Tiago asks me for the third time that if I want I can stay at his house for another day.
As i refuse he tells me that he's beginning to think that my stay wasn't as good as he hoped.
All of sudden I realize that everytime I refuse a helping hand, out of pride and not wanting to bother kind people, I might come off as rude and ungrateful.
I gladly accept his offer, his house is amazing and the company of him and Daniela is a blessing. They share with me a lot of nice stories and teach me so much about the pormenores of portuguese life.
He picked me up the day before at the train station and as we buy groceries for our dinner we settle for bacalhau. He teached me how codfish is preserved and how the different cuts are used in the kitchen, lascas are thinner parts and are usually broken down in bits, the fatter postas parts are usually kept whole.
After a much needed shower, in the afternoon we go to a fishermen bar by the beach for a couple of copos.
We are joined by one of those oldschool gentlemen carved in wood and seasalt. His kindness and the thousands of stories he shared about bank thieves, shipwrecks and wars are the perfect match with the sunset behind us.
Back at home Daniela teaches me how to cook Bacalhau à Brás and we enjoy a nice evening with friends.
The day after I could spend more time with them and learn a few important tricks about food (turns out Tiago is a chef in disguise), tonight it's chicken curry, wine and table games.
We are joined by Fábio and I learn how to play Settlers of Catan the hard way, by losing miserably. It's an interesting game that reminds me of Risk, especially for the table-flipping urges I got when I realized the mistakes in my strategy. NEXT TIME YOU'LL SEE!
The more I use Couchsurfing as a guest, the more nice experiences and kind people I encounter. It's a great way to meet locals and learn to appreciate their lives and customs.
Portuguese hospitality continues to amaze me, it's a blessing to be so well received.
MEGAOBRIGADO TIAGO E DANIELA!
Over and out,
Tom