As Bob and Tania moved on to the other islands in the Azorean chain they enjoyed each special area wherever they went...

•   The amount of planning and work that went into the 2007 version of the Praia Festa was amazing.  Weeks of work preceded the event  including putting together the huge tents that would house the numerous restaurants from Portugal and Brazil, stringing enormous strands of lights, banners, sound system wires for the concerts, and finally attaching hundreds of flowers everywhere!

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•    The huge restaurant tents ringed the marina on three sides.  The Câmara (City Hall) was decorated with lights, banners, and huge flower arrangements.  The main pedestrian mall was lined with banners, lights, and folding chairs chained together to reserve seats for the many parades!

• Of course it wouldn't be a "Festa" without me looking my best for the event.  Bob and Tania once again put on my best "bib and tucker" in honor of the event.  This year they added a special pirate flag just to give me a little "edginess".  I was a big hit with the kids as "Pirates of the Caribbean - Part 3" had just been playing at the local Auditorio.

The lights at night we beautiful and they would launch a hot air balloon off the beach for extra fun.  A close-up of the flowers used all over the town.  Bob was able to reminisce about his "Old Man's Race" of Optimists the year prior in Horta. 

• The Hobie Cats had some great races almost daily from the beach.  The view from one of the restaurants in the tents.  A float inspired by Picasso used in the first nights parade.

• The Ethnographic Parade (the way it was spelled in Festival Schedule of Events) was enjoyable with the animals, old style farm equipment and clothing.

• The parade was much larger than Tania expected and finished with the "Espirito Santo Crowns" and Portuguese guitars.

• On the last Sunday of the nine day event a boat parade was held whereby the statues of the Madonna and Espirito Santo crowns were brought into the marina harbor along with a band, the people on shore then formed a parade and carried these items back up the street to the church.

• That evening Bob and Tania visited with Major Eva Walker (Bob's optometrist on Lajes Air Base), Max and Lucette from "DeLight" (a 33' CSY sailboat in the marina) at Eva's home in town.  Tania was fortunate to see a street bullfight "tourada à corda" at Juncal (a local community) and then the final day saw the "beach bullfighting" (where no blow-up swimming raft was safe...)