Azores Shore Leave – Day 11

Angra do Heroisma, Terceira
Date: Tuesday 06/17/2008
Weather: Rain - drizzle

Tuesday dawned overcast and drizzly.




We had a decision to make. Our original plans were to leave Terceira on Wednesday to head to Sao Miguel. A quick morning tour of Angra left us wanting to spend more time here. Besides the obvious historical significance of the city, we could see it was a city preparing for a big festival.

The coming Friday was the start of a week long festival centered around the bulls. There were bullfights Saturday, Sunday, and throughout the week. There were also “running with the bulls” where the bulls were let loose in the streets and those who were so inclined could run with them.

You could tell what a big deal it was. People were putting a fresh coat of paint on buildings and hanging flags and lights and decorations. The festival included parades every night. Concession stands and huge bandstands were being constructed all over the city.

Even though Robyn and I would have to leave before the festival, it seemed like a shame for Scott and Eric to miss it. Factor in that this was a fascinating city. As much as we loved sailing, Sao Miguel was a 24 hour sail from here and with two days left we would rather spend the time exploring Angra. We decided to stay in Angra and fly to Sao Miguel on Friday to catch our flight.

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Scott sent Kelly an email telling him our change in plans.

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Since it was a wet day anyway, we decided it was a good day to explore the caves. We hired a cab to take us up to the volcano. On the way up to the caves we passed the bullfighting ring.

We also passed a farm that raised the “mean” bulls that were used for fighting. Bulls are not harmed in Azorean bull fights. The Portuguese man we met in Sao Jorges said that in Terceira they had too much respect for the bulls because the bulls had saved them from the Spanish.

Terceira has two well known caves. The first was a volcanic eruption that boiled around inside and finally found a weak spot to rupture the earth’s surface. This created huge vertical caverns.


The upper one was called the cathedral and was golden and beautiful. We took pictures but our flash was no match for the enormousness of the space. The acoustics were so good in the cathedral that they sometimes held symphony concerts in there. There were stairs leading down to a lake, 50 feet below.

The second cave was a lava flow. It was horizontal and a little more ordinary than the first.

We also stopped at a lookout to see fumas. Fumas are where heat from the volcano releases smoke through cracks in the earth’s crust. It was hard to distinguish the smoke from the clouds, but we could see them in spots.

We returned from the outing at dinner time and met up with Mike, Linda and Ray. Robyn showed her usual determination for perfection, checking out and rejecting one restaurant after another. After about half an hour walking up and down steep hills and as the time got later and the people got hungrier, most of us were willing to settle.

But we learned – never doubt Robyn! She came up with a wonderful restaurant called the (something) Steak House. It was on the second story overlooking a courtyard and Robyn asked a table by the window. There were not any tables by the window, but the staff accommodated us by moving two tables over there.

The steaks were cooked by the waiter at the table, and Scott had his favorite dish – Octopus. One of the waitress was very cute, she pronounced it (in English) Octopoof! It became Octopoof for us from that time on.

Azores Shore Leave – Day 10

Velas,Sao Jorges to Angra do Heroisma, Terceira
Date: Monday 06/16/2008
Weather: mostly sunny

We debated our next destination. We wanted to go to the small island of Graciosa, which is north of Sao Jorges. We also wanted to see Terceira which was the second most populated island after Sao Miguel, and we needed to end up in Sao Miguel by Friday for Robyn and my flight home. We were running out of days. We had 5 days left, really 4 since we were flying out on Friday.

Since we wanted at least two days in Sao Miguel so that we could see the famous “blue and green lakes” we decided to forego Graciosa. We headed for Terceira, but we took the long way. We went west from Velas and sailed over the northern shore of Sao Jorges. We were hoping to see the Fajas.

Leaving Velas.

The sail was lovely. Besides the beautiful scenery, we saw water birds and the amazing Portuguese Man O War. These are fascinating little jelly fish that blow themselves up like balloons and sail upon the water. Eric, who had had more time to observe them, said that when they wanted to tack (sailing term for change direction) they would lean over on their side and let the wind steer them.

