The People Make the Place - Portugal 2025

Jenna Falconer
Sep 1, 2025
20 min read

Updated: 6 days ago

Before I dive into the recap of my summer trip to Portugal, I should probably explain something that became a little ritual on our trip. A nightly reflection we did called Rose, Bud, Thorn, Leaf. Every single night, without fail, the four of us would sit down at dinner (or at night with some wine or chips or gummy candies in hand) and go through the high and low-lights of the day together. The Rose is your highlight, your “best of the day” moment. The Thorn is the bad, frustrating, or tougher part (because yes, even on vacation, they happen). The Bud is what you’re looking forward to the next day. And the Leaf is kind of the wildcard—an honourable mention, a funny moment, something that stuck out but didn’t quite fit in the other three.

It became one of my favourite parts of the whole trip. It helped us stay present, laugh about weird things that happened, and share how we were actually feeling. We didn’t always have the same answers, which was the best part. Sometimes someone else’s rose was your leaf and vice versa.

As I go through each place we visited, you’ll see little nods to the roses, thorns, buds and leaves that made up the mosaic of our time in Portugal.

Lisbon

If you polled the group, 3 out of 4 would say that Lisbon was their least favourite of all the places we visited in Portugal. I’m the 1. I liked Lisbon, and because it was our first stop, I think we were still working out the kinks—which is probably why it’s sitting low on the other girls’ ranks.

To be fair, it is touristy and high-volume. But we messed up by waiting too long to get lunches and dinners, subjecting ourselves to whatever place we could find and not properly planning those first couple of days.

That said, one of my all-time roses of the entire trip happened in Lisbon. On night two, we had booked a sunset boat cruise that advertised one complimentary glass of wine. As it turns out, the green wine was poured whenever your glass was empty.

The boat was small and intimate. If I reached down, I could nearly touch the water. We had all dressed up and felt our best. Our tour guide, Henry, was funny, outgoing, and liked our group. We watched a beautiful sunset out on the water, and they surprised us with charcuterie made up of various Portuguese cheeses and meats.

We also coined a new phrase that would later turn into an inside joke. Henry told (warned) everyone to “mind the boat” if they got up to walk around as the railing was a low rope and the green wine was unlimited. We started to use this phrase if we were out in a densely populated area to remind each other to be aware of our surroundings and pick pockets. “The boat” now meant our purses.

Henry explained the historical significance of the city. One thing in particular that stood out to me was the colour of the buildings. If you’ve been, or end up visiting Lisbon, you’ll notice that the buildings are four main colours: blue, yellow, pink, and white. Turns out, each colour symbolizes something.

The blue buildings represent water. The yellow ones, grain and agriculture. The pink ones symbolize wealth. And the white ones are for commoners.

This was interesting to me. How wealth and status are displayed in a multitude of ways throughout history and across borders. A tidbit of information I’ll carry with me—and I got it on a boozy boat tour, nonetheless.

Everyone was enjoying themselves, and we were all as giggly as ever, on a boat in the middle of the Atlantic, watching a beautiful sunset.

Another Lisbon rose was a souvenir experience we all took part in. There’s a custom perfume atelier in the historic district of Lisbon that holds a maximum of ten people in the store at once. The idea is intimacy and thoughtfulness as you carefully select everything—from the perfumes you want down to the colour and personalization of the bottle.

To start, you’re assigned a rep and taken to a part of the store where your group can have some privacy. We were paired up with Louis, and he took the time to learn a bit about each of us, all of which he remembered at the end.

We started with the perfumes, which are crafted in the atelier and inspired by Portugal’s essence. He walked us through each one, letting us smell them all before we got to narrow down our favourites and try them on our skin.

Once we selected our top three, we moved on to choosing the colour of leather bottle we wanted and the colour of the velvet carrier bag. I chose the purple bottle (that my initials were later engraved on) and a green bag. I also picked out a solid perfume in blue leather with a silver casing and red velvet bag.

We were there for two hours, and we all loved it because it was an experience first and a souvenir second. But the perfumes will always remind me of the trip. When I wear ‘Ruby Flower’, I’m brought right back to the atelier.

