Colours of the Azores islands
A few days ago, I talked with a friend about the colours of the Azores islands. And why are they different colours, even though all islands should be referred to as green. Each of the Azores islands has one colour assigned to it. Terceira is purple, Santa Maria is yellow, Graciosa is white – and so on. Only São Miguel is called green. Where did the colours of the Azores islands come from? The colors of the islands in the Azores were given by the writer Raul Brandão in the book „As ilhas desconhecidas” („Unknown Islands”), who visited some of the islands and saw some from the ocean. They are based on the characteristics of each island. And although the vegetation is intensely green almost everywhere, other features of the islands were also taken into account. Santa Maria – the yellow island, the island of the sun Santa Maria is the oldest and warmest of the Azores islands. It is the closest to Africa and its climate is different from that of the other islands in the archipelago. It’s attributed its yellow colour mainly due to genista (bushes with intense yellow flowers) growing on the slopes of the island. An additional aspect is the vegetation that is dry in summer. Due to warmer air temperatures and less rainfall than on other islands, Santa Maria’s vegetation turns yellow in summer. The third aspect is the sun – there is a lot of it on Santa Maria! São Miguel – the green island São Miguel is the largest island in the archipelago. Its landscape consists of vast meadows and pastures, and dense forests full of Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica). Japanese cedar is a species brought to the Azores in the 19th century. It is a kind of a showcase of the Azores, but also displaces endemic vegetation. On São Miguel, Japanese cedar was planted mainly in river valleys and in less accessible areas. The green colour of the island is the colour of these trees and native species still present in some places, incl. Erica azorica (a plant from the heather family), laurel or holly. Terceira – the lilac island In my opinion, Terceira is rather green than lilac. Especially since Terceira has the largest area of native forest in the entire archipelago, it’s here that endemic plant species are studied. But Terceira was called the lilac island, so let me explain it. It’s not about purple hydrangeas, although they certainly complete the picture. They are spectacular wisterias that you can admire, among others in the city garden in Angra. The purple element, of which there is also a lot here, are the facades of buildings on the island. Graciosa – the white island Graciosa is the second smallest island in the archipelago. You can walk around it in one day. It has a lot of bright, whitish rocks – and that is what Graciosa owes its white colour to. These rocks are volcanic trachite, changed over many years of geological processes. These processes turn it into a whitish colour. São Jorge – the brown island São Jorge wears the colour brown because of the brown rocks falling into the ocean or into the famous fajãs. One of the brown areas is the rocks on Ponta dos Rosais – the first point you can see when you approach the island from the west. The arable lands are also brown. São Jorge is also a dragon island – but that’s another story. Pico – the gray island Pico is an island with Portugal’s highest mountain of the same name – Pico (2351 m above sea level). It emerges in its gray from the green vegetation of the island. Pico is also called the gray island because of the vast expanses of dried lava, stone walls surrounding the UNESCO-listed vineyards and the mysterious maroiços – stone pyramids. Faial – the blue island Faial is an island that has strong connections with the sea for centuries. It’s here, in Horta, that the famous seaport and the famous Peter Café Sport bar are located. Connection with the sea is not the only reason why the island is called blue. The second reason is lush blue-coloured hydrangeas. You can find them all around the Cabeço Gordo viewpoint, on the road leading to Caldeira in the center of the island and other roads on the island. There is plenty of blue on Faial. Flores – the pink island Even though Flores is considered to be the greenest island in the Azores, its colour is pink. This is because of the numerous azaleas and hydrangeas that are found on it. Winding among the intense green of vegetation and the blue of waterfalls and streams, they are a kind of showcase of the island. After all, „flores” means „flowers” in English. Corvo – the black island Corvo is a black island. And not because of the ravens („corvo” is „raven”). It is called a black island for two reasons. First, because of its size – when viewed from Flores, it resembles a black spot on the horizon. Second, because of the black soil and black volcanic rock it abounds in. Corvo is a black spot on the horizon, full of black rocks. Colourful Azores on a bracelet For me, as I mentioned, all the islands in the Azores should be described as green and blue. But other colours are also present, I admit. And you can even find them on… bracelets! Yes, yes, you read it right – on bracelets. One of the most interesting souvenirs that you can bring from the Azores is a bracelet. But not some ordinary bracelet. Basalt bracelet. With beads in the colours of the 9 Azores islands. I don’t have such a bracelet yet, but let’s agree on one thing – I don’t need one yet. But if I ever move out of here, I will definitely get one. May the colours of the Azores always be with me!