Shear Water

Portuguese Man O' War

Sadly, we did not see whales and the direction we were going was away from them. The best place to see whales is Flores, Faial, and Pico. As we headed east we were leaving their territory. That doesn’t mean we didn’t keep looking.

The Portuguese couple had told us about fajas. They are areas of fertile flat land at the base of very steep cliffs. They were formed by lava flows coming down the volcano and forming flat areas that were settled and farmed. Little communities grew up there in complete isolation. Now with modern equipment, roads are carved in the mountain side, but many can still only be traversed by foot. Beside farming, they are used as a place for wintering cattle. Fajas have their own micro climate that is milder, but the only way to get them is down the steep cliffs.

We arrived in Angra Do Heroismo around midnight. Angra is a very ancient city. It was the main port for the trading of goods between Spain and Portugual and the new world. Our first sight as we came in the harbor was this impressive large church.

The harbor master came out to meet us and showed us to our slip.

Azores Shore Leave - Day 9

Velas, Sao Jorges
Date: Sunday 06/15/2008
Weather: mostly sunny

We woke up Sunday morning to discover new, old neighbors. Several boats that we had met in Horta or Scott & Eric had met earlier, had come in during the night. Marcel and Martine from France had arrived, as had Mike and Linda and their friend Ray.

Scott first met Mike and Linda in St. Augustine. They had followed the ARC route but had not officially joined. So their paths kept crossing, in Bermuda, in Flores, in Horta, and now here.

Mike & Linda are a fascinating couple. Mike is retired from ATF (in the field) and Ray from DEA, so they had some very interesting stories. Mike looked a lot like Al Pacino so it was easy to imagine him in the role.

They sold their house in California three years ago and bought a brand new Hylas 49. It is a beautiful boat with 3 cabins, 2 heads (bathrooms) and even a washer and dryer!!

They have been living on it for the past three years. This was their first Atlantic crossing and they plan to stay in the Med for a couple years, then perhaps do the Pacific. We will be sure to give them Lewis’s number if they make the Cook Islands.

In the slip next to us we met George, a Scotsman who was single handedly doing what Scott is doing, sailing around the Atlantic. He left Scotland last October and spent a lot of time in the Carribean. He was now on his way home.

One of the best parts of traveling is the people you meet.

The marina from the breakwall.

Eric on the breakwall.

"Stone Face"

Fisherman's dighny.

A village dog.

Robyn and Eric headed for the swimming beach.

Scott and I headed to town for coffee. We found it at a lovely outdoor café. As we enjoyed our coffee, we started talking to a Portuguese couple from the neighboring island, Terceira. Terceira is where the American airbase is. The man spoke fluent English because he worked on the airbase. Although Terceira is only 40 miles from Sao Jorges, this was the first time this couple had ever visited Sao Jorges. They had come with their car by car ferry.

They had only been here 3 days and were already homesick. The man talked about the bullfights on Terceira. He said he used to fight the bulls when he was younger and his legs were stronger.

He said the bulls were honored in Terceira because centuries ago when the Spanish tried to invade Terceira the villagers moved the bulls to the beach and hung candles from their horns. The Spanish, invading at night, thought that there were hundreds of men on the beach and backed away. In the morning when they realized they’d been tricked, they came ashore. The confused bulls started charging the Spanish and drove them away.

He told us there were 52 villages on Terceira and they had 47 festivals a year, starting in May and going until November. Terceira was definitely on our agenda.

That night we had dinner at a restaurant recommended by Mike and Linda. We asked George to join us. The restaurant had a good selection of entrees listed in Portuguese with English translations. Things like “Laminated Chicken” (or could they mean Marinated?). I ordered the fried scallops. When I received a plate with 4 deep fried,battered pork chops, I asked the waitress “Scallops?” She nodded and said “Yes, Scallops.” Is there such a thing as scaloppini that is batter fried? Something was lost in the translation.

After dinner we headed back to the boat for bed. We were going to try to get an early start the next morning.

