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in azores in portugal traveling

hiking calheta do nesquim

we’ve taken the boat to pico, where we’ll be staying for some time, half-working and half-exploring the island. the small town we’re staying at is called calheta do nesquim (after a dog named nesquim, who is said to have saved some shipwrecked people, many years ago). right by our house, there’s a circular trail (PR11PIC) that goes around the town and up to the whale watching hut, so of course we had to give it a go!

halfway through the hike, we found a friendly dog that decided to follow us around for a few kms… and then eventually got more interested in a local mechanic and left.


i love these rural paths, bordered with black stones and covered in moss. tiny volcanic stones crunching underneath our boots, the ominous sky, the cows munching on grass with a sea view. now and then, the sun shines through the clouds and the whole island looks green green green, as if we were on drugs or watching color for the first time.

i don’t know what it is about the azores… we come, and i always feel silly that we haven’t come sooner.

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in azores

green patterns

our hiking boots are still wet and the weather isn’t helping them dry… so today we put on our other shoes and went for a stroll on the local botanical gardens here in horta, which were amazing! there are so many species of plants that are endemic to the azores, but they’re threatened by other exotic or invasive species introduced over time. so a part of the job of the local scientific community is to study these native plants, collect their seeds and participate in projects that ensure they can thrive again, all the while educating people.

in contrast with the dry, muted landscapes of the south of portugal, the oceanic subtropical climate here makes everything radioactive green, and i find myself looking around in awe at how luscious this green is, especially in contrast with the volcanic soil. the leaves make pretty patterns too, and i couldn’t resist photographing them:

i wish i could bring these all home in my suitcase! :D

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in azores in portugal

hiking caldeira

azores priorities are always about 2 things for us: hiking, and volcanoes. so putting these two together to hike around the ridge of an old volcano’s crater seemed like the right thing to do on our first day in the island of faial. :) the weather here is always changing, so it’s no use wasting much time planning — we just went for it!

i love how these paths disappear into the fog, so different from the weather we get in the south of portugal! we didn’t get a good view of the whole crater, grabbing just glimpses of it here and there as the clouds shifted, but it was magical nonetheless. we ended the 8km circular trail soaked through and with our feet swimming in the boots, but really happy! :D

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just life weeknotes

weeknotes, 19/21

– the letter is off to the landlord, and so, unless something weird happens, i guess we’re buying a house! scary and exciting in equal measure.

– first covid nose + throat swab. unpleasant, but mercifully quick. two more to go in the next few weeks.

– stumbled on a pair of friendly egyptian goose, just going about their day at parque das nações! the thrill of spotting a new bird for the first time still hasn’t worn off.

– and we’re off to the azores! :)

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analogue wednesdays

analogue wednesday #262

twelve years ago, in a shaky beijing.