Day 5 - Land at Last

The lights of Land became visible as we drifted during the night. Another are member had lost his mind and couldn’t wait to be rescued. He there himself into the water and started swimming towards the lights. That was the last we saw of him.

We met up for breakfast a bit earlier this morning. We had arrived in port and were eager to get off the ship and go for a walk during the morning. This part of Funchal is familiar to us as we had holidayed here in November 2018. We disembarked and walked out of the port area, passing the Cristiano Ronaldo hotel and museum. 

We Climbed the steps up to St Catherine’s Gardens and wandered around the lake before turning back towards the town and dropping down to the promenade. We walked the full length, as far as the old fort. It was interesting seeing the ticket touts trying to sell rides on the cable car when I could clearly see the queue stretching out of the building, along the road and round the nearby park. I heard one guy admit the queue was at least 2 hours! We were not interested anyway (having done it last time). We carried on to the fort and then looped up through part of the old town before dropping back to the promenade. 

We arrived back at the ship in time to have a quick comfort break and then a glug of water.

Next on the agenda was an excursion “Leisurely Scenes of Madeira”. We climbed aboard the bus and took the last couple of seats. No sooner had we sat down than we set off. The first stop was west of the port, passing Reid’s Hotel, and the Vidamar where we stayed last time. We then looped inland and up to a viewpoint at Pico dos Barcelos where we were able to stretch our legs and take some photos. 

From there the coach wove its way back and forth up the switchback roads, with vertiginous drops to keep us alert, as we climbed to Pico do Serrado. The bus driver certainly earned his money on that drive. Again we stopped and were treated to a cup of tea and some cake in a restaurant before having some free time to wander about and take photos. It was an absolutely beautiful spot and the drop to the valley floor was breathtaking, but we were 1904m up a mountain, and the valley floor was virtually sea level. 

The bus then started on the descent, time and again having to stop to allow traffic coming up the hill room to get past. Our next stop was Cabo Girão which is one of the tallest sea cliffs in Europe at 580m. The glass viewing platform gave us some entertainment as people panicked at the thought of crossing it. We took our photos then stopped for a beer before climbing back on the coach and heading back to the ship.

We left Funchal at about 5pm, heading the 290 nautical miles to Gran Canaria.

We met up with Jane and Trevor for dinner, as usual. Di started with Chilled Tandoori Salmon with Kachumber Salad, and I had the Salt Cod Fritters. The for our main dishes, Di chose Roasted Pork Fillet Medallions with Fruity Cider Jus, and I selected the Arroz de Marisco. This latter dish was brilliant and one that I would certainly choose again. It almost becomes boring looking for superlatives to match the dishes that we have on offer every evening.

From the Bay Tree restaurant, we went to the Havana. We had, sort of, decided to give the entertainment in The Arena a miss. It was a pair of comedians doing “Eric & Ernie” and somehow it didn’t’t seem right. We watched the gig in Havana: Sounds of the 70s” until it ended and decided that the follow-on “Deal or No Deal” was not our cup of tea. We went to Tamarind, found a nice spot and sat and chatted. By 9pm. We decided that it had been a full day, and it was time for bed.

One last bit of news: Ellie was declared footballer of the week at the after school club. I expect nothing less. What’s more I wish to see her collect the Ballon D’Or in the future!