Discovering Azores Day 2: Around Peixe Do Rabo
Visit Downtown!
Morning came quickly for me as I was up around 5 AM and began my work on the last blog. Around 8:30 I went for the typical cheese, jam and fruit breakfast at Minuvida followed by heaping amounts of coffee.
Shortly after breakfast a walk was in order and off it was to the downtown area of Peixe Do Rabo which was a half mile or so down the steep hill from Minuvida.
Peixe Do Rabo
The name literally means "tail of the fish" and according to sources it was so named for either the shape of the land mass which seems to be the tail of a fish or because a tail of an unknown species of fish was discovered in the area. I would opt for the former explanation.
The town is well known as a fishing village and the market is a very busy place when open. Grocery stores carry a wide variety of goods as does the local pharmacy. The town is small but has much to offer.
One thing that never escapes me is the hospitality the local citizens show those who are visiting. The other thing that always confounds me is the preoccupation that Europeans etc. have with Espresso coffee. I stopped in a snack bar to have a coffee. The counter person gave me an Espresso in a cup that looked like a thimble. One shot and it was gone. I have been told to explicitly state Cafe Americano if I wanted a regular coffee. Good to know! You would think that with all my travels I would now be privy to that but one does forget!
One point of interest in town was the local church "Senhor Bom Jesus" which was started in the mid 17th Century and finished some one hundred years later in the late 18th Century. The fish market with myriads of fish brought in by the local fishermen is also a place to visit.
Dinner With An Amazing Group
The day was basically a lazy do nothing day unless you would call the walk back UP the hill lazy! One thing that are not available on the city streets is sidewalks of any sort. One has to be aware while walking up the narrow wall lined streets of any European nature and this town was no different. Cars zip around at quick pace speeds and walking up a steep hill while trying to watch out for wayward vehicles can be unnerving. Survival was successful however.
Minuvida treated its guests to a dinner night with a marvelous meal made up of local appetizers, home grown greens, delicious soup made from home grown products, a superb fish dinner and home made chocolate dessert with a citrus orange bottom entree. Here is the menu:
Appetizer: Cheese, wild herbs, Bolo de Serta, Pear, Meloa
Soup: Wild Spinach, Potato Cream
Salad: Fresh Organic Greens with sauteed Loquat, Pumpkin Seed and lemon-chocolate mint vinaigrette
Main Course: Sauteed Black-tail Comber (fish) over Courgette-Inhale sauce with Molho de Vilhao and Lemon air.
Desert: Dark Chocolate mousse with Orange Jam and Maria.
Wine: A Quinta da Jardinete Sauvignon Blanc/Fernao Pires was exquisite with both salad and soup while a Quinta da Jardinete Chardonnay was superb with the fish. Dessert was accompanied by home made Guava Brandy and Liqueur.
Endless Life Experiences
An awesome array of life experiences was displayed by the group of people at the dinner table. There was Klaus and his partner Uli who were visiting from Cologne, Germany. He was a carpenter/cabinet maker who did complicated work for large companies such as "Glock" of pistol weapon fame. He was also a Bag Pipe Band player who took part in many events featuring the bag pipe instruments of Scottish fame. A Bag Piper from Germany?! Imagine that and him playing "Amazing Grace" to booth! He was a super interesting person who also had experience working with the disabled. A great conversationalist.
His partner Uli is equally interesting with a very responsible job. She is a Radiation Physicist who works for a Cancer Laboratory and Treatment Centre. She is in charge of the treatment machines and does the minute calculations for all patient treatment. Wouldn't want that job's responsibility. Apparently she is magnificent at it!
There was Hilary and her partner Cormak both Buddhists who run a retreat centre in Massachusetts and with a world of experience in other parts of the Globe. Cormak dealt with some pretty serious topics since he did work with those who had terminal illnesses.
I was astounded to learn that Hilary at the young age of 33 had been to so many parts of the World including Nepal, India and Thailand. Hilary who was also a Harvard graduate, came also to do a Meditation Class for Minuvida.
Then there was Amit from Israel who ran a Publishing Company in Israel but had just come back from working on a conservation/animal protection project in South Africa.
Of course one cannot omit Minuvida owners Rimi and Joao who met in Boston and came back to Joao's home country to develop a business at Minuvida. So many stories and so many interesting people who came from various parts of the World to meet at this place. Life is surely so interesting.
We ate! We consumed!We shared stories! We laughed and we enjoyed the night.
We then went to bed and no pun intended-----"Bid each other a very good night!"
