Madeira News Blog

From Tobi :

"Martin has passed some info on for the classic car rally , i have tried to translate as best i can".

The classic cars are on show in Funchal from the 14th June – 26th June.

The Classic Car Rally will run from the 23rd June – 26th June with the programme as follows.

23 June -  Verify Documents, Scrutinising and Techniques 19.00 – 20.00 on Av. Arriaga Funchal

24th June -  Inaugural Proof.

25th June – STAGE II – Camara de Lobos – São Vicente – Porto Moniz – Calheta

26th June – STAGE III – Machico – Santana – Funchal – Funchal

Several contributions below from Paul :

Porto "City of events". Expresso invited three Porto tourist firms for a trip on a tourist sightseeing bus. During the tour of the Old Port Mario Ferreira, founder of the Douro Azul, Barrias Augustine, owner of Majestic coffee and Rodrigo Pinto Barros, hotel entrepreneur and president of APHORT – Portuguese Association of Hotel, Catering and Tourism, spoke about the ambition of making Port "The City of events". VIDEO

Tips to boost tourism in the city. The three businessmen gave tips on boosting tourism in the city. Mário Ferreira maintained an independent promotion of the destination port and the creation of specific programms for tourists from cruise ships that dock in Leixoes and are in the city for 6 hours.

Barrias Augustine spoke of "urgent urban rehabilitation, to capitalize on the festas of S. Joao and to capture new attractions for the lower part of the city such as a casino
Enhancement of the the living room of the city & ‘I Love Porto’?

IMAGE CAPTION : Porto – Palau de la borsa – Sala àrab

Barros Pinto proposed a great music festival and the enhancement of the Avenue of the Allies as the living room of the city, welcoming stores of the big brands, in line with what is happening in other proncipal European cities. Also he shared with fellow travelers the suggestion of Porto replicating the campaign of New York and launching the slogan ‘I Love Porto’.

All believe that the price / quality ratio is one of the strengths of the city which gaining international notoriety after being European Capital of Culture and the football Euro 2004 championships. The increase in low cost airline flights is boosting demand too. Statistics show that the Porto and the North of Portugal is the fastest growing nationally for overnight stays with an  increases of 3.3% in 2009 and 6.7% in the first quarter of this year.

Steam trains in Portugal. Expresso reports : "Um passeio no comboio histórico a vapor Régua-Pocinho-Régua.."

Above image caption : Henschel & Son locomotive in Linha do Douro, Portugal

Image caption : "I was amazed to find these steam locomotives just left to rust away at Régua, in Portugal’s Douro Valley. I understand that they had been out of use since the mid 1980s, and this photo was taken in June 1991."

Photo Gallery of the steam train service operating now in the Douro: HERE

José Saramago, master of what-ifs. The Guardian books blog entry titled:

A communist who quarrelled with the church and fell out with Castro, the Portuguese Nobel laureate was wedded to the ‘possibility of the impossible’ and to the questioning of ‘truths’

image caption : Jose Saramago in San Sebastián at the International Film Festival 2006

Everything else from Elaine :

Holidays in the Algarve more expensive than the Caribbean? One week in the Algarve, in a five-star hotel including breakfast, could cost a couple in the region of €1,500. However, a week’s all-inclusive package (which includes all transport, food and beverages within the resort of choice) to destinations such as Punta Cana (Dominican Republic), Mexico (Riviera Maya), or Venezuela (Margarita Island), costs in the region of €2,000. Alternatively, the Portuguese could opt to ‘Staycate’ on the Islands of the Azores or Madeira, where the most affordable seven-night bed and breakfast package in a 4-star hotel costs in the region of €450 and €600 respectively. HERE

Price plunge puts Portugal top of holiday hotspots. Anyone thinking of a last-minute budget holiday in the sun should head to Portugal, according to a survey which claims prices there have fallen by more than 40% over the past 12 months. In its latest holiday costs barometer, Post Office Travel Money reports prices have plunged in a number of eurozone destinations. It says the biggest fall in prices has come in the Algarve area where the cost of eating out and of typical holiday purchases fell 42% in the last year. That means Portugal has ousted Bulgaria as the cheapest destination on its list. The total cost of the basket of goods bought in Portugal has fallen from £66 last year to £38, making it extremely good value for British holidaymakers. HERE

Welcome to Madeira. Arrival guides – the largest network of free travel guides. HERE

Costa Magica Tenerife and Madeira. YouTube video recorded from the Splendour of the Seas on March 30/31 2010.

Shark’s fin soup has a lot to answer for. HERE

Funeral for Portuguese Nobel Laureate in Lisbon. Hundreds of people have paid their last respects to author, Jose Saramago, the only Portuguese writer to have won the Nobel Prize for Literature. Euronews video HERE

News from Diário de Notícias and Jornal da Madeira

SATURDAY 19th JUNE

FRONT PAGE NEWS

Football and beer in someone else’s house. Youths were arrested yesterday afternoon in Anjos, Ponta do Sol while casually sitting on the sofa, drinking beer and watching a World Cup match. They had illegally entered the house and were surprised by the arrival of the police who had been alerted by neighbours. There was extensive damage to the interior of the house and outside areas. They originally protested their innocence but then admitted they had forced entry, allegedly with the aim of robbery. Six were minors and the other five were arrested and the case will be heard at the Court of Ponta do Sol. The house is a vacation home belonging to a lawyer living in Funchal and has been burgled twice before, the last time was within the last three weeks.

