Portugal!

This year's US technical excellence training was in Lisbon. A bunch of us took advantage of the free flight and went down the weekend before to the southern coast of Portugal. I've been working a ton lately, and I didn't know how much I needed to get away until we were there. It was such a refreshing weekend (even if it was followed by the worst training I've ever been to in my life!)!!

Budget car rental kept cancelling Bill and AK's reservations, so Troy made a last minute reservation with Auto Ardim lol the shadiest car rental place I've ever seen!

After an hour drive down to the coast, we arrived at our AMAZING 3 bedroom apartment which we got a great deal on because it was off season. We stayed up to play a few quick games of bananagrams.

The next morning a few of us went to a German bakery to grab some food for breakfast...

... which we ended up eating on our patio overlooking this.

Half of us getting started with breakfast...

After breakfast we went down to the beach. Words cannot express how amazing it felt to be out in the sun after 2 straight months in a war room at work.

We took a break around lunchtime to walk around town and grab food.

Becky, Chels and I did a little shopping as well...

Enjoying the sunset from our rooftop patio.

Day 2 group shot at the beach.

Girls

Boys

Late afternoon we migrated to the pool

In the car on the way up to Lisbon for our training... Bill's 4 backseat drivers in the "brady bunch mobile" as the boy villa called us.

Got to Lisbon at sunset and went in search for the world famous pastella de nata custard dessert, but came across the castle first

So pretty!

Yummmmmmmm!!

Decided to do a little sight-seeing - this is a cool monument paying homage to all the important explorers (like Vasco de Gama)

Each night after training we went out to dinner at these amazing Portuguese restaurants - DELISH! This is Jenni and me in front of the best restaurant of the week.

Yummmm!!!!

I finally have a little bit of my tan (and sanity) back - thank you Portugal!!