Painting Description

We were poured off our ship at Funchal, which is a protected basin on the southeast coast. The city of 120,000 is congested with traffic that streams into this hub from the raked landscape surrounding it. We spent some time in town, that is riddled with religious architecture, looking over the tidy central shopping area, but the real trial was a chance to get up into the hills where much of the population lives. The journey on the corkscrew roads up and down the terraced hill is arduous, but obviously many find it rewarding to live on these small mountains. There is still a strong connection to the land which is obvious in the carefully tended allotments that quilt the terraces. In a country of near perfect climate, many Madeirans have achieved a balance between rural and urban. My knowledge of Madeira was limited to “have some Madeira, my dear”. That sweet fortified port or sherry-like wine is of course used in many fish recipes, and has given a distinctive profile to this Portuguese island cuisine. Our one-day visit from a cruise ship, whet our appetite to return, possibly some winter for an extended stay.

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