The Azores Continues

 Fleeing to Fumas

After the tourist crush of the tea plantation we needed a respite from the throngs.  Our next stop was the botanical garden adjacent to Lago da Fumas.  I always think flowers but here it’s trees.  Once again our quest was for a waterfall pictured as robust and idyllic only to find a meager trickle after an hour slog. It is ever thus.

This neo-gothic Chapel of Nossa Senhora das Vitórias was built for the wife of Jose do Canto for his wife Maria Guilhermina Taveira de Brum da Silveira, who was tragically, terminally ill.  The chapel was completed in 1882. The chapel is on the shore of Lagoa da Furnas.

Both Jose and Maria are buried in the chapel and no services are held there.

In addition to the hydrangeas, these yellow ginger lilies were growing all over the island.

In one of the botanical gardens created by Jose do Canto he planted this giant sequoia, which is now over 100 years old.

This was the waterfall we hiked a very long way to see. It was very disappointing, especially compared to another waterfall we came across later.

Just as in Mexico roosters and chickens roam free. We spotted this colorful rooster on our way out of the botanical garden.

Lagoa das Furnas, unlike the other lakes, was not a crater lake. Instead it was bordered by bubbling pits of sulfurous liquid reminiscent of Dante’s inferno.  We jinxed our way between fumaroles and observed many cooking chambers sunk in the earth around the pits. Each morning restaurants place the ingredients for Cozido in the chambers and —voila— by lunch the stew is ready.  We didn’t get to try it but it sounded good.

The steam was visibly rising from this fumarole.

One of the cooking chambers was buried here to slowly cook the food contents.

Another fumarole with the bubbles rising from the water.

You can see the water bubbling up from this fumarole.

 Other Stuff.

I’m usually pretty good at remembering what we did where but I admit defeat on this leg of the trip so I’ll just sketch it out and Michael can throw in photos.  We drove up to the Northeast point of Sao Miguel where we dined in a restaurant named amusingly “O America”.  I had grilled mussels in tomato sauce that will live in my memory for eternity.  The food in Portugal (read fish and pastries) is amazing. We will not go into exhaustive detail but trust us— you’d like it.

In our drive we came across this aqueduct overgrown with plants. It was very foggy when we arrived.

This photo will give you an idea of the size of the aqueduct, as well as the number of different plants growing on the aqueduct.

On our drive we came across this much more impressive waterfall...

with even more hydrangeas.

  

This church in Mosteiros showed that not all of the churches on Sao Miguel were exactly the same.

On the way we tried (and failed) to find The Ghost Hotel which someone had told us about. We have no photos but it’s a good story so here goes.  In the ‘80s, before any tourists had discovered the Azores some deep pocketed gents decided to build a world class, five star hotel at the highly peak on the island with views of the beautiful Sete Cidades, the Ocean and mountains. Fine.  On the very day it was voted the best, most luxurious hotel in Europe it filed for bankruptcy and closed forever. Why.  It rains 200 days per year and is foggy even more often. It was too remote. There was nothing  to do. so islanders made off with all the elegant furniture and fixtures and now fisherman’s shacks boast chandeliers and Louis XVI chests.  While searching for the hotel we backed into a pole which is a required component for any of our trips. We don’t even worry about it anymore. For our last hurrah we headed to the far Northwest of the island,  which is the wildest, least developed area.  Around every turn it seems they have miradors offering spectacular views of cliffs and sea. As we were cruising back towards our hotel I spotted steam rising from a river.  We pulled over and discovered a park with sulphuric springs and fumaroles vastly better than the tourist hyped ones we’d seen before. Another quick stop for favorite bar on Santa Barbara Beach (it is sorta California vibe) and we were wrapped for  Azores.

These series of photos will show the scenic coastline of Sao Miguel.

This fumarole was much more impressive than the one we paid to see. The water in Caldera Grande was so hot it was boiling.

The steam was what caught our eye as we were driving.

This shows the different colors from the mineral deposits in the water.

The water was even a different color, as can be seen in these two photos, depending on the minerals in the water.

Even the mud was really hot!

One Last thing.  It’s about the cows.  I have never seen so many dairy cows in my life-the black and white ones.  And they are visually stunning. They pose their buxom black and white bodies in contrast to the vibrant green grass and blue sea and it is cow magic.  OK. This is getting weird I’ll stop.  Maybe it’s the smoke.  We woke up this morning and wild fires were burning close to Aviero where we are staying. We tried to drive to a coastal town to the north but police turned us back. Now all the highways between here and Porto are closed. We need to be in Porto tomorrow so could be tricky.  Oh well….

 It was a dark and stormy night

To catch our flight to LA we had to leave the house at 3AM.  At 2 AM lightning severed our night, thunder roared, rain fell in torrents. Storms in Ajijic are epic. Our driver Chris failed to show at 3 am or at 3:15. Nor could he be reached.  We called Ricardo  who arrived 10 minutes later and  got us to the airport in one piece. A good guy. And thus another Searles journey began.

