Postcard from Lisbon
On a new year set + reset
Olá! Is it too late to say Happy New Year?
Unlike celebrations, blessings fortunately know no temporal boundaries. I hope January has brought much delight and restoration to each of you. For everyone who celebrate the Lunar New Year like I do, may the Year of the Snake bring you a year brimmed with wisdom, transformation and personal growth :)
Brief catch up since my last update:
Thanks to the most celebrated festival of the year, I had a hectic and head spinning December, hence embracing more responsibilities and challenges this year at work (in a good way). On my personal end, I have been missing out on gym, not finishing a single book, not cooking proper meals, enjoying takeaways and sugar so much that my skin started to lose its glow. Things were slowly falling apart yet time went by too quickly that I had a sense I was heading towards a trap of busy surviving instead of living, which freaked me out.
So last week during my trip in Lisbon, a week long trip well-deserved after a crazy year end and appearing signs of burnout, I took a break — a really good break — to set and reset for 2025.
January is a month for quiet restoration, perfect timing to practice steady inhale, exhale and having a hibernation that allows us to spend more time with our loved ones. But apparently we can't just turn ourselves off with responsibilities from work, home and all that you name it. During the trip, Natalie had nightmares about unfinished work and started to get anxious. I could not help planning what to do once I am back at work. In the sutra “Knowing the Better Way to Live Alone”, the Buddha said, “Do not get caught in the past because the past is gone. Do not get upset about the future because the future is not yet here. There is only one moment for you to be alive, and that is the present moment.”
WELL. We were in the middle of a trip, physically, yet our minds were still at the place where we came from. To combat undesirable sleepless nights, we attempted to meditate before sleep. Instructions online: Play soothing music from Spotify. Dim lights within the room to develop a mood. Sit straight. Close your eyes and let thoughts wander for 10-15 minutes. Focus on your breathing.
That’s simple meditation. It worked. We also came across a list on Threads for annual review and plan, which is really nice that I felt I must share it:
In this trip, I also noticed some changes in the way I travel.
THINGS I DID
Embraced flexibility and uncertainty. Mostly because of the rain, our itinerary had to be juggled around every night when museums and day trip to nearby cities were in plan. Breathe and have a plan B/C.
Be late for social media. Instead of watching the city via my phone screen, I enjoyed admiring places and things without having to take pictures, knowing clearly that I would seldom revisit the photo album after an Instagram post.
Brought clothes I haven’t worn for ages. Mixed feelings.
Search before walking in any restaurant. That being said, we still made 1 or 2 not average but poor choices. Putting the taste of food aside, service and dining environment do matter. Sorry to say some Michelin star restaurants just don’t live up the hype.
Went on different means of public transport. I’m glad that I did, if not I wouldn’t have noticed how clean and efficient public transport in Lisbon is.
THINGS I DID NOT DO
Get creative with my outfits. I only brought 4 tops and 3 trousers, all of them were in sets (see below) so I would not have to bother mixing pieces together.
Walk in 1.5x speed. I usually do this to get the most out of a city. This time I took my pace much slower, engaged in more conversations and turned out learning even more about Lisbon!
Eat like there is no tomorrow. To be honest we still had 5 meals a day (I have a huge appetite), but it was comparatively less than my last trip in Kyoto. We ate every meal moderately, hoping to try more different restaurants.
Impulse buy. Not limited to shopping for clothes but FOMO travel buys in general. For me, it is often travel fridge magnets and postcards which they sell abundance of in souvenir shops. I ended up picking only two of each. Achievement!
NEXT TIME: I can’t wait to share about my shopping addendum there.
Have a great week!
Chris
Catch up on my previous posts:
Welcome back, Chris!
I enjoyed reading about the slight changes you made when you traveled. What a beautiful place Lisbon is. I am interested in hearing about your travel packing. I usually bring a very small capsule wardrobe when I travel.
I like your Buddha sutra phrase!!