Yes, this port call is by tender. No, I didn’t care a whit. A listed port on two of my previous transatlantic crossings, both times were called off because of bad weather. Cancelling a port call due to high seas/storms makes perfect sense when 1) the ship has to anchor and the only way to shore is by tender. Also known as “bobbers” if the sea is rough. Passengers and crew bouncing along the waves in a small boat doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, especially from a safety point of view; and 2) the shore excursions in that location are all outside scenery which is going to be difficult to enjoy through storm and rain. We will not even get into the issue of hiking across slippery rocks in that same rain.
Anyway – this morning the seas were calm, the sun is shining and we laid anchor at 0700. I waited, annoyed at the cruise director who really, really seems to love the sound of his own voice coming on the tannoy every 10 minutes with more “information/advice/whatever.”
Once tender tickets were no longer required – I headed for Deck 3 forward and a short, non-crowded trip to shore.
I couldn’t resist taking a photo, just so you know that I was actually there!
The town is classical Portuguese architecture with a mix of time periods and styles.
there are buildings with tiles, those with fancy trip and balconies.
There is what is left of an obviously old stone fort –
It is an obvious seafaring and port town – complete with sundial/compass rose
and a small captain sneaking about
other than this particularly lovely bit of mosaic work –
most of the rest was straight white lines in dark volcanic stone sidewalks with the occasional ship, lighthouse, or whale featured just to break up the monotony. All of those had a strong resemblance to a five year olds line drawings.
After a couple of hours, I headed back to the ship –
and lunch…
