May 4, 2023
At Ponta Delgado, we set off on our final Cruise Specialist excursion to the Furnas Village hot springs.
We boarded the bus in the morning and enjoyed the sights as we first drove to the town of Ribeira Grande.
We enjoyed our brief time looking around the town and enjoying the delicious Portuguese custard pastry, pastel de Belem.
After about 30 minutes to explore, we got back on the bus and headed to the tea factory. There was a beautiful rainbow in the sky as we neared the tea farm.
At the tea factory, we learned how tea is picked, sorted, shaken, dried and added to tea bags. We saw the different machines used to help the process.
We hopped back on the bus to drive to our next stop, the botanic gardens.
At the Terra Nostra Botanic Gardens, Brent went swimming in the natural hot water pool while I toured the garden.
We walked to the restaurant from the gardens and enjoyed a delicious lunch cooked in the ground by geothermal energy.
Next we drove to Furnas Village to see the hot springs.
Once in Furnas Village, we had a pleasant walk to see the different hot spring and geyser exhibits.
Then it was time to head back to the ship. We enjoyed the ride back.
Before returning to the ship, we made one last stop at a pineapple plantation.
So green and beautiful! Fun to see the tea growing and making process! I didn't know about hot springs there - so fun to take a dip and it's great that they use the geothermal energy. I didn't know that they grow pineapples there as well!