Brenden Gajewski | Fr. | Dripping Springs, Texas
"Today (Friday morning) we woke up and ate a quick breakfast around 8:00 AM before heading off to the metro for our soccer game in Scavem, Portugal. We played a pro-division, level 4 soccer team of mainly 23-27 year olds. The game had some very competitive segments, but the score did not end in our favor. For us it was all about the experience of playing against professionals. This moment for us as a team was a vital time for us to come together, learn, and improve as a team. What we did today will help us succeed back in the States.
After the game we showered and got ready at the stadium to head out for lunch. We ate at a local restaurant, where we were able to try more Portuguese food and it was great food and a great time to enjoy each others company with our new Portuguese friends.
After lunch we headed towards the coast of Lisbon to hang out at a local park where we partnered with a local IMB missionary from Minden, Louisiana, who was trying to get the word out about some of his church’s upcoming events. We helped hand out flyers about an upcoming Easter egg hunt and were able to interact with many different people from the community.
We then headed to the mall to do a little shopping before dinner, where we ate at a Pizza Hut buffet, which was full of Portuguese pizzas. One had corn and eggs on it, which was weird to us, but most were willing to try it.
To finish the night we headed into downtown Lisbon to visit a few local shops and tourist attractions for some final souvenir shopping. Finally we went back to the hotel to pack for our early morning departure back to ETBU.
Overall it was a great day in Portugal with my teammates and we had many great bonding opportunities through playing and serving others,” Freshman Brenden Gajewski said.
