Butterfly in Lisbon




I used to feel that Paris was my favorite city in Europe but now that I have been in Lisbon for a few years I realize that was but a fleeting fancy. There are so many reasons to love a city and reasons cities attach themselves to your heart. I grew up in London and lived in San Francisco. I loved these cities too, but there is something different about Lisbon. I didn't know how attached I had become until I went back to San Francisco last year for a month and when the plane landed back in Lisbon after that trip I felt something. I was happy to see it. I had missed this beautiful flower of a city with it's calçada Portuguesa sidewalks, and that something about the way the light hits the buildings at sunset. Most times when you land at Lisbon Airport the plane circles around over the ocean at the mouth of the Tagus River and you get a beautiful view of the city, the Pont d'Abril bridge and the mini Christo Rey watching it all from the other side, looking out at the city.
It was lonely times when I arrived, not knowing anyone here and just a couple of words of Portuguese and to a very different culture from the San Francisco I had just come from. I spent a lot of time walking. Walking and thinking and lots of times drinking and wondering. What the hell had I just done?  Feeling deep pangs of regret and fear. I mean really? A completely different life at 40?




Comments

  1. GabyAugust 10, 2018 at 12:43 PM

    Hi Pam! I found your blog through a forum post about expat loneliness. The replies to that post were very depressing, especially to someone struggling with loneliness myself having moved here to Lisbon and hoping things would get better with time. I'm happy that this recent post of yours seems a bit more optimistic about the city and I'm wondering how that journey has been for you. Was it a matter of time after all? How did you manage to make friends in this city? Any tips for someone still trying to make this city her own? Thanks.

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    Replies
    1. ButterflyMay 21, 2024 at 5:02 AM

      Hi Gaby! I have found a great community here now and I am doing much better now that I can speak Portuguese and have assimilated with the culture! Happy to connect anytime!

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