Terceira Island is one of the central group of the Azorean Archipelago - the third to be discovered, as its name suggests - and the bay skirting it's capital city, Angra do Heroísmo, has had great historical importance as an early international trading post since the 1500's, due to its fortuitous position in the Atlantic Ocean.
We arrived early in the morning after a short flight from São Miguel, and followed the signs for the bus which, once out of the terminal, ceased to exist. There was, however, only one visible bus stop so we joined the queue alongside a dozen or so other people who looked equally bewildered. After a few moment, a bus appeared and after a short conversation with the driver, in pigeon portuguese, I gleaned that we needed to take this bus and change at Praia de Vitória before continuing to the capital, Angra do Heroísmo.
Despite the lack of information, or a common language, the plan was executed without a hitch, and an hour later we were deposited at the bus station in the capital.
Angra, as known by the locals , is a charming city, centred around it's port and marina. Jauntily decorated streets lined with balconied, colonial town houses extend uphill in colourful arrays, their beautiful architecture extending in a lacework of streets, alleys, churches, palaces, manor houses, monuments, squares and gardens, which have been preserved to this day.
The ground floors are mainly converted to shops, cafés and restaurants, whilst the upper floors give rise to shabby-chic central apartments.
We stayed at a hostel on one of the main streets, and as dusk fell, the constant buzz of tyres on the cobbles were replaced by a bustling throng of tourists enjoying the sultry, summer evening, and we were happy to sit at the balcony with a glass of wine and enjoy the ambiance.
The next morning was cloudy - a pattern is emerging - a good day to don our hiking shoes and explore Monte Brasil, the remnants of a volcano and lava peninsula connected to the south shore of the island and home to protected habitats both onland and beneath the surface of the ocean.
The circular route, starts at Relvão Park in front of the fortress of São João Baptista, built at the end of the 16th century.
It then passes the chapel of Santo António, and you can enjoy views over the south-eastern part of the island, the bay and the city of Angra do Heroísmo.
The trail then continues up, past a picnic area to a viewing point, before turning back on itself and taking you up to the old look-out point and navigation station.
Back down through compact woodland and heather, we were thrilled to see deer up close - not at all afraid of us - as well as many different birds, and hens with their chicks.
The trail then turned rocky with some tricky twists and turns, down into the 'bowl', before rising steeply again up the other side.
We enjoyed walking through heather and woodland, and there were many opportunities to enjoy the spectacular views over to São Jorge and Pico beyond.
After the final 'miradoura' we wound our way back down, past the fortress to Relvão Park and back down into town, with the sun beating down on us.
Hot and dusty after our walk, what could be better than an hour snorkelling, searching out the inhabitants of that underwater habitat we had read about - there was plenty to see!
The next day, we explored a little more of Angra do Heroísmo, walking it's narrow streets and paying a visit to the Cathedral...
...and the Igreja de Misericòrdia, a church with an unusual history, being attached to the first hospital in the city, and also being the only church in the city to survive an earthquake in 1980.
To this day, you cannot get married or baptised in this church, and its interior structures and decor are all designed to 'give hope' to its sick congregation - even though the hospital no longer exists; today, it's focus has shifted towards supporting the needy in its community.
The next couple of days were spent on the outskirts of the city; we rented a small cottage attached to a riding school, and enjoyed the company of a pack of friendly dogs, horses and a fallow deer, rescued from Monte Brasil.
A nice circular walk took us up to the Mirodoura das Veredas, enjoying far-reaching views over to the central islands of São Jorge and Pico Island, and closer to home, the patchwork fields down to Angra do Heroísmo and over to Monte Brasil and the Ilhâs das Cabras, two small uninhabited islands only accessible by boat.
The Azorian island of Terceira has a lot to offer, and we only experienced a fraction, but one of the best things about it is that it is largely undiscovered and has a quiet charm about it. You could argue that a few of its buildings are a little tired, and i'm sure that as the word gets out, and the number of visitors increase, it will be tidied up and prepared for purpose; but for me, its local cuisine, quirky opening times and lazy pace is what makes it special, and I kind of hope that the masses stay away.
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