Culture, creativity and colour in Madeira
Madeira is a region close to Portugal; it is full of culture and unique surprises around every corner. I visited this island on the 10th February and returned on the 15th of February, and I hated leaving this hidden island. We started the trip off by visiting the cable cars in the city of Funchal, it is one of the main tourist attractions here and gives you an insight into the villages and you can overlook the remains of the recent devastating fire, which destroyed many houses in august last year, but it showed how the community work together to overcome this sad event, even when their isn’t a large mass of people. Furthermore, this island only has a population of 111,000, which is very different from the UK but I could never imagine getting bored here due to the spread of activities, such as mountain trekking, intriguing tours and fascinating boat rides.
Throughout the next couple of days we indulged in the amazing food of Madeira with all different tastes and spices, visiting restaurants full of kind people who loved to care for the customers. During our stay here we also went on an open top bus tour, which meant we got to discover a lot of Madeira and one day visited the highest cliff in Europe overlooking the mesmerising sea. In the course of this tour we also visited the town of Funchal many times, experiencing the life of locals here and vising places like the Madeira version of the Ritz and taking strolls along the streets to witness the beautiful environment.
For the duration of our stay here we also visited the market, this was full to the brim with fruits, vegetables and gifts as well as a local fish market, this was one of the highlights of my stay due to the welcoming atmosphere and the fact that you could tell the locals worked hard to make a living. Another subject I liked about Madeira was the creative art, which caught your eye, leading you to discover the deeper meaning of the distinctive colour ridden paintings.
Altogether, Madeira is a beautiful island and is under appreciated as this place enriches you with happiness, from the moment I landed here. However, even though this is only a small island there is so much more I wish I could’ve done such as visit the amazing botanical gardens, go trekking and experience life through the local’s voices. Hopefully, one day I can visit again, during the summer when it reaches extreme, warm temperatures, as I really loved it here.
Harriet Ruck, Thamesview School.
