Madeira News Blog

Today’s photo – Many thanks to Pete … "On today’s (Thursday) blog the article on Cleaning reveals the Fontes de João Dinis. You said there is a well, are here two photos for you, 2nd well is working water coming out, The 1st again another well, but dry. I am not clear which one in the blog, so I thought I’d send you both photos".

Many thanks to Paul for this. It was covered yesterday, but with different articles I think :

4 marine protected areas on the extended continental shelves of the Azores as well as mainland Portugal. On the 24^th March the WWF in Funchal, Madeira “praised Portuguese authorities for announcing the establishment of four marine protected areas on the extended continental shelves of the Azores as well as mainland Portugal.” “The four sites – on the southern Mid Atlantic Ridge, Altair Seamount, Antialtair Seamount and Josephine Bank – together cover an area of 120,000 square km rich in vulnerable deepwater communities, including cold-water coral reefs, sponge fields, coral gardens, and deep sea bony fish, sharks and rays.”

OSPAR Convention. The announcement of marine protected area status was made at an international North Atlantic environmental commission (OSPAR Convention) meeting attended by UN fisheries and seabed agencies in Funchal, Madeira. It follows three of the four sites being declared being declared off limits because of the use of destructive bottom fishing gear just under a year ago.

Image : Map of the marine area and the 15 contracting parties of the OSPAR Commission for the protection of the marine environment of the North-East Atlantic.

Ground breaking progress on ocean governance. Stephan Lutter, International Marine Policy Officer with WWF Germany said it was ground breaking progress on ocean governance : “It comes at a time when the political and economic boundaries in our oceans are shifting. We would wish that all Coastal States who have submitted claims for an extended continental shelf beyond the limit of 200 nautical miles were taking their obligation to protect the marine wildlife out there as seriously as Portugal.” All four of the new marine protected areas will be unique in legal terms, with the coastal state in charge of protecting the natural resources of the seafloor, and international bodies to protect marine biological diversity in the corresponding High Seas waters.

“Charlie-Gibbs Fracture Zone”. This new legal arrangement opens up possibilities of improving protection to the first pilot marine protected area in international waters of the North Atlantic, the so-called “Charlie-Gibbs Fracture Zone” located on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge which was agreed by contracting parties to the OSPAR Convention on the in 2008.

Also from Paul :

No danger of Portugal being sucked into the same sort of debt whirlpool as Greece. "European Union president Herman Van Rompuy said on Friday (26^th March) there was no danger of Portugal being sucked into the same sort of debt whirlpool as Greece. "The problem is completely different for Portugal," Van Rompuy said when asked if he feared that Lisbon might be next to seek help dealing with a bulging annual deficit and national debt. "I really believe that the situations are not in the least comparable and that the markets realise that, and will realise that in the coming days," he added.

Photo : Herman Van Rompuy, ex-Belgian prime minister now EU President

"You can only compare what’s comparable," Van Rompuy added, also distinguishing between what had happened in Athens and fears over Spain’s high deficit.

Portugal’s decision to freeze public sector wages was "a step in the right direction”. European Central Bank chief Jean-Claude Trichet meanwhile said that Portugal’s decision to freeze public sector wages was "a step in the right direction." Link to full article

REMEMBERED TO PUT YOUR CLOCKS FORWARD ONE HOUR?

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories :

DIÁRIO 27/03/2010

FRONT PAGE NEWS

Ancient bridges should stand.  Funchal Council want to keep the old pedestrian bridges wherever possible. Two that are repairable after storm damage are Cidrão (photo) and D. Manuel over the ribeira de Santa Luzia. Bridges that have to be demolished or partially rebuilt are: near the old headquarters of Nacional connecting rua do Tanoeiros and Rua da Alfândega; Til and Rua da Carne Azeda over the ribeiro do Livramento (behind the Jardim de Santa Luzia); over the ribeiras and ribeiros near the Mercado and Minas Gerais; in Laranjal (Estrada Comandante Camacho de Freitas), Fundoa, Quinta Falcão, Casabranca and the ponte do Livramento.

MADEIRA

Two thousand truckloads of inerts. Over two thousand lorry loads of aggregates have been dumped at a landfill at the mouth of the ribeira da Alforra in Câmara de Lobos. Thousands of cubic metres of material, mainly earth, have stained the sea front of this fishing town. This landfill is now closed. The mayor admits the brown stain in the sea has a bad visual impact but the urgency of the situation justifies using this option.

PSP accused of violence and torture. The family of a 46 year old man has made a complaint to the prosecutor against the Public Security Police for aggression and acts of torture committed by agents on that individual. According to the brother of the alleged victim, it started around 17.30 on Thursday when Rui Duarte Nunes, known as Dude, was approached by two police officers of the Rapid Intervention Brigade (BIR) in the area of Quinta Deão. The officers took his brother to an area close to the parish council building and began an unprovoked attack. They punched and handcuffed him and reinforcements came, witnessed by family members who live nearby. Rui Nunes was taken to the Regional Command of the PSP and when released at 20.30, he could hardly walk. He was taken by ambulance to hospital where he was treated until 2 am. Wounds were on his face, back, abdomen, behind his ears, feet and pepper spray had been thrown in his eyes. Rui Nunes attended court where the judge ordered him to go to the Forensic Medicine department for photographs to be taken. The PSP argue that he had attempted to assault them. His brother said that Rui is a drug abuser but neither violent or a criminal.

ECONOMY

Traders received 136.7 million Euros of aid. A month after the catastrophic events on February 20th, 800 traders have received 136.7 million Euros in compensation. 45 applications of less than 75,000 Euros, totalling 2.3 million Euros have been approved and another 130 are being processed by the banks for a total of 8.3 million Euros. In the final stage are 15 applications totalling 3 million Euros that are for more than 75,000 Euros each. The total so far is 5.4 million Euros of funds set up by the Governments of the Republic and Madeira granted to 180 traders, averaging 30,000 Euros each. Funchal Council has secured 350,000 Euros for 150 traders or 2,500 Euros each. Insurance firms have paid 123 million Euros for 683 claims, an average of 180,000 Euros. Firms with 40/60 employees can ask Social Security to pay 70% of wages and contributions for three months. Among the companies that have received bank aid to secure jobs, 32 are micro-sized, 12 small-sized and one medium-sized firm. They received 2.3 million Euros or 51,000 Euros each. Support has been given to 10 firms in the tourism sector, 8 in the service sector, 3 in the transport sector and 2 construction firms. The most support has been to firms in Funchal and other areas are Santa Cruz, Câmara de Lobos, Machico and Ponta do Sol. 40 other companies have benefited from 1.5 million Euros from credit lines to help with cash flow problems.

