On a warm Monday afternoon in Aveiro, Portugal, Carlos Pereira hopped on a train with two of his friends. They were headed to their homes in Porto, Portugal after a long day of classes. Carlos wore a navy sweater with jeans, a navy raincoat, and carried a blue school bag with a pair of hiking shoes. Three random American girls, Lexi Maddie and Sophie approached Carlos to learn more about his story.

 

Carlos was born in Porto, Portugal 19 years ago and still lives in Porto with his family. He is currently in his final year of high school and will soon be off to university. He is not sure which university he will attend in the future, but Aveiro is strong possibility. At college, Carlos hopes to study the history of Portugal and ultimately hopes to be a professor on the subject. He said that he hopes to teach small children as well.

In his free time, Carlos works at McDonald’s and enjoys playing with his band. He said that when he makes music“there is no past and no future.”

He feels that he is entirely in the moment.

 

Carlos is well traveled. He has been to Spain, France, Germany, and Poland. He is certain that if there is a country he’d like to go several times more in the future it would be Poland.

“It a country that you visit once and you want to continue visiting because they are so helpful and friendly. They make us feel that you are in their home.” However, Portugal is his home.

“Porto is a city that makes you   stay there and you want to stay there. It makes you comfortable. That’s a thing you can not find in every city you visit nowadays. There are some cities around the world you want to visit once and then come back to home. Porto is a beautiful city.”

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He says that he definitely sees himself working in Porto in the future. However, he understands that today’s world is big and ever changing, so he does not dismiss the idea of living in another country.