Island in Atlantic – Madeira Island

As we left Lisbon, the flight took us to the city of Funchal on Maderia Island.   This island is part of Portugal, but is located off the coast of Africa.

A week before we landed on the island, Hurricane Leslie had made it passed a little North of Madeira.  The portion of the island where we stayed didn’t seem to have been effected by the Hurricane.   Storms are frequent visitors to this small island. The weather alerts in this region announce them as “Coastal Alerts”.    The alerts are basically thunderstorms that roll across the area almost daily.

Upon approaching Madeira, the airport is on the water’s edge near the town of Santa Cruz.   This airport has to deal with rain and wind shifts all the time.   Some airlines have cancelled all flights to the location because of the number of times they are not able to land safety.

As we approached the landing area, looking out the plane window, it is a little scary knowing that the runaway was so Narrow. Not only narrow, but on one side is the ocean and the other is mountain.

We made it safely and off we go to visit the island.

Our stay was very nice.

The condo was a 3 bedroom, 2 bath located on the top floor.  From the balcony, we could sit, drink a glass of wine and enjoy the views of the ocean below.    It was a very comfortable stay.

Like Lisbon, everything was either climbing a hill or strolling down one.  My legs were begging for me to stop this nonsense of walking 5-7 hours a day.

We, however, walked up and down the hill every day to reach the main street.  This street was the location of lots of cafes, grocery stores and hotels.

Everyone was friendly and like other places we have visited, English is spoken.   We tried to use the little Portugeses that we had learned, but found it unnecessary.   Everyone would reply back to us in English.

Open Air Bus tours

One of the best things we did was buy tickets for the open air tour bus.  We purchased the 2-day pass and it was worth the money.

First day on the bus, sitting on the top, the drive was towards the main area of Funchal.   It is a charming place to visit.  Narrow streets, hustling with tourist every where.   Lots of twist and turns as the bus made it way through the historic section, passing cruise ships, parks, shopping center.   There are beautiful gardens every where.

Cruise ships lined the port area. Guest off the ships were happily going about strolling the down area and parks.

Second day, the bus ride was in the opposite direction towards the mountains.   The street seemed to get even more narrow than the previous day.

I took a few pictures to show narrow street.  The curves in the road were extremely tight.

I actually could touch the wall of houses at some points.

The drive took us high into the mountain until we reached a small community.  Small open air cafes lined the water’s edge in this area.  Fishing boats were docked in the cove.  It was a beautiful day.

Here we had the choice of staying on the bus or transferring to a smaller bus to go further up the mountain.   We chose to stay on the bigger bus.   I couldn’t imagine getting on a smaller one.

The bus twisted and turned through the most narrow streets.  It would sway ever so slightly with each turn.   It’s unbelievable how the driver managed all the curves.

At some point, I would lend towards the inside of the bus because of the height and the drop below.   I’m already frightened of height and a moving vehicle, sitting on top of an open air bus; I thought I would throw up.

Each bus tour lasted 1 1/2 – 2 hours and well worth the small amount of money paid.

Lots of Walking

Other than the tours, we walked the island area near the condo.  Enjoyed sitting in the open air cafes having a few glasses of wine or tasting a local beer

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It’s a wonderful place to visit.

Like other places, we have to leave for another adventure.

Next stop –  Porto, Portugal.

60plusandfearless,

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