I Love the Azores

Gordon:  Our visit to the Azores has coincided with an extended period of unseasonably poor weather.  When we arrived at the beginning of February the locals were talking about the great winter they were enjoying.  That changed almost immediately, and since then it has rained almost every day.  There have also been periods of near record low temperatures, though from a Canadian perspective they were still quite pleasant.  The long term forecast is for more of the same.  While we would rather have better weather, we have enjoyed ourselves very much, and we will happily return to the Azores.  Here are a few reasons why we like these islands.

In Calheta de Nesquim, where we stayed for eight days, there is an older, avuncular neighbour who came by each evening to feed and sit with our landlord’s cats when she was working elsewhere on the island.  He is one of the few people we have met whose English is poorer than my Portuguese, so we would chat a bit in Portuguese.  On the evening before our departure I told him that we had to leave the following morning.  He gave me a warm handshake and told me how much he hoped we would be back next year.

We cycled the length of Pico on a very windy day.  At one point we turned down a short side road to visit a viewpoint overlooking the sea.  The scene along the shore was primeval, with foaming white water surging and crashing over lifeless black basalt.  Much of the coastline on Earth must have looked like this during the first two billion years of our planet’s history.  After a few minutes if oohing and aawing, our glasses were covered with salt spray.  Looking about through the haze, I noticed a sign for a washroom.  Seriously doubting that it would be open, I went over to give the door a tug.  To my surprise, it was in fact open, and moreover, well-supplied with soap, toilet paper and paper towels.  Coming from a province where we are constantly told that we cannot afford public services, the level of free, public infrastructure in the Azores is astounding.  In addition to the numerous washrooms, there are frequent roadside rest areas and viewpoints that are meticulously maintained.  Many are horticultural marvels.  Almost every village on the sea also has a public swimming area.  These generally involve some modification of the shoreline to allow access to the water, but they are typically scenic and charming, with the open sea metres away from a safe swimming area.

On our cycle along the coast we escaped one rainshower by ducking into a posh bakery.  Like many bakeries, this one was also setup as a cafe.  We each ordered a chicken sandwich from the display case.  Made with a pastry dough, and filled with chunks of chicken in a sauce, it was sublime.  Encouraged by this delight, we went on to share an enormous piece of “the French cake,” chased by rich espressos.  It was so good we ordered the same again to takeaway (minus the coffee).  Throughout the lunch the server chatted entertainingly with us.  She also complimented me on my Portuguese, which always gets me chuffed.  The bill for two excellent meals for two people: 11 euros, less than $17 Canadian.

Although we have no interest in purchasing a second home in Europe, if we were to do so it would probably be in the Azores.  As the neighbour in Calheta suggested, what we will do is return again.

Ruth: Gord chatting up one of the rare uncommunicative locals. He was trying to warn her of the dangers of wearing the traditional capote in modern crosswalks. 

A snail’s pace: Madalena to Sao Roque on Pico

Ruth: We have done the math. We have to slow down or we will run out of roads! We have three islands with winter ferry service and we could cycle around Pico, the largest, in three easy days. We have more than five weeks! 

I thought we knew how to travel slowly but this trip is our slowest ever. I’m not sure we can call this a cycle tour when we are only averaging 15 km per day!  Oh course there are lots of walking days in the mix also. 

The weather forecasts also help us to slow down. We stay in most places for a few days, choosing to cycle to a new spot on a day with a better forecast. Fortunately, so far, the forecasts have been much worse than the reality. The sun makes at least a brief appearance most days and when it really comes out we suddenly need sunscreen. 

Today we were dodging  a few rain storms and dashing into shelter when we needed to. When the rain stopped we would get back on our bikes to poke around every village we passed through. I find it hard to believe that people lived off the land here, growing grapes and other crops on this beautiful moonscape of lava. 

Arrival in the Azores: Horta, Faial

Ruth: We just arrived in Horta on the island of Faial in the Azores. 

We left Victoria after a very rough start to the year. Gord and I are still shaken by the lost our good friend Blair.  He died  on December 30 of the flu. Nobody is supposed to die from the flu. His celebration of life was last Saturday. Blair’s death has left his partner Catherine shattered and so many of his friends in shock and grief. He is dearly missed.

Jet lag hits me hard emotionally at the best of times. It always seems to be when my emotional demons come to visit.  I know it will pass, but on the last few trips the first couple of days have been rough. My Facebook travel posts never really tell the whole story.  I love travelling far too much to let this stop me, but it does make me wonder how to make theses first few days easier. Anxiety is a funny thing, not clearly tied to the reality of the situation in which it visits. 

I am so grateful to be with Gord and beginning another few months of travelling together. The Azores are one of the few places we have felt compelled to revisit after just one year. 

My needs travelling are quite simple. Beyond food and shelter there are two things that are very important to me: sleep and coffee. OK, maybe three things: sleep, coffee and Gord.  But I appreciate Gord much more when the other two have been taken care of.

Coffee  appears to be step one in turning me back into a kind and loving partner. Taking a long walk uphill to a supermarket is not even on the list. Sleep can wait for now that I have had a cup of coffee and can enjoy the view of Pico out our window. 

Terceira and on to Flores

Ruth: We opted for a stopover on the island of Terceira so that we could visit the UNESCO listed port town of Angra do Heroismo.  It was an important staging point for the Spanish treasure fleets from the New World in the 16th century, when Portugal was under Spanish rule.  In a Canadian footnote, the Portuguese captain who discovered Newfoundland was an important figure in Angra in the late 15th century.  We got out for a walk in town as soon as the sun was up. It was well worth the stop. 

In the afternoon we returned to the airport to fly on to Flores. We are now at the Westernmost tip of Europe, unless you count Greenland. Flores has a population of 4,400 and receives about the same number of visitors in a year.  We expected it to be lush and beautiful, but we have landed in paradise. 

For the next four nights our home is a little stone house in the tiny village of  Fajā Grande.

Gord:  When Ruth was three years old she lived in England.  One of her most enduring and traumatic memories from that period was an encounter with a very threatening domestic goose.  Poor Ruth relived that experience yesterday on a road in Faja Grande.  While the goose was not head height, as it was when she three, it did rush at her repeatedly, hissing and with the clear intention of taking a nip.  As at three, I believe Ruth may have wet herself a little.  In the aftermath my lack of chivalry was the subject of some criticism, but in my defence, I had been immobilized by my own laughter.  Ruth recovered later with a glass of Moscatel on our patio.

First Day in Ponta Delgata

Ruth:  With jetlag my writing and thinking skills are absent but I will try to capure our day.

During a 6 hour delay in Toronto while our pilot got his beauty rest, we tried to walk and nap at the airport until our flight left at 3:00 am. SATA only has one plane on this route and if they arrive late, as happened with the previous day's flight, the crew's required rest time has to be added in for safety reasons. An annoyance, but I am willing to admit it might be a wise decision. 

On our drive in from the airport I could easily recognize the buildings I drew of the town before our departure. It is a fun way to discover a place. The vegetation here is lush and exotic, nurtured by the gentle climate.  The town of Ponta Delgada is charming and very recognizably Portuguese.

We spent an hour in a local museum with its creepy collection of all things taxidermied, including three two-headed (Siamese) calves and a small domestic spaniel.

Ok my brain has cats on its mind. Its Ponta Delgada ( Handsom point) instead of  Ponta Delgata ( Point of the female cat). 

Time to sleep.