Soaking Up Tarpon Springs

It snowed in Central Texas last week.  A rare occurrence.  Having spent years living just below the Arctic circle I have no need to see snow.  Fortunately, I was out of town for the week.

Tarpon Springs Sponge Boat

While I might have wished I’d been in Greece, I was about the closest you can get to Greece without leaving the country.  Tarpon Springs is a small town on the west coast of Florida known for its Greek population and its ocean sponge harvesting business.  

 Tarpon Springs’ sponge industry started in the 1880s and came into its own in 1905 with the recruitment of Greek sponge divers and crew.  The industry collapsed in the 1940s when a Red Algae bloom wiped out the sponges in the Gulf of Mexico. 

The crowds gather when the
sponges are unloaded.

Eventually the sponge population recovered and today the Sponge docks in Tarpon Springs is a lively combination of sponge harvest and tourist photo ops.

 

On a nice day you can enjoy lunch outside.

While the tiny historic downtown can get crowded on the weekends, midweek is the perfect time to stop at one of the Greek cafes for a dessert or lunch salad and a glass of wine.

Tarpon isn’t all about the sponges and the food.  With the warm Gulf weather there are water activities abound.  A great way to spend a pleasant (and free) afternoon is to head to the local free park at Sunset Beach.  Across the water from the larger county facility – Howard Park—Sunset Beach is a smaller, more intimate beach area.  Parking is free, there are rest rooms and picnic tables, and even a boat ramp. 

On the afternoon I visited there were only ten or so cars in the small lot.  I found a spot of the sand where I could watch both the Kiteboarders and the birds.

Eventually I’d have to go home to Texas … but not before that snow melted! 

Finding Inspiration in the Azores

As a devoted traveler, I rarely visit the same place multiple times.  There are just so many places to see!

An inland lake on San Miguel

An exception to this travel rule is the Azores.  Located in the middle of the ocean – about a 4-hour flight from Boston or a four-hour flight from Lisbon—these islands are a string of tiny gems!  

The first time I remember really thinking about traveling to this group of islands was when I was visiting Portugal.  There was a small group of Americans who were going back to visit relatives in the Azores.  At the time I didn’t realize just how many Azoreans had moved to the United States.  

About five years later my then new husband started telling me how much he wanted to go back to the Azores.  It turned out that his father was stationed on the Air Force base on Terceira.  My husband remembered the island as an adventurous paradise complete with sunken ships, volcanic caves, and modern day ‘pirates’.  How could we not go?

My husband as a child quickly made friends with the neighbors
and enjoyed trying out the horse and cart.

It took another decade, a couple of moves, and a subscription to TravelZoo before the trips to the Azores became a ‘habit’.  

One of the reasons I love going back to the Azores is because of my art.  Many of my mixed media landscapes are inspired by places that I’ve visited.  I love taking dozens of pictures to inspire me back in the studio.

Hotel Caloura on San Miguel

Our first trip to the Azores was to the island of San Miguel.  That was a new island for both of us.  With the help of a great deal I discovered on TravelZoo (about $520 per person for the flight and the hotel for a week) we found ourselves in a hotel where every room had a sea view.  The structure was an interesting bow to the 1970s, but the room was comfortable, and the temperate November weather encouraged me to leave the sliding door to the balcony open all night.  

San Miguel is the largest of the islands and after the first pleasant day exploring the small village and the beach near the hotel, we decided that a we needed a rental car. 

 

A San Miguel island overlook

 

The green forest around Lago
du Fugo

Lunch picnic packed, car gassed up, we headed out to drive around the island.  The ocean views were incredible.  But it was a more intimate view at Lago du Fugo that inspired my first Azorean landscape.  Usually people head to this lake to taste a traditional stew that is buried in volcanically heated dirt and cooked for 5 or 6 hours.  But down a trail and around a corner from the bubbling mud paths there is cool, green forest on the edge of a quiet lake. 

"Path to the Lake"  Mixed Media 2015

Standing on top of the
Pousada Forte de
Sao Sabastiao

A couple of years later SATA (the airline for the Azores) began to fly non-stop from Boston to the island of Terceira.  Once again, I locked in a great deal for airfare and lodging – this time in an old fort that has been added on to and turned into a hotel.

It’s interesting how two islands separated by only about 100 miles can feel so different.  Terceira is home to Angra do Heroismo, a gorgeous UNESCO heritage town, and the whole island really feels like a small village. 

Angra harbor

Looking down at Angra

We skipped the car rental on the island and instead spent a day touring with Filipe Lourenco of Pristine Azores.  Filipe is an awesome photographer, and with his permission, I used one of his photos as starting inspiration for an Azores mixed media art piece on canvas.

"Misty Morn" Mixed Media 2016

(As a side note I have a love/hate relationship with TravelZoo.  On the one hand, I have found fantastic deals including the Azores Island specials -- about $500 including airfare from Boston and a week’s worth of lodging at 4-star hotels on both Terceira and San Miguel.  On the other hand, I hate looking at the site when my travel funds are low because there is ALWAYS some trip I’d like to be taking.  Sigh.)