travel on Joseph Chen

Lisbon, Portugal — A Most Fortuitous Diversion

Thu, 02 Jul 2026 12:50:00 -0500

Above Europe, clouds retreat, rivers shrink, and the sky burns white as the continent braces beneath an impossible heat. Mother Nature whispers, “Throughout heaven and earth, I alone am the honored one”—and unleashes Vollzanbel once more upon the continent.

Our original destination was Vienna—home of majestic baroque architecture, bustling traditional coffee houses, and a vibrant art scene. The one and only City of Music. But nature commanded otherwise, sealing the city beneath a hundred-degree veil of heat. For what reason, for what punishment, none of us could say. Alas, when we arrived in Zürich from Chicago on LX7, we turned tail to Lisbon whose city had escaped, miraculously, the initial onslaught. So, onwards we went, embarking on LX2086 and allowing Baltic Air to generously ferry us to the few remaining safe havens of Europe for the week.

What met us there was what we needed. For one of our party members, the bard Ming, had endured a year of torturous indoctrination at N.W. Feinberg, where he mastered legendary techniques of stretching and massage and learned the arcane tongue: “Tell me if this hurts.” At last, he had earned a week’s reprieve for a brief yet desperately needed retreat—one which I, in an act of unparalleled mercy and charity, graciously organized. The other was our resident healer, Lady N—not to be mistaken for Lady M, the legendary New England producer of baked wares—who spent her days treating the realm’s smallest patients, armed only with a stethoscope and immunity to screaming. She had likewise earned temporary release from her post. Together, our weary fellowship descended upon Lisbon in search of rest, wine, and deliverance.

And so, from our lodgings near Martim Moniz, our fellowship spent the days that followed wandering Lisbon in search of fine provisions, worthy drink, and whatever mercy its hills might grant us. Of the many establishments encountered along the way, these were deemed most worthy of entry into the chronicle:

Kossie’s Café — Our favored neighborhood refuge, where strong coffee and bowls of açaí restored the weary each morning.
Seagull Method Café — Purveyor of the finest morning feast of the journey.
Lisbon Shop — A crowded trove of tourist wares, within which a discerning traveler might still uncover worthy treasures; there, I found watercolor prints of the city.
By the Wine — A respectable feast elevated by exceptional wine and a most gracious steward, who guided our party through the vineyards of Portugal.
Zé dos Cornos — A humble tavern hidden within the city’s narrow passages, serving magnificent octopus and pork ribs at prices so fair they bordered upon charity.
Lupita Pizzaria — A house of fire and dough responsible for some of the finest pizza our fellowship had encountered in all its travels.
Sanctuary of Christ the King — A pilgrimage across the Tagus, rewarded with sweeping views of Lisbon and the lands beyond.
Loja de Burel — A house of garments fashioned from burel, the dense and weatherproof woolen cloth long worn by shepherds of Serra da Estrela, home to the highest mountains in Portugal. There, Lady N claimed a cloak of her own and emerged properly equipped for future quests.
Mercado de Santa Clara — A bustling market of relics and curious wares, where we acquired several pins and a painted map of Lisbon, its streets traced in intricate grids as though laying bare the grandeur of the realm itself

Thus concluded our brief adventure in Lisbon. We had crossed the continent not by design, but by decree of the heavens, driven westward by heat and delivered instead into a city of steep hills, tiled façades, generous wine, and meals worthy of remembrance. What began as a retreat from nature’s wrath became something better: a few precious days in which the bard rested, the healer laid down her instruments, and our weary fellowship ate, drank, wandered, and—for a little while—was restored.

At last, we departed aboard TAP243, where, by fortune or divine favor, our party was granted passage in the cabin of the privileged few. Reclining upon cushioned thrones above the clouds, we returned home bearing painted relics, a shepherd’s cloak, several pins, and the solemn conviction that no hill in Lisbon had ever been designed with mercy in mind.

p.s. i was listening to a Frieren-inspired playlist which may have influenced my writing a wee bit

more photos here:
azulejos — lisbon, portugal
views of tagus — lisbon, portugal

Sat, 04 Apr 2026 15:57:00 -0500

pc방s are fire
thank goodness i don’t live in korea
i’d be an alcoholic gamer
to potential employers: i’m ~~half~~ 100% kidding, pls hire me

anyways, i saved watching the first T1 game of the 2026 LCK Spring season for this T1 Basecamp PC방 just for them to be 0-2 by KT. if this keeps up though, T1 might actually make it to Worlds again haha

