Ok, so my last Portugal post was back in April during my third visit there, but I never really talked about how I ended up visiting Portugal in September of 2021, and it’s a great story, especially if you have big ideas, and need a little encouragement about getting out of your comfort zone. Ready?

I’m showing my age here, but there was a time when it was an odd thing to talk to people from the internet, let alone meet them in person! Gasp! Obviously we’ve come a long way from there (the mid-90s) and social media has made it easier to connect with like minded people from all over the world. Case in point: last September, I flew halfway around the world to stay with people I’d never met before, mostly based on text message conversations and video chats. You see, I’d been listening to the podcast Portugal the Simple Life, as part of my research for the big move to Portugal, and last July they had with an interview with Portuguese ceramic artist, Mariana Sampaio. It was fascinating to hear her talk about the history of ceramics in Caldas da Rainha ( a small city about an hour north of Lisbon), and her own history with art and clay. I heard her podcast while on a 4th of July road-trip with my husband, and decided I would look her up on Instagram and see if she’d be open to chat about the ceramics scene in Portugal and her life as an artist there.

So I sent a few questions her way, not anticipating much of a response, and instead got the most thoughtful and thorough reply, which lead to a lengthy conversation in Instagram chat. Then we exchanged numbers and started chatting on WhatsApp. Then it was a video call. Suddenly we were chatting daily, and having really great conversations. Have you ever just had a feeling about someone, or something? Like there is a reason you’ve crossed paths. It may sound hokey but, I felt an instant connection and friendship with Mariana. The more we talked, the more it seemed we had similar ideas about art, collaboration, community and our creative endeavors. After chatting back and forth for a couple of weeks, I half jokingly suggested we do an exchange program—- I’d visit her in Portugal, and she could come stay with me in Portland sometime. But her response was “sure, what are you doing in September?”

And while it sounded completely crazy to everyone in my life (insert jokes about mass murderers and getting locked up in a basement) , I just knew I had to go. I mean, what an incredible opportunity! I had the chance to spend three weeks living with a ceramic artist in the country I longed to live in, and get a real life perspective on what life could be like there. How could I pass that up? I couldn’t! So I booked a flight, and on September 1, 2021 I was off to Portugal!

Besides the fact that I was flying to another continent to stay with a virtual acquaintance, this was also the first time I had traveled since February of 2020. The pandemic was still very much a scary thing, and COVID made traveling internationally even more tricky than ever: PCR tests, international forms, possible quarantines, and 24 hours of mask wearing while on the plane and in airports. Was I nervous? ABSOLUTELY. But it wasn’t until I landed in Lisbon, that the reality set in. “What the hell am I doing here?”

When I got through baggage claim and walked into the sea of people holding signs and hugging loved ones, there was Mariana smiling her big, beautiful smile at me. We hugged hello and it felt like I was embracing an old, dear friend. All of my anxiety about the situation melted away, and we were off! The conversation came easy, and she was the most hospitable host. We did some sightseeing, spent time with her family, and worked in her studio.

I can’t quite articulate, how easy and normal all of this felt. When we sat and talked, we had so many similar life experiences and perspectives. Both of us had similar ideas around the aspect of creative community and how art (ceramics) brings people together. I shared my dreams of having a small farm and artist retreat/residency center, and discovered Mariana had a similar dream of opening a community ceramics studio. We began to brainstorm how we might work together to accomplish both, and decided she had to come to the US to teach tile painting workshops, do some collaborative projects, and spend time together planning this brilliant business idea!

Fast forward almost a year later and Mariana was on her way to Portland from Portugal! Stay tuned for Part Three…