When my sister first floated the idea of doing a family trip over Thanksgiving, what had been to date a sacred day in our extended family, it was a bit unsettling. In the end, it was a great idea, one that could loop in my Mom's 60th birthday as well. In the end, it was also her who suggested us look at the Azores, the mysterious islands deep in the Atlantic Ocean, an overseas Portuguese province a few hours away from both Lisbon, and more conveniently, Boston.
The trip would be short, and probably less action packed than most of our family trips in our times traveling together, but the relaxed, beautiful setting of the island made that laid-back approach a lot more apt. The island itself is probably as good of a small island vacation as I could dream up. It had beaches and cliffs and beautiful ocean views, sure, but also had lakes in craters of volcanoes, incredible, lush, hilly greenery, tons of hiking, great food, and a really cool vibe. Yeah, I really liked the Azores - with the best part it being just four-to-five hours away from the East Coast.
What was interesting about the Azores was how green it was. There were parts that bordered on lush jungle - particularly the really nice botanical garden 'Parque Terra Nostra' - but others that were deep evergreen forest. And finally just an abundance of rolling green hills and farmland. It truly was a bounty of lush beauty. I had in mind a picture of a more dirt-grass, hillscape, but instead it was lush as could be.
Aside from this, the Azores is also a lot smaller than I expected, about three hours lengthwise and literally 20 minutes from North to South. There are various points on top of hills where you can see both Northern and Southern shorelines of Sao Miguel island (where their regional capital - Ponta Delgada - is and where we stayed during our trip). It was such a weird experience in that way. Inside that 80x10mile box was a wealth of food and tourism.
Like a lot of the places I travel to, the memories of the food will not escape me. The nice dinners we had were all so good and different, mostly around Ponta Delgada town. First was at Chandalier, a fancy sit-down type place with a great menu. My family and I split four of their five appetizers, and I got a main of beef cheek braised in red wine, which was excellent. Portuguese cuisine is noted for its seafood - which was abundant in the Azores - and pork, and I tested these two out time and time again.
The next night we had dinner at A Terra, which had a great preparation of Leitao - or suckling pig - with the skin perfectly crisp and softened by a nice sauce. It also had a great rump steak and rockfish cooked whole. The third dinner was the most homely, at the buzzing A Tasca, a place that peaks in crowd probably between 10-11pm. We arrived at 9pm, shared various sausages includ9ing a chorizo flambeed at the table, and then mixed mains of fish, pork cheeks again and limpets - little mussel-like things found often in that area. The final dinner was literally at a home, where we were given a carefully created, farm-to-table, five-course meal with each made with heart and love.
Our lunches were more ad-hoc but still great. Most of them consisted of eating sandwhiches made of sweet, sweet Portuguese Pao bread, with jam, cheese (made from the countless, truly countless, cows on the island) and chorizo. Those were excellent in their simplicity. Portugal is not always known as a food heaven, which is wrong, but I do think the Azores may be Portuguese food at its best.
The drink wasn't flowing as much as it does on my solo trips, but the little craft beer I had was excellent. Most of what I had (and what I ended up bringing back home) was bought in a cheese store near the Mercada Graca in the heart of Ponta Delgada. This cheese store (translated to 'King of Cheese') sold great cheese and honey, but also in their fridge in the back sold Korisca beer, with about six or seven different types - my favorite being the Passionfruit IPA.
The one bar we did go to during our time was named Ta Genta, a cocktail bar down a bright alley from A Tasca - a perfect people watching spot in the heart of Ponta Delgada, another place that was much more crowded when we left around 12:30 than it was when we arrived at 11:30.
The tourism for the Azores is quite good as well. Most of it is natural beauty - though there are a couple of nice churches and beaetuiful little lanes throughout. What is nice is each half of the island has their own stars - with the East having Lagoa Fogo (and Lagoa Furnas and its hot springs) and the West having Sete Cidades, an area with two large lakes. Most of these lakes are in volcanic craters.
There are countless hikes - the one we did was a two-hour out-and-back to Lagoa Fogo, which is visible from lookouts well above, but requires the hike to reac the lake level. It was stunning, with the calm, cool air making it easier than similar hikes I've done. The island's lakes are probably the most notable tourism feature, and they are all various forms of beautiful and stunning, both from the lookouts placed on teh sides of countless hairpin turns, or from ground level.
The coasts of the Azores feature beautiful cliffs with colorful rock layers, and volcanic-black sand below. The Westernmost point, fit with a hot spring, was truly stunning experience. I don't know if I can name a place that packs beaches, forests, mountains, and farmland as well in as little geographical space as the Azores.