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 16:24:00 -0500

heytea has a seoul-exclusive drink, at least when i was there in hongdae
it’s a hand-peeled jeju tangerine drink: tangerine pulp sits at the base, topped with a slush of 100% tangerine juice and fragrance-free jasmine green tea, and naturally tinted with beetroot juice.
overall, was pretty good. more of a slushie than the typical heytea drink.

sooyeon had the classic mango pomelo sago, and she thoroughly enjoyed it. was her first time in heytea, and she could not stop admiring how good it was and how appreciatively unsweetened the drink was. i did ask her if she liked it enough to come back again, and she said maybe next year given that the walk was a bit far for her… ps: the walk is only 30 min from campus

LOT Polish 787-8 Business Class Review

Tue, 30 Dec 2025 11:26:25 -0500

This past Sunday, Gabi and I had the opportunity to ride business class on LOT Polish from Chicago to Krakow. They fly this route once weekly with the rest of the week to Warsaw.

I don’t believe there’s any other airline that flies direct from Chicago to Poland just yet, and I think the reason why LOT flies it is because Chicago boasts an impressive Polish and people with Polish ancestry population. It’s to the point where a 2023 study by the city found Polish to be the 4th most widely spoken language in Chicago behind English, Spanish, and Mandarin. What’s interesting is that the 1972 musical Grease had the majority of characters with Polish surnames based on real-life experiences in a Chicago high school, but subsequent productions and films have toned down the Chicago Polish influences.

Anyways, back to the flight, we’re flying non-revenue standby, so we didn’t have confirmed tickets yet. We needed to clear with the ticketing counter for standby boarding passes, then we’d have to go to the gate to clear for actual seats. The loads had looked good, and we had little issue with it all. Security check at ORD Terminal 5 was awful as it was around 9pm and the PreCheck/Clear lines were all closed. It went from 4 security lines to 1 combined one, and it took us 45 minutes to get through. Our standby passes had “Fast Track” but it was just for show haha. Good thing we had enough time. Once boarding almost finished, the gate agent issued us our confirmed boarding passes: 1A and 1B! Not only business class, but also sitting next to each other without having to explicitly ask! To be fair, the cabin was only 2/3rds full.

So, LOT Polish still has the common but outdated 2-2-2 business class layout. That means 33% of business class passengers do not have direct access to the aisle and would likely need to climb over or wake up a sleeping passenger to use the restroom or exit their seats. However, what’s nice about it is that it felt a lot more open and spacious. The seats seemed noticeable wider with more legroom, which Gabi enjoyed a lot. The lack of wifi was honestly a fresh change of pace; I’ve missed the forced disengagement from the digital world air travel used to have. However, this layout and older product definitely can invite more awkwardness if sitting with strangers due to the limited divider and shared middle tray. Some other cons was that the seats lacked accessible storage space with only the foot cabinet space (unreachable if secured with a seatbelt) and overhead bins as storage. The entertainment devices were also quite outdated, and we ended up not using them at all. There was also this annoying, bright green light that I could not understand having.

The food was pretty solid, though! That was a relief as we didn’t have dinner. For the appetizer, I chose the green asparagus cream soup, and I really enjoyed it! Baked rib eye with mashed potatoes and veggies was my main of choice. The meat was on the drier end, but only slightly, and it was overall well-seasoned and tasty. The drinks kept flowing non-stop—great Polish hospitality. Had mostly blackcurrant and orange juice haha, but I’m sure their wine selection was great. Tons of dessert options. Breakfast was also good. The cafe latte, though, tasted evidently like powdered espresso. I’m not sure how Turkish Airlines had such good espresso for their catering.

After dinner, we set the beds ourselves. I’m sure they would’ve helped if requested, but it honestly was pretty simple. The mattress cover was more for cleanliness than comfort—quite thin. Blanket—also quite thin—was enough comfort, although on the shorter side (not for me given average height). Pillow was solid. Gabi slept really well. I woke up a few times, mostly due to light coming from the gallery. I really should’ve used the nice eye mask I keep with me 24/7 or not have dropped the one they gave me. My fault. Overall, solid and roomy sleep experience.

At the end of the day, it was a relaxing and pleasant time. We had a great flight attendant taking care of us. She definitely helped elevate the experience, especially by stating that she was really happy to have had us as passengers (made my day). We all bonded over the cute Kodak Charmera we were taking photos with. Everyone was nice and helpful overall, too! It’s no Turkish Airlines in terms of hard and soft business class product, but it definitely was a memorable experience all the same.

