Terceira hotels

Terceira Island (pron. IPA: [tɨɾ'sɐiɾɐ], Portuguese: Ilha Terceira) is an island in the Azores, in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, with an area of 396.75 km². The island's length is 29 km and the width is 18km; the perimeter is 90 km. Population is 54,996, down from a peak of 59,000. Population density is 140.73/km².

Terceira’s coast is dotted with quaint fishing towns, beaches and lava rocks. To the north are both a rocky coast and a mix of forest and vineyards. To the South are cattle grazing lands and the coastal area surrounding Angra, with its parks and hotels. The wide bay and beach at the pretty town of Praia da Vitória are well worth a visit, as is the lake at Caldeira de Guilherme Moniz, which is the biggest body of water in the Azores after to the ocean.

Away from the coast, Terceira is a wild and hilly landscape perfect for walking or hiking. Much of the interior of the island is a nature reserve. From the heights of the Serra do Cume, a visitor can look down on a patchwork of small farms, stonewalls and grazing cattle.

Terceira is also the site of more than 230 traditional bullfights throughout the summer. Every weekend from April to late fall the people of Terceira hold touradas à corda – a form of “running of the bulls.” The bull is let loose from the town’s main square with a very long rope around its neck. The idea is that courageous people will try to get as close to a bull as they dare. After the excitement, the bull is taken back to the wooden crate and an outdoor festival begins. This kind of event is found only in the Azores and has been popular here since 16th Century.

Sometimes in the larger towns, a Portuguese equestrian bullfight (will take place after the touradas á corda. In a Portuguese bullfight a cavaleiro, or rider, takes to the arena atop a Lusitano breed of horse. He's dressed in a silk jacket embroidered with gold and lace, wearing tan riding pants and black boots. The goal of the cavaleiro and his horse is not to kill the bull, but to draw the bull to a charge and then to place a single, harmless dart in the bull’s back muscle.

Source: CIA Factbook, Wikipedia

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