Lounging in LA

Just a few days to hang with our sons and tend to some business. Time for our sixth Covid shot. SIXTH! Will this never end? Apparently it has ended for most of the populace since we just waltzed in and got one. Not like the old days.  Plus, despite the fact that cases are soaring in California no one, and I mean no one, is wearing masks. Well some Japanese people, but they wear masks a lot.

We mostly just caught up on family stuff but one afternoon Alex took us to Mission San Fernando Rey, one of the later missions to be built and the largest we've seen. Bob Hope and his wife Dolores and various family members are buried there. So what was the link between Bob Hope and the mission. The only explanation provided was that Bob really liked the San Fernando Valley. 

Here are some photos:

The restoration of the mission and its furnishings was quite something.

The library was quite extensive.

This was the Bishop's room as shown in this and the subsequent photo.

This whole room was called the Virgin Mary room, with its multiple depictions in paintings and statues of the Virgin Mary.

The altar of the mission church was quite ornate.

This statue graced the entrance to the Bob Hope memorial garden.

The Azores

Our first stop overseas was Sao Miguel— the largest island in the Azores.  Anywhere we go we hear the same old refrain “if you don't like the weather just wait 5 minutes.”  Generally untrue, but VERY true in the Azores  - sunny,  big black cloud, torrent, sun - all in five minutes.

A statue of Goncalo Velho Cabral, was the first Captain-major of the island of Santa Maria & Sao Miguel, 

is located at the Portas da Cidade (City Gates).

We stayed at The Barracuda Hotel right on the black sand beach. I questioned the marketing savvy of naming a beachside hotel after a highly aggressive fish but that’s just me.

We’d decided to take it easy and view the splendid vistas from miradors rather than trekking up and down the volcanic slopes of the isle.  So, typically we misjudged and took a little walk and 13, 000 plus steps up and occasionally down we arrived at Sete  Cidades.  The Azores are volcanic and filled with crater lakes.  At the apex of our hike we were treated to a view of two lakes and miles of mountains and valleys. One day veterans of Sao Miguel we didn’t realize how lucky we were. Given the volatile weather, the odds of a fog-less viewing were very slim.  One for our team.

The views from the top where we hiked were quite spectacular and made the hike worthwhile.

One common sight throughout the island were the dairy cows. There are more cows on Sao Miguel than there are people.

Next stop was two lakes—green and blue— separated by a causeway.  The differing colors are caused by different vegetation.  I don’t understand this since you can paddle under the causeway but that’s what they say.

The blue lake with the willow tree..

and the green lake with the ducks.

There are LOTS of churches in the Azores and at St. Nicolas church Michael snapped away.  But here’s the thing— all the churches there are almost identical, seen one you’ve seen them all. That’s OK with me since I’m pretty churched out these days.

The exterior of St. Nicolas church.

One of the many hydrangeas in full bloom we saw on the island.

There was a photo exhibit outside of the church and the top photo clearly shows the green and blue lakes.

Portugal is known for its ceramics so we wandered on to a very old ceramics factory where you could see all the processes needed to churn out a piece.  Their shop had a dizzying array of wares, which paralyzed my purchasing decision wiring so Michael led me gently to the car.

There were displays of the ceramics produced at the factory.

This shows the beginning of the process...

and this shows the end of the process.

This ceramic piece created at the factory is over 100 years old.

Damn it — Even here?

Our next foray started with an ancient convent by the sea and then a church A church that actually looked different!  Now for a word about hydrangeas.  First, I love them. Second, the island is crawling with them. Everywhere. Like hedges along the roads. Just take a look at the church photo. They were a bit “passed” but elsewhere on the island they were still in full bloom. Divine.

The exterior of the convent was covered in colorful tiles.

The stairway leading up to Our Lady of Peace Chapel looked quite daunting from the bottom.

At each level of stairs there were tiles depicting the various stages of the life of Jesus, culminating in the crucifixion. On the side of the chapel tiles depicted Jesus ascension into heaven, as well as the ascension of the Virgin Mary.

The view from the top showed that the climb up the stairs was worth the effort.

The exterior of the chapel...

and the interior.

Both sides of the stairway were covered with hydrangeas going all the way to the top of the hillside.

Less Divine.  The Tea Plantation.  We saw them at once. Tour buses. Many.  Where did they come from? Half the people we talked to didn’t even know where the Azores WERE. So, we think this the only place that grows tea in Europe— well sort of Europe. We tripped our way through the factory and obligatory gift shop and fled.

Bringing the picked tea leaves to the loft to dry.

After a period of drying the tea leaves are steamed...

then dried...

rolled...

and polished. The final step is separation to remove any stems.