Today was a travel day, from Furnas in the East to Varzea in the extreme West. We had grand plans of things we would do on the way, but Atlantic hurricane remnants caused high winds and rain most of the day. Still.. we always manage to enjoy ourselves!
We didn’t make it far before seeing signs for Miradouro Pico do Ferro, a viewpoint on our todo list. It rained on and off and there were three huge senior tourist buses so we ran for it and got a couple pictures before scurrying away. Still.. it’s an impressive view of Lagoa das Furnas from above!
We drove over and out of the mountains to the northern coast again, and Ashok called to wish me happy birthday. Video isn’t allowed over CarPlay (thankfully considering the cliffs we were driving along!) so I pulled into Miradouro de Santa Iria again. I was able to show Ashok the views of the northern shoreline by walking 20 ft in either direction, then the three of us sat and chatted for almost an hour in the crazy wind.
Savitri got me a fresh birthday pineapple smoothie with bonus pineapple for meat. I was STUFFED with pineapple!
We then drove way up into the central mountains and tried to hike from Miradouro da Lagoa do Fogo down to the surface of Lagoa do Fogo. It’s a short, steep hike but.. the clouds descended and unleashed rain and wind. I could barely see enough to drive the twisty roads and getting out of the car into the storm seemed beyond silly. We parked at the viewpoint watching clouds swirl around us then turned back to the northern coast for a leisurely drive. First new stop, a beloved Pingo Doce supermarket!!
We needed our bread sliced since our new place likely didn’t have a serrated knife (confirmed btw). This thing is one part genius and one part lethal robot death machine. We (Savitri of course, I umm.. had to video it) had to open it up and position the loaf in it, close it, and kick it off.
Next stop.. some random viewpoint Savitri found, Miradouro Covilha. Little did we know it plunged down from the main road to the top of a seaside cliff. Beautiful spot though!
As I’ve mentioned, stereograms of moving things causes them to shimmer. From this viewpoint all the vegetation was moving (so stabilize the overlay with the rocks!)
As we got back on the road this thing pulled in front of us. Unfortunately.. but thankfully.. we did not get a good shot at the front of it. Claas Jaguar 840 is the closest shot I could find. It looks like a far more maniacal killing machine!! It had what appeared to be a series of 1m circular blades on the front! Absolutely insane! I did have to pass it a little while later and yeah, I gunned it.
Ok peaceful cruising for a while and we go to to our new (and last 😳) stay for this trip, Villa Várzea. It’s newly built, modern-rustic hybrid on the edge of the very small village of Varzea. The same block has sidewalks and freshly harrowed fields.
They even left a little Happy Birthday welcome card & gift for me. Ok technically more for Savitri since it was champagne but it’s all in the intent!
Quick change then to the Sensi spa 10 minutes away spa for my birthday! Phones put away most of the time but I did run out for stuff twice and got these interesting shots. The spa itself has a small indoor heated pool, a steam room, a sauna, and a large outdoor infinity pool looking over the ocean. All of these were just right (we do quite a few spas and while complaining seems just stupid, most do have silly design flaws). The outdoor pool was my favorite. We almost didn’t even go in since it was cold and crazy windy out but.. “cold” on São Miguel and cold elsewhere in the world (like New England!) mean very different things. It was probably 69° F out and the pool was probably 75° F. There were a ton of leaves in the water but they were fresh and still falling due to the wind and a huge tree overhead. A guy was diligently skimming them all back at from one end.
We got 75 minute massages, which were exceptionally good. Again we’re talking first world problems/distinctions here but a highly trained masseuse with the strength and techniques to manipulate your body however she wants is something very special!
Then.. dinner at Mômô in the same facility. Amazing restaurant with fantastic service.
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