ANAM current debt is reduced to 206 million Euros. ANAM manages Madeira Airport and the results in 2009 are an improvement since the previous year due to better management. The passenger numbers fell 4.3% despite a fall of 6.5% through European airports. The main shortfall was a 20% decrease in passengers from the United Kingdom, made up by Easyjet passengers from Lisbon. The net income for 2009 fell from minus 10.3 million Euros in 2008 to minus 7.2 million Euros. ANAM paid 60 million Euros to the banks to reduce the debt by 25% and interest rates were lower. This left a debt at the end of 2009 at 206 million Euros.

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

Socialist Party of Madeira already assures support for Passos Coelho – Guilherme Silva was the delegate of Rangel [loser in the PSD elections], but accepts the victory of the new leader, from whom he expects solidarity. The party activists of PSD-Madeira backed a loser, with 86% of the vote going to Paulo Rangel. Madeira was the only region of Portugal that gave Rangel a majority. Silva said "we always count on each other on the day following the result of an internal party election … it is a saying that the PSD always had". He highlighted the "significant victory" of Pedro Passos Coelho and added that he believes that this is a "strong leadership, capable and consistent to provide opposition to the Socialist Party and José Sócrates". Hmmm … normally that sort of statement would come from the party leader for Madeira, but perhaps Uncle Bertie was just too busy to face the press!

Pharmacies flee from supplying syringes – Complaints accuse drug addicts of ruining the environment. Chemists say that they were obliged to refuse the exchange of syringe ‘kits’ in their shops in order to restore a ‘good environment’. Thefts, threats, injuries, altercations, and a bad atmosphere are the reasons given from withdrawing from the syringe exchange programme, with some shops in downtown Funchal having left the scheme a year ago. "It was a service that we offered for the State and society, but today we can not afford to lose customers because things are not easy," says Ana Mafalda Rodrigues, technical director of the Portuguese Pharmacy, located on Rua João Tavira. The movement of drug addicts in the establishment troubled customers who felt intimidated with the way they spoke and asked for assistance, without regard to who was ahead in the queue, she explains, adding that for such a decision to be taken the occurrence of "some thefts" was also taken into account.

Today’s main news headline : 409 companies leave Business Centre – It is a sharp fall in just one year, but the exit from the International Business Centre of Madeira was already happening since 2001. In 9 years, 3021 companies abandoned Madeira.

Geraldine Chaplin come to the Festival of Cinema. I had no idea who she was, but a quick peek at the article says that she is an actress of great renown, but also the daughter of Charlie Chaplin. However, there is another famous guest who I am well aware of, as he features in my DVD collection … Terry Jones, of Monty Python fame. The festival runs from the 10th to the 17th April, in Funchal of course, in the Teatro Municipal Baltazar Dias.

The main sport / football headline today : Benfica ‘tidies up’ Braga and the Premier League – The Benfica ‘nation’ can start to celebrate : yesterday, Luisão scored the victory goal before Braga and will have ‘swept away’ the issue of the title for this season. There are still six games left this season, and with a gap of 6 points between league leaders Benfica and second placed Braga, it’s a bit too early to be celebrating methinks, although I don’t have much doubt that the Diário’s assumption is correct. 6 weeks of noisy gloating Benfiquistas to put up with until the season end, and then even more after … I think I might go into a Spring hibernation. It’s been a long long time since Benfica have has a successful season, and I don’t actually begrudge them that, it’s just that obnoxious manager Jorge Jesus that I can’t stand. His behaviour cannot be described as anything other than legalised yobbery and he sets a disgraceful example to football supporters. No wonder hooligan problems are hitting the Portugal headlines with increasing regularity.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated. 

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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 don’t send in automatic translations (like Google translator) without checking them through and correcting them first, thanks.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and other material.

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Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

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Today’s photo – Many thanks to Pete … Norwegian Jade ship 10 February 2010

Many thanks to Becky for these hiking web snippets :

"The things I read about Madeira on the Net sounded like it was a nice place to be in March. So I packed a flashlight, extra batteries, rainproof jacket and trousers, and a rain flap for my rucksack, and went off to the island of perpetual spring." WITH A SPRING IN HIS STEP

8 of the most unique walking paths in the world … and Madeira and Pico Island, Azores are among them. HERE

This link from Tobi … thanks a lot "Some nice Carnival pics at last" Wow, they are great Tobi, but even so after 30 or so (of 424), I had to call it a day. Then I read Tobi’s next email … it’s only the first 12. Great pics Hugo. Der

Thanks to Pete for sending in this web-link for a report about MADEIRA AIRPORT. There is a great photo of the airport extension under construction.

It’s the big match tonight … the local derby between Marítimo and Nacional. It’s on SportTV1 at 8.15 pm. With both teams level with 25 points, this will could launch one or the other into a European placing, albeit for less than 24 hours.

Many thanks to Vanessa Swesnik for this complete translation :

Awareness Raising for Internet Security – Young people were target audience as privileged users of the Internet.

As part of the celebration of European Safer Internet Day, Câmara de Lobos Public Library and the Judicial Police held an awareness raising event for the allusive subject.

The audience consisted of, above all, young people- standard users of the Internet; however, the event was also open to the public, namely parents, teachers, and educators among others.

European Safer Internet Day’s objective is to promote the informed, critical, and safe use of the Internet, whether it is by children and young people or by families, workers or citizens in general.

Although children and young people enjoy opportunities provided by the Internet, especially through social networking sites, many give personal information without realizing who can see it.                               ORIGINAL ARTICLE IN PORTUGUESE

Many thanks to Sue for this contribution :

‘Cristo Rei’ with hotel.

There is a proposal that provides a complete renovation in the area of Cristo Rei, more specifically the pool and tennis courts that are there continuing down to the beach at Garajau. The Inter-Marina ANLAGEN company owns the entire area and has developed many of the lots already built in this area. They obtained the necessary authorization from the City of Santa Cruz last Tuesday for 16 building lots and a hotel beside Cristo Rei, however, the company’s proposal was even more ambitious in that it proposed the construction of 21 lots, two for tourism and nineteen for housing.

