On July 27, after seeing our friend Joseph off with his recently arrived crew,

we decided to do a Sunday drive to Ribeira Grande, the town on the north coast. Distances are relatively brief between villages and sites, and within twenty minutes we were looking for parking and some lunch.

In the middle of town there was a public park framing the river as it ran out to the sea.

Max did his usual,

then we walked down towards the shoreline.

A luscious pool complex greeted us,

but no lunch spot. We did see a book sharing site, which I took photos of for my library pals,

after which we noticed some medieval decorations going up around town. One, we couldn’t resist.

But, we one on the hunt for lunch.

For all the investment in the municipal pools, we couldn’t help but feel Ribeira Grande was a bit tired. It still had its charm, though,

especially the area surrounding the church, a focal point for most of these villages.

Just below the priest we found pizza, which we devoured (but kept enough for dinner) while we watched the owner’s young daughter sip pretend-wine as they ate at the table next to us.

We then took a different route home, stopping to view Lagoa do Fondo in the clouds.

And, that was our Sunday Azorean drive.