The Porto Edit

You’re waiting for a train, a train that will take you far away. You know where you hope this train will take you, but you don’t know for sure. But it doesn’t matter. How can it not matter to you where that train will take you?
This was Porto for me. The trip arrived at a time when I was in an increasingly bad place that felt like it couldn’t get any lower. I dislike the idea of travelling for escapism so much, probably because I travel for work often at times when I really just need to be home close to my people, but this trip felt like a lifeline. I didn’t care what the city would be like, what I would do, I just wanted to go somewhere far away. It was this, and come back completely better, or just stay in that little black hole until it consumed me. No in-between.
I opted for the former. This was a company offsite but I extended it by some days on both ends with one of my favourite colleagues and boarded the plane with the mindset that this trip is going to be the line between ‘before’ and ‘now’, and it better be a fat fucking line cause no way was I going back to Malta to deal with everything I was feeling there.
Anyway, we rented the cutest little apartment and I completely fell in love with this city. It was literally a space to breathe with the Atlantic ocean before us blowing the sweetest breeze, in comparison to 40 degree heatwaves back home. It was colourful, it was tasty, we were completely free.


We spent most of our first few days in the Airbnb in Praça de República, which was a super central location. I personally spent most of mine on this little hanging chair and made up my mind to have one at my own place in the very near future.
We also had a good time roaming around the city (but jeeez are those hills steep AF!), trying out new restaurants and visiting the same brunch place again and again, some chill shopping and walking around the river aimlessly. It was perfect, with the right balance of relaxation and excitement. The Aperols helped.
On the last night, we grabbed another one from the team and had a pizza night at the apartment, with pizzas that never arrived and wine bottles that did. It was the first time in three years where I literally just laughed sooooo hard I cried, without any underlying bad feelings torrenting underneath, and I promised myself I’m going to be keeping this high when I’m back on the island.
Livraria Lello
I also had one completely solo day while the colleague went off to do one of her adventure things, so I started the day with a quick training sesh in the park and then headed off to Livraria Lello (I mean, of course). This was one of the places that inspired J.K Rowling’s Hogwarts and it’s absolutely magical, decked with a lot of classics like The Little Prince with stunning covers that you can only get at this place!
Visiting requires a little planning, but it’s truly hassle free and so worth it! You need to purchase your ticket in advance for €8, which you can do online, and this includes a €5 discount on any book purchase. You select your preferred time slot, show up a little before and stand in the queue marked for that timeslot, and are let in on the minute. You can stay for 30 minutes, until the next batch of book geeks come in.


Next stop,
the castle
The next week was spent over at Santa Marta de Portuzelo, around an hour’s drive away from Porto. The castle itself is medieval and very fun to poke around, with its own creepy chapel and weird little happenings that we couldn’t quite put our finger on! We did some team building, set goals, hung out, drank a lot, ate even more and had a few good laughs here.
We also went surfing! It was a new experience and complete failure but I had the time of my life and can happily say I survived the Atlantic ocean, which is freezing even in July. I loved the endless beaches and hues of blue and definitely want to spend some more time here.


This was a truly happy trip for me. I got to spend some down time with people I love very deeply and whose friendship had come through for me over and over again. I think this feeling of gratitude, safety and freedom forged an incredible connection with the city for me, because it quickly became one of my favourite places. A reminder of great, content times, coupled with a laid back culture, the chillest people around, amazing food, and just a superb quality of life. You can exercise in the park and go to the food market, chat to bubbly waiters and artists, unravel yourself by the ocean and feel its delicous cold lick upon your feet.
Porto is for sure one place I will be visiting again very soon, and maybe for an extended period this time. I’d love to live there for a while, it just feels so right with me. And I’m so grateful that the trip came at this time, with these people, and in this vibrant place.
It all comes together.