Azores

 Friday, August 25, 2017

Our flight on Azores airlines also known as SATA was scheduled to leave at 2105 however it was delayed until 2300. We have a great dinner at the airport lounge and Sherri had salmon and Corey had a pizza. And then we took off and I sat in the seat  33G and Sherri sat in 33F.

The flight to Ponta Delgado was uneventful and we landed in brilliant sunshine around 830 in the morning.

All went well until we got to the Avis counter where we were delayed by about an hour while he agent tried to find some third-party a coupon online. If we didn't have Internet access it would've been awful. Sherri then got €500 out of an ATM which Corey Felt was too much money but she said she would squander it in Italy. She also got Corey coffee and a map.

We then took off driving the car to (now August 26) and we sort of went a indirect way.

We stopped into town however called Ribiero du Grande and had a lovely lunch in the town square and then walked around a little bit. We eventually made it to Furnas where we were staying at the Furnas Boutique Hotel. It is in the town of Furnas which is a small village surrounded high by the rim of a dormant volcano.

The town is lovely and is dotted by small bubbling mud pots and fumaroles as well, there is a lovely garden park called Parque Terre Nostra and we walked through another Parque das Murtas. We stopped for lunch in a little supermarket where the rolls were fresh and hot and we had cheese and sparkling water with the rolls.

Later we went back to the hotel and went into the hot thermal pools Also,  had a hot dry sauna or steam room, a Laconium room (whatever that is) and a cold pool outside.

After some much-needed rest since we were tired, we had dinner at 2015 downstairs. 
We chose to eat inside and have a lovely meal. First we went to a little lounge but it was a fake bar but I ended up having a Campari with soda and sherri had a local white wine which was lovely. We then retired to the more formal dining room where Corey had mackerel on a hot stone and fish stew and Sherri had a pizza with mackerel!

We went back up to her room which was 215 and we passed out. The maids re made the bed, after we messed it up earlier in the day!

Sunday August 27 2017

After a lovely buffet at the hotel (CB  muesli, sb eggs, muesli and cheese) we set out on our first hike. We decided upon a hike called Rota da Aqua to Janela do Inferno. We drove south, out of Furnas, towards Vila Franca do Campo, and then up towards Remedios.  We got into a bit of a dilemma as to where the trail was, although the trailhead was well marked with cars and a picnic area. After a false start up one road, we turned and headed down a gravel road toward Aqua do Pau, then veered off onto a dirt farm road, buttressed on two sides by steep walls of gorgeous hydrangea. It was heavenly, as we ascended to an Alluvial dense forest amid green volcanic hills, cows with real cowbells, and the endless sea in the southern distance.  It was magical. 

E path soon opened into a pasture and actually had to traverse a few hand dug tunnels, some over 100 m in length. iPhones came in handy. We crossed streams and hopped under and over old aqueducts which one conducted water to a nearby ancient alcohol distillery. We then made it to Janela do Inferno, a cave in one red rock wall with a waterfall gushing from the mouth.

A pleasant downhill return took about an hour.  All told a 6+ mile hike that took nearly 3 h.

We were tired and hungry and drove about 20 min to the southern seaside town of nearby Lagoa, and despite it being Sunday, we happened upon a fun restaurant on the ocean. On das do Mar.

We consumed a bottle of house white for 4 euros, and corey had the fried fish special and sherri had an amazing citrus tuna. The waitress was cute when I asked her what kind of fish was in the special and she said, "not the good fish."  We went for a stroll over volcanic rocks after lunch and observed locals at their swimming hole, an inviting plunge in a tidal pool.  The water was clear and gorgeous.

We retired back to Furnas, took advantage of the sauna, steam room, and hot and cold pools, napped, and had a late 2100 dinner!  Corey had e ceviche and braised octopus, cooked in the wood burning oven and sherri had the 3 cheese. Spinach pizza and lemon pie?  We each had a local wine, sherri the red, and corey the white.  A great day slept like the dead.

Monday.  August 28, 2017
  We slept in! Made breakfast by 930 and given the scattered showers, was a little hesitant to do a hike, deemed it a car day, and set off for the local tea factory. Apparently, Azores is the only place outside of Asia that produces tea, at least in Europe.  We found Gorreana and took the self guided tour of the working factory. It was crude, and very labor intensive.  The place was crowded with tourists, definately smelled of tea, and we tasted both the Pekoe and Broken leaf? Nice. We then went to Ponto do Formosa, had incredible sea views, chatted with two old guys from CanadaandCT, who were from here long ago, and had a splendid time. The. Working fishing village was amazingly colorful, with brightly painted sea lockers down by the harbor.  We became hungry, and managed to find a great cafe in Nearby Ribiera do Grande, where we went on Saturday. We had some drafts and superb asandwiches, then Sherri, with her sweet too.h calling , went back to Jardim Snack Bar, on the square, for a chocolate Napoleon and corey had killer espresso.

We then went up the volcanic caldera towards Lago do Fugo, but stopped at the hot baths for a dip in the hot the waterfall and communal hot tub, it was very nice, quite beautiful and we just beat the crowd.

Back in the car for a thrilling climb up into the clouds, the volcanic rim of Caldera Velha , to amazing views of Lago do Fugo. An equally thrilling descent back to the southern side of the island, and back to Furnas. A nap, swim, late dinner (corey had the Mackeral pizza !)
Bedtime.  Exhausted.