After our April visit to Madeira, Ed and I traveled to two islands in the Azores – Terceira and San Miguel. Both of these Portuguese islands are luscious and green – definitely worthy of their nicknames “Islas Verdes.” The Azores benefit from both the rich landscape and the ever-present seascape.

Travels in Terceira

In Terceira, we were captivated by the green hills that were criss-crossed by grids of lava-stone walls.

Cows Abound!

Terciera has more “bovine” residents than human residents, and these cows enjoy the enclaves created by the walls. In addition to providing enclosures, these picturesque walls enable farmers to clear pastures for grazing, not dissimilar from the early New England settlers who built stone walls around their farmland. Often we were “up close and personal” with the cows, as they sometimes wandered along the small roads that traverse the island.

Cows are everywhere, and they produce an abundance of dairy products. We enjoyed cheese tasting at some local farms. Also, the beef was incredible. We dined at Restaurante da Associacao Agricola, operated by the beef ranchers association, where the steaks were terrific (and some of the largest we’d ever eaten).

Terceira’s lush landscapes and island setting inspire some unique Azorean cuisine. The Molha de Carne is a traditional beef stew of local ingredients served for two or more.

Freshest Fish Imaginable

At Taberna Roberto, a small family restaurant, we selected our fish from the “catch of the day” and enjoyed its excellent preparation. 

While Taberna Roberto is listed in Trip Advisor as the #1 restaurant in this area of the Azores, we were a bit surprised that it barely beat out Subway which is ranked #2. (!)

We based ourselves in Angra de Heroismo, a UNESCO World Heritage City, with many impressive buildings from the 1600s. These reflect Portugal’s prowess as a mighty sea trader. The ubiquitous Black and White mosaic pavement reminded us of Rio de Janeiro.

And, we relaxed in our cottage on the property of Vale dos Milhafres. Henry, our host, was especially gracious and helpful and pointed us to his favorite sites and restaurants. The sunsets were beautiful from our patio. 

Getting around this small island in our rental car was easy as the roads are quite well designed and maintained and there is little traffic. 

Savoring San Miguel

Continuing our journey of unique “eats” in the Azores, we headed to Furnas on San Miguel to try the “cozido das furnas”, a delicacy cooked in a bubbling pit in the ground heated by a volcano. Before lunch, we witnessed the chefs lifting the stew from the holes in the ground.

Then we joined a large crowd of families to try this delicacy at “Restaurante Tony’s.”

These volcanic pools reminded us of the bubbling pits around Yellowstone. 

Octopus Anyone?

Another interesting delicacy was “polvo guisado” (octopus in red wine) – only served in a small town of Mosteiros, on the northern tip of the island. This restaurant was a bit tricky to find, as Google Maps is not very accurate in this area. The restaurant appeared to be closed, but when we entered, a waiter popped up from behind the bar and was happy to serve us.

Hot Tub in the Atlantic

The proximity to the ocean not only offers incredible views and seafood, but offers a chance to dunk in a natural hot tub in a cove heated by a volcano.  We would recommend other travelers to try this at low tide (10 am in our case), as our visit at noon was a bit rough. We (and other intrepid tourists) hiked down to the cove and carefully lowered ourselves down a slippery, moss-ladened ladder to enter the hot water. The tide rushed in and out, causing a natural jacuzzi effect. Ropes connected to the rocks allowed for everyone to hang on, ensuring that no one was washed out to sea.  When we hoisted ourselves back up the ladder, we looked at each other with a grin that said, “Yea, we survived!  Next time it will be at low tide!  Later, we saw a photo of waves crashing over this cove at 5 pm.

Tea and Pineapple — Who Knew?

The landscape also allows growing of two more interesting crops – tea and pineapple. The Cha Gorreana plantation is the only place where tea is grown in Europe.  Dating from the 1880s, they still use some of the original equipment to sort and pack the tea. The fields reminded us of our visit to a tea plantation in Sri Lanka. (One difference is that the tea is picked by hand in Sri Lanka, while they use machines to pick the tea on San Miguel.)

Also, Paulo, our host in Ponta Delgada (the capital city on San Miguel) grows pineapple in hot houses on his property.  Paulo has been working with the plants in these hot houses since he was six years old , when he worked here with his father who was a paid-laborer working with the pineapples. When the property became available, Paulo purchased it and created two rental cottages on the property. He carries on the pineapple grower tradition with an abundant crop. The pineapples are delicious!

Beautiful Hiking Trails

The hiking around San Miguel island was superb.  Many trails criss-cross the mountains. We especially enjoyed the scenery at Sete Cidades, which boasts two connected lakes. On a clear day, one appears green and the other blue, due to the shadows from the surrounding cliffs. When we visited, the sky was cloudy and the color of the lakes looked similar, but they were still beautiful.

We assumed the “position” and another hiker snapped our picture in the middle of the blue lake.

The Azores – California Connection

Prior to our trip, we read The Tenth Island, a memoir written by Diana Marcum, an LA Times reporter who traveled between the Central Valley of California and Terceira. There is an intimate connection between these two locations, since many dairy farmers fled poverty in Terceira in the early part of the 20th Century and settled in Central Valley towns like Fresno, Lemore, Madera, and Modesto. In this memoir the author describes her year-long stay on Terceira and presents vignettes about her travel and connections around the island. Also, there is a strong connection between other islands of the Azores and New Bedford and Fall River, Massachusetts where Azoreans settled to earn money from their fishing skills. Paulo, our host in San Miguel frequently visits his relatives in New Bedford. In the small world category, this is one of the towns we will go through during our upcoming Massachusetts bike trip.  Stay tuned.

If You Go

We relied on the following travel guide, as we knew no one who had spent a week in the Azores:  Top 10 Azores.  And, definitely read The Tenth Island for local flavor.

In Terceira we highly recommend booking directly with Henry at Vale dos Milhafres. He was extremely helpful and accommodating. You can contact him on Facebook.

In San Miguel, we recommend Paulo’s place, The Pineapple Studio. It’s in a convenient location and Paulo will take great care of you!

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