Terceira Island - Azores - Portugal

Terceira Island - Azores - Portugal

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Catching Up with the Blog



Aisha Squints at the Camera
Even though I just "knew" this would be the perfect job for me, my first ten days on Terceira have confirmed that.  Some aspects are already in alignment with what I wanted: the small size, gorgeous scenery, and minimal traffic.  A caveat to the last, however: drivers here are still to be viewed with the assumption that they will try to pass even though there are only 50 yards of visibility in the opposite direction.  On the other hand, cows moving from one pasture to another and donkey-powered carts do not produce road rage.  
* I'll be fine with other aspects once I adjust to them: mail is delivered only on Sundays (it arrives by plane each Saturday), the commissary and exchange are closed Sundays and Mondays, and there is no such thing as a Cobb salad with Ranch dressing on the side.
* But back to the beginning of this Azorian adventure...
I spent my last night in the States in a hotel near BWI.  Since it was the Friday before Easter, it took Steve and me THREE hours to get there. I did fine on the drive since I had figured it would be slow, but once we were in the room, I was all nerved up about the process of checking in and getting Emma onto the plane.  The mass quantity of pizza we had delivered helped some.  As with every other aspect of this move, my worries were for naught.  The counter agent was very nice and helpful.  They let me bring Emma in by leash so I didn't have to move her in the crate.  All the paperwork was in order.  There was a "pet relief" area close by. I could stay with Emma till they took her to the plane.  I had a first-class-type seat (only one of two).  The flight attendants checked on Emma a few times to let me know she was fine.  The flight was smooth (just under 5 hours) and we were served a good meal with real utensils!  The weather when we landed was beautiful.
* The Lajes Welcome was just as Trish described it and then some.  We got our passports stamped before going through the door to the waiting area, where there were about 30 people in a receiving line from all groups on the base.  My little welcoming contingent included Lt Col Scharf (the squadron commander), Steve Day (his deputy), Bryson Twidwell (acting flight chief until they could fill that position), Patrick Henson (the housing section chief), and Trish Walton (my sponsor and the Resources flight chief).
Trish hard at work.
* It wasn't long before I was reunited with Emma, and she was just fine.  Calm and ready to take advantage of the Lajes pet relief area.  Patrick, Bryson, and Lt Col Scharf got the crate into Patrick's van, Emma jumped right into Trish's back seat, and we started the 20-minute drive to her house (a link to photos are posted on my Facebook page).
* And what a house!  For those of you who don't "do" Facebook, here's one of the best photos:
The steps lead down to a terraced zig-zag of plush grass that makes the best-ever dog run.  I can stand at the top and throw Emma's ball to the bottom of the hill.
Below is a map of Terceira that will help you understand where towns are on the island.


* Trish and I vegged out Sunday until we went to dinner at Sabores do Chef (Flavors of the Chef), an elegant restaurant in Praia (pry ya) da Vitorio, the town that surrounds the base.  Praia was founded in 1456, but has become the most "modern" town on the island. Here are photos of Praia and the harbor, taken when Bryson took me to see my armada of spill recovery boats.




The building with the red roof is the marina office, and the harbor slips are to the right of it. 



Here are my (that's the royal "my") boats.  We use them to deploy booms that keep oil contained when there's a spill.  (Environmental is one of my branches.)We also went to see work being done to test for contamination around abandoned underground fuel storage tanks.  These are huge - 50 feet in diameter.











* Besides learning enough about environmental issues on and around the base to make my eyes glaze, I also met the community planner, energy staff, real property person, and folks in the housing office.  I also went on a tour of the dorm.  (A funny story: at my first staff meeting, when I talked about what I'd done, I said that I'd walked through one of the dorms.  Everyone looked at me and Lt Col Scharf said, "Then you've seen all the dorms.")
* A very time consuming part of my first week was in-processing: getting a new ID card, an island driving license, and briefings by the personnel office staff.  I also filled out paperwork for a GOV (government-owned vehicle) license so I can drive our Asset Management truck.
* Tuesday was the belated Arbor Day tree planting event with kids from the DoDDs (Dept of Defense Dependents) school.  The wing commander and his Portuguese counterpart did the ceremonial gold spade earth turning.
* Wednesday morning I went with a housing inspector to look at houses for rent. I fell in love with the first one I saw, and I will become its first occupant one week from tomorrow.  My street address is 4 Camino de Figueiras (fee-gay-resh, which means "figs") in Porto Martins (porto mar-teensh). It's not labeled on the map, but it's a third of the way along the coast road between Cabo da Praia and Sao Sebastiao. I'm not going to post photos of the interior till I get my stuff set up, but here are some of the particulars:
Bananas Foster Coming Up!
3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and wall-to-wall views of the ocean.  I can hear the surf as it hits the rocks, a church bell, and roosters).  The swimming hole (you won't catch me in there!) and Buzios, a wonderful Italian restaurant, are a 10-minute walk away.  http://livingatlajes.wordpress.com/2010/08/06/buzios/ 

View from the front yard.

View from one of the kitchen windows.
* The electric gate at the driveway will be installed Wednesday and the exterior rocking and painting will be finished week after next.  My landlord, Ricardo, is very nice. I met him yesterday and he gave me info about the alarm 
system, wireless / cable / phone (I already have a phone number)
underfloor heating, and air conditioning /heating systems (very unusual here) Here are some "teaser" photos.

View down my street to the ocean.
Just as with everything else about this move - charmed, I'm sure - the shipment of household goods arrived in only three weeks!  They'll be delivered on the 13th, along with the appliances supplied by the base (fridge, gas stove, microwave, washer, dryer). 
* So that's all for this installment.

Adeus da Ilha Terceira!