Porto Santo beach and Laurissilva have the vote of CR9. Cristiano Ronaldo has decided to help these two candidates for the 7 Natural Wonders of Portugal competition, after an appeal from the Vice-President of the Regional Government, João Cunha e Silva. Ronaldo posted his message on Facebook yesterday and it immediately received 3,446 approvals. In the first month of voting, the website registered less than 100,000 votes and these two Madeiran candidates were not amongst the favourites. Preferences were for: Arquipélago das Berlengas, Grutas de Mira de Aire, Lagoa das Sete Cidades, Paisagem Vulcânica do Pico, Parque Nacional Peneda- Gerês, Portinho da Arrábida and Ria Formosa. The 7 least voted for were: Algar do Carvão, Furna do Enxofre, Parque Natural da Arrábida, Parque Natural do Sudoeste Alentejano e Costa Vicentina, Ponta de Sagres, Pontal da Carrapateira and Portas de Rodão. The final voting date for the 21 finalists is September 7th with details on the website HERE.

ECONOMY

Binter connects Madeira to Tenerife. BinterCanaries announced on Friday the new schedule of flights between the Canary Islands and Madeira. There will be direct flights between Tenerife and Madeira in addition to those already existing between Gran Canaria and Madeira. The new link will operate from Los Rodeos between July 12th – September 13th. Flights between Tenerife and Madeira will be on Mondays at 12.00 and Saturdays at 11.10 while return flights are scheduled for 14.00 on Mondays and 13.00 on Saturdays. Flight times are maintained between Madeira and Gran Canaria; 12.00 on Thursdays and 11.00 on Sundays and returning on Thursdays at 14.00 and Sundays at 13.00. Since 2004, Binter has flown 110,000 passengers between these two islands. Flight time is 80 minutes on ATR 72-500 aircraft.

Geothermal project will move forward. Under the Energy Policy of the Region, new opportunities in the area of clean energy will be studied, including geothermal energy. European strategies aim to: find alternatives to oil, fight climate change, increase the energy security of countries and stabilize the price of energy products. The Region has already focused on hydro, wind and solar power and there are projects studying the possibilities of marine biofuels in Porto Santo and natural gas in Madeira. Promising geothermal sources in Madeira might be found at a depth of 3 – 4 kilometres and any sites need to be identified.

SUNDAY 20th JUNE

FRONT PAGE NEWS

New species found in the Selvagens. After a week of work, new species of marine flora and fauna have been found both on land and at sea at Selvagem Pequena. They have been discovered by researchers of the Task Group for the Extension of the Continental Shelf. Fifteen scientists are studying the coastal zone, a team of divers on the Creoula are studying depths between 5 and 25 metres and below 25 metres, the Oceanographic Vessel Gago Coutinho will be used after it has been repaired. Today, the team sails for Selvagem Grande. The researchers were surprised at the amount of litter they came across, for example plastics, toys and yogurt cartons and they set aside a day to remove them. Photos showing the researchers at work, species found and some of the litter. MULTIMEDIA

ECONOMY

Recovery of Madeira highlighted in the Portugal Travel Awards. The Regional Secretariat of Tourism and Transport was honoured yesterday at Vilamoura in the Algarve. The jury of the ‘Publituris Portugal Travel Awards’ highlighted the restoration of Madeira as a tourist destination after the February 20th floods. They acknowledged the work done by all entities but were disappointed that Madeira could not send a representative to receive the prize. Nominations were made by journalists then three candidates were selected in each category for final voting through the Internet. Madeira this year had few representatives in the 16 categories. Hotel Choupana Hills and Porto Bay Hotels & Resorts were among the finalists but failed to win their respective categories. At the end of the awards ceremony, a film promoting tourism in Madeira was shown and the award will be sent directly from Faro to Madeira on Monday.

MULTIMEDIA

‘Madeira, nome de flor’ coloured the bay. Slideshow of 13 photos from the third fireworks show in the Festival do Atlântico 2010. Last night’s show was presented by the firm Luso Pirotecnia. MULTIMEDIA

MONDAY 21st JUNE

FRONT PAGE NEWS

Regional Government wants to demolish warehouses licensed by the council. These warehouses are situated beside the stream at Tabua in Ribeira Brava. The two businessmen who own the warehouses have not heard about this decision but say they will comply providing they are properly compensated as relocating will be expensive. The Mayor of Ribeira Brava is surprised to hear about the demolition request since the warehouses were licensed and built before there was a local business park where the Vice-President of the Regional Government said they should be. When the Vice-President visited the area, he saw that the buildings restrict the flow of the stream and create a bottleneck that had caused flooding on February 20th. Ismael Fernandes does not want to enter into wars and in the same way as the council does not interfere in matters of the government, the council do not want the government interfering in matters that concern only them.

