hotel bathroom details - cause I like it

Arriving in and the first few days - Portugal

The trip was fine, I guess. A bit tiresome, of course.
I took off from Otopeni and so getting there by bus wasn't the greatest. I hate buses.
I flew to Lisbon, a 4 hour flight, and then from there another 40-50 minutes to Porto. We were served breakfast on the first flight, and it was decent enough. Just your regular: omelet, ham, bread + tea/coffee+ croissant, butter, jam+ yogurt, fruit salad. It was just what I needed after the lousy bus ride.

 {room service}

 {I love me a good bathroom with a window}

 {view from my window}

 

I need to find a room, very soon.

The hotel I'm staying in is great. But I'm done with it. I want to get my own room, with a kitchen where I can cook and make tea.
I want to settle in and start school and walk around the city and just relax. But I can't, not until I get my place.
I absolutely hate looking for a new place. Now, imagine having to do that in a new larger city and having to speak and settle the details in a foreign language. It's just the worst. I got lost a coupe of times while trying to find an address and just gave up and went home. The owners ain't coming to get you there, not even if you ask them to. Apartment/ room searching sucks.

Quick check in

 

I'm grateful for many things. Here are a few.

 

 {great fall proof}

 {Pupi, being this fat while I'm feeding her a stick...}

 {this belly}

 {these eyes}

 {this tongue}

 {these jars, labeled by R}

 {the climbers/ adventurers}

 {blurred one}

 {photo-bombing my photo: still life with beer and access bracelets}

 {ooouups nightfall/scary situation at this point}

 {brainstorming ideas on how to get back in the city}

We did get to Hamak, eventually. Just a bit too late. Too late to fully enjoy the place. We got there in the afternoon and by the time we had all the straps on we were told to hurry up, cause they were closing the thing because it was getting dark. I chickened out for two reasons: they supposedly had no more gloves - and you do need them, like really. And two: they don't have one or two easier tracks to get the hang on things and warm up before they make you do the harder ones: yellow, blue and the deadliest of them all: red. So R and Adra managed to do the yellow and blue ones. I am proud of them. It really was difficult. But maybe that's just me. 

It's nice, into the woods, many things to do kind of place and has an Adventure Park. Just not that great of an adventure park. Certainly not like I experienced at Brasov.

Then we had half a beer and we were off to "the station", hoping to catch a ride home. We waited and waited but then it seemed hopeless, being Sunday evening and all. Then a woman with a car offered us a ride back and we were thrilled. And we got back safe and unraped, which is awsome. Adra even went on a date afterwards.

I baked cookies, brownie and a lemon yogurt cake for R's birthday today and I packed them and delivered them to his workplace, where he had a little get together with his mates. And they all liked everything very much, and I felt so proud...almost as if I had actually invented the recipes myself.
The recipes are here / here and here. The cookies are the ones I made for a party in May, check the post here.  And they're totally worth it, even if they're crazy expensive to make. The yogurt cake is a classic around here. I just swap the grapefruit with a lemon. The brownie is also an all time favourite.
I recommend trying any of them out. Mom bloggers of America know their shit.

Recap

I've been having trouble with my laptop so I had a period where I couldn't use it, and then R fixed it, moved out all my photos and so I couldn't upload any on the blog and made me postpone posts.
 But now, we hope I'm good. I'm going to need it on my trip.

I finally caved in and bought a smart phone. It's the Motorola Moto G, the g spot as me and R call it. It's fairly new, came out a month ago and I can't find a proper case for it. I'm a bit ashamed to say I like it a lot. I'm just getting used to it, it's weird having internet all the time, wherever you go...
I chose it because it's the cheapest phone, but still very good. So, being the cheapskate that I am...I went for it. And have no regrets.

This cold weather we've been having has been a downer. I hope we manage to get to Hamak before it gets even colder. But people seem to don't want to go there. I bet it's beautiful this time of the year.

I got green-light to prepare for a year in Portugal, with the Erasmus program. If all the paperwork gets through and the rest of the things go well, I should be departing in a weeks' time. I am stressed and excited and nervous about an eventual plane crash. I hope I don't die on my way there. Also, not when I'll be back for Christmas in a couple of months. Then when I land there I can start stressing out about the rest of the things I have to do there. Like not fail my courses there.

Beyond stressing out about Portugal, I've been reading, watching movies, doing a bit of cooking, just the slightest bit... I've been watching a lot of Parks and Recreation episodes, they are so good. Re-watching one of my favorite movies ever: No Impact Man. I've mentioned this in a post a while ago. And it never gets old, or boring. I love it.

R's birthday is coming up this week and I plan to bake a few cookies for him to take to work and I can get on with that.  

 {Halloween decorations I found while thrift shopping - to dry out}

 {this and this recipe}

 {hot chocolate at Jassyro}

 {good girl talks + missing Nadia}