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. It reminded me of the Cliffs of Moher- the tropical version.

4. Those pastries! I couldn’t tell you what they were called or how to spell them, but they were delicious. I would say I’d try to make them, but only 3 people in the world know the secret ingredients….

5. I found many sunflowers there. 

Top 10 of Mallorca

1. The realization that my life is a dream. I took a trip to a Spanish island with 3 of my dearest friends. The weekend was spent on the beach. Is this real life?

2. The sun was hot, the air was cool.

3. We made friends who thought we were funny. Which in hindsight isn’t much of a comfort because they weren’t funny at all….

4. Dinner on the beach.

5. Repeat these and you have our weekend.