At the meeting the mayor explained the project. We approved the installation of 14 lots on the site where today there are two tennis courts and a swimming pool, two lots on the hillside next to the coffee shop and there is also for the construction of a hotel built in 2 buildings, going down towards the beach at Garajau, which will not degrade the environment. The Mayor went on to point out that it was an investment that would be  good fun with sea sports and the enjoyment of nature. The project has now moved on to the architectural side of the project. José Alberto Gonçalves, ensured that the area of implementation is not within the area of nature reserve of Garajau, established in 1986. Where the allotment is, we will be careful to preserve everything that is in the public maritime domain, however a certain number of concessions were agreed to offer greater convenience to the site. Including the recovery of the site of the Chapel of the Mother of God – asked a couple of locals – blank faces – i.e. did not know of one that had existed to be recovered?

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories :

DIÁRIO 18/02/2010

FRONT PAGE NEWS

Sea consumes the coast. Raising the level of sea water, reducing the amount of sediment reaching the coast, anthropogenic degradation (by human activities) of natural structures and coastal works have led to a phenomenon that environmentalists describe as transgressive. These are the main factors for coastal erosion and the retreat of the coastline, in other words the coastline migrates towards the land. Some factors are natural but most are either directly or indirectly caused by human intervention. In September 2003, national and international environmental groups attended a summit in the region and predicted that the transgression phenomenon would occur. The opposite action is called regression, when the coastline migrates towards the ocean. Areas by the mouths of rivers like Ribeira Brava, Ponta do Sol and Machico have a medium-term risk of being engulfed by the sea. This is demonstrated by the destruction of breakwaters and coastal walls.

MADEIRA

Secular tradition in the parish of Santa Cecilia. In 1910, when the Convent of São Bernardino was abandoned, families living in Câmara de Lobos rescued nine images of saints. Yesterday was Ash Wednesday, the traditional day for the Procissão das Cinzas (Procession of the Ashes) in this parish, marking the beginning of Lent. Despite the heavy rain that fell minutes before the departure, hundreds of parishioners attended this historical event. The Convent was abandoned (like many church buildings) when there was separation of the Church and the State. At the time, câmara-lobenses collected the images of the saints (São Francisco de Assis, Santa Margarida de Cortona, São Roque, Santa Rosa Viterbo, São Benedito, Santo Ivo, Santa Isabel de Portugal, São Salvador and Santo António de Motte), an act that allowed the preservation of  this significant collection. After a century, the images are still with the families, passed down several generations, with some restoration in places. One family said, "It’s an honour and a delight to have the saint under the care of the family." The image is stored in an oratory in one of the houses of the family.

Twinning of Santa Cruz with Carrizal. This is a way to strengthen ties between the region and emigrants in Venezuela. The twinning arrangement will be formalized by the end of this year. In 2007, the county of Santa Cruz twinned with El Hatillo. The twinning with Carizzal was announced by the mayor who is presently in Venezuela on behalf of the county to attend the first anniversary of the Association of Descendants of Santa Cruz. At Altos Mirandinos, a town in the county of Carrizal, a replica of the Santuário de Nossa Senhora de Fátima is being built, the only one in South America. If authorization from the Ministry of Internal Affairs can be granted in time, the vice-president of Santa Cruz wants the twinning between the two counties to be signed on the 25th June, the Day of the Municipality of Santa Cruz. Twinning has advantages to both parties, culturally and financially in terms of tourism and trade. The immigrants in Venezuela are apprehensive and live in uncertainty with parliamentary elections later this year but have no interest in returning. Thus, they want the document signed before the elections. Counties in the Region of Madeira are involved in a total of 36 twinnings. 

ECONOMY

Francisco Sá Carneiro is the third best airport in Europe. This airport in Porto was voted third by the  ACI, Airports Council International. João Paulo II Airport in Ponta Delgada (Açores) was also distinguished. The Airport of Madeira registered ninth place. The award was for the greatest rise in indicators of quality of service between 2008 and 2009.

‘Cristo Rei’ with hotel. The proposal will completely revolutionize the area of Cristo Rei in Garajau, specifically the areas around the old swimming pool and tennis courts and the road descending to the praia do Garajau. The company that owns the entire area, Inter-Marina ANLAGEN, has authorization from Santa Cruz Council to build on 16 lots and build a hotel near to Cristo Rei. They had originally proposed to develop 21 lots, two for tourism and nineteen for housing but the council reduced the number. This company owns most of the area of Cristo Rei, including where the image of Cristo Rei stands. The plan was originally approved in 2005 with the condition that a geological survey was carried out. Some nonconformities with the PDM led the company to review the plan in terms of the gross area of construction, number of floors and number of parking spaces. The Regional Secretary of Tourism and Transport has approved the plans. The construction work cannot be in the area of the Reserva Natural Parcial do Garajau and will need to preserve everything in the Public Maritime Domain. Santa Cruz Council say this area of urban expansion is of low density. The approval on Tuesday was for 14 lots on the site where the two tennis courts and swimming pool are, two lots next to the cafe, a hotel constructed of 2 buildings in the area by the road descending to the beach (photo). There will be created over a hundred parking spaces, garden areas, a children’s playground and the firm will renovate the Capela da Mãe de Deus.

POLITICS

One Azorean is equivalent to 50 Madeirans. The PSD-M have looked at the amount of money in the State Budget for investment in the two autonomous regions. From 2009 to 2010, there will be a 92% reduction in the amount of money for Madeira, from 5.5 million Euros to 427,000 Euros. The Azores will have 21.4 million Euros for investments. This is equivalent to 87 Euros for each Azorean and 1.65 Euros for each Madeiran. The Government of the Republic wants to invest more abroad than in Madeira, for example 300,000 Euros for haemodialysis in Cape Verde and 400,000 Euros for the televisions of PALOP. 0.02% of the PIDDAC (State investments) is for this Region which will not resolve the problems at the law courts of Ponta do Sol and Santa Cruz and the police stations at Porto Santo, Santa Cruz and Ponta do Sol. The PSD conclude that the Prime Minister of Portugal does not consider the Madeirans as Portuguese, but also are not considered as foreigners, taking into account that 43 million Euros are for investment outside national territory.

