Day 2 (August 6, 2021): Hydrangeas!!!

Our flight over the Atlantic arrived 20 minutes early, just after 6:30 AM.  Other than 40 minutes of rough turbulence, it was an enjoyable journey.  We had plenty of time to transfer our bags in Terceira to our connecting flight to Horta and have a cappucino before taking a Canadian-made aircraft to Faial Island.  Terceira airport was busy with tourists from Portugal and the rest of Europe, and upon arrival in Horta just after 9AM, we found an airport, town and island alive with tourists, giving no sign of pandemic slowdown whatsoever.

The Azores government takes Covid testing seriously.  We had to complete in-depth documents online in advance of our trip, including our Covid PCR test results from Canada.  Within 45 minutes, we were through the line up to confirm these details and in our Pugeot rental car.  For the next couple of hours, we walked through Horta (Faial´s main town).  But the reality of having only gotten an hour of sleep on the plane began to take its toll.  By the time we checked into our room at 1PM, we could hardly keep our eyes open.  An early afternoon cat nap equipped us to set out around 3PM to start a drive around the entire island.  Faial is much bigger than we imagined, and it took us three hours to circumnavigate the island.

This island is incredibly lush, shaped by volcanoes, as recent as 1957, and marked by cows and other livestock, stunning fields divided by hedges, rugged cliffs and towering mountains, and by hydrangeas.  The hydrangea is the flower of the Azores, and nowhere is it as prolific as here in Faial.  Roadways are lined with wild hydrangeas, which are in their peak blooming season right now.  

Another early evening cat nap provided the strength to head out for a wonderful pizza dinner in a restaurant recommended by Tripadvisor.  The sights of this place have overwhelmed us today, so please excuse an extra large number of photos, compared to what we would normally post after a day of sightseeing.  We simply couldn´t choose!



The sunrise over the Atlantic Ocean this morning.


Yahoo!  We made it to the Azores!  Pam standing beside our ´Magical´Azores Airlines Airbus 321-NEO upon arrival in Terceira.

Something lost in the translation, maybe?  This is the name of the coffee shop in the Terceira Airport.

Anytime we board a Canadian-made DeHavailland Dash-8 on our world travels, we feel much pride.  SATA Acores Airlines uses the 80-seat Dash-8 to ply the routes among the nine islands.  Our flight from Terceira to Horta was filled.

The rugged coastline of Faial Island, upon approach to the airport there.



A statue of Dr. Manuel de Arriaga, the first President of the Portuguese Republic, stands in front of Hotel do Canal (where we are staying), on Horta´s waterfront.


Faial has some huge pines, such as this one, dwarfing the Church of our Lady of Angustias in Horta.


Blue hydrangeas figure prominently into the decoration of the Church of Our Lady of Angustias.
 

Porto Pim is a protected bay in Horta, where the town´s popular beach is located.  A wonderful sea wall made of lava bricks (everything here is made of lava!) provides a promenade along the bay.


The beach at Porto Pim.

The public entrance to the beach at Porto Pim.


Lava rock formations along the Porto Pim coastline.

Horta´s marina is one of the most visited in the world.  The stunning 2351m volcano of the neighbouring island of Pico provides a backdrop to the marina.  Horta´s marina was a key stop on Pan American Airlines´s famed Yankee Clipper service in the early days of aviation. 
 

Horta´s waterfront promenade is characterized by something the Azoreans - and Portuguese in general - do well: streets and walkways made of intricate and painstakingly laid stone designs.





A wonderful street in Horta´s old town.





Monte da Guia provides sweeping views of Horta´s port and Porto Pim.  The collapsed calderas of two volcanoes have left a prominent mark on the mountain.


The Chapel of Our Lady of Guia stands atop Monte de Guia.


The view of Porto Pim from Monte de Guia.


From Monte de Guia, we started a three-hour circumnavigation of the island.  We stopped to "baaa-chat" with a herd of freshly-shorn goats, who were super excited to baaa-chat back!


Looking over Horta is a prominent viewpoint and monument to Our Lady of Conceicao.

Horta from the monument to Our Lady of Conceicao.


The black sand beach at Almoxarife on Faial´s east coast.


And now, for some evidence of the blue hydrangeas that are in bloom EVERYWHERE now!







Every village has at least one public watering facility, likely dating back to the time when individual homes did not have a water supply.

At Ribeira das Cabras in the island´s northwest, one sees evidence of the latest volcanic impact on Faial.  The land near the sea shown above was created from a volcanic eruption in the 1600s.


Castelo Branco Hill is a prominent feature that marks the southwest point of Faial Island.


A natural pool among the lava rock at Castelo Branco on Faial´s south coast, adjacent to the airport runway.


Lava rock formations at Castelo Branco, adjacent to the airport.


An Azores Airlines jet took off as we were enjoying the rugged coastline at Castelo Branco.

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