Madeira News Blog

TODAY’S PHOTO : Thanks to Martin … "Picture of a typical Madeiran street scene, very tasty!". I don’t judge or select photos, just about everything (within reason) gets published, and I thought twice about this one, but it grew on me in the end.

"The summer time bite has gone, but what a great season it was for Madeira. There were at least 10 fish pushing GRANDER status caught by the boats this season. This is VERY much a no kill fishery and they take great pride in that". ONE FOR THE FISHERMEN

Man killed in Bairro da Nogueira – Police investigate a homicide that occurred Wednesday night. A man of 33 years died after suffering a violent blow to the head, and the reason may be "excessive self-defence". The police are investigating a crime of murder that occurred late on Wednesday, after 10 pm, in the neighbourhood of Nogueira, in Camacha. Two men, aged 33 and 29 years, one armed with a knife, engaged in mutual aggression that occurred in Rua do Vimioso, at the housing estate, but the tragic outcome actually happened in the house of the alleged murderer. The victim who suffered the blow to the head, was struck by an object like a bat or baton, and succumbed to his injuries.

The Diário today has on the front page a health feature, warning that we on Madeira have bad eating habits :

Too much fat through cakes, meat and chocolate – Too much sugar through drinks and sweets in general – Too much salt added to meals, and in processed food purchased – Not eating breakfast – Excess of alcoholic drinks – Excessive meals (with a picture showing a very full English breakfast). The good news is that page 4 of the Diário give suggestions for healthier eating, especially timed for world healthy eating day, but I suspect that the real information is only in the printed edition, and not online, I will check tonight. I don’t know what is the matter with these ‘health experts’. They say you should always eat breakfast, and then say that an English breakfast is not healthy. They say you should drink alcohol in moderation, and then tell you that a weeks alcohol allocation in one night is not right. It’s all so confusing, and fried muesli on a Saturday morning just doesn’t do the trick.

Many thanks to Elaine for the rest of yesterday’s news :

Mistake acknowledged by the Diário in yesterday’s lottery story. Only half of the winning stakes were sold in the shop cited. The owner said the remaining portions were distributed to the ‘Loja do Cafe’ in Machico.

Teachers still waiting. Recently, there have been repeated complaints that teachers have not had their evaluations, necessary for career progression. Unlike the Azores and the Mainland, the teachers in Madeira have not been able to have their grades and salaries changed since 2005, resulting in some loosing an increase of 200 Euros per month, which is usually linked to length of service. The two teacher’s unions met with the Regional Secretary of Education who promised the evaluations would begin again and money backdated, but no date was given for the Government to meet to agree on a new evaluation model.

90% of the firemen in Santana enrolled in the Union. More discontent. There are anonymous complaints (for fear of retaliation) to the newspaper that there are not enough firefighters and the training is  insufficient. The Commander in Santana is unhappy that the staff have chosen to publically complain and refutes their allegations, saying "he never neglected the safety of the population."  The union have met the management but still worry about the mountainous terrain, number of population and tourists served, especially Pico Ruivo visitors, increased traffic due to new access roads and that there are insufficient men to cover.

Pedro receives a wheelchair. After two years of being confined to his parent’s house, 22-year old Pedro, who has profound cerebral palsy, received a specially-adapted wheelchair. 4,600 Euros was raised for the wheelchair through activities of the Jardim Escola Joao de Deus in Nazaré, where the wheelchair was presented at a ceremony on Wednesday. The Special Education and Rehabilitation Services care for 184 children and adults with physical disabilities, 18 of whom are institutionalized.

Dirty, smelly but happy.  Description of the mood yesterday afternoon of 350 new University of Madeira students who are having a week of ‘freshmen’ activities. The traditional parade was between the campuses and the port, for the baptism in the bay. This was helpful to wash off the ‘desserts’ (eggs, flour, ketchup, any smelly food) thrown at them by veterans. It was voluntary and attended by the majority of new students who found it enjoyable. According to the Diário de Cidade, there was no shortage of alcohol.