Azores Shore Leave - Day 8

Faial to Sao Jorges
Date: Saturday 06/14/2008
Weather: Mostly sunny

Saturday dawned bright and sunny. Our outside neighbors Marcel and Martine left before we were up. The other 3 boats, rafted on our inside, told us the night before that they wanted to leave at 9am. Since we were on the outside and would have to move, it seemed like a good time for us to leave also.

One problem, where was Kelly? His bunk had not been slept in last night. A mystery, but we had to move at 9, so we moved the boat over to the fuel dock. Again we found ourselves rafted up to a number of other boats who were taking advantage of the break in the weather to head to their next destination.

As we were refueling and topping off the water tank, Kelly appeared, walking down the promenade with an attractive dark haired young woman. Mystery solved. Kelly informed us that he wanted to stay in Horta a little longer so we made plans to meet him in Sao Miguel on Friday – when Robyn and I would be leaving to go home.

As Kelly grabbed up some of his stuff, I handed him the bag of paint and said since he was staying, he could finish our mural. He grinned and said of course, that was his whole reason for staying. He wouldn’t leave without finishing the mural.

Our next destination was Velas on the island of Sao Jorges. It was a lovely 6 hour sail past the island of Pico.

Pico is a large island just a few miles off from Faial. It is the main source of the wine that is made in the Azores. It also has a volcano in the center that is the highest point in the Azores.


We arrived in Velas mid-afternoon after a very pleasant sail. It was the most picturesque of all the villages we saw – and that is saying a lot in this most picturesque of countries.

They had a brand new marina that had just opened May 30th. It was lovely, bordered by a cliff that went straight up and out of sight. Because word had not got out about it, it was also uncrowded and we were able to get a prime slip.

Notice how the cliff goes straight up.

This is a view of the coastline from our slip in the marina. The color of the water is true. It is the most amazing shade of saphire.

Eric and Robyn left to find a swimming beach.

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Scott and I set out to find an internet connection. This turned out to be the quest for the holy grail. The marina was supposed to have WiFi from the Naval Club. The Naval Club had it but it wasn't working, the guy was supposed to be here today to fix it but he didn't come. Try the library.

The library had it but someone turned off the computer and no one knew what the password was. Try the building with the blue trim, they had it.

The building with the blue trim had a sign (in Portuguese) that seemed to indicate it was a government sponsered something technology. What do I know? It was closed, but a couple of teenage boys in swimsuits went in to get some CD's and told us it would be open at 6pm. OK.

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The yellow building is the community center with the library, an auditorium, and government offices. The building with the blue trim is the "technology center". (Which, by the way, did not open at 6pm!).

We had a beer at the community center and then left to do some exploring. Right next door to the community center was the public beach. I am sorry I did not get a better picture of it. it was amazing. The pool was a rock lined with little waterfalls and places for children to jump. It was beautiful. We went down to see if we could find Eric & Robyn.

They were not there so we continued our tour. We started up the coast from the swimming area and headed towards a lookout. Halfway up to the lookout we stopped and looked over the edge - and this is what we saw. Unbelievable!! When we did get up to the lookout, the view was nothing compared to the view on the way up! So much natural beauty!

We wound our way around town - it did not take long. It is a small village. We ended up in the middle of town where we met up with Eric & Robyn and started looking for a place for dinner.

Azores Shore Leave – Day 7

Location: Horta, Faial
Date: Friday 06/13/2008
Weather: Overcast; light rain

Our last night in Horta. This is a picture of the harbor from our hotel room. Enough said.


Scott and I spent the day on the boat. Not sure what the young people were doing, staying out of the rain, I hope.

We had an opportunity to spend some time with our neighbors. The boat next to us was from Brest, France. Marcel and Martine had been living on their boat and sailing for years. We met enough couples who were doing that to make me actually find the idea plausible – but none of them were on a 34’ boat!

From Marcel and Martine we learned that Brest was hosting a sailing festival that only occurs once every 4 years (like the Olympics!!). It is a major event and Marcel assured Scott that, as Americans coming so far, their attendance would be honored.

It captured Scott’s imagination (all those sailors to trade stories with), so the plan ("they have no plan and they’re sticking to it") was changed. They will now head for Brest, France from the Azores and go to England from there.

