Furnas - the hot spring town

Oh Furnas! Loved this town, next time I am coming to the Azores I will definitely spend some time here. The town has everything a small island town would need. A hot spring pools, botanical gardens, a lake, a natural hot steam kitchen, and much more. 

 

Poça da Beija  

If anyone ever plans to go to the Azores, Poca da Beija is definitely a necessary place to stop by. There are three naturally warm pools with different water levels. l recommend coming here early as it fills up during the day, while in the morning we had one of the pools all to ourselves. It costs €2, and don't have anything white, as a little bit of white will naturally turn orange. Well unless you are going for the natural orange color on your clothes. 

 

Lagoa das Furnas - and the hot steams

Furnas lake is one of the three major lakes on the island. The walk from the town to the lake is about half hour, maybe even less depending where you start. By the northern tip of the lake there is a naturally boiling water location. This is where a lot of restaurants cook their 'stew' that they later serve at different restaurants across town. We went to Tony's as it was widely praised by all the residents of the island as well as visitors. You can see the way they prepare the pot on their restaurant website. 

Careful it's hot!

The stew pot is in there!

Naturally boiling water

The meal - of pork, potatoes, and veggies

 

 

 

Rotas - yummy vegetarian food

The title says it all from someone who is not even vegetarian! The food at Rotas was delicious definitely recommend it! The space is simple and feels like you are enjoying a nice mean in someone's living room, and the staff was fantastic! Even thought us some Portuguese (but thank god they spoke English as well!)

 

Half eaten Rolling of Chevre,
thyme and Apple

Mushroom Risotto

Artichoke Risotto

Cheesecake Berry Fruit

Jordaan Neighborhood

If you ever decide to go to Amsterdam stay in the Jordaan Neighborhood. This one is filled with different different cafe's, small boutiques and incredible Amsterdam architecture.

Visit different boutiques in the Nine Little Streets since this is located in an art district everything here is unique. Make sure to see Fifties-Sixties, De Weldaad Antiek en historisch Bouwmateriaal that has all the classic historic pieces (picture below), most importantly go anywhere you like it - we did!

Have lunch at the Tin Pan Alley, as we had a fantastic lunch with all the fresh ingredients. I had the Salmon Sandwich and my friend the Club Sandwich and we both were extremely satisfied. Their sun dried tomatoes were to die for.