São Miguel Island: 10 reasons to visit Ponta Delgada
Hello my dear friends, this is the last post from São Miguel. I would like to present ten reasons why it is worth coming to Ponta Delgada: To see its gorgeous architecture: 2. To see the ocean, maybe take a whale-watching boat tour: 3. To see these geometric street pavements: 4. …
São Miguel Island: Sant’Ana Presidential Palace in Ponta Delgada
Sant’Ana Palace is now the office of the President of the Autonomous Region of the Azores. It has one of the best maintained gardens in the Azores. And now, the nearest street with beautiful homes:
São Miguel Island: Mosteiros and Sete Cidades
We are now driving along the northern shore of the island, towards Mosteiros. Oh no! Not again! I love Mosteiros. It is a small, sleepy town with very kind people. It is always very useful to speak Portuguese. not everybody on this island speaks English. But they are very sweet. …
São Miguel Island: Romeiros – The Lenten Pilgrims
Today we met them in Ponta Delgada. They were praying and singing in the Mother Church of Saint Sebastian (Igreja de São Sebastião), located in the centre of the town, near the City Gate: The Pilgrims of São Miguel is a religious tradition that dates back to the 16th century. It …
São Miguel Island: Alda’s Ponta Delgada
Rain in Ponta Delgada!?!? This is how the day started. Fortunately, before noon all changed and we had sunshine for the rest of the day. I would like to invite you to visit the part of the city where my good friend Alda grew up. We begin with the monument …
São Miguel Island: Lagoa do Fogo and Ribeira Grande
Hello my friends, we are now in the central part of the island and this is one of its most scenic places: Lagoa do Fogo. It is a caldera with a lake at the bottom. The caldera walls are steep, but there is a path to the bottom. Here we …
São Miguel Island: Gorreana tea plantation
Let us begin with a very unusual traffic jam. If it wasn’t for local drivers we would had spent an hour driving behind the cows. There was maybe 200 of them walking on this road. They were not in a hurry. This is what I love about the Azores: tourists …
São Miguel Island: from Povoação to Nordeste
Hello my firends! I would like to invite you to visit the eastern part of the island. Sometimes you need lots of patience when you drive around the island. Today we start in Povoação and finish in Nordeste. Here is a picture of the map, showing Furnas, the lake Furnas, Vara …
São Miguel Island: the town of Furnas
Hello my dear blog readers. Thank you for checking this blog regularly and posting some comments. It makes me very happy and motivated to continue this everyday homework. One more post about Furnas and we will visit another part of the island. If you ever plan a trip to São Miguel, …
São Miguel Island: Parque Terra Nostra in Furnas
Located in the heart of Furnas, this park is one of the biggest tourist attraction in this part of the island. It was originally founded by Thomas Hickling, the American Vice-Consul to the Azores. In 1780 he built a simple summer house and had trees from his own country planted …