Arriving and Arriving

08/01/21 - 08/02/21

Highlight of the day: at the police station (Can you say that? I don't know, but it was kind of funny.)

7:30: Everything is packed and loaded in the car. My parents are taking me to the airport on the way to Italy, and it feels almost like we're going on vacation together again. Put on an audiobook, and off we go :)

11:30: We arrive at the airport in Frankfurt, and they take me to the check-in counter. We hug tightly and say goodbye again, then they have to leave.

At the check-in counter, the first surprise of the day, I have 2 bags. My dive gear weighs 16.5 kg and has 1.5 kg excess weight, and my travel bag has 3 kg excess weight. So I have my wallet ready to pay for the fun, but no, not necessary.

'We won't charge anything extra at the check-in counter today. The system is not working properly, we're really sorry. Have a good flight!'

'Alright, no problem, thank you very much.' Well, lucky me then. :)

Soon after, I'm already sitting on the plane and sleeping like a log. 4 hours later, I change planes in Ponta Delgada and get a tiny first impression of the Azores. I know that I'm arriving on an island, but it's still crazy when the plane feels like it's landing on the water and the waves slowly approach during the descent. When I disembark, the first thing I notice is the salty and humid air. No wonder, there it is, the ocean, less than 500m away.

Since I have three hours of layover time, I want to sit in the bright sunshine with my book, but the weather suddenly changes and I find myself sitting in a damp and warm breeze under a small palm tree. That's fine too :)

After another 25 minutes of flying, I finally land on Terceira. It's 9:30 pm local time and completely dark. I'm outside at the taxi stand with my luggage, and after 20 minutes, I have to admit that no taxi is coming. No problem for me, my smart phone finds a few numbers for me, and I just call one. Well, not quite... After three unsuccessful calls, I realize that the taxi drivers here apparently finish work earlier on Sundays than I thought. What now?

I'm tired, hungry, it's dark, and it's starting to drizzle, and I'm the only one standing outside waiting. Uncomfortable. What now? So back into the (really tiny) airport and approach the nearest person I can find. Good plan, Regina, very good! So I walk around in the small, unfortunately, ugly yellow-painted hall and finally find someone. A middle-aged man, who visibly enjoys life, is sitting comfortably behind a glass window and drinking coffee from a thermos flask. When I cautiously knock on the window, he looks at me with surprise and asks if something happened. (At least I think so, my Portuguese definitely leaves something to be desired.)

'No, everything's fine, I just need a taxi and can't reach anyone.'

'Ah, I see, it's already late on Sunday,' he replies with a really funny accent, takes out his phone, and calls someone.

What I think I understood or figured out:

'Hey Luciano, are you still awake? I know it's late, but would you drive again? Here, I have a young girl (What? I'm 27!) who needs a taxi. ...Pause... Okay, wonderful, thank you, she'll be waiting here with me. Greet your wife from me.'

'Okay, Luciano will come and pick you up soon, just wait there,' he points to a small bench.

'Wonderful, thank you so much, that's really kind of you,' says the young girl and smiles wearily.

And indeed. 10 minutes later, after my butt is completely frozen from the icy bench, Luciano arrives. A super nice-looking older gentleman in brown leather sandals with red striped socks peeking out, brown shorts, and a red checkered flannel shirt. Together, we go to his taxi, an ultra cool, definitely antique black Mercedes with leather seats. Luciano doesn't really speak English, but after zooming in the address on my phone, we're off. On the way, I message my Airbnb host to let her know I'm on my way, and then I watch the 20-minute drive in the light of the headlights as we drive along hilly, narrow roads. Going downhill, we plunge into the milky mass of fog that lies in the valleys, and going uphill, we emerge again. We don't encounter anyone, except for an old man on an old bicycle. Good thing I'm not walking, I think, he would have scared me to death as he emerged from the fog with his (definitely squeaky) bike.

10:43 pm local time (12:43 am German time) and I'm finally here. My friendly and somehow motherly host (a bit like Molly Weasley) shows me my really pretty room, and after a hot shower, I fall into bed. Man, am I tired!

The rooster wakes me up at 6 am, but there's no way I'm getting up now! I pull the pillow over my ears and go back to sleep. Today, I won't do much...

After getting up, I go shopping and just enjoy being here. It's overcast this morning, warm, and relatively humid, but the salty breeze lightens the weather. From the terrace, I can see the sea and the blue blooming hydrangea bushes for which Terceira is famous. The landscape is characterized by low walls of black lava stone, green pastures, and agriculture. The white-painted little houses nestle idyllically against the gentle slopes of the hills, and everything else seems to be overgrown with wild vines. And of course, the ocean is omnipresent, stretching out in radiant blue seemingly infinite expanse. (Although only after the sun has driven away the fog, before that it's rather gray but still beautiful to look at.) In any case, it's a great place to be! :)

I sit on the terrace with my breakfast/lunch and start thinking about how to proceed and write something. Here, I also meet my new friend who accompanies me for the rest of the day. :)

In the evening, I make noodles in the electric kettle. That's what you do when unexpectedly there's no stove...

All in all, a relaxed day. :)