Madeira News Blog

(26th August). Today’s main news story : ‘Operators Abandon – Of the various agents, just the Italian is able to continue operating on Porto Santo. The situation with the hotels becomes complicated. The capital Vila Baleira gets closer and closer to closing for the Winter’. Same old thing, and if anyone had asked me yesterday who is interested in Porto Santo for a Winter holiday, my answer would have been the Italians and a few Madeirans. This is not news, everyone knows it, especially those poor people who rely on tourism on Porto Santo.  Anyway, the occupancy rate of around 15 to 20% last year is likely to drop even further. Marco Ferreira, Director of the Hotel Porto Santo Vila Baleira Paradisius Resort & SPA, a unit that relies heavily on the Italian operator during the cold season, expects "an occupancy rate of around 2%". Even worse will be one or two months without any customers, and that is "dramatical". "Given the economic situation in Italy, where things are also tough," what we are expecting is for it to be a very bad time he anticipates. "Better to be home sleeping than to be here to see this". Another hotelier complains that Porto Santo is disadvantaged more than other destinations, because of the lack of flights, which are expensive and infrequent. Two of the readers comments in the Diário are : "turn the record over" and "who builds a hotel in the Sahara desert and then complains that there is a lack of transport", sum up the situation much better than I could. It’s sad, but there is a way out of this, and it’s not through a talking shop that does nothing other than complain.

‘More Than 600 Russians In Two Months – New connection of TAP between Moscow and Lisbon channels more tourists to Madeira’. Between 9th June and 31st July over 600 Russian tourists used the new service to travel to Madeira, by a connecting flight. The new route operates 5 times a week, coming from Domodedovo on the outskirts of Moscow, and so far has had an occupation rate of around 75%. TAP expects around 2,500 Russians to connect to Madeira by the end of this year. Good news for tourism, especially as on average the Russians spend 3 times as much as the average German tourist.

‘French Airline Starts Flights To Madeira In October – Aigle Azur will make a weekly connection between Funchal and Paris’. I am pretty sure this was covered some time ago, but anyway the first flight is on 24th October, and then on Saturdays thereafter, leaving Orly at 2.45 pm arriving here at 5 pm. The return leg leaves Madeira Airport at 6 pm, arriving in Paris at 22.25 pm. More information and bookings HERE

(25th August). Today’s main news story : ‘Euro Support At Risk – Madeira is the second worst region in Portugal for the use of European funds. Below, only the Algarve’. The EU has allocated €21 billion for expenditure in Portugal, to spend in the period 2007 to 2013. Madeira has 398 approved applications from this funding worth €140 million, but only money from 20 of these. It’s just 2% of the available pot, with the north of Portugal bagging 41%, Alentejo 12%, and the Azores 5%. I am sure there must be a financial scandal against the government here somewhere, for the Diário to have made it the main headline. It’s one of those dreaded financial articles full of abbreviations and financial terms that nobody understands, so I will use my time more effectively elsewhere.

The main photo today shows a taxi rank, with the first in the queue out of his cab and looking rather annoyed : ‘Free ‘Eco Line’ Infuriates Taxi Drivers – The taxi drivers on the rank are worried and indignant with Albuquerque and Conceição Estudante : the free transport in ecologically friendly buses threatens to explode the market’. Taxis in "slow death". "In reality, we don’t know what the future will hold for taxi drivers after 1st September". It is with concern that the president of the Taxi Association AITRAM, António Loreto, sees the future of these professionals after Funchal council and the regional secretary for tourism and transport revealed their intentions to make travel free on the ‘Eco Line’ buses. Alongside the illegal competition from some transport companies, Loreto says that this latest news is tormenting his members and "is going to damage yet more  the life of the taxi drivers". He believes that the Eco Line is a experimental initiative, with a duration of six months. "It seems that we just have to pay taxes, whilst others take our business" he adds, referring to the fact that it will be very difficult to attract tourists and residents when there is a free bus every 10 minutes connecting the main points of the city and hotels. There are 450 taxi drivers in Funchal, and over a thousand jobs overall, that depend on the trade. This week AITRAM will hold an emergency meeting with its members to analyse the problem. Not much sympathy from me when it comes to taxi drivers in Funchal, I guess the ones that are that way inclined will be ripping off a few more tourists to try to fill their pockets. Tough on the good ones though, doing my politically correct bit of course. What price a cleaner environment eh? I am hopping mad with jealousy because we (over my way) will continue to have the filthy old polluting buses of Rodoeste, and still have to pay for them. All the good stuff goes to Funchal as usual, sod the poor people out in the country.