My final honourable mention (or my leaf) would have to be the Fado music. Fado is traditional Portuguese folk music known for its melancholy and soulfulness. Often described as the Lisbon blues.

We stopped into a restaurant that had a Fado show, and I was nearly brought to tears. It was beautiful, gave me goosebumps, and the musicians were extremely captivating and friendly. A bonus? We enjoyed our favourite bottle of red wine from the entire trip, called Da Pipa.

There were other highlights, but I’ll cap it there.

P.S. We started our trip-long Euchre tournament in Lisbon. We played one game, and the other pairing (the bad guys) beat my friend and me. 0-1.

Sintra

Ahhh, Sintra. A breath of fresh air, literally. It finally started to feel like we were on vacation here. We arrived around 5:30 p.m., golden hour. The drive into town was breathtaking. The architecture, the trees, the sun—it all felt surreal.

We’d been told to visit Moorish Castle, so we headed there as soon as we rolled in. We stopped a tour driver for directions, and he told us we couldn’t miss Pena Palace, but we’d need to move quickly through Moorish because the last entrance was at 6 p.m.

As we walked through the Moorish grounds, one of my friends said, “This is how I pictured our trip.” A little chaotic and rushed, but arriving at beautiful places and wandering through them with that mix of giddiness and awe. The weather was perfect. The castle itself was stunning, but what really did it for me were the trees, the wild foliage, and the honeybees. I kept thinking about how the natural world is so effortlessly captivating, often more so than anything man-made.

We finished up at Moorish at 5:54 p.m., with a long hill ahead of us to get to Pena Palace. We didn’t think we’d make it in time. Then a man in a truck pulled up, honking at us, clearly trying to make a quick buck. Normally, we would’ve politely declined, but this guy had different energy.

He told us we needed to go to Pena but wouldn’t make it on foot. He offered to drive us there, for free. He just wanted us to experience it. It was a beautiful evening, prime time to see the palace, and he’d noticed us off to the side, clearly trying to figure out directions. He went out of his way to make sure we’d get there in time. Are you kidding? In a world that often feels low on empathy and kindness, that gesture meant a lot.

There’s a thrill that comes with making it just in the nick of time. We were riding a high. The palace grounds were also nearly empty since most of the daytime crowds had cleared out. We got to explore as if the place belonged to us. And for the record, everyone who said not to miss it was absolutely right. It was breathtaking. Bonus: we saw a peacock!

My honourable mention, or my leaf of Sintra, would have to be the hostel. It was super well-kept, and the manager was so friendly when we arrived. He made us feel safe and welcome, gave us a great tour, cracked jokes, and handed out solid recommendations. The place also happened to be filled with only women at the time, which felt like such a bonus. Clean, private bathrooms, great amenities. We were only there for one night, but it was such a sweet stop on the journey.

Obidos and Nazare

Now we’re on Day 4 of the trip, and it’s a full day of pit-stopping while making our way to Aveiro. Our first stop of the day was in Obidos. We toured the castle and then walked to the small village that had a bunch of shops. And when I tell you, we shopped. I got most of my souvenirs here and immersed myself in browsing. We also tried cherry Ginja here, which is a Portugal must-have.

In Lisbon, I had picked out some beautiful hand-crafted napkin holders for my mum, and I was holding out to get fine-stitched cloth napkins. I found the perfect ones in Obidos. I also picked up some chocolates for my dad (which later melted lol), and the ladies working at that store hit it off with my friend and me. They taught us how to properly say “Obrigado” (which means thank you in Portuguese) and took our photo out front of the store.

We also stopped in a gorgeous bookstore that had a mercado with fresh fruit and vegetables. Excited about our souvenir haul, we loaded back into the car and headed to Nazare!

We parked a good distance from the restaurant we wanted to try, so it was a good opportunity to see the town via heel-toe express. One of my friends had said from the moment we began planning this trip that stopping in Nazare was a must for her. She had a phase where she was very into the big surf competitions, and if we were going to be in Portugal, she needed to see the beach for herself.

