By Mick Le Moignan
Terceira Island, Azores
If the island of Terceira in the Azores swapped places with Guernsey, Jersey people would be popping over there all the time for weekends and holidays. And Guernsey would be 1,432 miles away from Jersey. Sorry, I don’t have a magic wand to make this happen: it’s a hypothesis.
Regular readers of this column may recall my affection for islands of all shapes and sizes, ranging from Janvrin’s Tomb in Portelet Bay to the continent of Australia. To live surrounded by sea is a consummation devoutly to be wished – and the nine islands of the Azores are surrounded by a colossal amount of sea, way out in the Atlantic Ocean.
I never expected to visit, but when my son-in-law was posted to the USAF base on Terceira, the second most populous island, it became home to my daughter, two-year-old grandson and a delightful one-year-old granddaughter I had yet to meet. So a trip to “the Hawaii of the Atlantic” suddenly became irresistible.
Terceira, literally the third island (counting from the east) is a little over three times as big as Jersey, with roughly half as many people (53,000). The extra space results in a relaxed lifestyle where there is always time for a friendly chat with a neighbour, even from one car to another, while holding up the traffic.
The islands owe their existence to being located at the junction of three tectonic plates, the North American, Eurasian and African Plates. About 350,000 years ago, they collided and the islands were formed by volcanic eruptions of lava which slowly cooled and weathered to form exceptionally fertile soil.
They were first settled in the 15th century. Much of the land was then covered by volcanic rocks, which the industrious islanders cleared and used to build walls to separate their holdings and act as terracing on the hillsides. The result is an attractive patchwork of green fields, neatly divided by a maze of dark brown walls.
The Azores are quite like Hawaii without the hype. The Azorean tourist industry is nothing like as busy as the Hawaiian one. Their current advertising slogan is ‘…And Breathe…’ – and the air is, indeed, remarkably pure and unpolluted. The islands are easy and inexpensive to reach via Portugal’s Azorean Airlines and Ryanair.
The climate ranges between Mediterranean and sub-tropical. At least one of the hotels in the capital, Angra do Heroismo, the Terceira Mar, is world-class, with large lawns and a swimming pool stretching down to the seafront.
Terceira’s main industry is dairy farming. At milking time, herds of black-and-white cows take precedence over cars, as tractors do, over tourists, but nobody minds waiting in such unspoilt surroundings. Given the ubiquitous cattle farms, I was surprised to find no fresh milk on sale. However, Terceira’s ‘long life’ milk seems happily free from the tainted taste of UHF milk elsewhere and I imagine they save a fortune on refrigeration. All the islands produce excellent cheeses and I was sorry not to sample them all in my three-week stay, despite a valiant attempt.
Terceira’s most spectacular tourist attraction is the Algar do Cervao, a vast natural cave through which visitors can enter the crater of a volcano and descend about 200 steps to a lake. Vaulted ceilings with stalactites, resembling abstract paintings, leave an unforgettable impression.
Nearby, the boardwalk around the still steaming, sulphurous Furnas do Enxofre acts as a reminder that the volcano is still active, just currently dormant with occasional rumbles – although the last eruption on land in the Azores was over 300 years ago.
Close to the centre of the Atlantic Ocean, whale and dolphin watching boat trips are offered, with guaranteed sightings. There are several safe marinas to accommodate visiting yachts.
Prices are generally modest, even at good restaurants, and acceptable wine costs as little as 3-4 euros a bottle. Portugal’s famous custard tarts are readily available and matched by a cinnamon-flavoured local delicacy, the Dona Amelia.
Fresh local fish is as good as you’d imagine and a local beef casserole, the Alcatra, is the most flavoursome variant I’ve tasted. The O Pescador restaurant in Terceira’s second town, Praia do Vitoria, deserves a special mention for this excellent dish.
One popular delicacy I was reluctant to try was limpets, which are prepared here in much the same way as snails. I learned on boyhood fishing trips in Jersey that even fish turn up their noses at limpets, and I followed suit, feeling slightly ashamed to be so unadventurous.
The very best entertainments on Terceira are all free. The island is criss-crossed with hiking trails designed to show locals and visitors all the local biodiversity, with several indigenous species of birds and plants singled out for special preservation programmes, often with UN or EU financial assistance. At regular intervals on the trails are well-maintained picnic spots with children’s playgrounds, free parking areas and barbecues and permanent tables and benches.
The beaches feature dark, volcanic sand, which is stickier than our variety, and there are numerous natural or slightly adapted safe rock swimming pools, all around the coast.
The locals retain their traditional affection for bull-fighting, not only in the bullring but out in the streets. Here, the bull’s horns are safely padded and 6-8 men hold on (more or less tightly) to a rope around its neck, but it’s still a formidable adversary. Young and not-so-young men tempt fate by arousing the bull’s interest and then try their best to get out of its way, not always successfully. This is one of those sports that is best watched on video, in case you find yourself an inadvertent participant.
Bull-running aside, a holiday in Terceira has much to recommend it, preferably before the global tourist industry discovers what a delightful island it is. It’s not quite as easy to reach as Guernsey, but well worth the extra effort and expense.
