Madeira (Portugal)

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We went to Madeira this year , 2006 , in September for two weeks on a B&B basis in the Oasis Atlantic Hotel in Canico De Baixo . We had not been abroad for a couple of years due to financial restraints ( in other words we were skint ) and wanted a holiday that would live up to our expectations . This one did and some.

On picking our destination we decided we wanted somewhere not too lively with good scenery , a nice hotel and ...
...bought an "insight guide" to Madeira which was a hefty £16.99 from Waterstones . It was however a very good book , gave background history , details of each of the regions etc . I was not sure when reading about Madeira whether we would like it or not , but we did . In fact we loved it!

Madeira is an Island of the North West coast of Africa .
It is situated in the Atlantic and is Portuguese , having a sub-tropical ... more

**********************BACKGROUND***********************

We went to Madeira this year , 2006 , in September for two weeks on a B&B basis in the Oasis Atlantic Hotel in Canico De Baixo . We had not been abroad for a couple of years due to financial restraints ( in other words we were skint ) and wanted a holiday that would live up to our expectations . This one did and some.

On picking our destination we decided we wanted somewhere not too lively with good scenery , a nice hotel and good weather . The hotel was a four star but since returning I have read reviews that thought it was more three or four star . We were very happy with it and had no complaints . We have been to the greek islands loads of times, and although we love them, we felt we needed a change, and a bit of spoiling .

I bought a guide book after booking and checked out the internet . I bought an "insight guide" to Madeira which was a hefty £16.99 from Waterstones . It was however a very good book , gave background history , details of each of the regions etc . I was not sure when reading about Madeira whether we would like it or not , but we did . In fact we loved it!

Madeira is an Island of the North West coast of Africa .
It is situated in the Atlantic and is Portuguese , having a sub-tropical climate . Hence the beautiful array of flora and fauna .
It is a volcanic island though thankfully not an active volcanic one .

The temperatures in Madeira turned out to be consistently in the seventies day and night. I think this is true for most of the year.

*************************THE HOLIDAY***********************

We flew from Manchester airport and flying time was about 3-31/2 hours . After a lovely flight, with clear blue skys all the way , we saw our destination in the distance . It was covered in cloud , the first we had seen that day , but that turned quite normal for an early morning.

As you come in to land at Funchal airport (so called , though not in Funchal town , or even near it) you realise it is a runway over the sea . The runway has been extended and is on supports . It was a bit of a hairy experience , as you twist and turn at such a low level to get to the runway but quite exciting.

At first sight Madeira looks a bit barren and rocky as one of the first sights you see is Sao Laurences(a rocky headland which is very barren and brown). There are three uninhabited island off the south east coast which you can visit if you are in to wildlife (with dolphin and or whale spotting on the way). These are the Islands Desertas.

There is also Porto Santo a much larger( but smaller than Madeira ) island off the north east coast. As the only other inhabited island in the archipelago there is not a lot to see . However it has a long golden , sandy beach 5 miles or 8 km in total length. Lots of visitors travel over for a day just for this beach .

The airport is compact but clean and well equipped. There are cashpoints you can use immediately . The currency is the Euro. We arrived at about 7.30am on Sept 11th (yep you read that right) to quite a humid , though overcast day . As we discovered the days often begin cloudy but the sun soon breaks it up .

In the 2 weeks we were there , we only had one rainy day, and that was spectacularly so (rivers of rain flowing down the streets).We had read the more rainy season was oct/nov which is why we picked quite early in sept. Earlier in the year was much more expensive . Madeira is not a cheap place to holiday.Though prices for food etc are not too bad when you get there . It's just the getting there and the accomodation.

Despite being in the EEC you can bring up to 3200 cigarettes back each and an equally increased amount of wine etc. A pack of 200 cigarettes was 25 Euros( about £1.70 a packet I think)

We had a painless trip through customs and boarded our coach for Canico De Baixo . After about 1/2 hour we arrived at our hotel . Our luggage which had been transported in a van was waiting in the hotel foyer. The main roads are really very good and there are numerous tunnels of differing length .

We travelled to funchal quite a few times on the courtesy bus and local bus .It is only 1/2 an hour from Canico de Baixo . The courtesy bus took the motorway . This was very good with plenty of tunnels through the hills . The local buses take the back roads so hang on to your hairpiece. Mind you the views on these roads are spectacular .

