Submitted by Makayla Whitting on the 2020 winter session program in Portugal sponsored by the Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences and College of Arts and Sciences…
The past week in Lisbon has been one of the most amazing weeks of my life! Although it is very different from home, I told myself I need to keep an open mind and to experience new things. One way I carried out this goal is in the world of food.
The type and quality of food in Portugal is very different from the United States. Each street is lined with various fruit markets, bakeries, and wine shops. Each time you walk past a bakery, the smell of fresh bread overwhelms you and you cannot help stopping in for a small pastry. The variety of food throughout Lisbon is immense. You could stop for a quick coffee and sandwich at a cafe, get a healthy meal at a smoothie place, or even eat traditional Portuguese meals. Every restaurant is filled with amazing food, such as meat and especially seafood. Normally, I am not a big fan of eating seafood such as fish. Since Portugal’s main dishes contain fish, I decided to try it. I tried a bite of a fish salad appetizer and had a seafood rice for dinner. The food tasted amazing and I quickly realized that fish is not as bad as I thought it was. This experience helped me open my mind to new possibilities, especially when trying new and unfamiliar foods.