Horta, Azores, Portugual

Azores, Faial

We arrived at Horta, the largest city on the island of Faial, in the early afternoon on April 28.  We had traveled four days from Bermuda to reach this tiny island in the Atlantic.   The crossing weather was relatively calm, if a bit rainy.  I read two books and attended a number of cooking demonstrations.  On cruises with many sea days, there are enrichment lectures on several topics.  I found the cooking demos by SilverSea’s teaching chef, David Bilsland, to be most interesting.  I even learned a few things.

 

Pico - The Volcano Summit in the Clouds

Hillside with Monument, Hedgerows and Cows

Silver Spirit docked at a pier so new that it does not even appear on the Google Earth photos of Horta.  The weather in the Azores tends to be cloudy with frequent periods of rain.  This was, apparently, a typical day. The temperature was in the low 60’s Fahrenheit; not unpleasant but sweater weather. We weren’t actually rained on but the fog was dense from time to time.

Portuguese and Flemish adventurers settled Faial late in the 15^th century.  A whaling industry developed in the 18^th century.  Later, Horta became a convenient way stop for yachts on voyages between Europe and the Americas.  Today there is a busy yacht basin. A few cruise ships visit in spring and fall, repositioning from winter cruising in the Caribbean to summer trips around the Mediterranean and back.  Horta is a small city with many picturesque old style buildings. The surrounding countryside produces cheese as the main export.  Neighboring Pico Island, an imposing volcanic cone visible from Horta’s harbor, produces a locally famous wine.  There used to be a thriving orange export industry but a disease wiped out the orange trees about a decade ago.

Yacht Marina - Many of these are Enroute from South America to the Mediterranean

Walking From the Marina to the West Beach

Relic of a Fortification at the West Beach

Good Opportunity to Sell Paint

Michael and I were on the first shuttle bus to the downtown marina area.  We managed a two to three hour walk that took in the major sights in the small city.  The hike steeply uphill to a large, unused church and the cemetery above it gave us great views of the city and its surroundings.  We discovered Horta’s weather observatory dating from 1915 was dedicated to Prince Albert of Monaco, a noted amateur oceanographer of that era. We also found an unusual park with stone lined ponds where we saw many strange birds, even several pair of black swans.  I took a lot of atmospheric pictures of buildings.  The atmosphere seemed very hard on paint and stucco.  Michel remarked that someone could open a paint store here and make a fortune.

Distinctive Azores Style - Black Volcanic Rock and White Stucco

We Were Told that the White Stones for the Mosaics were Imported from Portugal, The Black Stones are Local Volcanic Rock

Prince Albert Weather Observatory

Beautiful Old Building a Favorite Photo Op for Tourists

Silver Spirit from the Old Church Above Town

Cemetery Above the Old Church

Black Swan in the Park

 There was good free Wi-Fi at several locations downtown and at the new cruse and ferry terminal.  Silver Spirit passengers and crew members gathered in knots updating their phones and tablets and calling home.  In any port, one can always find the free Wi-Fi by looking for groups of crew busily using their phones, tablets and laptops.  

After four days at sea, the five-hour stopover at Horta seemed very short.  We got a glimpse of a rural Portuguese territory and found that while we could puzzle out many of the signs, spoken Portuguese is a total mystery. It is certainly not pronounced as it is written