Singletrack

After the descent we continue down the street to Ribeira
Grande. The biggest town on Sao Miguel’s north coast is a
small place with lots of sandy beaches and small black dots on
the water… surfers! It’s a hotspot for wave riders. We follow
Andre into a place called Casa de Pasto. It’s a bar that is not
immediately recognisable as one from the outside. Inside,
however, the dining room is packed and plates of hearty
home-cooked food are being served. We manage to get the
last empty table and without being asked are given a carafe
of red wine. Andre immediately covers it with his hand.
“Careful; this wine can’t be imported into the EU due to its
high alcohol content. We only drink it mixed with Laranjada,
our Maracuja lemonade, otherwise you’ll get hallucinations.”
This concoction tastes delicious. It goes perfectly with the
meat stew and fried squid. There’s pineapple for dessert, which
is unbelievably fresh and juicy. “If you want, I’ll show you the
greenhouses later. They belong to my father,” garbles Andre
with two pieces in his mouth.
[Yep, that’s how they grow - Pineapple Ed.]
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