UPDATE

Madeira has GDP lower than the European average. The Lisbon region is the only one with a GDP per inhabitant (104.7%) above the EU average (100%). In Madeira, the GDP per capita reaches 96.3% of the EU average. Madeira has the second highest value in the country. The mean for Portugal is 75.6% while the Continental territory has a GDP per capita of 75.3%.

Financial assistance to farmers amounts to 21.3 million Euros. This large income support to farmers benefits almost all of the agricultural population in Madeira. The funds are made available by the Regional Government and the EU to support the production of grapes, wine, cane sugar, milk, meat and bananas, among others. It helps the region to be more competitive in the production of flowers and fruit and encourages the export of fresh and processed produce. It is the first time there is aid for the export of cane sugar products which is justified by an increase in production.

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

In the Azores [president] César gives in a year what Jardim spends in two months – In the Azores, the support for all social communication costs €600,000 a year. On Madeira, the Jornal da Madeira newspaper alone takes €4 million. It looks like the Diário newspaper chiefs have got fed up of waiting and nothing happening. Last year they took some bold steps at country and international level to highlight the unfairness of the situation between the two main daily newspapers on Madeira, but it doesn’t seem that anything has changed. The politically biased, government controlled, and technically bankrupt Jornal da Madeira continues to get €4 million of taxpayers money each year, and an unfair amount of government ‘advertising’ on top of that, and is available free to the public. The Diário gets nothing. The World Press Association even wrote a LETTER to the president of Portugal about it, but nothing seems to have changed. It’s a disgrace!

Today’s main news headline : Unpaid  debt to the pharmacies paid in five years – The Government promises to pay €80 million in 60 instalments.  The National Association of Pharmacies demands guarantees.

Today’s main front page photo shows a snowy landscape with a car blocking a road, traffic stopped, and a few well wrapped spectators. Attraction by the snow  creates despair – The bad weather is back to wreak havoc and surprise the adventurous. Madeira is deaf to the warnings of the Civil Protection Agency, and some drivers jumped in their cars and sped off in freezing temperatures to see the snowfall in the high zones of Madeira, where tree falls, high winds, and accidents were some of the problems experienced by drivers on the climb to Pico Arieiro and on other routes. A gust of wind in Caniçal yesterday registered at 150 km / h. The bad weather will continue into the weekend, with heavy  rain forecast for Funchal tomorrow, thunderstorm, and high winds, especially in exposed places. If you want weather stories turn on the local TV news for floods, rock fall, landslides … it’s all there. Somebody told me yesterday that a Rodoeste bus was hit by a rockfall, but I don’t think there were any serious consequences.

Santa Cruz and Ponta do Sol ask the Regional Government for help for coastal protection.

New drawbacks in the Regional Finance Law – The voting on the final draft is delayed. [Prime Minister] Sócrates promises to resist.

Passos Coelho seeks support on Madeira. This is the guy who seriously upset President Jardim over his stance on the amendments to the Regional Finance Law. He is a candidate I think for the national leadership of Uncle Bertie’s Social Democrat Party, but UB will do everything he can to finish Coelho’s political career.

Porto Santo without air connections for over 24 hours – The SATA ‘shuttle’ suffered a breakdown, but trips will recommence at 10.20 am. The president of Porto Santo Council, Roberto Silva, has asked for a second aircraft to come into service to ensure the service is guaranteed. Not having much luck with the ferry these last few days I notice too, with several crossings being cancelled, but somehow I can’t see SATA taking much notice of Sr. Silva’s somewhat silly plea. In fact he would probably have more success asking his boss Uncle Bertie to build a road and rail bridge, or a tunnel perhaps, between the two islands. 

The main sport / football headline today : Derby match has the makings of a tie-breaker in Barreiros. The big game tonight between Marítimo, with home advantage, and Nacional.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated. 

An extra article from Elaine, many thanks :

Emanuel Salvador plays with the CMO and Ferreira Lobo
Directed by maestro Ferreira Lobo, violinist Emanuel Salvador will play on Saturday. The young Portuguese violinist Emanuel Salvador will play on Saturday February 20 at 21.00 with the Madeira Classical Orchestra, a concert led by José Ferreira Lobo, conductor of the Orquestra do Norte and artistic director of Festival Opera Portimão. Born in 1981, Emanuel Salvador is concertmaster of the Orquestra do Norte.

The program consists of the Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in D Major Opus 61, by Beethoven, Symphony No. 8 in B minor, the ‘Unfinished’, by Schubert, and the Hungarian Dances nos. 1, 3 and 5 by Brahms. Tickets are available Monday to Friday between 13.00 and 17.00 hours in the Tourist Office, Avenida Arriaga, and at the venue (the Congress Centre of Madeira Casino) between 19.00 and 21.00 hours.

Emanuel Salvador has performed in prestigious concert halls in England (St. Martin-in-the-Fields, Southwark Cathedral) in Kazakhstan (Philharmonic Hall), Mexico, Netherlands, Portugal (Centro Cultural de Belém, Gulbenkian Museum) Germany (Palatin, Wiesloch), Spain (Centre for Performing Arts, Salamanca), Italy and Malta (Manoel Theatre). He has won prizes at national and international competition level: 1st prize in the contest ‘Isolde Menges’ (RCM) and Beckenham Festival, Barbirolli Memorial and Wolfson Foundation Award, 2nd prize at the Young Musicians, Honorable Mention at the Julio Cardona International Competition, among others. He won a scholarship to the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation from 2000 to 2003, and in 2008 and 2009 to the Instituto Camões. He graduated Bachelor of Music in London at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and gained a Master’s Degree in Musical Performance from the Royal College of Music.

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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 photo or video, 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 don’t send in automatic translations (like Google translator) without checking them through and correcting them first, thanks.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

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Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

(more…)

Today’s photo – Many thanks to Eiryl … flowers of the Brazilian kapok tree – photo taken September 2009

 

Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago in the mid Atlantic Ocean. It is one of the Autonomous regions of Portugal, with Madeira Island, visible in this orthorectified image, and Porto Santo Island being the only inhabited islands.

Madeira is an archipelago with volcanic origins from a Hot Spot, so is not geographically part of a specific continent, but Madeira belongs and has belonged ethnically, culturally, economically and politically to Europe for 600 years despite being geographically closer to Africa. Thanks to Earth Snapshot.

