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- pool-ladder
Pool Ladder - shore-walk
Shore Walk - the-beach
The Beach - whale-butchery
Whale Butchery They would drag whales up this ramp to butcher them. - whaling-museum
Whaling Museum A tourist in the obligatory pose with the harpooner. - Vineyard Windmill
Windmill In Vineyard Our first stop on the island was at a vineyard and this windmill was there. It was one of the few functional ones left on the island having been rebuilt in the early 2000s. Many of the other windmills have fallen into disrepair due to age and lack of maintenance. - 7-passenger-whaling-boat
7-Passenger Whaling Boat Whaling in the Azores was officially banned in the 1980s and the last kill was in 1987. Click Here to watch a 20 minute documentary on Pico whaling from 1969. Click Here to see a 1968 documentary narrated by Orson Welles. - a-little-ornate
A Little Ornate One might feel a little overwhelmed here. - alter
Alter - alter2
Alter Closer view of the alter. - basalt-bridge
Basalt Bridge I have read that the main difference between basalt and lava rock is that basalt is finer grained and less porous as a result of cooling quickly. - beef-and-pork
Beef and Pork I ate from this this platter. - Boat trip to pico
Boat Trip to Pico We took a ferry from Faial to Pico for a day trip. These outcroppings dotted the shoreline. - fat-rendering-fireplace
Fat Rendering Fireplace The fireplace was fitted with 2 pots for rendering the fat of sperm whales, the only whales they hunted. - fish-for-lunch
Fish For Lunch Being islanders, fish makes a large portion of their diet. However, I'm not an islander. - floral-arrangement (2)
Floral Arrangement These flowers are real. - floral-arrangement
Floral Arrangement These flowers are real. - Grape crop
Grape Crop The walls were dry constructed and the tallest would be about 5 feet. - Grape Plant Walls
Grape Plant Walls This vineyard was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2004. - local-swimming-pool
Local Swimming Pool This is a "beach" and swimming pool when the weather is warmer. - one-of-many-churches
One of Many Churches We stopped at the Bandeiras church in Madalena and the inside is quite spectacular. - One of many vineyards
One of Many Vineyards Pico's main industries over the years have been wine and whaling and now of course tourism. Because the island is essentially a pile of basalt (lava rock) growing anything was a real task. They used the basalt stones to create barriers to protect the growing plants from the wind as seen here and these walls go on for miles. Some of the walls are hundreds of years old. The plants are a low growing vine. Verdelho, one of three traditional plants grown there and the most famous was wiped out by powdery mildew around 1850. It was replaced with resistant hybrids from America but other plant diseases in the late 1800s nearly wiped out the industry. Today Pico makes some of the best Portuguese wine Verdelho is making a comeback. - street-sweeping-with-unique-broom
Street Sweeping With Unique Broom Living on an island necessitates the occasional creative solution. This one works. - taking-a-break
Taking a break We strolled about Angra and had a break at this fresh-air restaurant. - this-doesnt-look-good
This Doesn't Look Good Yeah, dropped some euros here! I knew it was a mistake to let her enter, but I didn't want to cause a scene. - visiting-with-vasco-da-gama
Visiting With Vasco da Gama Angra was presented with this statue of Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama in 2016. It was commissioned and gifted by Vitor Baptista, a Portuguese immigrant in Cambridge, Massachusetts, who was born in Terceira. - whale-boat-rudders
Whale Boat Rudders After harpooning a whale the line was run through a slot in the bow and then tied around that post on the stern. The rudders are in the boat transport position. - whale-boats
Whale Boats We visited a whaling museum and the whale boats were inside. - whaling-tools
Whaling Tools The inscription reads "There are three types of men: the living, the dead, and those who walk in the sea." The third tool down was used for butchering. - what-do-you-do-with-a-5-foot-candle
What Do You Do With A 5 Foot Candle - alcatra
Alcatra Very, very yummy. - algar-do-carvo
Algar do Carvão She made it to the the bottom and as you can see it looks exactly like I envisioned it. - algar-do-carvo-steps-300-ft-down
Algar do Carvão Steps to 300 Ft Down Debby decided to go down while I saw no need. - angra-beach
Angra Beach There weren't a lot of sunbathers on this day. - angra-do-herosmo
Angra do Heroísmo Settled in the 1400's, more than half of the island's population lives here. - basalt-playground
Basalt Playground Swimming areas are a premium on volcanic islands so they make do with what they have. This is an example. - blue-church-at-angra-do-heroismo
Blue church at Angra do Heroismo Igreja da Misericordia, which translates to church of mercy, is located near the marina in Angra. - boiled-dinner
Boiled Dinner I had tuna steak and the veggies from a New England boiled dinner. - bota-que-tem-vieira-restaurant
Bota Que Tem Vieira Restaurant Every place has at least one dish for which they are famous and Terceira's is Alcatra, a beef dish, usually a rump roast cooked with onions, bacon, butter, spices and wine. It is always cooked a long time, maybe 7-8 hours in a special unglazed pot that looks like an upside down lamp-shade which over time becomes seasoned (pot in front of us). The owner of this restaurant has one of the best alcatras that is very much in demand for local celebrations. But the restaurant, located in Posto Santo village, also has a great buffet with local foods as well as foods eaten in America. Should you go to Terceira, don't miss this restaurant. - bullfight-practice--ring
Bullfight Practice Ring - bull-ring
Bull Ring In the center is the newest bull ring. The bull statue in the rotary can be seen a little north west of the ring. - bulls-statue
Bulls Statue Not far from the local bull ring is a rotary with this statue in the middle. Bull fighting and running of the bulls are major activities on the island. CLICK HERE - to see a short video of a typical village street. - bull-stalls
Bull Stalls These are stalls connected to a practice ring. They are designed so they can move bulls around from above. This practice area belongs to the man who supplies most of the fighting bulls. - church-in-doze-ribeiras
Church In Doze Ribeiras - church-of-santssimo-salvador
Church of Santíssimo Salvador The construction of the Cathedral of Angra do Heroísmo began in 1568. The last of the exterior work was completed around 1618. - crater
Crater This is one of several volcanic craters on the island. If you look carefully, you will see Azorean soldiers at a rifle range on the left on the crater floor and as seen in the next photo. - debby-ate-squid
Debby Ate Squid Debby had baby squid which were served in a cream sauce. Both of our meals were very good. Those are potatoes and shrimp in the middle. - downtown
Downtown The overhead structures were erected for some celebration. - downtown-restaurant
Downtown Restaurant At lunch time we decided to eat locally and this was the restaurant we chose. They looked like they could use the business and we were hungry. - frescos-uncovered
Frescos Uncovered Why would someone cover such beauty?