MADEIRA - DAY FIVE.

 DAY FIVE - THE LAST DAY

THE NUN'S VALLEY.

I REALLY like a good cup of coffee (I've been spoilt at Ricci's, our own Italian cafe), so when we found a good cafe, very close to our hotel that served an EXCELLENT cup, we were very happy. They don't serve it like we do, but it's just as good, and very tasty. Needless to say, we went there almost every day.

After out caffeine 'fix', it was time to have a wander into town. We had no real plans today, but I had an idea. The 'Nuns Valley' is supposed to be really beautiful and rugged. I'd noticed that the number 81 bus went there, so for just four Euros each, we got a return ticket and hopped on a 'yellow funfair ride'.
It all began rather tamely through the streets of Funchal. THEN we started climbing. Clinging on tightly as we sped along the terrifyingly narrow and steep mountain roads, our aim was to just stay on the bus and do the return journey. We had boots and a picnic though, just in case. When the bus got to the high village of Curral da Freiras, a local guy suggested we disembark, as the bus came back in 20 minutes. We did, and as we got off, so did another couple.

They were German, and their names were Lutz and Elfi (what a LOVELY name).
Lutz told us they intended to walk to the top of the ridge, and we were welcome to join them.
"What about the bus??", we asked. He told us there was one due back at 5:00PM, so we trusted him and set off upwards, chatting and getting to know one another.
This was where we got off the bus. The weather had started cloudy, but now the sun was out, and it was clearing. Time to put on the sun tan lotion!
The views around us were really living up to their 'dramatic' tag, and we were getting more and more excited at the prospect of a good walk.

A lot of the hamlets were just perched in what seemed like unreachable places.
We read that you can't reach a lot of these places by road, as they are not connected to the road system!

This looked a bit like a set from 'Lord of the Rings'.

The sun was full out now, and Sue was ready for the climb.

Here we are, about to set off upwards.

The path was gentle, but we were soon gaining height, leaving the village far below.

As always in Madeira, the flowers were incredibly beautiful. I didn't know where to shoot next.

Houses were built just anywhere.
ALL the building materials had to be brought up here by hand.
The mind boggles!!!!

We continued up the well-laid path.

The walking was easy and steady.

Soon, this was the sort of view we were getting.

That road was blocked. Several rock falls had seen to that!
I think they now have (another) tunnel, so the road is redundant.

After about 40 minutes solid climbing, we reached the top.
This was a visitors centre with a big car park.
Last time I saw this place, I was looking up at a dot on the ridge horizon.

Here I am, perched on the edge, as usual.

'Only' 3,000 feet.

This was the tourists balcony.

If you leaned over the rail (which I did), this is what you saw.
3,000 feet - STRAIGHT DOWN!

DON'T lean back on that fence!

We had a fabulous walk, and ended up at a small cafe in the village for another good coffee, and we also tried (and bought) some of the local chestnut liqueurs.
That night, Sue & I went to a place we'd sussed out the previous night. 'La Paella'.
I told the owner I was VERY fussy about Paella, and he said; "You don't like - you don't pay"
That was good enough for me - so in we went.

They first brought us a glass of complimentary Madeira wine, which Sue tried.

Then they broush ush a glashh of Poncha, Shue shays ish GREAT.

YER ME BESHT MATE, YOU ARE! (HIC)

This ugly thing had a name, but I can't remember it!
It was billed as 'local lobster', and was alive & moving when brought to our table. I don't think it wanted a mirror! It was about the same price as fresh lobster, so you were looking at around SEVENTY pounds for a serving. I said we'd stick to the paella.

I can honestly say, it lived up to its reputation.
It was STUNNING - no contest, the best one we've ever had.
We enjoyed it SO much, we went back again the following night for another one.

On the way home (we walked - it was a very warm, pleasant evening) I took this picture of one of the stranger plants we saw. The end of the runway at the airport has HUNDREDS of these plants on the bank in front of it.
This was the first time I'd seen one at the roadside though.
I wish I'd made Sue stand at the side of it for scale now, as it was about 5 feet tall.

Then it was back to the hotel room, and a last look at Funchal before turning in.

What can I say? Madeira is FANTASTIC!!! We will return there one day soon. If you're interested in the island, I can really recommend it as a beautiful, interesting and fabulous place.

Below are a couple of short videos.

The 'lobster thing' - it's ALIVE!

Common name: Slipper Lobster.
Scientific name: Scyllarides latus

A sweep of the Curral da Freiras valley.

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MADEIRA - DAY TWO, THE SLEDGE RIDE

DAY TWO

THE SLEDGE RIDE

Now we'd had a look around, sussed the place out (a bit), and set out a sort of itinerary. Lots of big towns, especially tourist ones, have those tour buses. They are usually very good value, and show you the very best bits, so I like to take one early on in any holiday. The one in Funchal is, like Barcelona, actually two! One does the inner city highlights, and the other goes further afield. You pay one price, and can hop off and on either bus all day. So, we bought our tickets on day one, and got ready to do the trips on day two.

