TIME 2021: Recap of our third week

We’re already three weeks abroad! Therefore, there’s only one week left until the field research phase will end. However, let’s not look too far ahead and do a little recap of our third week in Portugal! 

As we arrived later in the evening on Sunday, we did not have much time to settle down in Porto. Our work week started again on Monday morning and some of our consultants were already on our way to have appointments! The others stayed at the hotel and were busy getting appointments and processing the information obtained from previous appointments. During the week, our agendas were filled with new meetings. Furthermore, on Wednesday, we had an appointment with the Dutch embassy of Portugal who gave us several insights into the Portuguese economy and the different markets we focus on for our research.

Compared to Madrid and Barcelona, we quickly discovered that Porto is very different. The city is smaller, super hilly and the atmosphere is very different! There are many street artists, market stalls selling jewellery or typical Portuguese treats.

During the weekend, we were able to get to know the city a bit more. After our working day on Friday, we enjoyed a great amount of tapas while listening to some live music during the evening. On Saturday, we divided our team into two and competed against each other by means of an escape tour! While walking through the city, we had to solve some challenging riddles.

On Sunday, we walked (… or climbed) through the city while enjoying the sun and the amazing views. We visited Vila Nova de Gaia, where many port houses are located. We went to Taylors, one of the biggest producers of port wine. After having a tour through the house and getting to know everything that comes to producing port wine, of course we had to try some glasses! 

This week we will stay in Porto for our final week of field research. Having an overfilled agenda, we are convinced to end the phase very successfully!