Land Ho! Funchal, Madeira

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Land Ho! Funchal, Madeira



What a beautiful sight to wake up and see the town of Funchal out our window. Eight days at sea are fine, but land is a welcome sight. Because Bruce has had a cold for the past few days, we decided to take a shorter shore trip today and come back to the ship for lunch. Madeira is very mountainous. It is only 35 miles long and 13 miles wide, but the roads rise and drop from ravine to ravine making travel times long. Since it was formed by volcanoes that erupted deep in the sea, it has never been part of a continent – Africa or Europe – but always an island, or string of islands some of which are uninhabited. Legend suggests it may be what is left of the lost continent of Atlantis. Madeira is an independent state and is part of Portugal. The language is Portuguese but English is required in school as well as another foreign language –German or French or Spanish are mostly chosen.



We took a bus ride that went to two exceptional lookout areas. As we wove back and forth around true hairpin turns, the driver frequently had to stop to wait for oncoming traffic to slowly pass. Often, mirrors were placed to avoid meeting in narrow spaces. We had to back up only once. Being on the outside going around those bends was breathtaking as the drop went straight down. Once on the top, however, the view was spectacular. Of course at every stop peddlers sold their wares. Lace and embroidery items were beautiful. Some venders sold the famous Madeira wine which comes dry, semi-sweet, or sweet.



Every inch of land is used in some way. The hills are terraced and contain sugar cane or bananas, surprisingly enough, as well as other crops. They export bananas which grow year round. The island also has fresh water to the extent that they bottle it and ship it to the Canary Islands. The guide told us that this year has been the driest year in 150 years.

On our way back to the ship we stopped at a fishing village where Winston Churchill used to stay.



Tomorrow is a day at sea and then we arrive at Portimao, Portugal.

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