On a trip one day, on the North West road to Porto Moniz , we experienced the old type of tunnel and road . The tunnel was hacked out of the mountain side and the road was certainly the wibbly wobbly way. As you came out of the tunnel you were on such a narrow stretch of road high above the sea it was quite scary .This tunnel was under a waterfall called the Brides Veil . Looking back at it from a view point was lovely . Porto Moniz on the North west tip of Madeira has some strange volcanic pools which you can bathe in . There is a nominal entance fee .

I think hiring a car is quite a reasonable price , but due to the mountainous roads take care. (Note-Madeirans drive on the right side of the road).

The island is very well maintained . The levadas(canals ) carry the water from the hills in the north of the island so there is never a shortage of water . You can walk along these yourself or on organised walks where the scenery is really special.

We went up to Canico village one day and there is a pretty square with a church , a few shops and supermarkets . Good views from up there looking down to the coast . Although you could walk it , up to the village, it was some walk and all uphill . We opted for the easy way, the local bus there and a pleasant stroll back down with the occasional beer and ice cream.

We travelled on the local bus to Garajou where there is a replica statue of the one of Christ on mainland Portugal and in Rio de Janeiro . This statue is much smaller than the originals , but is well worth a view . This took some finding as it was not well signed . It is about 30-40 foot high facing the sea on a very scenic headland . Apparently non-catholics who had died were thrown from this cliff ?. Looking to the right from here you had a great view of Funchal and looking to the left a good view towards Canico de Baixo. The walk back to the village took in "angina hill" so the ice cold lager waiting at the top was a life saver . The waitress said we must be fairly fit as she had seen people almost crawling back . I must say though we had our moments.

When we visited Funchal we found there were quite a few museums and galleries but we didn't visit any . It seemed such a shame to be indoors in good weather knowing Autumn would be upon us on our return home. There is a replica of the Santa Maria in the harbour and there are day excursions available on it .

From Funchal we rode up to Monte on the cable car and the views were fabulous.( You find the cable cars near the bus station in Funchal ). Once there we went to visit a tropical garden. A few hours later absolutely Kna--ered we found our way out .There were some beautiful flowers in there but make sure you have water with you . The cafe is hard to find . They do give you a map on entry but when my husband rolled it in a ball and threw it in the air I knew he had lost it.

There is a reasonable three storrey museum come gallery incorporated in these gardens . On display there was African Art , Modern sculpture and South American minerals .The entry fee was included in the original admission . I can't remember the price but it was good value.

From Monte you can take another cable car , in a different direction to another tropical garden . There is also a church and street vendors , a restaurant and a cafe in Monte.

Having spent a good few hours we came back via the cable car , for which you can pay a return . This works out cheaper than two singles . You can come down on a toboggan ride if you fancy it but it is a bit pricey and only takes you half way back to Funchal . It is something a bit different though and one for the album.

We spent a few days exploring Funchal on foot but there is an open top bus if you fancy it . Beware in Funchal of time share touts . They will tell you they are not , but they are , and if you get stung you will be caught up for a good couple of hours.

Funchal being the capital is where most Madeirans live . It is a sprawling place with a large lido , many shops , museums, banks, a casino , the famous Reids Hotel ,good restaurants and tourist places . On the waterfront there is even a boat ,which belonged to the Beatles, set in concrete , which is a cafe. One cafe has little boats, where you are served, floating around a cafe pontoon.

Near the casino is a very pretty park with good views . The ferries, which take you to Porto Santo or mainland Portugal ,arrive near here . I heard someone say they went on the ferry to Porto Santo , for a day, but it took so long they didn't enjoy their time there. You can take a helicopter from here to Porto Santo if you prefer.

As already mentioned, this sister island is not as green as Madeira , but has miles of long sandy beach. You will only really find volcanic beaches on Madeira and a few man-made ones.

Don't be afraid to barter as most small shops are open to offers. The local buses round the island depart from Funchal and you can get a timetable here . Bus prices aren't bad. We did not use taxi's but were told they were reasonable, but to make sure we got a price first.

The traffic is quite bad in Funchal and the pace a bit hectic. There are plenty of things to do and see ,statues and architecture included. There is a good fruit, veg, fish and meat market in Funchal which is well worth a visit. You can see fresh Tuna fish and the local Espada . Espada is an ugly long black eel type fish of the scabbard family. It comes from deep in the Atlantic Ocean . It looks revolting but, when boned ,is delicious.