 

"Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago located in the mid Atlantic Ocean. The archipelago consists of 2 populated islands, Madeira Island and Porto Santo Island as well as 2 groups of unpopulated islands, Desertas and Selvagens Islands. Madeira is formed from a massive volcano eruption on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean over 5 million years ago. How much do you know about Madeira? Prior to writing this post, I only know that Cristiano Ronaldo is born and raised in Madeira!" Beautiful Places On Earth Includes a video.

"If you tell friends you are going to Madeira Islands, they would probably say, “Wow!” and then give you a quizzical look even before they finish the interjection. Madeira? Where is that? Well, a lot of people would ask the same question especially if you are from the other part of the world. Besides, even if you have a map, it would probably not come easy for you to find where these little jewels are. Who could locate dots in the Atlantic anyway?" FAMOUS WONDERS – Top 100 wonders

Do we have any readers in Cornwall in the UK I wonder? If so, this might be of interest, with flights being offered from Newquay Airport this year : March 24 – Madeira from £499 for flight and hotel. There may be more? : FULL ARTICLE

Global Hotel Alliance (GHA) is delighted to start 2010 by welcoming Tivoli Hotels & Resorts as their latest member, as the rapidly-growing alliance now extends its reach to include two important new markets, Portugal & Brazil, with one of the regions’ most respected brands. Founded in 1933, Tivoli owns and operates some of Portugal’s most reputed hotels in locations such as Lisbon, Sintra, Coimbra, the Algarve and Madeira. In 2006 they have expanded into Brazil, with a luxury resort in Praia do Forte in Bahia and more recently with a landmark hotel in Sao Paulo. GLOBAL HOTEL ALLIANCE … anyone know anything about it, as apparently it is about to launch a loyalty programme?

A brief guide to the Madeira Banana Tree … but is it a tree?

Here are a couple of articles from the Jornal da Madeira kindly translated and sent in by Vanessa Swesnik :

Fewer Passengers in Madeira’s Airport : According to statistics released by ANAM – Airports of Madeira – traffic through Madeira’s airport fell 4.1% from 2008 to 2009. Last year Madeira’s airport received a total of 2,348,040 passengers, 100,534 less than in 2008.

In regards to the movement of aircraft, the airport infrastructure agency also reported a fall of 3.1% from 2008, with a total of 25,162 aircraft movements.

The fall in the number of passengers is due to the reduction in international air traffic, which had a cut of 16.6% from 2008. Madeira’s airport received 1,145,736 passengers originating from international flights last year, 227,910 less than in 2008.

Domestic air traffic up 11.9% : Conversely, the number of passengers from domestic flights rose 11.9% in 2009. A total of 1,190,075 passengers on domestic flights passed through Madeira’s airport, 126,154 more than in the same period of 2008.

It’s easy to conclude that Madeira’s airport managed to limit its loss of passengers in 2009 thanks to the increase in passengers originating from the domestic market. The year was marked by the consequences of the international financial crisis which caused a decrease in passenger traffic in airports at the national and international levels.

As for Porto Santo airport, information from ANAM shows a cut of 8.4% of passengers in 2009,  a total of 121,034.

For the month of December, Madeira’s airport had 4.4% less passengers than the same month in 2008. In total, 161,749 passengers passed through the airport.

The cut in that month is also due to the decrease in passengers from international flights (-15.7%) and the number of passengers from domestic flights rose 6.5%.

Uruguay will be the 4^th South American Country in which the hotel group will be present; Pestana announces a new hotel in Montevideo. The future Pestana Montevideo Hotel results from the reconstruction and renovation of a building from the beginning of the 20^th century which housed one of the most famous and aristocratic clubs of Uruguay – the Jockey Club. The building is considered emblematic of the city and has been classified as a Historic National Monument since 1975. Its Art Deco architecture is evident from its façade as well as its numerous decorative stained glass windows, marble, wood panelled walls, and large bronze doors.

The building is located on the most important street of the city- June 18^th Avenue, and only a few meters from the “Old City”, the historic district which houses the Presidency of the Republic, theatres, art centres and a commercial zone.

Brazilian architect, Jaime Morais, will be in charge of the interior and exterior. He is responsible for various other projects of Grupo Pestana in Portugal, Brazil, Argentina, and Venezuela. Morais was also responsible for the extraordinary decoration of the recently inaugurated Pousada do Porto. The reconstruction work will begin in March 2010 with hopes to end in the first quarter of 2012.

The Pestana Montevideo Hotel with be a luxurious 5 star hotel with 100 rooms, a spa, an indoor pool, and many meeting and event rooms. It will have two restaurants, one of which will be located on the top floor with an excellent view of Montevideo. This property will be especially desirable for the corporate and event worlds, but it will also be an excellent option for those who travel for leisure in Montevideo. Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, and Spain will be the principal markets for the property. The Uruguayan locale has been studied by Grupo Pestana for years. For Dionisio Pestana, President of the Group, “the entrance into a new country in South America is part of our growth strategy for the continent. It’s very important that we are present in the major cities of South America and are promoting cross-selling among the different properties and countries. This building is exactly what we were looking for.”

This from Elaine out West, many thanks:

‘Gigapark’ prolongs stay to recover losses : The visit of the amusement park in Ponta do Sol has been extended until the end of next weekend. During this period, the cost of the entertainment will be just one euro. The Aquatic Show is continuing, but only until Thursday, and on these last three days its ticket price will be five Euros.

Initially scheduled to end yesterday, Gigapark will remain open until Sunday 17^th to try to mitigate the losses suffered due to the bad weather, especially the almost constant rain. During these last six days in Madeira, the amusement park will work in a similar way to the so-called ‘day of the Euro’. That is, every day all the many diversions available to children and adults will cost just one euro. Also, the Aquatic Show will continue until next Thursday with its three white sharks and two seals performing open sessions at 21:30 for only five Euros.

Marcos Vaz, head of Gigapark, says that this is an exceptional measure, which comes not only from the consequences of unusual weather, which affected the park nearly every day, particularly in December, but also the difficulty in getting space for the trailers and equipment on the next trip of the Armas ferry bound for Portimão. He also stressed that this extension is intended to allow the opportunity for Madeirans to further enjoy the fun of the largest Christmas market set up in the region.

