Ilhas de Bruma

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Following my first week traveling around Portugal, I visited for the first time one of the Azores Islands. I never really thought I would actually visit the Azores because I never heard much about them, but you never know!

First thing I've got to say is that the landscape in the Azores is just breathtaking.
I booked a week at the Azorean island of Sao Miguel. It is actually the most populated island of the Azorean archipielago. The capital is Ponta Delgada, and the island has a long shape.
Second thing I've got to say about the Azores is that their pinneaples are f****** delicious. As a pineapple fan, those are the most delicious pineapples that I have ever tried. Not even the Okinawan pineapples compare to that, trust me. So if you ever go to the Azores don't forget to ask for azorean ananases (and beware that they don't give you abacachi instead = normal pinneaple). Azorean ananas are small sized and are grown in a very specific way.

The island of Sao Miguel has two main spots that need to be visited. The first one is Sete Cidades, two volcano crater lakes that are probably the most famous poscard of the Azores. The second one is Furnas, which is famous for its hotsprings.
Actually the whole island is a furnace so you even have hotsprings in the coast, literally inside the ocean.

The Azores have just something that can ruin your stay: weather. There is an azorean saying: a day can have the 4 seasons of the year. It can be sunny in one part of the island and rainy in another part. And of course, there is the fog. That is why they are called Ilhas de Bruma (Foggy islands).

But all this rain has a positive side. The island was covered by nature. Green everywhere. Palm trees, Hortensia, grass (and so many cows)... They have a very peculiar climate "oceanic + subtropical" that gives mixed landscapes, so you never know if you are in Asturias (Europe) or Costa Rica (S. America), and this is really cool.

I will be back one day to visit Flores and Terceira island, and probably to try and spot some whales during their stay at the Azores (it is a whalewatching paradise).

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Comments

[Ake Och Emma]

I love volcanoes
I am sure I'd love the Azores because I love volcanoes. The only part of Portugal we have visited is Madeira. We spent a week there many years ago and liked it. Madeira is a splendid place for hiking if that is something you enjoy doing. /Ake