Boas Festas! Happy Holidays! We are excited to experience our first ‘green’ Christmas here on Terceira. It’s been interesting to see how the Portuguese celebrate – the shopping mall was decorated quite festively (above and below) and the shops play the same Christmas music standards one would hear in the USA.

Scenic Drives Around the Island

One of the simple pleasures of life here on Terceira is just driving around and seeing the sights. From a random horse-drawn cart, to countless fields of grazing cows, to otherworldly scenes of volcanic hills (cinder cones) and Japanese cedar forests, there is never a dull moment . Returning home one particular afternoon we even drove through a rainbow! Look closely at the lower-right photo – on a clear day from the southeast coast one can see the island of São Jorge (and sometimes Mount Pico on the island of Pico behind it, towering above).

Hiking Above Quatro Ribeiras

Of course, we go hiking quite a bit, too. A few days ago we hiked up into the hills above our house and were treated to some beautiful views of the next village over (top left photo) as well as our village down below (lower left photo). Interestingly, we found and walked over the upper part of the stream that goes by our house (Ribeira Grande) which on this particular day was dry (lower right photo).

Millstone Deconstruction

Continuing with our project to deconstruct the millstone, we needed to cut the rusted steel rod that once turned the (now removed) upper millstone. We were not able to pull it out as it was affixed to some apparatus below the floor. After considerable effort and sparks, we succeeded in cutting through the nearly 2-inch thick rod and dropped the mechanism to the chamber below. It would seem that at some point water flowed under the mill room and turned a water wheel in this lower chamber. Free from the rusted rod, we applied a layer of cement to seal up the center hole. No more musty drafts nor bugs in the laundry room!

Yard Work

(Clockwise from upper-left:) We have continued with the garden terrace project – the new wall is coming along nicely and we are still working on moving and screening soil from behind the house. After much deliberation we decided to transplant the two banana trees growing near the BBQ to the back orchard with the other bananas – it already feels brighter and more open and will make a perfect location for some perennial herbs. Lastly, we have been treated to a bumper crop of oranges!