Although it wasn’t big wave or surf season, it didn’t disappoint. We had an incredible seafood rice at the restaurant that felt like a giant hug, like eating it could cure a cold in an instant.

We headed to the beach after lunch. It started off cloudy, but it was as if the sky knew we had arrived. Slowly but surely, the clouds rolled out and the sun was shining. Our first time on a beach in Portugal! We laid out our towels, brought out our books and watercolour paints, and relaxed for a good few hours. It was the first time I got to take a deep breath on the trip so far. A rose for sure.

The best people-watching happens on a beach. We watched couples go swimming and tackle the bigger waves together. An old man and his ever-so-tiny dog, who we decided to call Allen, were running excitedly along the beach. I collected seashells and brought a few home with me.

Then, we decided that my friend with the Nazare hyper-fixation needed a souvenir, so we walked back up to the shops to get her a magnet. Across the road, there was a gelato shop that we all wanted to try. The lady working was very outgoing and let us use the place’s VERY interesting toilet. One of our friends got stage fright, and it made for a good laugh. My leaf of the day.

We were able to sample a couple of flavours and it was exactly what we were looking for. My friend got a flavour called stracciatella, which none of us (except her) had tried before. It’s vanilla with flakes of chocolate. Sounds simple, but it hits the spot. We left Nazare with empty bladders and a newfound stracciatella obsession.

Aveiro

Aveiro was my Lisbon. Aka my least favourite or thorn if you will.

I just wasn’t feeling my best. It’s nothing Aveiro did (sort of). This is probably a good time to mention that vacations still come with their own set of trials and tribulations. Just because you’re off work in a beautiful country doesn’t mean that you won’t be in a bad mood at some point or have a bad day.

That said, I don’t want it to come across as if I’m ungrateful. That’s not the case.

My roses from Aveiro, in no particular order:

Having the best gelato I’ve ever had. We were out in the evening after dinner looking for a sweet treat and stumbled upon what I’ll now refer to as Portugal’s best gelato. We got to sample some flavours and I went with After Eight (mint chocolate) and stracciatella. It hit the spot. We sat outside at a table and dummied our respective cups. And you best believe we went up and got seconds. Again, I got After Eight because I’m a mint chocolate girl at heart, but I also got Fior de Sal, which is a salted caramel flavour, and it was unreal—rich, creamy, and the perfect balance of salty and sweet. I would consider catching the next flight back to Aveiro just to get two more scoops.
We did a canal boat tour while there, and Aveiro has these ribbon bridges, which are like the lock bridge in Paris. Couples often tie a ribbon to symbolize their love. We decided to do the same, except we would all tie a knot in the ribbon (so it had four knots) and set our intentions for the rest of the trip. It was a sweet and grounding moment. And also fun to leave our mark.
We cooked for the first time in Aveiro. We got some Aveiro salt on the canal tour and my friends used that to season our very yummy dinner of oven-roasted chicken, potatoes, carrots, and onion. Seasoned with a ton of garlic, Aveiro salt, fresh lemon juice, parsley, and white wine. It was fantastic. Certainly my favourite meal of the trip thus far, and it felt so good to enjoy a home-cooked meal.

Porto

Oh, Porto. Porto was one of the fan favourites among us.

We got into town in the morning, parked, and wandered around the area to get our bearings. We stumbled into a local spread shop and had a blast taste-testing authentic Portuguese spreads. I grabbed a few for my dad as a souvenir. Special shoutout to the strawberry chili chocolate spread—you pair beautifully with mascarpone cheese.

We picked a spot for a drink, sat outside on the street, and played euchre. The vibes were high, the sun was shining, and the girls were catching a light buzz. What more does one need?

Then we split up. My friend and I had the thrift itch, and we knew Porto was the place to scratch it. The other two wanted to read by the water. Fair enough, I wished I could be in two places at once. But when I say this was one of the best thrift hauls I’ve ever had, I mean it. I hit the Portugal jackpot: a couple of skirts, some fun unique tops, and a scarf. Total score. And all for 30 euro.

