Friday, July 6, 2012

Yet another reason why I need a reality show...

It was my first 4th of July not in America. It is my favorite holiday and I was actually a little depressed that I was missing the cook outs, fireworks, and everything. But we decided that if we couldn't be in America we should at least go out and celebrate anyway. It also happened to be my last night in Porto since I was leaving a day early to take my sister to Rome for her flight. We decided to get dressed up and go to our favorite restaurant on the beach for dinner and then see where the night would take us. Little did we know just how exciting it would be.

Meredith and I in my apartment

Allison, Me, Anita, Claire, and Lucy

Porto at sunset

We have a wonderful dinner with lots of Prosecco, and our newly discovered favorite condiment Crema di Balsamico. We decided to get some gelato and head down to one of our favorite bars, Sunrise. They make an amazing fresh mojito that we all love. They had a DJ that night, so it was fairly crowded. We got seats at a table outside, but on the porch away from the action a litte. After about 5 minutes one of the owners comes up to us and is trying to tell us something. We didn't really understand  what, but finally managed to get that he wanted us to move table. We were confused but just followed him and he lead us to the "VIP" section right in front of the DJ booth on the beach. We were still confused as to what was going on when the DJ told us the next song was for us. And he played this:


 And while it was playing they brought us a free bottle of Prosecco and sparklers!! At this point we finally realized we had accidentally walked into a Forth of July party and they had just made us the guests of honor!! While the song was playing we decided we needed to start a dance floor, so we got out there and soon everyone joined us. A guy came up and started dancing with me and I found out that it was his birthday! He was fairly intoxicated and pretty soon was lifting me up and spinning me around. Then all of a sudden he started to unbutton his pants, which is when I ran. But later figured out he was trying to show me his swim suit. I realized this after he went and jumped into the ocean and came back to give me a soaking wet hug. Pretty soon the DJ was clearing of some benches so we could dance on top of them and we were having the best time! About 1:30am we deiced it was time to get to bed but before we left the owner explained to us that everything we had tonight was free as an homage to America. You seriously couldn't make these things up if you tried. 

  An Italian Girl with an American Flag shirt!

Dancing on the benches 

SPARKLERS!

Italy, Porto, and our camp have given me more then I ever thought possible. They have taught me about myself and about new cultures and people. I have become stronger here. Emotionally and physically. I believe that the people that were on this journey with me were here for a reason. We all helped each other. But for me especially Claire, Anita, and Lucy were the people I needed to help me get the most out of this journey. Without them I know I would not have grown as much. Each of them in their own special way helped me realized things about myself.

Claire was a saving grace. We seemed to go through similar emotions at similar times and really helped each other through. We traveled together every weekend and made the most of our time here. Even though we are in different places in our lives we were able to relate with each other and keep each other sane. She is a friend for life.



Lucy reminded me that good things come to people who are chill :-) We had a few drunken walks home where we discussed how men are optional, and some late night balcony talks that reminded me of who I am and more importantly that I should never be ashamed of it. She also reminded me that life is a constant battle of managing your expectations, and that if you can master this then many situations will not be as bad. She will "Always Be My Baby" :-p



Anita and I have the same spirit. We are fun, bubbly, and most importantly are 100% percent true to our selves at all times. No matter what people around us think. We are loud and have a "zest for life" I guess you could say. My last night she told me, "You tell me what you want to do tonight, because whatever my baby wants, my baby gets!" She holds such a special place in my heart.


There is no way I could stay away from these girls. A trip to Phoenix in October is in the works :-D

No comments:

Post a Comment