T’other Elaine of the East, also covered the same article, with the comment : I think this is right but check beforehand if you are planning to go (you both had the same figures Elaines, so good enough for me. Der). Judging by the present weather, they might not recoup the losses. It is also the beginning of the Festival de Passeios a Pé today until 16 January, the guided walking tours along levadas and veredas. There are 60 people signed up this year, mainly British, and you can join until the day before the scheduled walk. (Two page article outlining the walks in Diário Cidade, Monday January 11, available online).

Many thanks to Elaine once again for a whopping summary of yesterday’s top news stories :

PT participates in a consortium to reduce energy consumption. Portugal Telecom is participating in a consortium launched yesterday in London that aims to reduce by 1,000 times the energy consumption of communication networks. The consortium, called Green Touch, is led by Bell Labs and PT joins the ‘telecoms’ AT&T, China Mobile, Swisscom and Telefonica, university research laboratories, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, French Government laboratories and Samsung.

Arm wrestling between the PSD and PS on the Law of Finance. The Commission of Budget and Finance will discuss 16 proposals to amend the Regional Finance Law. The tug of war continues between the two main parties about funding for the autonomous regions. The PS want to delay the debate, as explained by Vítor Baptista, "What we think is that this law is framed in the State Budget for 2010 and to postpone the debate will raise awareness among political parties." This matter should be negotiated within the Budget. Guilherme Silva for the PSD replied that according to the mandate there has to be a meeting and a postponement is only possibly by consensus. If the PS win more time, they can seek advice on each of the initiatives. The PSD ask where were the parliamentary negotiations? Vítor Baptista explains, "So far no negotiations." Guilherme Silva adds, "Thursday is the day for the parties to meet about their proposals or absence of them."

Baeta keeps his wife as head of office. The Mayor of Calheta, Manuel Baeta Castro, reappointed three members that were already included in the previous term, for his office of support staff, led by his wife Conceição Castro as the head of the office. Francisco Gouveia and Fátima Câmara are respectively, assistant and personal secretary. The opposition, although they both show some suspicion about the usefulness of these positions, have different views, the CDS (Communists) are more critical than the PS (Socialists). The CDS complain that these offices of support staff to the Council are not important. The new PS councillor, Sofia Canha, admits that it "may be overstated"  the decision to occupy the three positions of political trust, "but may be justified for reasons unknown." Hence the benefit of the doubt. "Let’s see if future action by the Council justifies these employees." The appointment of the mayor’s wife leads to more distrust, the CDS-PP say it is a "controversial issue" and ethically it leaves "many doubts". Sofia Canha prefers, "to believe in the good faith of the people" about the legitimacy of family choice expressed by Manuel Baeta. She believes the mayor has employed his wife for political and professional reasons rather than for personal reasons and favouritism. The Mayor of Calheta justifies the position for better coordination of administrative, financial, social and cultural activities of the Town Council.

São Vicente will provide support to 1,800 elderly. The Municipality of São Vicente has 1,800 residents over the age of 65, more than 30% of the inhabitants. A communication system will be installed in their homes so they can alert the civil protection and fire authorities. Other support will be provided, for example help with mobility difficulties and meals. Social workers will assess individual needs in collaboration with the churches and Vicentians. The aim is to ensure a more dignified life.

Construction of Caniçal Cemetery begins. The construction of this cemetery has been controversial. It was initially approved by the PSD councillors on 14 February 2009 and work was to proceed immediately by a contract between the Regional Government and the Council. The PS said this was electioneering work. Two months later, a petition with 1,100 signatures was presented to the Council for the cemetery to be installed north of the site proposed by the Council. In September, the work had to stop due to lack of payment to the owner of the land for the expropriation. Four months later, an agreement was reached that the payment of 24,000 Euros would be made in instalments. The owner wanted three requirements: payment for the land, payment of a debt of 30,000 Euros for the construction of the Estrada da Banda d’ Além which was finished in the 1980s, and the road named after a previous owner of the road that links the new cemetery to Feiteirinhas. Emanuel Gomes accuses the previous mayor, the Socialist Father Martins Júnior, of not paying for the work. He denies responsibility and said it should have been paid by previous PSD mayors who authorized the work. He added that the Council could not pay because the Regional Government had a financial stranglehold on the Council and they were forced to pay a debt of 1 million and 800,000 contos. Currently, this value corresponds to 9 million Euros.  —1 conto = 1000 escudos = 5 Euros.

Cases of the day. At the end of Rua das Hortas, in the vicinity of the old offices of ‘Peugeot’, there is a manhole cover which often lifts up and endangers the safety of vehicles and pedestrians. The Council of Funchal have the usual red tape around the area but this situation has existed for some time and needs to be resolved before an accident occurs, as the street becomes crowded at times.

Bus stuck between cars. Passengers on a ‘Horários do Funchal’ bus were forced to leave and continue their journey by foot after the vehicle became stuck in the middle of several cars parked illegally in Rua José Pedro de Ornelas. The bus, yesterday afternoon, was on the route Levada de Santa Luzia – Centro and the police were called. This is a frequent occurrence in the area. — Sorry, no photo of the bus.

Companies purchase bananas without going through the Government. From today, bananas can be bought and sold without going through GESBA, the body that the Government created to manage banana production. The company Frutas Douradas guarantees to purchase from producers. This company is also recruiting a team of banana pickers. There are no fixed prices, unlike GESBA, but the company guarantees that it will pay the same amount as GESBA. If demand is high, a higher price might be set and the producers need higher rates in winter to offset lower production rates. Until now, the company could not get EU subsidies but  it has recently been recognized by the Government which allows it to apply. It will export 26 – 30 pallets of bananas a week whereas currently, only 1 pallet a week is exported which does not satisfy the demands on the Continent. In the returning containers, normally empty, the firm will import goods. The  Volcán de Tijarafe ferry will be used and costs will be reduced by the firm investing in automated processing. This firm is beginning to deal in bananas as it has had requests from some producers, dissatisfied with GESBA, and requests from the Continent but it complains of not receiving enough bananas from GESBA to meet the demands. GESBA currently has the following rates in euro per kg. Winter (November to April): extra – 0.67; category I – 0.58 and category II – 0.476. During the summer months: extra – 0.65; category I – 0.56 and category II – 0.456. If the producers deliver the bananas to the warehouse, they are paid 10 cents per kg. On Friday, the CDU are meeting visiting MEPs to ask that the EU compensate regional producers of bananas who might have difficulties due to the Geneva Accord. The tariff for bananas imported from Latin American countries is to be reduced from 176 Euros / ton to 114 Euros / ton by 2017 and the regional banana producers might not be able to compete with U.S. multinationals operating in Latin American countries.

