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Embassy address: Avenida da Liberdade, 200 - 2nd floor, Lisbon

American Consulate Ponta Delgada

Av. Príncipe do Mónaco No, 6-2 F 9500-237 Ponta Delgada, Açores

Lying in the middle of the North Atlantic, the Azores are a group of nine islands and eight tiny islets, and as an autonomous region of Portugal, they represent the westernmost point of the European Union. They are situated at a distance of 950 miles from mainland Portugal and around 2,400 miles from the coast of North America. The Azores were formed by volcanic activity and, looking from the bottom of the ocean, they represent some of highest mountains in the world. Prior to Portuguese colonization, which began in the fifteenth century, the archipelago was completely uninhabited. The islands played an important role in Portuguese modern history, serving as the stronghold of the liberals during the civil war. Their roughly 250,000 inhabitants live mainly from raising cattle, fishing and the tourist industry.

The nine islands of the Azores are spread out over a vast area. Based on their distance, they are classified in three groups. The western group consists of Flores and Corvo, the central group is formed by Faial, Pico, São Jorge, Graciosa and Terceira, and São Miguel and Santa Maria make up the eastern group.

Mike and I have lived in some diverse countries, with different foods, lifestyles and customs. The Niamey and Azores deployments of the US Department of Energy's ARM Mobile Unit have both been suitable for me to travel and accompany Mike for the duration. Germany (2007) and China (2008) were both handled differently and Mike spent all of 2008 in China by himself. Like my Africa pages, I hope to make this a lighthearted record of our stay with emphasis on our experiences with both work and recreation.

For the record, I must stress that this is how I see the Azores deployment thru my eyes and it in no way reflects any opinions or policy of the US DoE. Even Mike has no input to this site other than giving me a copy of his work photos. It's primary intention is to provide friends and family back home in Australia with a record of what we are up to. We did find that the Africa pages proved very popular with the public in general as so little of Niger is seen outside of Niamey and as it ranked higher up the search engine scales, so too did its following. We still have many friends in Niger and throughout the world because of my original Africa site. I hope this new Azores site will prove as popular!! Sharon.

I hope all who visit my site find something of use. Please feel free to contact me if you wish to add or alter anything. Sharon Alsop - 2009

To have a look at our stay in Niamey, Niger, WEST AFRICA

This site is maintained by Sharon Alsop You can visit my site without telling me who you are or revealing other personal information
All of the material published on this website is for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional, commercial or technical advice.