People of Lisbon: Ligia Gomes

When you meet Ligia, you can’t help but smile. What she lacks in stature she definitely makes up for with her powerhouse personality and energy. The 30 year old spitfire has resided in the heart of Lisbon for over 16 years. I met her during my month in Lisbon as she currently works for Remote Year.

Ligia, along with her colleague, Goncalo, runs the ground operations in Lisbon. She manages everything from apartments, behind the scenes tasks, city guides, events and all general operations. 

Ligia is from a small coastal town in the Algarve, the south of Portugal. Her entire family still resides there and she tries to get back at least once a month.

The Algarve region is about three hours from Lisbon with a completely different vibe. Picture crystal blue water, white sand beaches, and jagged rocks that rival the California Coast. The quaint beach towns boom during the summer but remain relatively quiet throughout the rest of the year.

From Coastal Town to Big City

Ligia came to Lisbon to study medicine at only 16 but her career took her in a very different direction. When Ligia finished her masters degree in pharmaceutical science in 2011, Portugal was in the biggest economical crisis in recent history. Ligia couldn’t return home if she wanted to find a good job, so she chose to stay in Lisbon, Portugal’s capital.

“I really do feel like tourism is a good thing…some people feel like it’s the worst thing ever…but I really think it’s very important for our country and has a created a needed industry when we don’t have many others.”

She worked in the pharmaceutical industry, for Johnson and Johnson initially, before realizing it was not what she wanted. Luckily, higher education is very accessible compared to the United States so she was able to go back to school and study something more aligned with her interests. She is currently wrapping up her masters in Anthropology, as well as another masters on Development economics. To say Ligia is accomplished and motivated would be an understatement. 

From Studying Tourism to Leading It

Ligia loves looking at big problems and figuring out how to fix them. This is what connected her to Remote year, which is the subject of her dissertation, as well as her interest in economics and sustainable tourism. She very much believes that to fix any problem, you must really study and understand the current systems at play. This drives her constant thirst for knowledge – a common trait among many other Portuguese I had the pleasure of meeting. 

Post her pharmaceutical career, Ligia was working in the food and writing industry, for Zomato, doing food reviews and content creation. A woman of many talents, check out her food blog here.

“I just think there has to be some rules, or there will be no culture and tradition left”

She had no plans to go into the tourism industry, but after trying to find a remote job for a friend, she was introduced to Remote Year. She ended up applying, forgetting about it, and months later when an opening happened in Lisbon she was contacted and decided, why not.

Tourism: A Blessing or a Curse For Lisbon?

Tourism is a powerful industry in Lisbon today, and at the heart of many discussions. When asked how she feels about tourism, and making it her career, she says, “It’s very hard because I’m in the two worlds, right? On one hand I’m seeing all the prices for the houses going up…a lot of friends that have to go away from their apartments because there’s now an airbnb there or a hostel…they have to move outside of the city because the prices are so high.”

It’s a catch-22 because as most locals are quick to respond, tourism is precisely what saved their beautiful city from the economic crisis and caused a massive economic boom. 

“In that perspective, everything is very good, because the city was honestly falling apart. Downtown was a ghost town.” Ligia motions to the quaint three story apartment we’re sitting in. We’re next door to her house and a mere 10 minute walk from the center of Lisbon. “Three years ago, this was empty, nothing going on. When I joined Remote Year and they wanted to build a co-working space in Sao Bento, I didn’t understand. Now it’s ‘the place’…I think it’s very good.” 

Creating a Balance for Sustainable Tourism

“I just think there has to be some rules, or there will be no culture and tradition left,” she mused. “It also has to do with the Portuguese. They are getting greedy and taking advantage of the fact that they have houses they can sell for so much. So they do, alienating locals.” 

The government is not blind to this dichotomy. They are trying to place restrictions on Airbnb’s and fine citizens that break it. But they also allow people to capitalize on the economic boom that tourism has given it’s citizens. “I really do feel like tourism is a good thing. Some people feel like it’s the worst thing ever but I really think it’s very important for our country. It has a created a needed industry when we don’t have many others.” 

This is exactly what attracted Ligia to her studies of economics and anthropology. She wants to figure out how she can help, and not just wait for someone else to come things. I don’t know about you, but I’d feel very confident leaving my problems in Ligia’s extremely capable hands.

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