‘Only Two Salvage / Rescue Stations Operational – The programme for 6 marine assistance centres is far from the end’. Network of stations in "dry dock". The six centres for costal rescue stations were promised in 2007, but progress is slow. In fact the only one in operation is in Funchal, although the one in Santa Cruz (which will act as the HQ) situated under the airport runway, is used in necessity, but has not yet been inaugurated. Porto Santo should be ready in 2010. With the other three, the situation is uncertain. In Porto Moniz, APRAM awaits authorisation from the civil protection authorities to start work in the port, and in Lugar de Baixo, well we all know the situation there. Porto da Cruz is in no better situation, depending on the decision of the government regarding the harbour location, with nothing expected to happen before 2011. Despite the uncertainties, SANAS went ahead and have already bought the six lifeguards rescue stations. These are now in ‘dry dock’ waiting to be used. There is a story and / or excuse for almost all the delays, and little concrete information on moving forward. The incident at São Vicente a few days ago when a fisherman was swept out to sea, proves the need for a ready nearby response, rather than waiting for aid to come from afar. When installed, each station will have a lifeboat in readiness to be launched when an alert is raised. We already have one tucked away here in Ribeira Brava, which I believe is operated by our firemen, so perhaps the Diário doesn’t have the full picture regarding sea rescue resources.

Yesterday’s search efforts pictured after a 73 / 75 / 76 year old man disappeared on Porto Santo on Sunday. He went out to do some fishing and didn’t return. ‘Missing Fisherman Of Porto Santo Was The Chauffeur Of The Murdered Businessman’. Despite the headline, nothing has been found to suggest that any third party was involved in the disappearance. Involved in the search are the navy patrol  boat ‘Cuanza’, two launches, a Merlin EH-101 helicopter, firemen and 4 forensic divers from Funchal. The search started yesterday continues today.

‘Seven Detained For Driving Under The Effect Of Alcohol – PSP dealt with 21 accidents at the weekend’. Three of the cases were in Ribeira Brava, the other 4 were spread around. One arrest was made for driving without a licence, and another for having a pop at a police officer. The 21 road accidents caused 5 injuries, one serious. Over the previous week on the via rápida hosted 63 broken down vehicles, as well as 8 vehicles stopped without apparent reason. 9 people were caught ‘on foot’, 8 animals rescued, and 35 objects of ‘risky dimensions’ were removed.

In football : "Terrible Atmosphere" Awaiting Nacional – Zenit player praises the promotion in Russia and makes himself available to collaborate in every way’. The Zenit player is Danny, not born here, but considered as a Madeiran. The stadium is likely to be full (21,000+) of baying Russians, giving Nacional a very ‘warm’ noisy welcome on Thursday. He applauds the decision to use the game to promote ‘destination Madeira’, and considers it a good investment of €10,000. He said he has already told footballing colleagues about Madeira, and some have visited, including the owner of his former club Dynamo Moscow.

‘Cavaco Silva vetoes new law on unions ‘de facto’ - The President of the Republic considers "inappropriate" making substantive changes at the end of term’. The President vetoed the new law on unmarried couples, considering it "inappropriate" at the end of a legislative term changing the current law, and pointing out the lack of a "in depth discussion" on the matter. "Without contesting the eventual need to make an improvement of the legal regime of ‘de facto’ unions … it is considered that at this juncture, this change is not only untimely, but it was not subject to discussion with the depth that the importance of this topic necessarily requires", reads a note posted on the website of the Presidency.

‘Rockfall In Albufeira – Prosecutors opened criminal investigation’. The public prosecutor has opened an investigation into the collapse of a cliff on the beach Maria Luísa in Albufeira on Friday, that killed five people and injured several more. The inquiry will be conducted in Portimão and the report referred to the court in Albufeira. The inquiry will "investigate any responsibility for what happened".

UPDATE : 

‘Police Action Results In Complaints – PSP says it was acting in a situation of public disorder in Camacha’. Three men claim to have been the victims of aggression in the area Nogueira, from the Rapid Intervention Brigade (BIR) of the Public Security Police. The situation is worsening the already complicated relationship between the police and residents of the zone. The three young men aged 20, 26 and 27 claim they were the target of a revenge attack, because of personal issues that they had had with an officer of BIR. A police spokesman said the BIR was called in to deal with a situation of public disorder. It all happened at the Festa de São Lourenço at around 12.30 am, and witnesses said that the three men were eating espetada without bothering anyone and doing nothing to annoy the police officers, but when the three moved away to go to the toilet they were followed by the BIR team (made up of 9 officers). The toilet entrance was blocked to stop anyone else entering and the three were given a "drubbing that almost killed us", according to one of the three men, as well as being threatened with death. The police used guns, batons, and pepper spray in the attack he said, and he ended up pretending to pass-out to stop the assault. The police version says the men were found in the public toilet when responding to a call about drunkenness and drugs, and they resisted arrest, but were handcuffed and taken to the police station and later released. The case is now with the public prosecutor in Santa Cruz.