Later, we checked into our Airbnb, which had two bedrooms with balconies that overlooked the city. We lucked out on both location and view. My friend and I did a little try-on haul of our thrift finds, and then we all got ready for dinner—completely unaware that we were about to have one of the best meals of the trip (and of my life).

The restaurant was in what was basically an underground cellar. And let me just say—there’s something to be said about flirty waiters. Gotta love them. Yes, please, tell us we look French and then pour us nine-ounce glasses of wine when we asked for a six. The waiter recommended the steak, and I was the only one who ordered it—Portuguese style.

Best. Steak. Ever. He wasn’t kidding.

And the chips that came with it? Thinly sliced potatoes, deep-fried to perfection. Crispy on the outside, soft in the center. I had no notes. I think I said “wow” at least 45 times. When I let my friends try it, they instantly regretted their own orders.

The next morning, we headed out on a Douro Valley wine tour. It was amazing. We made friends with everyone in our small group (shoutout Gary), and our guide, Jonny, kept us laughing and kiki’ing all day.

That night, we went to Jardim do Morro for the infamous sunset party. Locals gather there to listen to music and watch the sun go down. It’s one of the highest points in the city, so the views are unbeatable. Music, sunset, a crowd of people all finding joy in the same moment—what more can you ask for?

And the party didn’t end there. We ended up dancing in the street while an older man played the electric keyboard and sang 2000s pop hits.

The next day, we went out for a late breakfast/lunch and found a spot known for its bifanas. I can confidently say, on behalf of the group, it was the best bifana of the trip (and of our lives). Bifanas are a Portuguese specialty, so we’d been sampling them along the way (mostly at McDonald's), but this one beat the others by a mile.

The final detail I’ll leave you with: the ring I bought from a street vendor right before we left. I’m wearing it right now. It’s a silver, handmade, intricately designed ring, and the man I bought it from was an absolute sweetheart.

Porto, you were so good to us.

Euchre Tournament Update: The good guys are up 3–1.

Marvão

Our next stop was the most tranquil. We made our way from Porto to Marvão to stay in a countryside home right on the border of Spain. The house sat on a secluded property with tons of land, a vegetable garden, a pool—and a PONY. And it was all ours to explore.

After a week of 20k steps a day, sightseeing, travelling, and minimal sleep, we were all exhausted and more than ready to hunker down in one place for a couple of days. No plans. No itineraries. Just feed the pony, swim in the pool, and cook meals together. And that’s exactly what we did.

We hit up the supermercado and stocked up on everything we’d need to make a chicken and white wine vegetable roast, watermelon salad, sandwiches, breakfast sandwiches, white sauce pasta, and more salads. If I speak my truth, these were some of the best meals of the trip. They tasted amazing—partly because I’m surrounded by master chefs, but also because it felt like community.

Everyone played a role and executed it well. Sitting down together and enjoying those meals felt the most at home. We had fun, listened to great music, played games and embraced the slow.

Now, don’t even get me started on the pony. We knew ahead of time he’d be on the property and that he roamed freely. We fed him all our veggie scraps: lots of carrots and watermelon rinds. He loved them and kept coming back for more. I got such a kick out of him and the attention he gave us, I felt like a kid.

One of my favourite moments was sitting by the pool in the sun, watercolour painting. Note: I did have awful allergies out here (which was my thorn) but I persevered. I painted what was directly in front of me: the house, the brush, and the mountains in the distance. It actually turned out pretty well, I got out of my head and focused on what was right in front of me! Sometimes we expect to feel fully immersed on vacation, but that’s not always the reality. Your mind is the same in Europe as it is at home. I was thankful for that moment painting.

We played a lot of euchre in Marvão. Every night ended with wine, gummy candies, chips, and cards. And I’m proud to say my partner and I didn’t lose a single game. Marvão is officially my good luck charm.

The sunsets were unreal. Out in the countryside, the rock faces would glow golden and pink as the sun went down, casting light over the trees and sky. I had a glass of wine in hand and my film camera around my neck constantly.

