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Entry I of The "Azores Journal"
By: Inge Perreault, E-Mail Inge
Author of the Book "Birth of a Tumbleweed"
12/27/2006
NO CHRISTMAS FRENZY IN THE AZORES!
By the time we left the States to begin our new life in the Azores, Sao Miguel to be specific, the Christmas shopping frenzy was already well under-way in the US since it was November 8th. Even before Halloween the Christmas decorations were already on display – maybe in the future they will just be left year-round to encourage and lengthen the shopping season indefinitely.
What had attracted us to spend whatever years we have left living on Sao Miguel, exploring the volcanic archipelago consisting of 9 Islands? Perhaps in collaboration with my husband’s photography of the breathtaking beauty I could write a book about LIFE in the AZORES TODAY? This idea struck us again the minute the SATA Airbus touched down in the capitol of Ponta Delgada. The temperatures were balmy (no colder than 54 degrees in the winter nor warmer than 78 degrees in the summer). Hibiscus and other flowers, the names of which I have not been able to discover, were bountiful. The crystal clear air and the combination of steep mountains and the vast Atlantic were as spectacular as we had remembered them.
I must mention that although the Azores are part of Portugal, they have an independent government and are a territory much like Puerto Rico. Being part of the EU the islands have attracted a lot of northern Europeans, and Germans in particular are well represented and liked. They either retired here or found a niche to work, have an excellent reputation for their work ethic and prefer quality of life to unbridled consumerism and a 24/7 –type existence. As a matter of fact, the German couple we had stayed with at Quinta Altamira last spring helped us with the process of obtaining permanent residence status.
We settled into our rented 200 plus year-old Portuguese farm-house surrounded by banana, palm and rubber trees, and lined by a hedge of pink Hibiscus in full bloom. We decided to take off the first two months prior to starting my book to de-stress and to observe how other cultures deal with the infamous pre-holiday season which seems to have become a major part of the national pastime – SHOPPING! The US is no longer a nation producing valuable goods, it has become a nation of compulsive shoppers buying goods produced in foreign lands.
Having removed the TV from the furnished house and delegated it to the attic we began learning Portuguese by interacting with the native inhabitants of the Azores but were mostly steered towards speaking English with them (I guess our Portuguese pronunciation leaves something to be desired but we TRY diligently). The Azorean people are by nature very friendly and extremely helpful. They will go miles out of their way to steer you in the right directions, so the beaurocratic process went very smoothly. They seem to perceive us to be a desirable addition to their apparently last place on earth where a German/American is still welcomed with open arms. Incidentally, political correctness is ABSENT since this is basically a Catholic country and rather liberal when it comes to religion and nobody carries their belief system on their sleeve.
In the 21st century this small archipelago of beautiful islands with topography much like Hawaii (only closer – a four hour and ten minute flight from Boston) is a dichotomy. That is what makes it so very special. While the old architecture is being preserved there is a contrast that seems so incongruous it is nothing short of astounding.
Towards the end of November – and no, they do NOT celebrate Thanksgiving here – the colorful lights strung across the ancient streets in Ponta Delgada, which is only 20 minutes by car from our new home, appeared. We also noticed subdued holiday decorations for Christmas in the stores. A friend of mine from the US Consulate proudly showed us the “NEW” part of town which encompasses two huge and extremely modern shopping malls, but everything we noticed was well - sort of low-key.
Azoreans don’t push and shove; they patiently stand in line and wait their turn. We watched parents with well-behaved children trying to figure-out if the pink or the green tricycle might be preferred only to come back later and purchase the item. Special Christmas candies from other European (especially Germany) countries were on display but what was missing totally was the feeling that while one had 11 gifts for Johnny so far, Jane had only 8 from her list. Something that needed to be rectified. The entire mood reminded me of my own childhood in Germany in the fifties when it was my greatest joy to find one or two surprises under the tree and cherished them. My own grandson in the States could open his own toy-store at age four but that’s a story for another time.
With a keen eye we kept wondering when the rush to buy would start but it never did. The centers of towns were tastefully decorated with lights, and here and they’re a few lights adorned lovely homes. A stand in Ponta Delgada offered Norfolk Island Pines which serve as Christmas trees here.
The women were busy cleaning (Azorean women clean with a vengeance) and the general cleanliness and ecological consciousness of the Islanders had been another observation that made this area so attractive to us.
We had decided not to exchange any presents at all and instead to give and surprise a needy family with food items and non-perishables, to attend mass on Christmas Eve, and spend a quiet day on Christmas day. All the churches in the Azores date back to Baroque-era and the local one was magnificently decorated in ways we had never seen before. I did not know bean-sprouts could look like gossamer surrounding a pulpit. Here Christmas is strictly a family holiday and, much like in Germany, presents are exchanged after mass on Christmas Eve. Though mass was at 10pm (children’s mass) the church was packed to the brim with families and yet again, extremely well behaved children. Some folks in native costume participated in a living Crèche, and the first song we heard was Silent Night (in Portuguese of course), but I sang it in German and nobody noticed! From my understanding of the language by now the words from the pulpit were words speaking of love, peace, compromise and being kind to our fellow man, truly one of the best services I ever attended.
Afterwards we walked home, had a glass of Madeira and went to bed while the native Azoreans celebrated all through the night with feasting on local traditional dishes and sharing precious family bonds.
We slept-in on Christmas Day. Since the Azores are 4 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time our sons would not be calling until late afternoon and we woke-up to balmy temperatures in the high 60ies, ready to head for a long walk at one of the black and totally empty beaches to watch the waves crashing and collect some sea-glass. Puffy white clouds moved across a peaceful sky and I had suppressed the urge to go on the Internet since I really did not want to know how many people died in Iraq, which mall-shootings had taken place or any bad news whatsoever. I wanted to detach from the rest of the world and give myself the gift of peace and serenity.
Shortly after 3pm we started heading home so as not to miss our sons call and I noticed that I actually had been amiss in not applying a sunscreen because my face showed signs of slight sunburn. People were carrying on their daily lives as always, after all the Azorean cows still need milking and the fishermen still hung-out in the center of town socializing while I am sure the women were busy preparing more food. At this point I should add that our kindly landlord keeps a special case of freshly-dug potatoes (regular as well as sweet potatoes, onions, garlic and other goodies in the garage for us free of charge) and complains constantly that I don’t pick enough tangerines, flowers or herbs that grow in profusion.
So this was a typical Christmas in the Azores. Nobody got shot, we did not hear or observe any unruly behavior and there was a general mood of happiness and congeniality towards one another that is most difficult to find these days in most places.
Going shopping yesterday NO gifts were being returned; when I could not find the vinegar the young lady led me to the proper place through the huge supermarket without grumbling and the young man at the check-out counter was thrilled to practice his English while I was trying to practice my Portuguese. I am sure Novo Ano will be equally low-key and I after listening to my grandson on overdrive, reading briefly on the Internet about the miserable state of the world out there I am happy to have escaped the FRENZY that has taken over an entire continent at a time when quiet reflection and good-will towards mankind ought to rule over a consumption-obsessed, driven economy that stresses people out, not only financially driving them into debt but also emotionally exhausting.
Tumbleweed Journal" Copyright ©2006-2007 Inge Perreault - All Rights Reserved
The Tumbleweed Journal Reflect the views, opinions and experiences of the author.
2009-09-09 14:50:37 -0700
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