Communing With The Locals
Via professional sports
Hi friends and family!
It’s downright fall here. Rain, rain, rain, punctuated with a few sunny days to showcase the beautiful autumn leaf colors. Time to hunker down and spend hours learning Portuguese and making major apartment decisions!
But it’s not just all remodel… here’s what’s what this week:
Sporting with the locals
Quick hits
Sporting With The Locals
Attending a sporting event gives you an insight into the passion of a local community. It opens you up to a comradery that goes beyond language barriers. Regardless of where you are in the world, if you go see live sports, you’ll meet real people doing what they love, on their level, in a very authentic way.
Some of our fondest travel moments have been unlocked with sports. Drinking wine out of plastic cups while watching a cricket practice match in Sri Lanka, getting dressed up in our "finest" backpack derby clothes to attend a Melbourne Cup watch party in Adelaide, sitting on a sunny seawall figuring out footvolley in Cascais, and attempting to understand Gaelic Football in Dublin, we jump at the chance to hang with the local crowd. Bonus points if it’s world-class talent on the field!
These last few weeks I dove deep into local sports, which got me closer to my new community.
First up was a futebol Champions League match: Porto vs. Barçelona.
My friend Miguel joined me for the match. Before the game, he took me to a couple of deep local spots for food and drink and also fed me some insights into the history of the Porto/Barça rivalry, adding a lot to the experience
At the match, the crowd was hyped and the energy at the sold-out stadium was simply electric. Porto lost a close match, and I got to enjoy some world-class soccer.
Afterward, we headed for francesinhas at a joint that has been on my list to try for ages. Sitting amongst a vibrant crowd in their Porto jerseys eating midnight dinner with cold beers was a damn fine experience.
Next up was a unique chance to see the Portugal national team play against Slovakia in the Euro 2024 qualifiers.
When the national team plays, they spread the games around to different stadiums in the country and the tickets only cost 7.50€. It’s incredibly democratic and ensures that everyone has a chance to see their Portuguese heroes play.
Speaking of national heroes, I got to see Cristiano Ronaldo, easily the most well-known Portuguese person currently living, and arguably one of the greatest soccer players to ever grace the field. Watching the love and adoration in the stadium as they welcomed him with cheers and standing ovations was pretty powerful.
The vibe at the national match was different from the FC Porto games. There’s something more holistic and special about seeing everyone getting behind one team that’s playing for national pride. And Portugal is a damn good team.
The sea of waving Portuguese flags was quite a sight.
Third on the journey was a series of FC Porto basketball games. While basketball isn’t nearly as big here as in the States, it’s still fun.
Plenty of American players who didn’t make the NBA are earning decent money playing for teams here, alongside some talented locals.
I attended one Portugal Liga match against Imortal Basket, and two Euro League matches against Manisa Basket (Turkey) and Norrekoping Dolphins (Sweden).
Miguel invited me to join him in box seats that he shares with a variety of his old friends. The arena is tiny compared to the soccer stadium, but it’s still quite the production.
It’s great to see how affordable luxury sports accommodations can be here - the prices aren’t yet out of reach for the average person. And I love the opportunity to dig in and hang with locals in their usual haunts. I’m getting to know a whole new crowd.
The futebol matches are fun because of the sheer size and energy, but the basketball offers a more personal level of comradery. This is a lot more live sports than I usually do, but I can’t get enough of the great experiences these events offer.
Quick Hits
Our remodel is going full speed ahead. This week’s hit list included major decisions on HVAC, lighting, Japanese toilets, exhaust fume hoods, vents, faucet placements, cabinet adjustments, and more. Jealous yet? We somehow found the one contractor in Portugal who, instead of moving at a maddeningly slow pace, blazes ahead at break-neck speed, leaving us sprinting to keep up. It’s great, but also exhausting.
Hilary’s mom is visiting, so she has been tour-guiding around Porto and beyond. So far they’ve been down to see the big waves in Nazaré, caught a Madonna concert in Lisbon (in the front row, no less!), and are now down in the Algarve.
October was a busy month for visitors from America, as we had three different sets of friends come through town. We always enjoy the opportunity to show off our new hometown and spend time with friendly faces. And it’s a great excuse to eat and drink our way through Porto. Thanks for the visit, Bob & Scrantz, Petra & Justin, and Anna & Kerry!
How’s your November going?
This week’s music is some down-to-earth funk/rock. Black Pumas released a new album. Enjoy!
Love the continuing posts! You look healthy and happy!
I am not a sports fan and reading this I feel I should be. Mirek is at the moment at the Arsenal game in London with his grandson. Tickets were decidedly non Democratic prices. Once in a lifetime event to be crossed off the bucket list.
Great news about the remodel speeding ahead.