Here's the position of our hotel room, one of the best positions, I'd say.

Thanks to Alison travel in Bakewell for sorting it for us :-)

First though, a walk down to the pool. Looks lovely in the morning, and so quiet!
We then took a stroll downtown. We really got to love the prom' walk.
This morning, a big Norwegian cruise ship was coming in.
Next it was back on the cable car. It costs 10 Euros each for a one-way trip (15 each for return). Although we'd 'done' it the day before, it was a lovely ride, and also the quickest way to get to where we wanted to go to.
Sue looks worried about something, don't you think?

A street entertainer.

Was THIS what Sue was worried about???
(Well, it's a MUST DO when in Madeira)

It's a bit 'hairy', but LOADS of fun! The reason we didn't do it yesterday was we were told to do the trip early on, before the sledge pullers were tired, and had had a few beers!

HANG ON!

You can see the wax marks from the runners of the sledge on the road. The sledges reach quite fast speeds on some of the hills. As usual, a photo doesn't show just how steep these 'roads' are. Believe me, in some places they really are very steep.

After the ride ended, we decided to walk the rest of the way down to Funchal town. You could get a taxi, but then you'd miss all the views and photo's. This bridge before the tunnels looks lovely and very aesthetically pleasing.

In this sub-tropical climate, bananas grow anywhere and everywhere. The banana plant takes about nine months to fruit, then it won't produce again unless it's cut back severely. This leads to local women, who only have one child, being called 'banana trees'.

The way to differentiate between new and old building is defined by little clay sculptures on the edges of the roofs. Birds means it's a new build, I think gargoyles meant it was old.

Where else would you see a sea of flowers like this in a city centre?
The smell was WONDERFUL, especially in the evenings.
Under the flowers is a river. They cover it with netting for the flowers to grow on.

A glimpse of snow on the mountains. Lots of Funchal people, as far up to the age of 30, have never seen snow close up, only like this on the mountains. Because of this, they have a custom where anyone who drives up into the mountains when there is snow, builds a snowman, and puts in on a blanket on the bonnet of their car, and drives back down to the city with it so the people can see and touch it.

Next it was tour bus time. Just LOOK at these lovely Funchal back streets.
There were fountains and statues everywhere, not to mention lovely trees.

There were also a fair amount of run-down and dilapidated buildings like this one. We asked, with land especially on the front where this place was, so expensive and at such a premium, why were there places like this? We were told that if someone owns a building, sometimes they go away and leave it to rot. But, when they return, building reg's allow them to knock it down and re-build a nice new one in its place. This can be VERY lucrative. Also, if they've made money abroad, then come back, they can replace a shack with a fabulous new building (complete with doves on the roof). That's why, we were told, you see so many shacks and beautiful houses side by side.

As the bus climbed, we got a great view of the harbour.

The sprawl of Funchal.

Another really good statue, and one of my favourites.

After the first tour, we hopped off the bus and went back to the hotel for some lunch on the patio.

Then it was on to tour bus two for a trip to Winston Churchills favourite place, the fishing village of Camera de Lobos, with its incredibly high sea cliffs.
On the way, we passed this, my LEAST favourite statue. It's supposed to be an angel, but most locals hate it, saying it looks like someone who has hung themselves, and brings bad luck. I have to say, I agree with them.

We then reached Camera de Lobos, and first view showed us why 'Winnie' liked it so much!

The land is heavily terraced here, like most of Madeira, for full utilisation of crops.

A strange sight - a fishing boat full of fish skins drying in the sun and breeze.

Where were the fishermen? Here, playing cards.

Some of the local lads were enjoying the sea on this lovely, sunny day.

Again, money from the E.U. had been used in this place. This was a lovely sculpture of boats on a sea. There were a few more, one was a huge marble table with a plate and bowl on it. I like this one, but thought the table thing was a bit pointless.

The impressive and breathtaking sea cliffs of Cabo Girao, Camera de Lobos.
See what one guy did here; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35F2roxAI7A&feature=related

Come on then - where's the beer?

After the trip, we decided to go to the swishest hotel in Madeira, Reids in Funchal. Everyone said you MUST take afternoon tea, just for the experience. A few finger sandwiches, a fairy cake or two, and a pot of tea - TWENTY EIGHT EUROS!!!! (each). We passed on that, but it was nice to listen to the pianist........

.....and the flower arrangements were nice too!

Looks almost plastic, doesn't it, but these are real, and grow in abundance on the island.

Right Susie, time for our evening swim, in you get.

And what nicer way to unwind and relax than a warm Jacuzzi?

And, of course, a nice glass of wine on the patio - CHEERS!

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