After a full day at work and school and in Mac’s case a city swim team practice we catch a ride to the airport from our great friend Dan. We have purchased economy airfare that limits us to a single carry-on bag and we test the limits of the airline’s tolerance at the gate. After a few tense encounters with gate personnel we are through and board a plane to the Azores at 9:45pm.
The onboard flight crew on our SATA airlines airbus 310 are attentive and responsive to our needs during our 5.5 hour flight. We enjoyed a better than satisfactory dinner of chicken and rice. The dessert was a flavourful apple cheesecake…yummy. I could have had seconds. Many passengers who booked middle seats luck out and are allocated all four seats to themselves. They flip up the armrests and comfortably nap through at least 3 hours of the flight. We have opted for seats at the emergency exit and despite plenty of legroom we get limited sleep en route. Even the screening of “Burt Wunderstone” doesn’t bring the sandman for us.
On arrival in San Miguel at around 7am we debark the plane on the tarmac. Mac says this is a first for him. He is energized by being in the fresh air and he is astonished that the airport building is smaller than his school.
Our host Sergio Oliviera waits for us and displays a “MacLaren Stevenson” sign. We instantly spot him among the 20 or so onlookers. He is very friendly welcoming us and we are in settled into his minivan and on our way to our vacation rental within 5 minutes. Sergio owns a group of typical portuguese homes that he rents to visitors with a vehicle included. 585 Euros gave us 9 nights and days in a home high atop a hill with a view of neighbouring cows in a pasture and the Atlantic ocean, beds for 12, an above ground pool, private garden terrace, and a eight passenger van. Sergio is obviously proud of his property and attentively describes the workings of everything. He proves a fabulous host. Fresh bread and fruit are out on the dining table with a bottle of wine and the fridge is modestly pre-stocked with passion fruit juice, milk, butter, cheese and sliced ham. Sergio sits with Michelle and a map at the dining table and discusses possibilities for our itinerary. There is a lunch buffet at a local restaurant at noon and we decide to catch some Zs and start our activities with the lunch. All I can think about is sleep which we opt for a little after 9 am.
I awake first at about 1pm. It is gloriously sunny and I wake Mac and Michelle. We have missed the lunch but we now want to begin with an exploration of the local hot springs 5k from the house. After a quick lunch of ham and cheese sandwiches, MacLaren and I explore the property and take some photos. The neighbours dogs pay close attention to us and begin barking warnings as we approach their properties. When we retreat their barks become louder…they are small dogs and seem to be congratulating themselves on having successfully defended their territories. They cautiously follow us down the street, They have warned us to “Get Out!” Now they appeared intent on delivering the message to “Stay Out!” We turn the corner to our driveway and begin loading the vehicle for the day. A few minutes later I notice the dogs have wandered past our property. I call Mac to the road. We are between the three small dogs and their home. When they realize this they put their heads down and Mac crouches and calls them gently. Humbled they come to him and lick the back of his hand, relenting their brazen attitude of earlier, they allow him now to scratch behind their ears. The bread and butter deserve special mention for there freshness and flavour. We are delighted.
Following Sergio’s instruction we make our way to a breathtaking location that is home to a semi-dormant volcano. Vistas from the car have us frequently stopping along the way for photographs of the ocean and landscape. The last 1000 metres of road into the parking lot of the volcano spa switchback at heart stopping pitches and it is reminiscent of our descent of l'Alpe d’Huez. The small parking lot is only about 10 percent occupied with about 4 cars and 3 four wheelers parked there. A beautiful spa and outdoor pool mark the beginning of the trail to the hot springs. We pass a warning sign to stay alert for avalanches from the tower cliffs we have just descended in vehicle. We hike only a few hundred metres across and old lava field and find the described hot springs/swimming hole. Steam rises from cracks in the lava shelf and we quickly strip down to our swim suit to join a half dozen other bathers. We enter the pool via a stainless steel eight rung pool ladder anchored into the lava shelf. The water is warmest close to the rock which is radiating heat from the lava flowing deep within. A hot water spring from beneath the lava shelf releases into the small bay where waves from the Atlantic mixes the water to a wonderful 80 plus degrees fahrenheit. Glorious. I swim out about 30 metres to the mouth of the bay which is about a 6 metre gap where the waves are the most intense as they are forced through the opening. Here you can feel the intensity of the lava effect as the water from the Atlantic is just as you would expect for April. You wouldn’t survive in this water without a wetsuit if not for the hotsprings. We spend a few hours playing in the waters of the hot springs. We are instantly committed to a daily pilgrimage here during our stay. Mac finds a depression in the lava field that allows him just the privacy he needs to change out of his wet swimsuit but I still manage to snap a couple of photos of his bare moon on a moonlike landscape.
We climb back in the car with an enthusiasm un-musterable at home for a car trip. Our anticipation of what we might find around every next corner keeps our eyes fixed to the windows with cameras ready to draw. We opt for a country road to the next town. By country road I mean trail barely more groomed than a cattle path. The diesel van easily pulls us at low speed up and over hillsides and around traitorous bends with several 600 metre drops into the ocean coming within a few feet of our wheels. One travels at a considerably slower speed when navigating these unfamiliar routes but the diminished progress is not measured as the rapture of the view has all in vehicle mesmerized. Next we visit Mosteiros. Again the geography astounds. We spend only a half hour or so scouring the black volcanic sand beach there collecting more great photos.
We finished our day in the biggest city on the island, Ponta Delgado. We needed to go to the Parque Atlantico shopping centre in order to get a power converter to charge all our photo capturing devices and decided to grab a quick bite at their typical yet not so typical food court. Michelle had a portuguese roasted chicken dinner, I had a marinated steak and egg and Mac got a cheese burger and fries. Tomorrow night we plan a more sophisticated dinner but tonight’s hasn’t disappointed anyone and we have leftovers and Mac’s Chocolate mouse desert (included with his meal) to take home and enjoy with fresh locally grown miniature bananas. A sweet treat for our bed-lunch. Mac even found an English speaking television channel playing Lethal Weapon so we cosy up on the couch and watch. Before we head up to sleep we place our order for fresh bread on the paper slips that Sergio has provided. There are two types of rolls and if you tie the paper slip in a plastic bag on the garden fence the baker delivers the bread at 6am and you start your breakfast with fresh bread. Mac is enthralled with the concept and the placing of the order slip is an easily assigned chore.