61 insolvencies declared in less than 6 months. Between January and June 18th, there were 83 applications for insolvency with the majority for businesses. The outcomes were 61 declarations of insolvency and 21 processes of closure with recovery orders. In 2009, there were a record 89 insolvencies. Countering this trend, there were 15,016 viable businesses in February 2010. That month, 62 businesses were started, 10.7% more than the previous month and in May, 67 enterprises were started which is 19.64% more than in April. These are good signs of economic recovery.

MADEIRA

Five years in prison for drug trafficking. A 38 year old woman was sentenced to five years and six months in prison at Porto Santo Court yesterday. She was the ringleader of a small network who imported drugs through the postal system. Another defendant was found not guilty but her son was given a suspended sentence and will be accompanied by social reintegration services. During the police operation, a 22 year old son of the former defendant fired a shotgun five metres away from a police officer but the bullet hit the patrol car. He will be sent to trial on July 12th for attempted homicide and resisting arrest.

There’s life above the Avenida do Mar.  "We are not animals, we are people of flesh and blood." This outcry of rebellion comes from those who are still waiting four months later for storm damage restoration work. They want to know why money donated to the island has not been used, for example funds collected by SIC. The meeting called by the CDU was attended by more than a hundred residents from places as disparate as Monte, Curral das Freiras, Lombos, Escadinhas da Estrela, Vasco Gil and Poço do Morgado. A woman criticized Sr. Alberto João (Jardim) for talking only of Funchal and Serra d’Água but not mentioning Curral where a mother has to wait ten years for her son to be officially declared deceased as his body has not been found. Another woman said that there had been 13 deaths in Poço do Morgado and some bodies have not been located. There are human and animal remains in the rubble which are beginning to smell and attract mosquitoes in the heat and there are open sewers which are a public health hazard. These words were echoed about Largo das Courelas and such scenes generate memories and distrust.

Another article reported that the Regional Secretary for the Environment and Natural Resources said an additional 1.3 million euros in subsidies will be available to farmers to help cover losses.

Participation of Madeira enchanted visitors. The oldest and most important agricultural event held in Portugal, the National Fair of Agriculture, took place in Santarém on 5th – 13th June. Twenty-one companies from Madeira took part and more than 40,000 visitors on June 12th responded enormously to the opportunity of tasting regional products. There was a culinary demonstration when two chefs prepared Madeiran cuisine, using genuinely Madeiran produce. There was a total of 166,000 visitors during the nine days of the event.

Miss Switzerland 2010 candidates in Porto Santo and Madeira. The twelve candidates visited Porto Santo for a photo shoot and filming yesterday. They travelled with 30 members of the media on the Lobo Marinho. On 24th June, there will be a photo shoot and filming in the centre of Funchal at the Avenida Arriaga and Forte de São Tiago. The TV broadcast will be on September 25th in Switzerland and should attract an audience of 1.8 million viewers. The event is supported by the Association for the Promotion of Madeira, Reid’s Hotel, TAP and the Regional Secretariat of Tourism. A farewell dinner will be held on June 25th.

EVENTS

Safe Summer campaign. This campaign runs from July 1st to September 15th. During periods when residents are absent from home, the police can be requested to carry out surveillance to prevent intruders. They can also provide information on home security. The application form can be filled out at police stations or on-line (at least 48 hours beforehand) through the Portal do Cidadão and choosing  the option “Verão Seguro – Chave Directa”.

ECONOMY

Fewer fish landed in the Azores. There was a 25% fall in the volume of fish unloaded at Azorean ports than over the same period in 2009. Between January and May, the Azorean fishermen auctioned 2,528 tonnes of fish compared to 3,390 in the first five months of last year. This reflects a reduction in the local fish stock and it is the worst year for fishermen in decades. To promote the recovery of local fish stocks in the seas of the Azores, there needs to be a temporary suspension of fishing.

MULTIMEDIA

Landslide victory celebrated in the Largo do Municipio. Portugal and North Korea match celebrations today. HERE 

Many thanks to Tobi, Paul and Elaine for sending in a contribution(s) for this blog.

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If you can, please contribute something Madeira related. A funny story or good or bad experience, a news item, or a story from a Madeira newspaper, a teaser, news of a bargain flight or item in a supermarket. Please help keep this blog going … without user contributions it won’t survive. Please only send in ‘exceptional’ or very topical photos by email attachment, as they take quite some time to process. Links to photos that are already online take much less time. Anything submitted for inclusion will be ‘cut and pasted’  to the blog very likely unchecked and unaltered, so please check anything through before sending it in, especially ‘automatic translations’, to avoid any ‘afterthoughts’. Blogs will be published when there is sufficient material to make one worthwhile. I can’t always respond to emails, so please accept my thanks in advance, and the attribution on the blog itself. Der.

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