Retail Therapy & Secret Adventures: Last Week in Lagos

Time flies by so fast here in Lagos, and I’m not sure how to qualify the past week. So, let’s dive right in there and share what I’ve been up to this time.

This past week, my stomach was living its best life while my wallet quietly sobbed in the corner. Three dinners in one week? Who am I? My first dinner was at OLI wine&dine, a restaurant that only opened last year. My friend and I picked a few dishes from the à la carte menu, and really enjoyed them. However, the real star of the show was the owner (who also serves the tables). I guess that if the food was terrible, I’d still come back, only to listen to his stories. What a bundle of joy.

The day after, I had pizza at OLIVA. Well, let’s just say it won’t be winning any awards, but it did make me appreciate my ability to tolerate mediocrity. Next to that, the acoustics were terrible in the restaurant, and it was so hard to have or follow a conversation when it got busier over the evening. That just drains my energy, so I left quite early.

My final dinner was at OLI wine&dine again! This time I had the valentine’s menu. And, in all fairness, I prefer their à la carte menu. The food was nice, and it was presented well, but for me there was a bit of too much of everything on the plates. Nevertheless, I had a lovely evening, and I’m so happy that I’ve already made friends here to share these moments with.

Besides dinner, I also went out to try some food and coffee at Abigail’s Café. They’ve reopened again last week, and I’ve heard such good stories about it. And yes, it was very nice! I had one of my favorite lunch dishes from the area, smashed avocado on toast (with scrambled eggs this time), and I had one of their special coffees with turmeric, black pepper, honey and cinnamon. I went back the day after to have the same coffee again with one of my favorite people I’ve met here thus far.

In between all this feasting and fun, my brain decided to play its favorite game: ‘Let’s Overthink Everything and Make It Worse!’. One of the reasons that I’m in Lagos, is because I’m recovering from a situationship breakup. Grieving someone that’s still alive is the most painful experience I’ve had. Not to forget, the dopamine loop I was used to, the addiction to the highs and the lows, and me destroying my feelings of self-worth, boundaries and respect over a period of a couple of years. I’ve got good days, and bad days. More good than bad lately, thank god. Creating the physical distance by being here in Lagos really helps my healing process. However, last week I had a few days when I barely had any control over my thoughts. I kept thinking about how much I miss him, playing different scenarios and memories in my head, telling myself “if I had only…”, etc. My thoughts went from one place to another. That still happens, and I’ve learned to just sit it out. I’m convinced that it’ll get better. I’m doing lots of work for that.

And… something that also helps me on these days is shopping! So, I decided to head out to the designer outlet Algarve in Loulé. I enjoyed walking around here for an hour or two, and I treated myself to a watch, perfume, underwear, and a t-shirt. After that, I went next door to the MAR Shopping center. A very big mall with all the big brands. I went to the Zara shop here, and bought some t-shirts (since I won’t be needing sweaters). Oh, and I’ve also been going to the gym 5 times a week since I’ve arrived. I go to BUGAGYM in Alvor. It’s about a 25 minutes drive to get there, but it’s so worth it. I never have to wait for machines, they have lots of equipment, the staff is very friendly, and, even though I felt quite intimated at the beginning because of the body builders coming to the gym (I know what you’re thinking: no, they are not my type), everyone is super helpful.

In Lagos, every Wednesday and Saturday there is a local market near the bus station. The market has lots of stands with locals selling (organic) products, such as vegetables, fruits and kombucha. I left with raspberries, blueberries, and passion fruit—because if I can’t have passion in my love life right now, at least I can have it in my breakfast. It’s quite busy at the market, and I enjoyed buying some fruits here. I’ll be doing that more often.

Today, I went to photograph a couple of abandoned buildings. That’s something I love doing, and I had never done it in Portugal. I visited some abandoned churches and chapels, and a convent. It was really nice to get out there and shoot these buildings, because I enjoy spending time on the road, I always run into something that happens to me, and it helps me to shift my thoughts to the present moment. While being on the road, I either listen to music, sit in silence or listen to a podcast. Lately, I’ve been listening to Sabrina Zohar’s podcast a lot. She gives great dating and relationship advice. Her podcast is also how I found the book that I’m currently reading, It begins with you from Jillian Turecki (she also has an amazing podcast!).

When I tried to enter one of the abandoned buildings today, a man started shouting at me in Portuguese, and signalling me to go away. It was my favorite location of the day, and I wasn’t ready to give up. So I climbed back over the wall, walked towards him and asked him if he speaks English. He said, in Portuguese, something that sounded like he only speaks Portuguese. After some intense international negotiations (aka me waving my hands and looking desperate), he finally caved. Victory never tasted so sweet! Oh my god. I was so happy. That happiness grew even more when I got inside, because this is the most beautiful abandoned church that I have photographed so far. And, trust me when I say this, because I’ve photographed hundreds of abandoned churches.

And that’s a wrap on a week of fine dining (and not-so-fine dining), impulsive shopping, and sweet-talking my way into forbidden places. What’s next? If history repeats itself, probably more delicious chaos. Stay tuned! 😏✨