The True Legend of Sete Cidades

There are several versions of the Legend of Sete Cidades, but they all share the same ending: the creation of the Lagoa Azul and Lagoa Verde, which together form the Lagoa das Sete Cidades on the island of São Miguel.

The Legend of Sete Cidades

The Legend of Sete Cidades tells that many, many years ago, in this very land, there was a kingdom where a beautiful young princess with blue eyes lived.

She loved her life in the countryside, and one of her favourite activities was to wander through the fields, smell the flowers, and dip her feet in the streams, observing all the beauty of the kingdom’s hills and valleys.

One day, during her walks, she came across a flock of sheep. Tending to the flock was a shepherd with green eyes, and she decided to strike up a conversation. They talked for a long time. Their conversation revolved around the animals, the flowers, the weather, and the simple beauty that surrounded them. From that day on, they began to meet every day to talk.

As days and weeks went by, the princess continued to meet the shepherd in the same spot. Eventually, they fell deeply in love and exchanged vows of eternal love.

The King was not pleased to learn that the princess and the shepherd were meeting. He forbade her from ever seeing the shepherd again. He wanted his daughter to marry a prince from a neighbouring kingdom, not a simple shepherd.

The princess eventually accepted her father’s cruel decision and asked the King to let her meet the shepherd one last time to say goodbye, a request which was granted.

They met for the last time in the green fields where they had first met. There, they spoke of their love, but also of the separation forced upon them by the King.

As they spoke, they also wept. And they cried so much that the tears from the princess’s blue eyes flowed down into the valley, forming the Lagoa Azul; in turn, the tears of the green-eyed shepherd fell with such intensity that they formed the Lagoa Verde.

The two lovers said their farewells as their tears formed two lakes, destined to remain together forever. And just as the two could never be united, so too would their lakes never be separated.

The Lagoa Azul and the Lagoa Verde are what is known as the Lagoa das Sete Cidades. On intensely sunny days, the colours of both lakes can be seen very vividly (as in the photo above).

The True Legend of Sete Cidades (by Tunalhos)

The comedy group Tunalhos decided to recreate this legend in one of their sketches, putting their own peculiar and characteristic spin on it. The video recreating the Legend of Sete Cidades reveals the ‘True Legend of Sete Cidades’ below.

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