Almost ready to leave Sao Jorge

July 22, 2008 - Tuesday

Here we are on the little pedestrian street, people watching (and being watched), enjoying a cold one and the mosaic sidewalk.

At the uphill end of the street they built this cute little park, beautifully maintained.

Here is a volcanic arch that Andi spotted when we were sailing in. So we walked over and took this photo.

Here is the same arch taken from the water inside an ancient volcanic caldera. All the walls of the caldera are almost vertical and made of cooled lava. Andi was driving the dinghy.

Here is Andi snorkling under the arch.

OK, so I have been wondering how the Azoreans manage to have such beautiful streets and parks with no evidence of an economic basis for their wealth. You may remember the old WPA programs of the Roosevelt administration - intended to pump money into the economy to lift us out of the depression. That appears to be what is happening here. The European Community pumps money into the poorer areas of Europe - and this is one of them. They obviously spend it on public works - in Horta, the garbage trucks emptied the garbage in the marina 4 times a day! There are lots of folks hired to trim the grass and maintain the parks. Those folks spend their paychecks and the money trickles down through the markets, restaurants and service economy. There is very little tourism here although every little bit helps. Selling meat and cheese couldn't support this island at the level we are seeing. Based on their own economic activity, this would be a third-world place and would look a lot more like Mexico in terms of maintenance. But the way it is currently done, it is a wonderland with residents who take obvious pride in the beauty of their world.

Today we were supposed to sail the 50 miles to Terceira, but there is no wind so I think we will stay another day. Don't be afraid to email - we'll get it.