Boy, that was a lot! In the last 3 days I met more than 20 family members for the first time, and got to know Ilha Terceira in depth! It was time to relax...
... so we did what we do best, and what is most relaxing to us and got on an airplane.
This time we flew to another island in the Azores - São Miguel. You see, all islands have something unique, but my dad said that despite Terceira being his favorite, that we had to come to São Miguel. In Terceira we went inside a volcano... but in São Miguel we were going to swim in one, and even eat food that was cooked by an active volcano! So, we got on a last minute flight and added another stop to the Big Trip.
The flight was pretty fast - 45m. Well, it was going to be... there was a last minute change and we had to go pick up some passengers on yet another island, but this kind of thing happens here all the time. Airplanes in the Azores are kind of like buses back home. Still, in no time we were in São Miguel and what a better way to start our day by soaking in a hot spring?!
"It's so hot!"
The water temperature was 102°F which felt really good, but it also built up an appetite! My dad showed us a place in the sulfur springs where the ground gets so hot due to volcanic activity that people dig holes, bury a pot with several meats, legumes and vegetables inside and it cooks in the volcanic steam for 6 to 8 hours.
It's called Cozido das Furnas (Furnas stew) and it is an earthy local dish! My favorite part was the cow tongue, I loved the cow tongue - it was very tender and delicious!
From there we drove to the 'Lagoa das Sete Cidades'. It was a bit cloudy but we still got to see it.
In the Azores you get the 4 seasons on the same day, every day. My dad says had we waited another 20m or 30m we'd have seen it more clearly but I still liked it a lot!
It was absolutely worth the trip. Before returning to Terceira, we still stopped by a pineapple farm where I ate the sweetest pineapples ever! We needed energy for our next quest - on the way to the airport we stopped by 'Ponta Delgada' to find cheese and local pastries to bring back to our family to thank them for the hospitality!
And we found them!
It was almost time to go back to the United States...
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