Wed, 29 Oct 2025 14:56:29 -0500

weird. slept essentially 8 or so hours on a plane. woke up with an hour left in the flight. looked at my watch. watch is gone. panic. then found watch, strap partially detached, slipped into the top of my backpack? huh? not even gonna ask questions atp. what a relief. also dreamed of a super loose tooth, woke up from that and was also relieved that the tooth was in fact not loose. anyways, will i make my 1 hour 20 min connection? likely not since i have a checked bag i need to pick up and recheck 😭 why does hnd-ord have to be weight-restricted so often 🥀

my sanity-check packing list!!!

Sat, 25 Oct 2025 02:02:23 -0500

feel free to see the most updated version here: google slides

really brought on bc i felt like i overpacked a bit for this recent trip to japan, which wasn’t completely in my control… but yeah, didn’t really need the portable wifi router/extender (it’s really cool though), winter jacket killed like at least 25% of my carry-on space (i needed it) , headphones was really unnecessary after I replaced my stolen airpods, two laptops (work & personal) was HEAVY (what can you do? i like having my laptop), kindle… was not really used (T.T) i guess i don’t really need it unless i’m without my laptop?? pick one type of deal?, oh yes and my travel book w/ all the currencies and cards… yeah no, im just gonna pack a travel wallet for those…

anyways, yay! one personal project checked off my list :D

Wed, 22 Oct 2025 19:02:29 -0500

also, i’m in tokyo rn. just landed about 18 hours ago—haven’t slept since and planning to sleep in about 6 hours? just wanted some time to get a change of scenery by myself. tokyo is cold, yet warmer than chicago at the moment haha. it’s the wind chill that gets ya in chicago. i mean there’s a few things in my life i do want to change right now, but need a slight breather to think through them and really get conviction/commitment.

BUT ALSO ERRANDS!

glasses
matcha
shampoo/conditioner
mascara
passport cover
EAT GOOD FOOD
do small things i’ve been meaning to do, like write a bit more c:

honestly did not plan or think through any of this particular visit to japan. i got last-minute accommodations. paid for a whole night and didn’t even sleep. essentially paid $32 for a hot shower and a spot to work from throughout the night, which was more than worth it still. i guess i wanted to revisit solo travel. it was a risk though with me feeling a bit lonely and sad these days. my contacts hurt like 0iajsicjnsakojncakosmjnmkscao. the working hours are AWFUL here LOL. it’s like 11pm to 7am, what the heck! anyways, i gots to go tutor rn. new student—olivia!

my overnight FlixBus experience

Wed, 27 Aug 2025 02:45:44 -0500

so I saw that FlixBus had an overnight trip to Ghent which was notably cheaper than flights or train, especially since it basically cuts out one night of hotels, but oh was that the apparently common first-timer disillusion. right when I got onto the FlixBus, I googled whether they wake you up for your stop on an overnight, and an article about hey DONT DO OVERNIGHT FLIXBUSES popped up 😭 apparently, my expectation of sleeping soundly for 7 hours was false and again a beginners’ mistake, esp for young travelers. however, the article only said the chairs were not meant for sleeping, but I thought it was totally fine. if I could sleep in economy in an airline, I can sleep in these coach buses that recline 5x as much.

BUT, TURNS OUT THAT WASNT THE ISSUE. first, the bus was quite warm at 10 in the evening, but it cooled once we took off. then, people behind us just kept yapping nonstop, like it’s 10pm guys 😭. next, it was just so awkward to find a good position to sleep but that’s normal. the real next issue was finally getting some sleep, only to be woken up 40 minutes later by someone because we were deboarding to get security checked at Dover (southeastern port of 🇬🇧). got a nice passport stamp though! THEN, i found out we were going on a ferry (as you can tell, little research was put into what this bus ride entailed) on which we had to deboard and go on the passenger decks!! honestly the ferry was rly nice, got free hot food, duty-free shops, and some time to wash up in someplace other than a coach bathroom that didn’t even have running water. we had about 2 and a half hours on the ferry, so we ate a bit, shopped a bit, slept for a bit, and back on the bus we went shortly. afterwards, we nodded off and made it to Ghent too quick for comfort. but overall, that was pretty little sleep versus expectations. interesting for sure, but would i do it again? probably, im young and broke for now still. however, im truly tired and i have a whole day and work day ahead of me.

oh!! and we bought an adorable beefeater bear!