Eviction ends in arrest. A man about 60 years old, was arrested yesterday morning for being in possession of an arma de alarme (replica gun) and nearly 400 rounds of ammunition. The arrest was not for possession of the gun but for the extra ammunition which passed the legal limit. He was occupying an office in a building in Rua 31 de Janeiro and stressed that the weapon had never been used. The President of the Clube Desportivo Nacional had heard about the sale of the building in 2007, bought it and legalized the purchase in 2009. Last month, a court official and three police officers went to the building as there was a court order to evict this tenant. The man said it was cruel and inhumane as he had asked Rui Alves if he could remain there until the end of next month while he could find an alternative residence. He added, "I was sleeping on a sofa in the office."

Criminal cases.  The Coram company’s offices were broken into early on Saturday morning and 750 Euros and several cheques were stolen from the safe. A 24 year old man was arrested Sunday morning for stealing a purse from a 56 year old woman. This occurred in Azinhaga in Nazaré and the woman’s screams alerted a local person and the police, who were nearby and tracked down the suspect. The man, a drug addict lives in Curral das Freiras. A man was arrested on Sunday at the airport on suspicion of drug trafficking. More than 2 kilos of heroin were seized by Customs officials. It was hidden in a false bottom in his suitcase. This is enough for 27,000 individual doses with a street value of 540,000 Euros. The man is a 30 year old Portuguese resident of Lisbon, from where he was flying. A woman was attacked on Sunday by her husband with a machado (type of axe) in a case of domestic violence. This caused a deep wound in her hand and bruises to the face and happened in the presence of the four children, aged 7 to 11 years old. This violence has frequently occurred and has been brought to the attention of the court and the husband has been given a caution. The bombeiros of Ribeira Brava rescued the woman and took her to the Health Centre. The police are to proceed with a charge of domestic violence.

TAP has the second best year ever but increases surcharges. The airline carried more than 8.7 million passengers in 2009, a 3.4% fall since 2008. In December, there were 674,000 passengers, an increase of 3.3% more than the previous year, an occupancy rate of 72%.  On 3 January 2010, TAP achieved an occupancy rate of 88.6%, a figure never reached before. There were 36,004 passengers, the record for a single day. In 2010, TAP will restructure sales and reduce the supply to reduce costs. The fuel surcharge on routes between Madeira and the Continent increases from 9 to 12 Euros from January 20 2010. These charges are lower than those made on European routes and are in response to an automatic mechanism defined by the National Institute of Civil Aviation.

Dentist Convention resumes. The Dental Association are still pushing for residents to be reimbursed for dental services, similar to those for the rest of medicine. This has been negotiated since 2007 and they hope this agreement can become a reality by the end of this year. A protocol has already been signed with the Health Service but details need to be finalized. There is already Dentistry at the Health Centres of Porto Santo, Bom Jesus and Porto Moniz. There will be another dentist at Bom Jesus where there are already two dentists and a hygienist, after restructuring of the building. In Porto Moniz, dentistry is for 3 – 13 year olds and in Porto Santo, for 3 – 12 year olds. The Health Authority want to have dentistry at Machico Health Centre after construction works on the new building. Services are provided in the Emergency Room at the Hospital Dr. Nélio Mendonça and they are awaiting new equipment to allow more complex dental surgery.

São Vicente Council distinguish German tourists. The German couple have been visiting two to three times a year over the past fifteen years, bringing with them a group of more than 20 tourists. Hans and Petruta Schawarz first came in 1995 and are fans of walking, especially through the Laurissilva forest. Hans Schawarz said he enjoyed the cable car from Monte to Funchal and keeps returning as he is struck by the beauty of the island, enjoying the ‘adventure’ of the old roads. The Festa do Flor, Festa do Vinho and the New Year’s Eve fireworks display are highlights, especially as he comes to celebrate his birthday on the 31 December.

Pico do Areeiro: Without snow, but with poncha. Headline of Monday’s Diário Cidade. Last weekend, both Madeirans and tourists went to this area because of the forecast of snow. No snow but strong wind and rain. They stopped at the Abrigo do Poiso for a drink of poncha or a café de ceveda (barley coffee) to warm the body and soul. Pico de Areeiro is said to be extremely beautiful and charming when ‘painted’ white. — Sounds a great excuse idea.

Today’s news headlines mainly from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

Tourism of Portugal awards ‘The Vine’ – The honourable mention will be announced today in the opening of BTL. Hmmm, I think it already has.

Ships brought 30 thousand more in 2009.

The main photo on today’s front page shows a corner of a Zimmer frame, along with an ageing hand. The Regional Government clogs homes with hospital releases - The government will juggle the waiting lists for the homes, to put at the front of the queue 51 elderly people that were released, but stayed in the hospital. 79 cases remain unsolved.

Today’s main news headline : Madeira loses €157 million in 3 years – The cost of the financial noose of the Regional Finance Law has been calculated. If Lisbon approves the alterations proposed, Madeira will receive an extra €74.6 million just in this year. But the Azores could be tied.

And another along the same lines : Amendments to the Regional Finance Law would cost the state 82 million Euros – A report from the Technical Unit for Budgetary support shows that the changes would give Madeira more than 74.6 million Euros. Enough for another football stadium refurbishment, with a bit of change left over, or a new marina at Lugar do Baixo perhaps. Do you ever wonder about the priorities of this government?

TAP raises fuel surcharges on the Madeira route – an increase of €9 to €12 comes into force from 20th January.

Rigo shows in China and  already prepares America. I presume this is the artist that Paul wrote about on the blog yesterday.

Luís Sotero Gomes dies – The medical specialist in Otorhinolaryngology passed away a victim of a prolonged illness.

The main sport / football headline today : Stadium that cost €11.5 million sinks in Câmara de Lobos – The facility was inaugurated recently, but is already losing ‘altitude’. The Regional Government say that it is normal. Looks like our politicians opted for the cheap cement again, still what’s eleven million these days!

