First of all, eighteen hours on a train beats 2 hours on a plane any day.

Secondly, my two all too brief days in Lisbon were some of the best of my life. It is a beautiful town with wonderful people. Of course, palm trees and warm, sunny weather in the middle of January doesn’t hurt either.

After the aforementioned train ride into Lisbon, I hiked (and it was a hike) from the train station to the Oasis Backpackers Mansion, where I was greeted and kindly offered a glass of water by Damien, the first of many friends I would make in Lisbon.

Without a doubt, this hostel was the best I’ve encountered. Heck, it was nicer than most hotels I’ve stayed at. It felt more like home than a hostel. The local staff and many of the guests shared nightly meals at the kitchen table cooked by Hugo the “Wonder Chef”. After 12 hours in Lisbon, I felt like I had lived there my whole life.

Oddly enough, my scheduled show never happened. I’m still not sure how or why, other than that something got lost in translation. So I decided to put on a house concert at the hostel for those who would listen. There was a girl there from New York City, so I sang “Manhattan Bridge”, and immediately sold a CD to everyone in the room.

I don’t want to judge the success of this tour by CD sales, but I sold more CDs to my smallest crowd after one song than I did at my last three shows combined (two in London and one in Paris). So for sheer percentages, Lisbon takes the trophy.

(I of course must apologize for those who bought my CD based on hearing “Manhattan Bridge”, as that song is not on the Brace Yourself EP. It will be released this summer on the full-length album entitled Lowlife.)

So I spent my two warm, sunny days in Lisbon making several new friends and perusing the beautiful city by the bay. I know God is the one who determines my steps, but if He lets me have my way, this will not be my only trip to Lisbon.

Obrigado, Lisboa.

Ciao.