Geography Department

Astounding Azores

The Azores trip was the best school trip that I have ever been on! Everyone who went was really nice, I couldn’t have asked for a better group of people to accompany me on this wonderful adventure. I had the best time ever. I absolutely loved taking pictures of the beautiful scenery that surrounded us the whole time that we were there. The first day was amazing, but I spent the majority of the time holding my nose because of the awful smell coming from the volcano. However it was an interesting and beautiful experience. Later on in the day, I swam in Lagoa de Furnas. The water didn’t look too inviting but it was like having a huge warm bath. On the second day, we went and saw the most beautiful view on the island. Later on, our trip was held up by a group of cows who decided to cross the road. We then went on a 3-hour hike (which you can imagine not very many people were happy about) but ten minutes in we began to realise what an experience this was, trekking through the luscious vegetation of this tropical island, seeing jawdropping waterfalls and lakes and standing in awe of the wondrous views we were faced with. On our last full day, we walked the circumference of a volcanic crater and the views ... again ... were amazing. After that walk, we went into Ponta Delgada. The heat was intense so we all stopped and had some much-deserved ice cream. While we were enjoying the ice cream, a group of pilgrims walked our way singing a religious song. This was a great way to indulge fully in the culture of these islands. Our tour guide explained to us that they make the pilgrimage every year and they walk for eight days, for sixteen hours every day, through rivers and across the volcanoes to visit many churches across the island. There were even young boys taking part. Following that experience, we were given a tour of the astounding lava caves! Elizabeth Warburton 10D The Azores was the best trip I’ve been on by far. The trip was an adventure, to say the least, and for most of us was a once in a lifetime experience. The views were breath-taking! In the town centre, we saw a group of pilgrims as they were on their way to the local church. It was exciting to see a new culture and community. The group swam in several hot springs for the first time which was exhilarating for all the girls. The highlight of the trip was definitely the waterfall we visited. It was the most amazing scene. We had the opportunity to circumnavigate the volcano crater which lasted for a whole morning. Although it was tiring, we thoroughly enjoyed this. Haleemah Mohammed 10C