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Dez Vulcões

On our first full day on Faial Island, the Azores High put the ocean to sleep and woke up the earth. We hiked 22 kilometers, up, down, and around ten volcanoes, not because we planned to, but because the Caldeira crater romanced us into a lovesick trance.

We didn’t want the windswept affair to end, so we just kept going.

Descending from the crater we came upon a chirping cedar forest.  

In time, the birds gave way to the sound of our shoes squishing against a moss-covered aqueduct.  

The naked trees stood haphazard and hushed.

But the cows were loud, mooing cows!  Grazing, in rustling grassy fields.

Up into the wind, down into the buzzing flowers, we hiked.

Up and over the ninth peak, all we could hear was our own breath. Panting.  

Down the steps, I heard numbers.  My own voice, counting out loud, to divert my attention from my burning thighs and help me focus.

The tenth, and newest volcano, Volcan Capelhinos, is ash.  Silent, lifeless ash.

Comments (7)

  1. That cow looks like the standard Vermont bovine. Do they have Ben & Jerry’s there? The volcanos looks very exotic. I love the posts & pictures. Keep on posting.

    1. hahaha! The cows look so happy, but they do serve a lot of beef. We prefer to stick to the cheese! I can’t lie, Ben and Jerry’s is still better than the ice-cream here.

  2. I never knew that the Azores were volcanic. All I saw were some pics of towns in some travel brochure. The scenery is awesome and glad you go to stretch out your legs after being on Gerty for so long.

  3. I never knew that the Azores were so volcanic. I only saw some buildings in a town that were on some travel site. I’m glad you were able to stretch your legs on all those hikes. It must have felt good after being on Gerty during the long crossing.

  4. Wow. Cool 😎 beans. Beautiful scenery and your writing is so descriptive. It felt like I was with you.

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