When it came time to leave after four days, my Mom openly said this should be the first trip of many, and I believe her. It is so close, though a non-stop from New York or Newark would do wonders. It is so beautiful, so peaceful, so in-the-middle-of-nowhere - really just pull up Google maps and get surprised on how 'in-the-middle-of-the-Atlantic' the Azores are. We will be back, whether for the food, or hikes, or both.
What was interesting about the Azores was how green it was. There were parts that bordered on lush jungle - particularly the really nice botanical garden 'Parque Terra Nostra' - but others that were deep evergreen forest. And finally just an abundance of rolling green hills and farmland. It truly was a bounty of lush beauty. I had in mind a picture of a more dirt-grass, hillscape, but instead it was lush as could be.
Aside from this, the Azores is also a lot smaller than I expected, about three hours lengthwise and literally 20 minutes from North to South. There are various points on top of hills where you can see both Northern and Southern shorelines of Sao Miguel island (where their regional capital - Ponta Delgada - is and where we stayed during our trip). It was such a weird experience in that way. Inside that 80x10mile box was a wealth of food and tourism.
Like a lot of the places I travel to, the memories of the food will not escape me. The nice dinners we had were all so good and different, mostly around Ponta Delgada town. First was at Chandalier, a fancy sit-down type place with a great menu. My family and I split four of their five appetizers, and I got a main of beef cheek braised in red wine, which was excellent. Portuguese cuisine is noted for its seafood - which was abundant in the Azores - and pork, and I tested these two out time and time again.
The next night we had dinner at A Terra, which had a great preparation of Leitao - or suckling pig - with the skin perfectly crisp and softened by a nice sauce. It also had a great rump steak and rockfish cooked whole. The third dinner was the most homely, at the buzzing A Tasca, a place that peaks in crowd probably between 10-11pm. We arrived at 9pm, shared various sausages includ9ing a chorizo flambeed at the table, and then mixed mains of fish, pork cheeks again and limpets - little mussel-like things found often in that area. The final dinner was literally at a home, where we were given a carefully created, farm-to-table, five-course meal with each made with heart and love.
Our lunches were more ad-hoc but still great. Most of them consisted of eating sandwhiches made of sweet, sweet Portuguese Pao bread, with jam, cheese (made from the countless, truly countless, cows on the island) and chorizo. Those were excellent in their simplicity. Portugal is not always known as a food heaven, which is wrong, but I do think the Azores may be Portuguese food at its best.
The drink wasn't flowing as much as it does on my solo trips, but the little craft beer I had was excellent. Most of what I had (and what I ended up bringing back home) was bought in a cheese store near the Mercada Graca in the heart of Ponta Delgada. This cheese store (translated to 'King of Cheese') sold great cheese and honey, but also in their fridge in the back sold Korisca beer, with about six or seven different types - my favorite being the Passionfruit IPA.
The one bar we did go to during our time was named Ta Genta, a cocktail bar down a bright alley from A Tasca - a perfect people watching spot in the heart of Ponta Delgada, another place that was much more crowded when we left around 12:30 than it was when we arrived at 11:30.
The tourism for the Azores is quite good as well. Most of it is natural beauty - though there are a couple of nice churches and beaetuiful little lanes throughout. What is nice is each half of the island has their own stars - with the East having Lagoa Fogo (and Lagoa Furnas and its hot springs) and the West having Sete Cidades, an area with two large lakes. Most of these lakes are in volcanic craters.
There are countless hikes - the one we did was a two-hour out-and-back to Lagoa Fogo, which is visible from lookouts well above, but requires the hike to reac the lake level. It was stunning, with the calm, cool air making it easier than similar hikes I've done. The island's lakes are probably the most notable tourism feature, and they are all various forms of beautiful and stunning, both from the lookouts placed on teh sides of countless hairpin turns, or from ground level.
The coasts of the Azores feature beautiful cliffs with colorful rock layers, and volcanic-black sand below. The Westernmost point, fit with a hot spring, was truly stunning experience. I don't know if I can name a place that packs beaches, forests, mountains, and farmland as well in as little geographical space as the Azores.
When it came time to leave after four days, my Mom openly said this should be the first trip of many, and I believe her. It is so close, though a non-stop from New York or Newark would do wonders. It is so beautiful, so peaceful, so in-the-middle-of-nowhere - really just pull up Google maps and get surprised on how 'in-the-middle-of-the-Atlantic' the Azores are. We will be back, whether for the food, or hikes, or both.
