Ever since the “American Dream” landed on Terceira, tucked into the luggage of the Americans who settled at Lajes Air Base, the island has never been quite the same. Between hamburgers, English words spoken with a Terceiran accent, and customs imported from across the Atlantic, we gradually absorbed—almost without noticing—a certain “American way of life.”
These days, the Fourth of July is celebrated without quite the grandeur it once commanded, yet it is still marked on Terceira, at Lajes Air Base. This year marks the 250th anniversary of the United States’ independence—a date that means as much to Americans as the Sanjoaninas, Carnival, and the Holy Spirit celebrations all rolled into one. It is the most patriotic day on the American calendar, celebrated with monumental barbecues, flags everywhere, parades, music, and fireworks grand enough to rival any village festival.
Anyone who has never experienced a Fourth of July near Lajes Air Base will find it hard to understand this rare sociological phenomenon: an American national celebration in the middle of the Atlantic, where the smell of barbecue mingles with that of alcatra, and English spoken with a Terceiran accent deserves to be declared part of humanity’s intangible heritage.
The island’s relationship with Lajes Air Base goes back many decades. So many, in fact, that we might measure time in two eras: before the Americans and after. After all these years of living alongside one another, the people of Terceira know these rituals by heart.
And so it is with the Fourth of July. There is always a certain atmosphere in the air, a transatlantic state of mind; for a few hours, we forget the distance between Lajes and Texas. The flags appear, and the grills begin to heat.
I remember watching the fireworks from Lajes Air Base from outside the fences, along with the other curious onlookers who, for one night, had found the best spot from which to enjoy the spectacle. We were not part of the celebration, but no one could take away our privileged view of the illuminated sky. And, let’s be honest, we adopted some of the more appealing customs, too: the barbecues. Today, throughout the year, “barbecues” multiply—a tradition so firmly rooted that at times it seems the Fourth of July was invented to justify one more afternoon gathered around the grill.
While Americans celebrate the freedom won in 1776, many islanders celebrate something just as important: the chance to enjoy a good party without having to cross the Atlantic. After all, Terceira has a rare gift for adopting other people’s traditions and treating them as though they belonged to the family. It has happened with words, music, customs, and even dreams.
Over the years, a kind of tacit understanding has taken shape between the cultures. The Americans brought giant hamburgers, star-spangled flags, and dazzling fireworks displays.
The Fourth of July on Terceira may be the only foreign holiday many people recognize at a glance. Not everyone can explain the causes of American independence, but almost everyone can tell you, with great precision, the best place to watch the fireworks. And that, in its own way, is a very Terceiran way of celebrating the friendship between two peoples.
In the end, the true spirit of the Fourth of July on Terceira can be summed up in one simple image: a group of people sitting outside the base’s fences, gazing up at the sky lit by fireworks, and concluding quite naturally that globalization began long before anyone invented the word.
Tânia Santos, Historian
Translated by Diniz Borges