Shreddie Art

Today is earmarked for another levada walk. Do days have ears? We get up around 08.00 and look out to see quite a lot of cloud but not of a threatening type. Manufacturing lunch is now down to a fine art. Split a Bolo do Caco, spread the insides with mayonnaise, layer on sliced cheese, chorizo, paper thin ham, cucumber and, if you are fussy, sliced tomato and you have a masterpiece.
Our bus up the hill is the previously enjoyed number 29, departing from behind the electricity museum at 10.45.  There is plenty of time to stroll through the town, enjoy a coffee outside the the market, and get ourselves in the queue at the bus stop. A German chap seeks advice on  levada walks. Does D know where to go? "I hope so" he responds. The German chap recoils visibly.

The bus is pretty full but we get a pair of seats towards the back of the bus. We have a splendid ascent, stopping from time to time to disgorge locals on unpromising hillsides. We know where we wish to alight but there is a colourful local who makes forth with siren calls for us to deboard three stops too early. The bus arrives at the place that we want and we get down. The German chap walks forward to conduct a debate with the driver. We quickly head off up the steps towards the Levada dos Tornos path. 
After passing a couple of dwellings and some barking dogs we are out on a well maintained path. There has been a lot of vegetation clearance quite recently. Unlike the other levadas that we have walked there is very little water in the channel. From time to time there are gaps in the vegetation that provide views of the city.

In the main the walking is very easy but there is one very short stretch where a sense of balance is required.
There are plenty of wildflowers along the levada, some of which we have not seen previously.
We descend from the levada down a steep, but mercifully short, flight of steps to the Jasmine Garden Tea House. The small terrace here is surrounded by jasmine plants and smells wonderful. Refreshed by a splendid cuppa we catch the number 47 bus towards the city. Some quirk of translation on the Corporation Bus website renders bus routes as Career Paths.
We are treated to a masterclass in careering as the man in charge of the number 47 takes us down. Only the smell of incinerating mechanical bits detracts from the full bobsleigh experience. We get back to the hotel to discover that the creative shift were on cleaning duty today.



Comments

  1. knownunknown10 February 2022 at 13:32

    Elaborate production of lunch wrap! Overloaded with different flavors. Let me try it…

    ReplyDelete

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