Nov. 5, 2021
We docked early this morning in Madeira, a Portuguese island in the Atlantic just about 200 miles west of Casablanca. The island has rugged and steep mountains. For only 200 square kilometers it is packed with beautiful sights, beautiful people, and beautiful food. We enjoyed all three today.
Our visit kicked off with a tour to the top of one of their famous peaks overlooking a quaint village about a thousand feet below us on a sheer cliff. The ride up by bus made our ankles a bit cold but the cool and fresh air was worth it. And the views were awesome. Then we descended back down the narrow road to the capital city of Funchal. Our first stop was the Cathedral in Monte. The last emperor of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire was exiled on the island in 1918 and died here. His tomb was in the church.
Then just down the hill a few steps, we took a ride on a most unusual form of transportation that has been employed for at least 100 years. It’s the Basket Sleigh-Ride. These are special baskets who’s skids are made of cork and very slippery down the street pavement. Two guys push you along and guide the sleigh at high speed. We took a thrilling 1o minute ride down to the city. Then, to complete the tour we visited a lace factory where the island mothers have been making lace products by hand for generations. They get paid 25 euros for completing 1,000 stitches!
Completing our day, we had a delicious lunch of fresh cod, a bottle of famous Portuguese green wine, dessert and coffee at a local restaurant. Total cost less than 56 Euros. Brenda and I both fell in love with this island. It is beautifully clean, the natural scenery is beautiful and the people are beautifully friendly too. I have a notion we will be back one day.
