Fairly well taken, I must say…

There was this room inside the “Fabriea de Chai Gorreana” where a few ladies were separating tea leaves. I was not sure how genuine they were. I remember in Bali, they had these completely make believe activities going on to show as if they were the real deal. They were not. They were not acting it out…

Here, this room was in a complete corner and there was no guide – you just go around as you want. On the other hand, there was no earnestness with which these ladies were working. So, I could not come to a full conclusion.

They had no issues when I asked if I could take a picture. In fact, they did not even look at me. There was that tip jar though…. I put an euro in it and a small note saying “With a spot of milk”. I still think that is the best tip when it comes to drinking tea.

And it happens to be in the small island of Sao Miguel in the Azores Islands. We went there today and tried out their “Cha”! Indeed, in Portuguese, tea is the same as in China or India – “Cha” (or minor variants thereof).

This is the Tea Plantation of Gorreana.

(I could not find the name of the area)

Sao Miguel is filled with a lot of “Ribeira”s. Technically. the word means a river but these are more like rivulets. Basically, the rains just hurry down the sides of the volcanoes and head towards the ocean.

Ribeira Grande is the original town in Sao Miguel. (Now the bigger town of Ponta Delgada is the more important town).

I love how they have dug into the side of the slope and built the sitting benches..

Apparently, the previous government of Azores Islands (held power for some 16 years or so, our driver told me) needed all houses to be painted white. The new government has given full freedom for home owners to choose their outer wall colors. And the home owners have responded effusively. A lot of houses we saw in Ribeira Grande were being colored. A few more years later I am sure this will small town will remind us of the town of Burano in Italy…