‘Police Charge Bar on Porto Santo For Unlicensed Security’. The popular bar in the docks area was caught using two bouncers, when not licensed to do so. The fine for the offence ranges from €10,000 to €100,000. That should put an end to that bar then!

‘Hotels Are Prepared – Hoteliers commend the meeting to clarify matters about Gripe A’. The hotels are already preparing themselves for a possible outbreak of swine flu cases, with the arrival of cooler September temperatures. They have the materials and disinfectants needed, and also a contingency plan. The Diário contacted the main hotel groups of Pestana, Porto Bay, Savoy and Dorisol, and all assured that they were ready for the expected pandemic, with workers instructed and provided with ‘protective kits’, that include long-sleeved uniforms, ‘duck billed’ protective masks, and gels and disinfectants for cleaning telephones, doorknobs, printers, sanitary facilities etc. They are also trained in being diplomatic as to not upset customers. Can’t deny that being an interesting prospect, some one dressed on like a duck billed Darth Vader approaching a sneezing guest and hosing him down with disinfectant and yet maintaining hotel type diplomacy. I can’t deny being a little intrigued by the ‘kits’ containing materials for cleaning ‘printers’, although everything else makes sense. What make printers a special case I wonder? It’s a while since I went to a hotel I must admit, but in this day and age do they now put printers on dinner tables, or do people sleep with them. What about the computers they are connected to, are they somehow immune to Gripe A, and an even worse risk I would guess is the computer keyboard, as that’s where people have their hands after the previous gripe victim has coughed and sneezed all over it. I would have thought that lift buttons, and indeed coins and notes, would present a higher risk and have a higher priority than printers. I am busy saving up my small change, so when the pandemic hits Rib. Bra. I can always pay for things with the exact money … no risk then with infected change. What worries me is the kissey kissey thing and shaking hands with so many people, as I don’t want to offend anyone by refusal. Perhaps I will paint my face with pink spots, then people will avoid me instead.

Only around 20 articles in today’s Diário news sections (excluding sport and events), so that’s it from there today, but might I drift over to the dark side later to see what’s in the Jornal da Madeira, but no promises.

Just this one : "Mistérios das Ilhas" In The Bookshops Of Madeira’. ”Mysteries of the Islands’, controversies and secrets from the history of Madeira, by the author journalist José Luís Cabrita, is already on sale in all good bookshops. It has a preface by a man called Alberto João Jardim, who also happens be the president of Madeira (and presumably that also means that he is protected from any personal embarrassment). The book questions the discovery of Madeira, and looks at the ‘captains’ of the island, it’s settlement, and its inhabitants. It presents little known information about Madeira, some of it controversial. In the preface, Alberto João Jardim believes that "Mysteries of the Islands" is "a new and different image that brings the history of Madeira to political debate". I want to read it, but at €20 a copy, it might have to wait until Xmas.

(19th August). Today’s main news headline : ‘Germans Want Hotels At The Price Of Rain – Hotel owners of Madeira are worried with the demands of the German tour operators: discounts of up to €50 on the daily rate’. The German operators are pressuring the hotels, and there are requests for unrealistic discounts for the launch of new (travel) programmes. The pressure is always there when the period for contract negotiations starts with the various tour operators who offer Madeira, but this year, the pressure is greater, and some Madeiran hoteliers express concerns about what may happen in the next year. The demands for lower prices of course happen every year, but this year the demands are more unrealistic than usual, with reductions sought between €20 and €50 a night, on top of the already heavily discounted prices given to the tour operators. There are charter flights, but Germany doesn’t have any direct or low cost airlines coming to Madeira, so therein lies part of the problem. So they want to nick all the sun beds and pay less for the privilege … don’t we all, but most of us just don’t have the cheek to do and demand. I suspect that over a week’s holiday the hotel bars will manage to recoup most of the ‘losses’, with some very special prices for German customers. Basil Fawlty would have known how to effectively deal with the situation for sure, and I think that would probably be the right approach. Madeira is cheap, and you get top quality hotels for less than you would find elsewhere in mainstream Europe. The regular German visitors here already know that, and as for the rest, they can take it or leave it. And it won’t be just the Germans looking to slash prices, that’s a certainty.

‘Residents Of Santa Luzia Ask For Tarmac For The Roads – The parish enjoys the quality of life, in safety. Even the ‘sales’ still work on trust. Besides the state of the roads, few complaints’. In the latest in the Diário series ‘Through Madeira’, in Santa Luzia in Funchal, life is still made of calm, trust, and tradition. It is just needed to wander through the streets to see who lives well. Some very well in fact. The zone inspires comfort. Large houses and small quintas (houses with agricultural land), trellis shades on the smaller houses, sleeping dogs, and gates left open. Micaela Gouveia says that everyone knows each other, and there is trust between neighbours. In her family run supermarket, faithful customers buy their groceries, always paying at the end of every month without fail. Some have shopped there for over 30 years. José Lourenço Gouveia has worked behind the bar in the supermarket for 40 years, with just good things to say about the parish that welcomes every day. One lives well in Santa Luzia, the "rich zone of Funchal", even the mosquitoes "don’t want nothing of your blood"(?). Manuel da Costa and his wife live in one district of the parish, which they define as a "corner of heaven", "thanks to our Lord".  Just the craters in the road are of annoyance, especially in Winter when they fill up with water. I don’t think that will be a problem for much longer. Did I mention that our president Albert João Jardim, also lives in that parish.

