Saturday, August 11, 2018
The hustle through Pearson, and the poorly executed flight experience the night before made the sight of the Azores that much more welcome. Morning had come, and as we descended, we could see the island of Pico with its massive interior island. Passengers started smiling again – happy at the sight, and realizing the flight would be over soon.
We landed around 8.30 Azores time. Again, more bedlum – this time at the baggage pickup and coin-op carts. We eventually got our luggage and went out into the main concourse. Three of my dad’s nephews (my cousins) where there to greet us. Baggage was loaded into three vehicles. My brother’s family was wisked off to the town where we planned to stay (Sao Bras) while I, my dad, and mum with my cousin Norbert went back to the terminal – I wanted to visit the Vodafone kiosk to get a SIM card for my phone, and a SIM card for the MIFI device. There was a line up and wait – but the young lady behind the counter was very helpful to everyone and got people set up. Raquel got my phone registered on the network (20 Euros got you 5GB, 500 calling minutes, 100 international minutes, unlimited texting for 30 days). The MIFI device – unfortunately could not handle the PIN enabled SIM card (more on this later). Getting the phone going was good enough. With phone and data now active – it was back to the car and on the road to my cousin’s place.
The morning was warm and humid. My first impressions was that island looked a lot more modern than what I remembered. Paved roads – a highway even – was readily available with traffic circles acting as the off-ramps to the various town. The island readily presented itself as green, lush, with the ocean constantly present. Elements of the “old” Azores were certainly present – the basalt built walls, pastures, dairy cattle, weathered clay tiles on various old buildings. However – there was a “new” Azores – the highway, modern looking buildings, traffic, commercial advertising, newly built homes with clean lines, radio and cell towers where none were present, and people dressed no differently than in North America, right down to the various tatoos.
We got to Sao Bras in 20 minutes – much faster than what I first remembered. Sao Bras itself looked well kept, and a little brighter – with pastel coloured homes, cobblestone streets where once dirt had reigned, cars lining the street (an not a sign of a single horse for dairy collection). What took the places of the horses were Toyota pickup trucks with flatbeds, metal and wood frames, and stainless steel containers for milk collection. Even the dairy that collected the milk from local farmers had moved and was modernized.
We rumbled up the main North-South road (Rua D’Igreja) and reached Norbert’s place were it would be our home for three weeks. We unpacked our bags, and familiarized ourselves with our immediate surroundings. Norbert’s places was really nice – newly built with clean lines – but a traditional clay tile roof, extensive garden, function garage with secondary kitchen, washroom shower and sleeping quarters. Other members of our family started rolling in – two of my aunts, my uncle Jose, other cousins, and now their kids and families. My aunt Lucilia – now in her eighties had become hunched over, and took on the looks of my grandmother (her mother). After a flurry of hugs, kisses, greetings – some decades in the making – we had some time to ourselves. My dad, younger brother, headed outside and started talking a walk around – comparing notes and pointing out what changed.
We walked back to the house, and found the kitchen was set for lunch – for quite a few people! There was an assortment of things. Much of what was on the table was locally sourced. The meats were richer and more flavourful, the bread was fantastic, and the fish – amazing. Azorean food is peasant food – food of the farmer that worked the field – so it tended to be simple, flavourful, and heavy at times. After the airline food – it was a welcome change, and I had two helpings. With lunch done, the lack of sleep quickly caught up. I retired to my room, and caught a few hours sleep.
After a much needed rest, I sent a few messages back to friends back in Canada, letting them know we landed, quickly checked into the computers at work – all was well, and pulled out the adapter kits for myself, my dad, and brother to keep our electronics powered up through our stay.
Before long – a plan was hatched to make our first foray into the island. On of the island’s main attractions is the Furnas – a location known for its hot springs and lush surroundings. The second thing that the Furnas is known for (mainly by locals) is that it is also the place where one can purchase “bolo levedo” – basically an English muffin is larger, thicker, and fluffier. They are great for breakfast, and used many times to make sandwiches. The mandate went out by the family elders – we need these muffins for the next morning. So Norbert, my brother, sister-in-law, niece, and I scurried off to Furnas on a mission. It was dark when we arrived, but there was no mistaking that smell of sulphur lodged in my brain nearly 40 years ago. We fulfilled our muffin mission, and we took some time to walk around. The hot springs complex seemed larger than what I remembered, and I also had a swig of the highly mineralized water. Not as offensive as I remembered – but “unique” still. My niece grabbed some ice cream, I managed a latte (what is referred to as a galao) and we drove back to the house. One thing became clear – this new highway system that the island has – made travel A LOT easier.
It was a good ending to the first day on the island. I retired to my room at a decent time, and I was able to fall asleep without much issue. Jet lag really didn’t factor in – and that was great – as there was a packed schedule. The heat of the day gave way to a breezy evenings, the ocean air was fresh, and blessed sleep was just around the corner.