TUI hold the Holly awards ceremony in Funchal this year. Instead of Germany, the tour operator has decided to relocate the ceremony to the countries of the winners. It is on October 21st. at the Museum Quinta das Cruzes, as both the museum and gardens are important tourist areas. As well as the Pestana chain and Porto Bay receiving awards, the Albergaria Dias has been ranked the top position by the German customers of TUI.

Madeira on the route of scientific-themed cruises. The expeditionary ship, the ‘National Geographic Explorer’ with 80, mainly American, tourists docked on Thursday and leaves on Friday at 16.00. It is the first time this type of ship has arrived so  it will be greeted with a reception aboard for the passengers and the Ships Enthusiast’s Club members. There is a team of scientists on board to advise the tourists and it arrived from Lisbon and will go to the Canary Islands, Cape Verde and then Brazil. It has had permission to anchor by the Deserta Grande island so passengers can disembark to visit the nature reserve.

Catches of the black scabbard fish plummet again. In the first seven months of this year, there were 505 tonnes less than normal auctioned. February to April were the worst months and in the first six months, the fishermen’s income dropped by 23% or 896,000 Euros. In July, the catch dropped by 16%, a loss of 58,000 Euros. The reduction in catch is both due to reduced stocks and size of fish. They are now having to go further out to sea, between 600 and 800 miles from Madeira, thus increasing their fuel bill.

In contrast, the tuna fish catch has increased by 341 tonnes to 1841 tonnes.  The best months have been May and June.

Madeira asks for special treatment of the outermost territories. At the Conference of the Presidents of the Outermost Territories, in the Canary Islands, the Vice President of the Madeiran Government stated that when Brussels evaluated these regions for aid, they under-evaluated the compensation the EU should allow in the Common Agricultural Policy after 2013, especially with ongoing international negotiations on the banana. The regions also have had unequal treatment in transport policy and the chairman of the meeting insists that the EC President, Jose Barroso, asks for specific support for the regions which is needed to counteract the effect of the economic crisis.

Open Day at the Centre for Floriculture on Saturday. Lugar de Baixo in Ponta do Sol. To raise awareness of subtropical plant cultivation.

Madeira Wine Tasting at the Portuguese Embassies in Paris and London. Five Madeira Wine companies took part, aimed at promoting the wines to journalists, retailers, distributors and chefs. The English market in 2008 was the second largest for export, consuming 242,919.50 litres and a turnover of 1,447,092.98 Euros. I wonder where the half litre went … was that you Martin? Der

PSP Police give safety advice to elderly in Santa Cruz. Organised by the Casa do Povo de Santa Cruz. Thought necessary as an increased number of older people, more living alone and scams. They were instructed to break old habits, like leaving a door key under the mat or leaving the door wide open when visiting neighbours. Advice was also; to have a telephone ready for emergencies, not to open the door to strangers or sign proposals that come from them, have a door-chain fitted, strengthen entry points and have adequate lighting. Also be suspicious in the street of certain approaches when going out to obtain money.

Harrods will sell gold bars. According to the Diário Digital, Harrods in London will now sell gold bars and coins. They will also buy back the gold at any time at the market price. "Harrods is known for its innovation and first class service. It’s our formula for success" the store said in a statement.

The Diário has published details of the Apple Festival in Camacha which starts tonight.

Program – XXIV Apple Festival
Friday, October 16
14 hours – Decorate the stage – schools of the 1st Cycle of Camacha
20 hours – Animation and Karaoke with DJ Silva
Saturday, October 17
16 hours – Beginning of the manufacture and sale of cider apple Camacha
17 hours – Official – Entities visit stands
17.15 – Group of Pilgrimages Old Rochão
20 hours – Group of Pilgrimages and Traditions of Camacha
20:45 – Folk Dance Group of the House of People’s Camacha
21.30 – Banda Parish of St. Lawrence
22:30 – Conjunto Musical ‘New Wave’
Sunday, October 18
12 hours – Beginning of the manufacture and sale of cider apple Camacha
17 hours – Folklore Group of Rochão
18 hours – Folklore Group of Good Hope
18:30 – Grupo Folklore Juvenile Camacha
19 hours – avenged
20 hours – Duo Musical ‘Wave Duo’
22 hours – Musical Group of the Magi

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