Canico de baixo has a few good restaurants and around the island there are plenty of eateries.
The local specialities are :-
1)The aforementioned-Espada,an ugly long,black fish which is lovely.But remember to get it boned
2)Espetado,chunks of beef which arrive at your table hung from a large metal hook. Also delicious
3)Local Madeiran cake called bolo de mel a rich fruit cake.
4)Various types of Madeira,wine/sherry to name but a few.

You can visit Blandy's famous name sherry house in Funchal if you like this sort of thing and have a good old sample.

We took some local trips using Turitans from Canico and they were very good . Much cheaper than the ones the rep was selling . We travelled in a comfy mini van and met some nice people . A couple of times it was only us and another couple, so Nelson our lovely young driver would change the itinerary as requested .

We did the west of the island, visited a cane factory , visited the east , the Nuns Valley, Machico and the mountainous inner of the island.When you travel through the mountains the views are amazing but the flat plain at the top is boring with nothing to see as you drive along it .The countryside is so diverse and full of a wealth of plants , flowers and trees . I would like to see it at a different time of year when the fields of poinsettias are in bloom.One thing there are loads of lizards but they are no bother and thankfully there are no snakes(only the time share ones)

One of these trips took in the north-east coast where we visited the village of Santana. You can visit the tiny traditional houses where the locals of this village used to live . The tourist ones have been renovated to the original bright colours . Families lived in these tiny houses and you can book an overnight stay in one or two of them if you so desire. We went into one and were greeted warmly by the occupant . He will give you a glass of Madeira, biscuits and a tour , for a small fee-a handful of change-price up to you.

On this trip we travelled part of the way ,on and off ,along the winding old roads on the coast. I was glad we were in a small mini-bus . We watched the large coaches with horror and fascination.

Further along this road as we were travelling to Porto Moniz we stopped at a stall selling knitwear , and souveniers , and were introduced to the local fire water-Poncha. The owner was mixing it furiously in a jug proclaiming Portugeese Viagra on sale! He was selling it at one Euro a glass . Not being sure of the taste my hubby and myself shared a glass . Talk about a warm glow . It's made of fresh lemon juice , molasses and a white spirit . If you try it go for the fresh , as if you buy the supermarket bottled one it's not quite the same. I can recommend but I'm not sure about the viagra side of it lol.

At the time we were there, towards the end of our fortnight there were some quite bad fires behind Funchal and in the south west region. (This is why we didn't visit the extreme south west). These were thought to have been started by locals unhappy with the government. The officials have apparently confiscated herds of cows from locals as they say their grazing is ruining the countryside. Understandably the locals are a bit miffed. Some have said if we can't have the land no-one will and have started fires.

The problem with the fires in the hills is that the fire brigade can go so far into the hills and then reach no further . They just have to let them burn! They didn't have the necessary planes to carry water . Fancy with all those holiday airplanes?

We only visited as far as Ribeira Bravo on the south-west coast .We did like it there however . It was in the process of having a new promenade and beach constructed , so it would be interesting to see the result .

**************************CONCLUSION*************************

We did find the island was not quite the British haunt we had been lead to believe as a lot of Germans holiday there but that was no problem . Also mainland Portugese folk holiday in Madeira .

The locals are lovely and can't do enough for you.They all speak good English but if you can manage the odd obrigada (thank-you) or bom dia ( good morning) you will get a great reception.

Apart from food and drink the local specialities are cane woven into baskets etc,embroidery and knitwear. You will find shopping for clothes or say camera cards competitive and there are lots of modern shops in Funchal.

There were lots of things we didn't get round to doing or seeing , but that's good for a small island especially as I would love to go back .That gives me a reason to do so in a few years time.

The scenery is spectacular, the weather glorious and the people warm and friendly.

Although all age groups seemed to enjoy it I feel it is more an island for the 30 upwards range . Someone told us that the average age of British holidaymakers on Madeira was 50 . Just right for my hubby and myself then lol . Although we saw quite a few really elderly people . I can understand that with the climate, but it is very hilly in parts .

I can throughly recommend it as a relaxing break with great scenery , walking , and good weather . The one thing it lacked was yobs-thank God . We came back so chilled , with that lovely ,
relaxed , mellow, batteries re-charged feeling , only a great holiday can give you .

Give it a whirl I am sure you'll get hooked.

Some photos at , "http://www.myspace.com/eileenker".....thanks for reading eiley

Also posted at dooyoo eiley123 (me) ( copyright eiley ) 

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