"Obviously there must be a better response of Health Line 24" – Users complain of delays in answering and the advice needed for enquiries for Gripe A’. Health Minister Ana Jorge admits that the swine flu hotline needs to improve after complaints have been made’. Calls to the number 808 24 24 24 have been increasing as the number of cases in Portugal increase. The management of the call centre is public-private, and a number of initiatives have already been agreed. Ana Jorge added that "at present, nothing is out of control," but stressed that the Gripe A epidemic has characteristics, which means it will spread to a large population simultaneously. The telephone number given is also for use on Madeira.

In the main front page photo, also the day’s sports headline, we see athlete Nélson Évora lying in the triple jump sand pit in Berlin : ‘Nélson Loses Title But Wins Silver – A British athlete ‘stole’ the gold from the Portuguese’. No, no, no. He didn’t steal it Nelson, he did you a favour as he is now the reigning Clown Prince of sports most ludicrous event. Besides that you are not really Portuguese, so that headline is not quite true.  I have it from a good source (Derclopedia, volume 7 p.166 – only available in hard copy) that the triple jump event is just a big wind-up. According to the story, triple jump (aka hop, step, jump or hop, skip, jump) was invented in a tavern ‘horse and carriage’ park back in 1894, after three very drunk men were thrown out of the pub in very heavy rain, and wanted to get to their transport without getting their wet feet. What is amazing that they managed to persuade the Olympic Organising Committee for 1896 to include it in the Athens games for that year, when at that particular time Greece was very prone to monsoon storms. It has been in every Olympic games since. Think about it … the fastest in the world, the strongest, the best high jumper, the best thrower, all were skills of some value to our ancestors when chasing wildebeests and trying to escape tigers. But the hop, skip and jump … what use was that EVER in society, obviously except when crossing a minefield in a hurry. Nelson, you have been done a big favour my man, you are now just the pretender to the Clown Prince of Britain, rather than the man himself.

Also squeezed in : ‘Sporting Draw 2 – 2 With Fiorentina, Compromising Qualification For The Champions League’. More referring controversy overshadowed the football. 

‘Spectacular For 30 Years Of The Office – The work, to premier in October 2010, was ordered by the Office of Artistic Education from writer Miguel Esteves Cardoso and the composer Jorge Salgueiro’. GCEA will celebrate 30 years of existence next year, three decades of valuable work and support to the children and young people of Madeira. Jorge Salgueiro wrote the work ‘Orquídea Branca’ (White Orchid) which debuted in Funchal last year, and is due to return. The new work will be either a musical or an opera, being between the two authors to decide. As well as supporting schools at all levels, the organisation also provides extra curricular activities in music, dance, theatre, and ‘plastic expression’.

(18th August). ‘Works cost €1.7 million – Works aim to repair damaged areas and will last for 13 months’. The Administration of Ports of the Autonomous Region of Madeira, opened a tender process for the contract for the implementation of structural improvement of the ‘ponte cais’ (bridge pier) and curtain wall of the main pier of the port of Funchal. The tender deadline is 14th September, with the lowest priced tender taking all the work. How do they already know the cost, and that it’s going to be a 13 month job, before they have gone out to tender. They can specify that upper time limit, but someone might come in and specify a shorter project. Or has there been a pre-tender tender process?

‘Festival 29th In Ponta do Sol’. This year the 12th International Festival of Folk-dance is going to take place on a Saturday for the first time. It starts at 9 pm, and this year will have participants from Sweden, Spain, Portugal, and the Azores, as well as from various parts of Madeira. The festival will form part of the festivals of the region of Ponta do Sol, which start on Monday.

Whilst on the subject of festivals : ´São Vicente In Festa 25th To 30th August – Musical entertainment, exhibitions and book launches make up the programme of the regional day’. To save me a job, if interested you can see the programme HERE

This from the Jornal da Madeira : ‘Video surveillance in schools from the academic year 2010 – Project of the Regional Secretary for Education and Culture include the mass issue of electronic (access?) cards’. The academic year 2009 / 2010 will see the introduction of video cameras in the schools of Madeira. The projects have been repeatedly postponed, but now the administrative preparation has been done, and the 2010 budget is awaited to start the work.