Madeira: Funchal (June 2012)

In the middle of the Atlantic Ocean lies Madeira, a volcanic island rich in vegetation. Its year-round sub-tropical climate provides perfect conditions for exotic flowers and fruit trees and makes it a colorful destination.

Funchal is Madeira's capital city and major harbour and is a great place to stay when visiting the island as it has lots of great restaurants and an amazing market for fresh fruit and vegetables.

Welcome to Funchal...

...where the streets are covered in flower petals

Narrow streets

The famous Mercado dos Lavradores, fresh fruit and veg market

Inside the market

Passionfruit

Old woman in traditional gear selling flowers

Birds of Paradise

Passion fruit in various flavors

Various little parks in the city

Tree with mysterious looking things....

Funchal

Cable car to the mountains

For a church holiday volunteers arranged petals into beautiful patterns

It was painful to see it all being destroyed

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Porto Santo (June 2012)

If you are in Madeira and are missing quiet, sandy beaches, take a trip to Porto Santo island! Believe me, you will not be disappointed. There are two ways to get from Madeira to Porto Santo: either take the plane from Funchal airport which is the more expensive option, or take the ferry from the port of Funchal which is what I did. The good thing about taking the ferry is that Porto Santo Line ( http://www.portosantoline.pt/index.php ) has deals with some hotels on the island making it cheaper to book tickets and hotel together rather than booking separately. Porto Santo itself is very small, the main town is called Vila Baleira and has a number of cafes, restaurants and small shops. Nonetheless it is enough to keep you entertained for a few days and nothing is better than to relax on the 9km long beach after some extensive sight-seeing in Madeira! My restaurant tip for the island is a little restaurant called Pe na Agua ( https://www.facebook.com/PeNaAgua ) located right on the...

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