Euchre Tournament Update: The good guys are up 7–1.

Albufeira - The Algarve

The last stop! This was our longest stay and again, we were thrilled with the place. A kitchen that was separate from the rest of the living space – located upstairs with full glass windows and sliding doors that could be completely opened, making it feel like you were essentially outside. It had a beautiful view of the coast and was a 3 minute walk from the beach. I liked that I needed to step outside to get to the kitchen. In the mornings we’d get up still in our pj’s, walk outside and upstairs to reach the kitchen. A small detail but worth noting.

In the mornings, we wanted to go to the beach as soon as we woke up (with no phones). The alarm goes off, we throw on bathing suits, grab our towels, and walk the three minutes to the beach for a sun salutation and a morning swim. We managed to pull this off only once. We got there, threw our stuff down, did our sun salutation, and spent a few minutes mentally preparing. Then we all ran hand in hand into the ocean and dove in. Few things beat a morning swim — it’s the best way to start a day. We laid on our towels basking in the sun for a while before heading back to have breakfast.

We booked a dolphin and cave tour, and before it started, we were told that we had a 50% chance of seeing dolphins. Truthfully, we were just happy to be there. We went looking for dolphins first, and luckily, we saw a bunch of them — including babies! Everyone on the boat was super excited, and the dolphins got so close to us. They’re adorable, smart, and such fascinating animals. They definitely put on a show. And because our expectations were fairly low, it made it that much more special that we saw them. The caves were also spectacular. Benagil Cave in particular is famous for a reason. I hadn’t seen anything like it in person.

Like Marvão, we cooked most of our own meals together. We realized how much money we were saving and how good of cooks we are. On our dinner menu for this stay:

Strip steak tacos – My friend cooked the meat with red wine and a generous helping of Aveiro salt. This was my favourite dinner we made.
Rosé sauce pasta with chicken – A perfect rosé sauce made from scratch with onion, tomato paste, cream, garlic, salt and more.
Frozen pizzas (doctored) – We each picked out a pizza, then once cooked, topped them with fresh basil, parsley, a squeeze of lemon, and paired them with a homemade dip.

We went out for dinner once to a spot recommended by a friend. It felt like an occasion. We put on cute outfits, got ready together, and since she has it down to a fine art (and the rest of us don’t), one of my friends did all of our eyeliner (they were girls together!). We had a bottle of wine and watched the sunset before walking to the restaurant, all ordering the Portuguese-style steak and dummying a couple bottles of cheap wine. Rose.

We decided to go out afterward, stopping at a bar where we played salad bowls, then heading to a karaoke spot. We performed three songs and got absolutely hyped up by a group of 50-something British tourists. We sang 'Don't Stop Believin' by Journey, 'Chasing Pavements' by Adele and 'Somebody to Love' by Queen!

We spent a lot of time at the beach near our place—swimming in the ocean, tanning, chatting. You realize pretty quickly how luxurious it is to be walking distance from a body of water. This leg of the trip was all about relaxing. That said, we did decide to tackle the Seven Hanging Valleys Trail—a 12km out-and-back hike along the coast between Praia da Marinha and Vale de Centianes, with various viewpoints along the way. It was a must-do for a few of us, and it didn’t disappoint. We started early to beat the heat and the crowds, which was the right call. The trail runs along the cliffs, offering stunning overhead views of the coastline, including Benagil Cave. There are multiple beaches along the route that are accessible by foot. We stopped at one for lunch, and at another point along the trail, we found a picnic bench to play a game of euchre. We didn’t complete the full hike—just about 7km—so we’d have plenty of time to hit the beach afterwards.

Euchre was a big part of our evenings, as usual, but we also played our fair share of salad bowls. If you aren’t familiar with salad bowls, here are the rules:

Everyone starts by writing down relevant nouns, inside jokes, phrases (anything that makes sense for the group) on small slips of paper. The funnier or more specific to your trip or group, the better. For example, someone on our trip might write “mind the boat” because it became an inside joke. Once everyone’s contributed a good amount, toss all the papers into a bowl.

