Portugal and the Azores Islands

Lisbon is the capital of Portugal. From this port Portuguese mariners set out to explore the unknown worlds. There are castles dating from the fifteenth Century. MOney from the spices and trade made Portugal rich for centuries. Lisbon is a city of seven hills, they have a tram system so you do not have to walk up the hills. There are plenty of cheap places to stay in LIsbon from around thirty dollars per night. The pastry is top notch and they keep the secret of the recipes to themselves.

On St Anthony's Day lots of marriages happen on Portugal national television. The government pay for all the expenses. In the bars you can hear the folk music such as fado. It is sort of like the portuguese blues music. It is a music to express your feelings. Many festivals are held throughout the year in Portugal. St Anthony's Day has a big festival and the people celebrate with street parties. The Portuguese sing and dance till daybreak.

The chapel of evora that has bones and skulls stacked on top of each other. The whole chapel is full of human bones. It is a bit creepy and spooky. The famous beaches of the Algarve in the South of Portugal are a place that everyone wants to go to. People have been fishing here for centuries. It is Portugal's most popular tourist destination. It is the tourist mecca of Portugal. But if you avoid the tourist traps you can find some sweet villages that are not polluted by tourists. The white architecture came from the Moors. Families will rent out a room for you in the small beachside villages of the Algarve. The beach will be in walking distance of course. All along the Algarve they will be filled up with people. You can swim and sunbathe.

The Azore Islands are in the Atlantic and belong to Portugal. They consist of nine islands. You will probably have to fly in. In 1967 the volcano erupted and lasted for thirteen months and a brand new mountain had been formed at the end of the island. Lots of yachts visit Horta every year. The yachties stop at horta and paint a picture of their boat on the harbour wall. The cafe sport is famous for sailors all over the world and the sailors collect their mail there. Everyone who makes the transatlantic ocean crossing by yacht will call into the cafe sport.

There are ferries to take you around the azores islands. You can go whale watching but the weather is unpredictable. Faial and Pico are close together. The islanders hunted for whales using only small boats. It is now known as a mecca for whale watching. There is a whale hunting museum on Pico island. You go up to a hill and look for the whales through binoculars. Come during may to october for the annual whale migration. If you do not see whales you will be accompanied by hordes of dolphins all the time. The whales can dive down for about forty five minutes and they come up and blow water out of their spouts. If you are lucky you may see them breaching. If you are lucky the whales can come up relatively close to the boat.

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