Madeira, Portugal - Day 6

Wednesday, February 21, 2024

Today was our final day on the island of Madeira. We woke up construction noises coming from the apartment next door which wasn’t the most pleasant start to the day. Not that any of us slept wonderfully anyway on the hard prison-style mattresses in our airbnb. Andi said his mattress at summer camp was of better quality. My biggest complaint was the mosquito that buzzed in my ear all night long.

Around 8:00am, Andi and Aden walked down to the marina promenade near our apartment to buy some breakfast goodies from the bakery. They returned a few minutes later to report that the whole road was blocked with police barricades. Apparently, there’s a risk of rock slides today so the businesses down by the marina, where we had dinner & gelato last night, are closed today. The little cafe next door to our apartment building was also closed, so we decided to get dressed and grab breakfast elsewhere on our way to a morning walk in the mountains.

We spotted a place called Mad Coffee Bar & Restaurant as we made our way up the mountain in Calheta. Andi ordered two coffees, two donuts, and two croissants for the four of us, and we sat at a table inside the cafe to eat them.

From the restaurant, we continued driving up the mountain on ER211 to an area where several levado walks begin. One of the most popular hikes in Madeira is called Levada das 25 Fontes (aka: 25 waterfalls) which is in this area, but we are still in “easy mode” with Andi and were looking for a trail this morning that was short, easy, and without a lot of people. We settled on the Levada do Alecrim trail, fully knowing that we probably wouldn’t walk the entire length of the hike.

Driving up the mountain was more of a thrill than the walk itself! A posted sign said the road was a 20% grade, and it felt like it as we traveled straight up the side of the mountain. “Is this the right way?” Andi asked me more than once. “Is this even a road?” At times, we questioned if it was because the roadway was so narrow. It looked more like a bike path instead of a road for cars, though I’m not sure who would bike up the side of a mountain at 20% grade. We met other cars coming down the mountain and pulled over as far as we could to let them pass. There was even a garbage that passed us! I can’t imagine driving a big vehicle like that on the roads in Madeira.

There were a lot of cars parked at the top of the mountain, and even some shuttle buses which must drop off tourists off in this area where a lot of levada hikes begin. Our family followed signs for the Levada do Alecrim trail, which walks along a cement irrigation canal. It was a beautiful morning for a walk in nature — not too hot with temperatures in the mid-60’s and the sun was shining brightly.

A narrow footpath followed the levada (irrigation canal) through the forest with occasional openings in the trees to expansive views of the valley. The levada footpath was completely flat and easy to walk along. The only tricky part was meeting other people on the trail as someone has to step aside and allow the other group to pass.

Andi decided said he had enough energy to walk two miles today, so I watched my watch and made sure we didn’t go too far down the path. I’m so relieved that he’s feeling well enough to go on little adventures that I don’t want him to overdo it. We walked one mile on the trail, and then one mile back out before heading in the direction of our car.

Before we left, I wanted to see the other side of the parking area where the view of the clouds looked so pretty. We scaled down the hillside, making our way through some thorny bushes. Tory was wearing shorts so she complained about the little thorns scratching her legs. I stepped right into the middle of a cow pie! Shoot! Maybe venturing off the trail wasn’t such a good idea …

But the view was worth the effort. Wow! We were on top of the clouds with little peeks of the town of Calheta below. From a certain angle, it looked like Tory, Aden, and Andi were sitting on the very edge of the grass looking into the clouds. In reality, there was another road below them so it wasn’t as scary of a drop as it appeared.

What a view! This was, hands down, my favorite part of our morning. I also loved that while all the other tourists were walking along the levadas, we had this whole area and this incredible view to ourselves. Beautiful.

From there, the four of us climbed back up the hill (watching out for cow pies and thorny bushes this time!) and made our way back to our rental car. We followed the ER211 back down the mountain, stopping at a restaurant called Calheta Green for lunch. A nice outdoor patio had overlooking views of the town below, but our family opted to sit inside away from the cigarette smoking. Gah, I still think it’s so disgusting that there’s smoking allowed at restaurants here.

