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Madeira

Exploring the Portuguese Island

By Kader FollesPublished 6 years ago 3 min read
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Photo Taken Using 35mm Film. Edited.

Madeira is a popular holiday destination. The Portuguese island offers a mixture of luxury villas, holiday complexes, and wild wilderness. As we flew into the airport it seemed like a maze of holiday houses, swimming pools, and restaurants... Not my cup of tea! We spent the first night in a villa in Canico. If luxury is your thing, this place would suit you perfectly. Palm trees and swimming pools adorned the whitewashed glass-sided pads. All sat proudly in a row overlooking the terquoise water. The interior was dotted with designer furniture and lighting. Each room with its own luxury bathroom, and the cherry on the cake was a large infinity pool overlooking the sea. Just a short walk up the road and we were spoilt for choice with five star resturaunts and top seafood menus. Classy bars and cafes. It was the perfect millionaire's paradise. As for us, we crave adventure! Not relaxation. So we caught the next bus into Funchal, the main city on the island.

We spent the next few days exploring the colourful streets and market places. The market was a vibrant buzzing place, full of people trading everything from plants to exotic fruits. Although some of the salesmen could be rather pushy, the experience was fantastic. The aromas and colours transported us to a tropical paradise. I’d never seen too many colours in one place. It's a shame my camera had ran out of juice. I wish I could have shown you!

View from the Hostel, Ribiera Brava

From there we continued to Ribeira Brava, a town nestled in a steep valley overlooking the sea. We booked into a quaint little hostel in the upper part of the town. Much more our style! The next day we walked the winding streets and paths to the bottom and into town. We quickly became bored of the endless cafes and bars. We don't do "tourist places" very well at all.

Knowing that this island has so much more to offer, we arranged to hire a car for the last few days.

We drove further inland, away from the tourists and into the real part of the island. The surroundings changed instantly, into steep valleys filled with numerous cascading waterfalls and small shabby villages. Tiny farms with terraced fields covered part of the hillside. That's more like it! There was still mist rising up the far edge of the ravine, creating a beautiful atmosphere. Woodland on either side of us, we felt much more at home here. We enjoyed the countless walks around the steep river valleys and canyons, walked around and under waterfalls. A hiker's dream.

Photo Taken Using 35mm Film

As we drove further and further up into the steep hills, the temperature seemed to drop and the climate changed dramatically. Woodland gave way to bleak open moorland, a gentle cool breeze filled the air. Continuing around the meandering road, twisting and turning, excited to see what's around the next bend. A thick fog started to build up as we entered the clouds, and vision became very poor. We drove carefully, anticipating what there would be to see as we came out the other side of the cloud. We could never have guessed in our wildest dreams.

Snow! It was snowing in Madeira, in the Mediterranean sea.

Photo Taken on 35mm Film, Caught Between Slides

We spent a total of seven days on the island and while we thoroughly enjoyed our stay, I feel as though we had spent enough time there. We'd explored both the holiday towns and the wild side. We'd tried the local cuisine and the delicious "Poncha." We'd explored some of its narrow streets and colourful markets. Now it was time to catch a flight and head back to the home van, ready for the next adventure.

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About the Creator

Kader Folles

Hello, my name is Kader. Hopeless Wanderer. Forager. Van-Dweller. Nomad.

I have been living and travelling with no fixed abode for the past 8 years of my life. It's time to share some of my stries with you!

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