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Noyelles Travels
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Location Date Europe 
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- Funchal
Friday 6th November
A day at sea which was pretty quiet. We did see a dolphin & also many ships including 3 warships but the main event was stopping the ship at Gibraltar to take a sick passenger off. We made a poor showing at the Pub trivia quizzes today so will try harder tomorrow.
Saturday 7th November
Another day at sea so we got a lot of reading done. We normally breakfast on Deck 12 where there is a massive range of foods on offer including excellent fresh pineapple & other fruit together with bacon & eggs, cereal & just about anything one could want.
Sunday 8th November
Woke up this morning just at dawn & saw an island as we sailed on to Funchal, Madeira an autonomous region of Portugal. The ship docked at about 9am & we caught an ancient bus into the town to go on yet another Hop-on-hop-off bus for a tour out to one of the outlying areas west along the coast. Funchal is built on the hillside with a population of about 200,000 & the older buildings are in a blue stone from lava very similar to that of Melbourne. The island, about 40km by 20km, appears to be incredibly fertile & in between the houses & apartments there are banana plantations & vineyards which are quite different from the Australian ones. The vines grow on trellises which they cover completely so that they look impenetrable from above & are on steep slopes.
By midday the hilltops were in the clouds & it is obvious that the climate is pretty wet at the higher levels but is also very mild as it is so tempered by the sea. It is truly beautiful & would be wonderful for walking.Unfortunately we were too late to see inside the Cathedral & churches as they closed up immediately after the services so we contented ourselves with walking through the narrow picturesque streets & having a well earned beer & Portuguese egg tart each. On returning to the ship we found that either we walked or paid about €10 each for a cab to the ship. Naturally the mean gene won, so we walked, which was lucky for Dick, as we found him a suitable hat to protect him from the rigours of the sun we expect to encounter on our way further south. The ship left at 6pm & we now have several days to tackle the North Atlantic.
In the evening we went to the first concert that we have really enjoyed, given by 4 latin tenors who sang an amazing range of arias & songs beautifully arranged & accompanied by the excellent house band. Far and away the best evening we have had so far.
A day at sea which was pretty quiet. We did see a dolphin & also many ships including 3 warships but the main event was stopping the ship at Gibraltar to take a sick passenger off. We made a poor showing at the Pub trivia quizzes today so will try harder tomorrow.
Saturday 7th November
Another day at sea so we got a lot of reading done. We normally breakfast on Deck 12 where there is a massive range of foods on offer including excellent fresh pineapple & other fruit together with bacon & eggs, cereal & just about anything one could want.
Sunday 8th November
Woke up this morning just at dawn & saw an island as we sailed on to Funchal, Madeira an autonomous region of Portugal. The ship docked at about 9am & we caught an ancient bus into the town to go on yet another Hop-on-hop-off bus for a tour out to one of the outlying areas west along the coast. Funchal is built on the hillside with a population of about 200,000 & the older buildings are in a blue stone from lava very similar to that of Melbourne. The island, about 40km by 20km, appears to be incredibly fertile & in between the houses & apartments there are banana plantations & vineyards which are quite different from the Australian ones. The vines grow on trellises which they cover completely so that they look impenetrable from above & are on steep slopes.
By midday the hilltops were in the clouds & it is obvious that the climate is pretty wet at the higher levels but is also very mild as it is so tempered by the sea. It is truly beautiful & would be wonderful for walking.Unfortunately we were too late to see inside the Cathedral & churches as they closed up immediately after the services so we contented ourselves with walking through the narrow picturesque streets & having a well earned beer & Portuguese egg tart each. On returning to the ship we found that either we walked or paid about €10 each for a cab to the ship. Naturally the mean gene won, so we walked, which was lucky for Dick, as we found him a suitable hat to protect him from the rigours of the sun we expect to encounter on our way further south. The ship left at 6pm & we now have several days to tackle the North Atlantic.
In the evening we went to the first concert that we have really enjoyed, given by 4 latin tenors who sang an amazing range of arias & songs beautifully arranged & accompanied by the excellent house band. Far and away the best evening we have had so far.
- comments
Janine A REAL Portuguese Tart - so envious! Had our annual social work reunion here couple w'ends ago. Everyone impressed with the blue stone of Melb.