The game is played in pairs and over three rounds, using the same slips of paper each round. Each team has one minute per turn to get through as many slips as they can before passing the bowl to the next pair. Within each pair, you alternate between being the guesser and the clue-giver.

Round 1: Description You can say as much as you want except the actual word or phrase on the paper. No rhyming or clues like “it starts with the letter B.” Just describe it until your partner guesses correctly. Keep going through slips until your minute is up. When all the papers have been guessed, the round ends, and all papers go back into the bowl.

Round 2: Charades No talking, just acting it out. Same setup — one-minute turns, guessing as many as possible before passing the bowl. Everything goes back in again at the end of the round.

Round 3: One Word Only You’re only allowed to say one word per slip. No acting, no noises, just a single word to get your partner to guess what’s written. You can repeat the word or say it in different tones, but that’s it. This round can be the trickiest, but it’s also the funniest since everyone already knows what’s in the bowl by this point.

Whoever has the most points at the end of all three rounds wins!

Unlike Euchre, we switched up the pairings for salad bowls and had some of our funniest moments while playing. The kind of laughing fits where you can’t breathe or speak. It was usually how we ended each night here.

This is probably a good time for a...

Euchre Tournament Update: The good guys are up 10-1!!!

The Last Night

We drove back to Lisbon for our final night before flying out. On the docket was:

Go to the only analog photobooth in Portugal and take some pictures to commemorate the trip
Go to dinner and a Fado show
Bar hop and get drunk

I love an analog photobooth. I could probably self-proclaim myself as an enthusiast. I have way more strips than I need, but at this point, it’s something I have to do if I’m in close proximity to one. This booth was in a cocktail bar, and luckily there was no lineup, because we spent a good hour there. We took turns, going in different pairings, attempting to get one of all four of us, and figuring out how we could all fit in the same strip. So much of the fun is in waiting for the pictures to develop. When the strip finally pops out of the booth after five minutes, you get so excited to see how they turned out and what face you actually ended up making. I like them because it feels like capturing such a specific moment in time. Analog photobooths have a real vintage quality to them, which adds to this effect.

After the photobooth, we walked until we found a restaurant that had a Fado show. Our waiter looked like the critic from Ratatouille and we knew we had picked the right spot. Again, we all ordered the steak (and licked our plates clean) and were captivated by the music. At dinner, we decided to do our Rose, Bud, Thorn, and Leaf of the entire trip. This was a really fun reflection, and one that I’m happy we stuck with the entire time.

Our bar hop was eventful. We went to about five places, only the ones that had karaoke and a free shot. We would stay until we performed a song (as a group) and then we’d run out and head to the next place. At one of the bars, we all got glitter put on our cheeks, but after we requested Beth (the Glee version) and they cut it short, we were outta there. My rose of this part of the night wasn’t the bars or the karaoke, but the in-between. The walks down the busy cobblestone streets. It makes you feel like you’re a part of everything and nothing all at once.

We quickly stopped in at a hole-in-the-wall to get an espresso for a little pick-me-up. It didn’t help much, though, because not long after, we lost a soldier to “we have to wake up at 7 a.m. for our flight tomorrow and I need to sleep.” Fair enough. Three of us went back out, though. We found a really cool speakeasy, closed it out, and then took the long way on our walk back. Getting a mere 3 hours of sleep before our flight home.

Something else we did on the trip was take a picture of all of us giving a thumbs up whenever we knew we were having a rose moment while it was happening. Here are a few of those moments:

On the boat - during the Duoro Valley wine tour

If you’re still reading this, I applaud you. It’s a long one, and this is me trying to cut things out, but I’m almost done.

I feel really lucky that this trip worked out for my friends and me. We all have busy schedules and live in different cities (or provinces!). The fact that we could make it happen is a testament to our friendships.

It’s worth mentioning that one of my roses of the entire trip was the Portuguese people. We met so many people who helped us out, were incredibly friendly, or were just genuinely excited for us to see and experience their country. That kindness, that energy, was infectious. One thing I always say is that the people make the place. And I’m constantly being proven right.