history+and+geography+of+Faial

History and geography of Horta Faial Azores, Portugal

The island of Faial is one of the islands that make up the Azores. The Azores are portages Islands and are located about 900nm west of mainland Portugal. The latitude and longitude of Faial is 36º-55” to 39º 45” North and 25º to 31º-15” West. The Azores are volcanic island in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Therefore a perfect place for sailors to stop. Almost all sailors doing an Atlantic crossing stop to provision and rest.

Because the Azores are the highest and only land in that part of the Atlantic clouds gather they’re making it rain almost all year round. Fail is a volcanic island and the soil is very fertile. They farm lots of veggies, fruit, meat and dairy cows. Sailing in from a distance the first thing you see are the impressive volcanic peeks with clouds all around. The local people are short and of European decent. They have big noses and the older men wear those little golf hats. Horta is a fishing community and one of the types of fish they catch are these deep-sea fish that the English-speaking people call silver fish. They look like a cross between an eel and a barracuda. They are long, silver, thin, bendy and have a head like a barracuda with sharp teeth. Photo: They look small here but they are not!!!

The first Portuguese navigators called Faial sao luioz. According to legend the first person to ever live on Faial was a hermit who hid from the world there. Then settlers from Portugal came to the island. Not long after a wealthy flaming called Josse Van Huerter along with 15 of his countrymen came to the island. They were looking for tin and silver that was said to be there. They looked and looked and after a wile realized a mistake had been made therefore causing a failure to the exhibition. Excited by the fertile island Josse Van Huerter stayed and in 1468 receive a patent from the Portuguese royalty making him donee of the island. Therefore allowing him to bring settlers from Flanders. The island went very well due to agriculture and the export of a plant used to dye called woad. In 1583 a Spanish fleet sailed to Faial. Despite the French backup the Portuguese lost the island but finally in 1832 the Portuguese took it back. In 1860 Faial's position in the middle of the Atlantic mad it a good place for ships involved with the orange trade and American whaling vessels to stop and provision.

From about 1900 to 1950 Faial was an important place for Underwater cable links and took part in the pioneer period of aviation.

In 1957 there was a large volcanic eruption alongside Failal that changed the shape of the island and shook the island with tremors for months after. It humbled the people and secured their religiousness. Every year men from all over the Azores go to the main island called Sao Miguel. The men go on a pilgrimage to pray and give thanks to the gods for their safety. They do this to hopefully secure a safe year with no volcanoes.

Today in Faial you will find a flourishing cheese and wine industry based on traditional methods and an old whaling museum that is worth seeing. The lush green hills of Faial looked very inviting after 16 days of blue horizon. As we entered by boat it was like a hole new world Europe emerged and I fell in love.

References: wikapedia/faial azores and personal experience summer 2010