Five years ago
Five years ago I visited Terceira for the first time My friend took me straight from the airport to a trip around the island. Every 5 minutes I asked him to stop. I couldn’t stare. Everything amazed me. This was my first visit to the Azores I started exploring the islands of lost Atlantis from Terceira. I had learned about the island’s existence a few months earlier. And for a long time I wasn’t able to pronounce its name. When I came here, I thought I was crazy. I was flying to the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. To a small island. For 10 days. What will I do here for 10 days? Then it turned out that it was definitely not enough. On Terceira, for the first time in my life… Five years ago on Terceira I saw dolphins in their natural environment for the first time in my life. For the first time I ate octopus, snails, lapas (limpets) and cracas (barnacles). I was drinking vinho verde (green wine). I picked bananas in the backyard garden. I was riding a motorcycle. I watched bulls running on the streets. I was in the middle of a volcano. I visited lava tunnels. I took part in Sanjoaninas. I was drinking caipirinha. I washed ones again clothes that got wet while drying out. I was swimming in the ocean. I was walking along an empty riverbed. I drank wine in a local vineyard. Every day I asked what we would be doing the next day. And every day I heard it depends on the weather. I didn’t understand it. It seemed to me that you always had to have a plan. Today I know that it’s worth having a plan in the Azores, but later you need to adapt it to reality. Well… Not only in the Azores. Terceira was a discovery to me I saw a world different from the one I knew before. I saw that you can think differently. That you can smile at strangers. Enjoy what you have. Even if it’s not much. Even if I had never come back here – I would never forget this place anyway. The juicy colours of pristine nature would remain in me. The sound of the waves. Birds chirping. Human kindness. Ability to enjoy life. A visit to the Azores is an experience that leaves its permanent mark Of course, I urge you to see all the islands in the archipelago! But even if you visit only part of them, or maybe only one – you will come back home with a special mark in your heart. And I have a request for you – take care of this mark. Take care of beauty and goodness experienced in the Azores. Of respect for nature and for each other. Take care of it. Take a piece of the Azores with you to the world!
Azores – which island to go
One of the questions you ask me regularly is “Azores – which island to go?” I understand that each of us has limited time and possibilities, so we want to choose what’s the best for us. Let me guide you in this article „Azores – which island to go” through the Azorean islands so that you can check which destination is for you. Or – which destination is for you now. Later there may be others. You must have heard that each Azorean island is different. I won’t pretend that it’s not like that. Each island really is different. Each has its atmosphere, each has something specific to offer. What is common for them, are the Atlantic Ocean, greenery and volcanoes. And variable weather. You can experience 4 seasons in one day in the Azores, do you already know about it? You have to be prepared for everything. (On the day when I’m writing it, I hung a towel behind my house, for it to dry. The sun was shining and there was strong wind. At some point, I heard big noise. I went close to the window – it was raining. A 3-minute torrent. I guess my towel was safer in the bathroom.) There are 9 islands in the Azores. They are located about 1500 km from the Portuguese coast and scattered in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean in the distance of about 650 km. They are all seismically active and all extremely interesting. I know all of them and I can see well that the statement that each island is different is fully justified. So, should we make a small trip around each of the islands? Terceira – go inside the volcano and celebrate holidays that don’t exist in any other place in the world Of course, Terceira goes first. Why? Because I live here and I love this island. This is the first Azorean island I got to know and the first one I fell in love with. The ubiquitous greenery absolutely captivated me. And this peace, this warmth. And a huge dose of joy in the air. For me – the perfect combination. I’ve heard lately that somebody made a good publicity to Terceira, claiming that there’s nothing on it. Thanks to this, there are no random tourists here, only those who are really curious about the world. They arrive – and quickly begin to wonder why they arrived only for x days, not twice as much. So what is so unique in Terceira? There is the Algar do Carvão volcano, unique on a global scale. In this volcano, you can enter the volcanic chimney. There are only three such volcanoes in the world, of which only two are open to visitors. One of them is in Terceira. The Azores are volcanic islands, so there is no shortage of landscapes full of volcanic cones on Terceira. The island’s highest peak, Serra de Santa Bárbara (1021 m a.s.l.), from which most of the island can be seen, is an active volcano. You can also visit the lava tube Gruta do Natal, watch the fumaroles in Furnas do Enxofre, look at Terceira Rift, take a bath in natural rock pools, e.g. in Biscoitos. And after the bath, drink wine from the local vineyard. Terceira – these are happy cows living with ocean views, delicious cheese and trails full of endemic plants. (The university is full of researchers from around the world who are coming to Terceira to study plant species endemic for the Azores and for Terceira itself.) This is the island’s historic capital, Angra do Heroísmo, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It’s delicious Donas Amélias, local alcatra and freshly removed from the rocks lapas. Terceira is also a paradise for water sports enthusiasts – diving, snorkeling, sailing, SUP, kayaking, coasteering. Plus, watching whales and dolphins, and on land – canyoning and an rope park. You can lie down on a cliff and do nothing – or you can get really tired. Whatever you prefer. Terceira means holidays that are not celebrated anywhere else It is said that there are 8 islands and one entertainment park in the Azores. This entertainment park is Terceira. People here love to have fun. Maybe that’s why traditions that are nowhere else in the world have survived to this day. This is where you can take part in the Festas do Espírito Santo, i.e. the celebration of the Holy Spirit. This is where you can see people gathering for touradas à corda, often without even seeing the bull. They focus on the so-called „Quinto touro”, that is the „fifth bull” – the party. It is on Terceira that the largest concentration of amateur theaters in the world in Portuguese takes place, i.e. the bailinhos carnival performances (read more HERE and HERE) – the only such tradition in the whole world. After all, it’s on Terceira where you can take part in the largest profane festival in the Azores, Sanjoaninas. There are enough things to do, the calendar is bursting at the seams. But if you prefer peace and quiet, there will always be a place for you in the bosom of nature. In the middle of nowhere. With a view for the lush green volcanic hills, the calming checkerboard of fields and pastures, and the intensely blue ocean. Unmixed blessing. And for this I value Terceira. I know I wrote a lot about Terceira But this is a place I know very well and that’s why I know how much it offers. And no, I do not urge you to come here;) And I do not urge you to visit this island with me 😉 That’s why I’m moving on to other islands, which are also amazing! São Jorge – take a dip in the natural rock pool in a fajã and try the local cheese São Jorge is an island that pleases your eyes even before you land on it. It is said to be a lying dragon. And