Mon, 25 Aug 2025 11:12:14 -0500

https://themeasureofaplan.com/wealth-map/ is a cool visualization/data tool about differences in (iirc) cost-of-living, mean income (well, gross national income % country population), and purchasing power. not sure if the income calculation is the best way to do so as it includes income that isn’t wage-related, so doesn’t paint the best picture of what the average joe is earning. like with all data, take it with a grain of salt and thoughtfulness.

it is put together by just a regular joe, so not sure how long data will be updated for or functionality will remain. found it when looking into where im at (london) and trying to understand how people can afford to live here. it seems so so expensive for the relative salary/income that i assumed was average. did some research and still confused. seems like the people out and about are likely wealthy already, tourists (thus less cost-considerate), or treating themselves. could be wrong.

Sun, 08 Jun 2025 21:35:24 -0500

saw this super cool recycling spot in Hong Kong!!!! wonder if this is a non-profit or govt-subsidized, cannot see the incentive or profitability of running this besides just doing good in the world :)

GREEN‌@HAPPY VALLEY G/F, Shop 3, Green Valley Mansion, 51 Wong Nai Chung Rd, Happy Valley, Hong Kong

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 21:50:22 -0500

back in sf, so hungry n tired, honestly probably the most turbulence as percentage of flight I’ve had; im actually starving 😭 so much work awaits poor me

edit: there was a super snorer during taxing, crazy guttural. got me grabbing my headphones out, but he stopped after takeoff 🛫

Wed, 26 Mar 2025 09:18:20 -0500

found a stray skinny kitty on Miami Beach 🥺 quickly biked to CVS to grab some kitty food for it, poor baby looked so hungry and stuck around us and our bikes the whole time. wishing it the best of luck! hopefully it makes it to a shelter where a loving family can adopt it 🙏🙏

Wed, 26 Mar 2025 05:29:19 -0500

there’s a Venezuelan food spot in Brickell that’s really good and well-priced! gave us some chicken soup on the house too 😭 also gave Joe’s Stone Crab a go & it was good! for the ambience and history, the value is still quite good there—1/2 chicken for like $9 and lowkey I quite enjoyed the free bread (ate it before the camera did 💀). The hashbrowns were really good (but tbf I love hashbrowns), and I ordered a large after sampling some, and our waiter downgraded it to a half-size on his own accord and thank goodness he did 😭 the half-size was very much more than enough for me alongside my other two dishes LOL (both of which I needed help finishing). Evan and Gabi said the crab is good and quite conveniently pre-cracked, but not like to die for, but solid. at the end, we were all very stuffed and satisfied.

El Sitio Coffee Bar 19 NE 2nd Ave, Miami, FL 33132

Joe’s Stone Crab 11 Washington Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33139

Mon, 24 Mar 2025 13:43:18 -0500

brunch @ coconut grove! the cast iron pancake was too much 😭 I warned Evan beforehand but alas he did not heed my advice. otherwise, it was solid & enjoyable. Evan says 7.5/10.

Chug’s Diner 3444 Main Hwy Suite 21, Miami, FL 33133

Mon, 24 Mar 2025 13:37:30 -0500

umiami has quite a nice and huge campus—it really makes you feel you got ur bang for ur buck on tuition. weather is quite nice too today, high 70s to 82°. very green + clean. not many asian students tbh. didn’t take many photos whoops, but overall, I like it, but I wouldn’t go to school here. still quite the car-demanding county with not much to really do around 🚗

Sun, 23 Mar 2025 16:02:59 -0500

Vizcaya Village Farmers Market + Vizcaya Museums & Gardens were both successes! The farmer market had a lot of good & diverse food, and we had a bunch of empanadas as well as fresh Floridian orange juice and sugarcane juice. The museum and gardens was really pretty and was overall a fun time! Lots of lizards abound in Miami 🦎

Sun, 23 Mar 2025 14:31:28 -0500

murals @ Calles Ocho Murals and Gallery (25.7654170, -80.2182664)

Sat, 22 Mar 2025 10:02:16 -0500

these benches outside Miami’s Frost Science museum remind me of Antoni Gaudí’s works, like Park Güell. they have that flowy organic curvilinear vibes, but just lack the complex mosaic and ornamental characteristics. it’s kinda a modern minimalistic adaption, but I could honestly be totally off on all this.