Flores Cats

Flores, along with Corvo are the western-most islands in the Azores. Flores looks like a fairyland come real, with paths through forests and thick lush vegetation in every direction! 

One thing that has stood out to us are the amount of “feral” cats on the island. I say “feral” because these cats love to be pet by humans, just that they don’t really belong to anyone. Everyone seems to give them food and allows them to lounge around on their porches, even sleeping on the couches in the houses!  

These cats are practically “town kitties” where they belong to no one but are everyone’s pet cat. 

I was surprised to see such wonderful bird life on the island, with the high presence of outdoor cats! Cats are one of the most effective hunters on Earth, and they will often kill just for fun. This can decimate fragile bird populations that migrate to these remote islands to reproduce, as the cats can wreak havoc on the nesting birds and flightless chicks. 

But, it turns out that these cats are very lazy, and seldom bother anything. 

This cat was perched ontop of the rock, watching something scurrying around in the grasses beneath it. I thought we were going to watch an expert hunter in action, but instead we observed a lazy cat that was merely observing a little critter scamper. The cat watched for a while, and when he finally “pounced” he missed and went to a house porch instead. 

These kitties love to be pet more than they love to kill, and love to be fed more than they want to hunt. When you visit the Azores, be sure to say hello to the local kitties! 

Organic Free Range Grass Fed Beef

This seems to be the holy grail of beef in the United States, the “closest to natural” that current marketing teams can come up with labeling a cut of meat. The ironic thing is, this is how all the beef in the Azores is. 

The cows wonder along through different fields, on the sides of cliffs and mountains, and down by the oceans edge. They eat the grass that grows and look out at the ocean, thinking the typical thoughts of a cow.

The cows are not given hormones to grow faster or produce more, and they are not given medications to keep illness away (because they are not cramped in filthy environments). These cows simply roam around and live as a cow would. Eating when they are hungry, and walking along the road with the rest of their herd. 

The end result is milk that tastes a bit like grass, and beef that is a bit tough, but with a very rich and delicious flavor. These are the truest of “happy cows” living as they like, outside with all the space to roam. They are kept in small fields that seldom have gates on them, which is why you will often see the cows in the middle of the roadways. The cows don’t really seem to wonder off, as they stay together as a herd, and move as a group. The farmer is usually keeping an eye out for where the cows are off to, and if they get away from him, someone in the small town will surely be able to point him in the right direction.  

Next time you see Organic Free Range Grass Fed Beef marked up a rediculously amount, ask yourself why is this so expensive when all they need to do is let the cows be cows? 

Terceira

The third island from Portugal, and such named “Third” in Portuguese is gorgeous! One of the splendors is to look out over the “Five Peaks” of ancient volcanoes as well as the giant valley created by lava flows long since past.  

The island has almost entirely been converted into farm plots which form a grid structure on the surface of this land. Unlike in most countries, where farm land is flat and any hills are demolished or terraced, the Azorians seem to just build over the land as it is before them. 

It almost looks like a representation of spacetime and the effect mass has on it. But instead of massive objects stretching the fabric down, here the stretch is up! Hills are simply part of the landscape and the side of a mountain is just as fine a surface for pasture as the flat portions in the valley. 

The view from this lookout is breathtaking! You stand high up on an old volcano, looking down at the remnants of the other volcanoes responsible for forming this land eons ago, and yet it is all stretched out before you, within view but out of grasp.

Azores Treasure Box

At first, I thought it was something done only on Terceira, Azores, Portugal; and then I saw it again when we went to Flores, Azores, Portugal. 

When the bill comes for your dinner, it’s not in a folded black binder with a credit card holder. No, it comes in a nifty box!

Inside the box is the bill, and when you pay, you simply place your cash in the box. Your change will be brought back to you in the box. 

The style of box changes with each restaurant, but the concept remains and we find it to be very cute! 

The Power of Mother’s

Mother’s Metal Polish, that is! 

Our Diesel Heater has had a rough time lately. The metal had become discolored from the high heat of the flame, but then the Atlantic Crossing brought many boarding waves over the deck, and the small leak around the chimney/deck fitting let in saltwater. Lots and lots of saltwater, which led to the gradual degradation of the stovepipe.

Some elbow grease with a wire brush managed to take all the rust off the stovepipe, and then some vigorous rubbing with Mother’s Metal Polish brought the shine right back to the pipe.

Mother’s can be found on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2DSWqE7 

When you use Mother’s the paste will go on with a pale creamy color, then it will turn black as the surface of the metal is smoothed. After a while, the remaining darkened residue can be removed with a clean rag to reveal the amazing shine of the metal that once was hiding beneath the corrosion.