Without Robyn’s encouragement I still managed to trudge out to the wall and paint the red border around our painting. I had a hard time mustering enthusiasm because we had stayed too long in Horta already and I knew that my plea to stay another day to finish the painting under sunny skies, would fall on deaf ears from the captain.

Robyn and Eric arrived later and Robyn informed me that the border was dry – why hadn’t I done the next step?

Azores Shore Leave – Day 6

Horta, Faial
Date: Thursday 06/12/2008
Weather: Rain

Wednesday was Eric & Robyn’s last night in their hotel. They checked out Thursday morning. It was quite expensive and they had already extended their stay from 2 days to 4 days.

The rain was relentless and the boat damp. It was hard to imagine 5 people sleeping on it. I decided to look for a less expensive hotel for Scott and myself. Scott was not keen on the idea of leaving the boat, but he trusts Eric & Kelly and I was adamant. I needed to have some dry time!

We decided to keep the car for another day. We still had provisioning to do if we were to leave Saturday.

We picked up the laundry from the day before and did some grocery shopping and restocked our wine supply. We have been drinking only Azorean wines and they have been excellent. Two of my favorite things in the Azores were the wine and the cheese – oh, and also the bread – they have great bread. I could live on their bread and cheese and wine.

It continued to rain hard all day. We were immune to the rain – like the cows in the fields, we endured being wet all the time.

In the evening we headed out to find what was billed as the best barbequed chicken in the Azores. As they say, it’s not the destination, it’s the journey. When we found the chicken place it was closed (although we could smell the love!). I’m sure the proprietors had no expectation that customers would be out on a night like this.

What we did find was a point where we could see the huge cliffs with waterfalls crashing down the sides. All of this rain had to go somewhere. It was one of the most impressive sights so far, but none of us had been willing to bring our cameras out with us in this most soggy of nights.

Azores Shore Leave Day 5

Horta, Faial
Date: Wednesday 06/11/2008
Weather: Rain

Today the rains came in earnest. It was damp and uncomfortable and it would have been easy to give in and just hunker down on the boat and read for the next two days. However, anyone who is familiar with the size of a 34 foot sailboat, knows that that was not really an option for 5 people.

By now they were saying that the storm would last at least through Friday and everything was already saturated. I was getting concerned about our painting but Robyn would not let me give up. We went out that morning and bought the paint. We were committed, but the rain kept coming.

Robyn is the most wonderful traveling companion. From the start (crab cakes & clam chowder in the Boston airport), she took charge and got the most out of every day. She tirelessly hunted down all the most interesting spots and best restaurants.

It was her idea to rent a car that afternoon and explore the island. With Eric as the driver, Robyn, Kelly & I circled the island, heading down any little road or lane that caught our eye. Even in the rain the scenery was beautiful.

This lighthouse was destroyed in an earthquake in recent times. I wish I remembered more of the story. (Ask Robyn, she'll know).

This is one of the few remaining older windmills.

Faial has 5 modern windmills. Portugual has a strong energy policy and it is their goal to meet 40% of their energy needs by wind. They are well on their way at 20% now.

We were passing through a town where Robyn had read of an excellent little restaurant that was hard to find but worth searching for. The name of the restaurant was ‘Restaurante Esconderija’ which I believe means hidden restaurant.

We saw a sign for it and followed the signs. We arrived at a lovely little home with a beautiful garden with outdoor seating and a view of a lava flow that in the rain turned into a raging waterfall. It was too late for lunch, but the proprietors, Hans and Frankie, allowed us to come in from the rain and offered us coffee. We made arrangements to come back when they opened for dinner.

We returned to Horta.

The rain had cleared temporarily and although the walls were saturated, we decided to make a try at our painting. We were able to get the white base coat down.

When it came time to leave for our dinner reservations I was not feeling well. Scott and I decided to forgo dinner at the Restaurante Esconderija and just relax in Eric & Robyn’s hotel room.

That was a mistake, because the report from Robyn, Eric, & Kelly was that the meal was stupendous. Eric had lamb chops with little sage dumplings and Robyn had filet mignon with a mushroom sauce. Not sure what Kelly had, but they all came home satisfied.