Calhetta Green had just opened for the day, so there weren’t many people in the restaurant. We decided to order espetadas (meat skewers cooked over hot coals) again because the wood fire was roaring in the back of the restaurant. I watched as the employee stoked the fire, and used a rake to flatten the coals back on the bottom of the hearth so it was nice and hot for grilling. Then, he threaded thick pieces of raw chicken onto big metal skewers, and laid them on a metal rack above the coals. The skewers rotated on the rack — in a similar way that a rotisserie chicken would — until they were cooked to perfection.

The meat was so juicy and flavorful! I also love the grand gesture of the presentation with the meat skewers hanging from a hook in the center of the table. Two skewers is the perfect amount of food for our family to eat along with a side of French fries and boiled vegetables. Andi also ordered us a cheese platter to snack on while we waited for our skewers to be cooked. The cheese platter featured a few different local cheeses, some delicious balsamic tomatoes, grapes, nuts, and bolo do caco (garlic bread that’s popular in Madeira).

Soft drinks in Madeira are always served with a glass of ice and a lemon wedge. It worries me every time because Aden always sets his glass on the edge of the table. This particular restaurant, Calheta Green, had tall, tipsy glassware so I just knew he was going to knock his drink over. Sure enough, he did. Luckily, the staff didn’t seem annoyed and came right over with a mop to clean up the spill.

After lunch, we returned to our rental house in Calheta to do school and work. Andi had calls scheduled all afternoon, so Tory, Aden, and I quietly did our school work and then snuck away to the beach. The kids did a great job today of doing their lessons quickly so we could take advantage of the sunny day.

I love that Praia da Calheta (Calheta beach) is just steps from our rented apartment. The three of us walked found a spot to sit on the crowded sand. Different than Spain, there were no topless sunbathers here. I’m not sure if that was a cultural thing in the Canaries, or if we’ll see that in other parts of Europe? Today, there were lots of families on the beach and it was a really happy, chill vibe.

Not more than 20 minutes after we’d been laying on the sand, we heard a loud crack! Then, a cloud of brown dust cascaded down the side of the mountain and a few big boulders flew through the air. The crowd gasped as we all watch it happen. From our viewpoint on the beach, it looked like the rocks landed right by people walking on the promenade above.

After the dust settled, Tory and I decided to walk up there to see if the rock really did hit anyone. Luckily, it fell in the barricaded area. No one was hurt. The whole street was still blocked off with police protecting the area on both sides. Later, Andi said he thought the blast was planned to eliminate the risk of the rocks falling unexpectedly. That might’ve been the case, but it was shocking to see rocks falling when we didn’t expect it.

The kids and I sat on the beach until Andi’s calls ended at 5:30pm. Aden swam in the ocean, and said it was the warmest water he’s been in for a while. I suspect the temperature of the water is warmer here because of the cement wall that creates this protected swimming area.

At 5:30pm, the three of us walked back to our airbnb. Andi said he didn’t feel like going out to dinner, especially since all the restaurants within walking distance of our apartment were closed. He and Tory decided to venture out by car and see what they could find to-go. They ended up going to a Portuguese snack bar, which are essentially take-out restaurants. Snack bars don’t have any tables (or just a handful if they do) and they serve basic sandwiches, fries, hamburgers, omelets, toasts, and beers. One of the most popular foods here in Portugal which are often sold at snack bars all over is called a prego sandwich. This includes meat (usually a thin slice of steak) with garlicky mayo & sometimes lettuce, tomato, pickle, and a fried egg. Andi ordered a couple of these sandwiches, but with chicken, a hamburger and fries, and a slice of lasagna. We shared all the food back at home. Honestly, it didn’t taste that great, but it was nice not having to hassle with going to a restaurant, parking, waiting to pay the bill, etc.

Early tomorrow morning, we are saying good-bye to the island of Madeira and flying to Lisbon to meet Andi’s sister Lindsay and nephew Arnie for a few days.