End of Day Two
Morning came quickly for me as I was up around 5 AM and began my work on the last blog. Around 8:30 I went for the typical cheese, jam and fruit breakfast at Minuvida followed by heaping amounts of coffee.
Shortly after breakfast a walk was in order and off it was to the downtown area of Peixe Do Rabo which was a half mile or so down the steep hill from Minuvida.
Peixe Do Rabo
The name literally means "tail of the fish" and according to sources it was so named for either the shape of the land mass which seems to be the tail of a fish or because a tail of an unknown species of fish was discovered in the area. I would opt for the former explanation.
The town is well known as a fishing village and the market is a very busy place when open. Grocery stores carry a wide variety of goods as does the local pharmacy. The town is small but has much to offer.
One thing that never escapes me is the hospitality the local citizens show those who are visiting. The other thing that always confounds me is the preoccupation that Europeans etc. have with Espresso coffee. I stopped in a snack bar to have a coffee. The counter person gave me an Espresso in a cup that looked like a thimble. One shot and it was gone. I have been told to explicitly state Cafe Americano if I wanted a regular coffee. Good to know! You would think that with all my travels I would now be privy to that but one does forget!
One point of interest in town was the local church "Senhor Bom Jesus" which was started in the mid 17th Century and finished some one hundred years later in the late 18th Century. The fish market with myriads of fish brought in by the local fishermen is also a place to visit.
Dinner With An Amazing Group
The day was basically a lazy do nothing day unless you would call the walk back UP the hill lazy! One thing that are not available on the city streets is sidewalks of any sort. One has to be aware while walking up the narrow wall lined streets of any European nature and this town was no different. Cars zip around at quick pace speeds and walking up a steep hill while trying to watch out for wayward vehicles can be unnerving. Survival was successful however.
Minuvida treated its guests to a dinner night with a marvelous meal made up of local appetizers, home grown greens, delicious soup made from home grown products, a superb fish dinner and home made chocolate dessert with a citrus orange bottom entree. Here is the menu:
Appetizer: Cheese, wild herbs, Bolo de Serta, Pear, Meloa
Soup: Wild Spinach, Potato Cream
Salad: Fresh Organic Greens with sauteed Loquat, Pumpkin Seed and lemon-chocolate mint vinaigrette
Main Course: Sauteed Black-tail Comber (fish) over Courgette-Inhale sauce with Molho de Vilhao and Lemon air.
Desert: Dark Chocolate mousse with Orange Jam and Maria.
Wine: A Quinta da Jardinete Sauvignon Blanc/Fernao Pires was exquisite with both salad and soup while a Quinta da Jardinete Chardonnay was superb with the fish. Dessert was accompanied by home made Guava Brandy and Liqueur.
Endless Life Experiences
An awesome array of life experiences was displayed by the group of people at the dinner table. There was Klaus and his partner Uli who were visiting from Cologne, Germany. He was a carpenter/cabinet maker who did complicated work for large companies such as "Glock" of pistol weapon fame. He was also a Bag Pipe Band player who took part in many events featuring the bag pipe instruments of Scottish fame. A Bag Piper from Germany?! Imagine that and him playing "Amazing Grace" to booth! He was a super interesting person who also had experience working with the disabled. A great conversationalist.
His partner Uli is equally interesting with a very responsible job. She is a Radiation Physicist who works for a Cancer Laboratory and Treatment Centre. She is in charge of the treatment machines and does the minute calculations for all patient treatment. Wouldn't want that job's responsibility. Apparently she is magnificent at it!
There was Hilary and her partner Cormak both Buddhists who run a retreat centre in Massachusetts and with a world of experience in other parts of the Globe. Cormak dealt with some pretty serious topics since he did work with those who had terminal illnesses.
I was astounded to learn that Hilary at the young age of 33 had been to so many parts of the World including Nepal, India and Thailand. Hilary who was also a Harvard graduate, came also to do a Meditation Class for Minuvida.
Then there was Amit from Israel who ran a Publishing Company in Israel but had just come back from working on a conservation/animal protection project in South Africa.
Of course one cannot omit Minuvida owners Rimi and Joao who met in Boston and came back to Joao's home country to develop a business at Minuvida. So many stories and so many interesting people who came from various parts of the World to meet at this place. Life is surely so interesting.
We ate! We consumed!We shared stories! We laughed and we enjoyed the night.
We then went to bed and no pun intended-----"Bid each other a very good night!"
End of Day Two
posted by Chuck Byers - Wine Consultant | 5:16 AM
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