BTW, the stars of Benfica will be in Ribeira Brava for a 10 am training session on Sunday morning. They will be at the Centro Desportivo da Madeira, out by Modelo, preparing for the 8.15 pm game against Marítimo.

That’s all I can get for now, as the Diário website has gone down yet again, and they are obviously having a problematic week. Still with a blog today with almost 4,500 words already, is probably more than enough for a normal news appetite. 

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated. 

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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 photo or video, 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 don’t send in automatic translations (like Google translator) without checking them through and correcting them first, thanks.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

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Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

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Today’s photo – Many thanks to Martin

One of Martins more abstract contributions of a rather unhealthy looking breakfast.

"First visit was to see the Madeira wine Story in the Old Blandy Wine Lodge in the centre of Funchal. Their museum has many historical items [letters from Winston Churchill ] and artefacts on winemaking in Madeira. Wine is still made in the lodge and we followed the progress of the production of the wine with the added pleasure of wonderful smells coming from the maturing wine in the barrels". ANOTHER WINE BUFF’S STORY

A few great photos from the New Year 2010 firework display FUNCHAL FIREWORKS 

And from Tobi from New Year night in Funchal … "My photos were rubbish and to much smoke, there are a couple that are passable" :

I really liked this video of a TAP flight taking off from Madeira Airport, especially the close up shots. Even watching it on a computer screen, I felt my right foot ‘pressing the accelerator’ as it sped off down the runway (am I the only person who does that when taking off, are there like minded ‘foot on the gas’ people?). But was the pilot playing Bingo?

"Arthur Pita presents his new dance-theatre creation God’s Garden, which will tour this month and next (from Jan 23, Jerwood Dance House, Ipswich). The volcanic paradise of Madeira provides the setting for a piece based on the parable of the Prodigal Son, here imagined as the golden boy of the Costa family. The piece boasts live fado music". From the UK TIMES Newspaper, a chance to see Madeira without getting on a plane perhaps.

Tobi found this one … "this is a good vid of the fireworks, its filmed from high up , and you can really see the shape of the fireworks a lot better". Thanks Tobi.

GOLF : One for the diary : Europe.- Men, PGA European Tour  – Madeira Islands Open BPI-Portugal (Porto Santo). 15-18 April : tbc

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top new year news stories :

Postman attacked with pepper spray. The attack occurred in São João in Funchal. He was distributing mail when approached by a group of individuals who asked him for money. After a negative reply, they threw an orange liquid at his eyes which temporarily blinded him. The bombeiros gave first aid then transported him to hospital. The PSP were informed and are investigating. Pepper spray is illegal for civilian use. It irritates the mucous membranes and the effects can last from 30 minutes to nearly two hours.

PSP agent prevents a suicide in the old zone of Funchal. On December 20, the speed and ‘cold blood’ of a policeman prevented a tragedy. Near the cable car, around 13.00, a 34 year old man was leaning over the sea wall and screaming that he was about to kill himself. He said he would throw himself into the sea if anyone approached him. As there was not enough time to wait for the trained negotiator, the PSP agent approached the man, undetected, grabbed him and pulled him to the ground. The man was eventually taken to hospital. The 33 year old officer has been in the force for 11 years and said, "It was the first time I came across a situation like this, I knew I had to act quickly and fortunately it ended in the best way."

Transfer of fuel. The tanker ‘Madeiro’ arrived on Christmas Day and has been unable to unload due to bad weather. Now with a break in the stormy weather, the island’s power supply is guaranteed with the stocks re-inforced. The ‘Madeiro’ has discharged part of the 18,000 tons of fuel in its tanks, which are vital for the supply of major power companies and other industries, and should finish unloading today. On Sunday, the tanker is expected to visit Porto Santo but the forecast is for 4 – 6 metre waves, which might prevent unloading. The Porto Santo ferry is not scheduled to sail today, but the passengers who came to Madeira for the New Year should be able to return tomorrow.

PND want Toco in the rubbish bin. The damage caused in the recent days by the bad weather justifies the suspension of the project for Toco in Funchal, according to the PND. The recent storm damage to the swimming pool complex at Barreira necessitates the Government to readjust its coastal policy. As well as the lack of money, the fact that other promenades and the Barreirinha swimming complex were badly damaged, means that the project for Toco should go into the dustbin.

Day of the City of Santana without anyone from the Government present. There will be no members of the Regional Government present at today’s official celebrations of the Day of the City of Santana. Rui Moses explained that invitations were sent out later than expected. Also, the date is not very convenient and needs to be changed. Santana was elevated to city status in 2001.

Left Bloc proposal for the centennial of the Republic. On 5 October 2010, Portugal will have been a Republic for 100 years. As well as national celebrations, the Left Bloc wants regional events. A draft decree for a regional commission to be set up, will be delivered to the Legislative Assembly for discussion in January. It is justified as the region is part of the Republic and both Madeira and Porto Santo should be proud of this fact. The autonomous regions were created by the provisions of the Constitution of the Republic and this fact should be highlighted throughout the year. The regional committee should report back in April for celebrations to be held in the second half of the year. There should be events honouring the spirit of the Portuguese although President Jardim no longer harbours strong feelings for the Portuguese.

OCM aims for new record. The Classical Orchestra of Madeira want to record a new album in 2010, having launched last November a compilation of five discs dedicated to Mozart. The conductor Rui Massena wants to release a more commercial disc. It could be fusion or film music or Vienna Waltzes. The Orchestra is still without a residential base. They will depend on negotiations with Pestana about continuing the use of the Casino before they can plan beyond March. The island requires a new hall with acoustics suited to concerts.

Eurico Martins wants more regional interest in the Bandolins. Eurico Martins is the director of the Recreio Musical União da Mocidade, (Bandolins of Madeira), a group made up of nine youngsters from São Roque. The director wants to hold more public concerts in 2010. They aim for a tour of the UK this year, including Bristol where they have had a good reception in the past. Performances will be held weekly at 21.00 on Fridays at the English Church in Funchal. There is a performance tomorrow at 21.00 at this location.

Free performances of Cantar os Reis. 6 January is the Dia de Reis, and to celebrate it in Madeira and Porto Santo are the performances ‘Cantar os Reis’. At the auditorium in the Municipal Garden in Funchal, the Associacoa Cultural Encontros da Eira will host a free show at 21.30 on Tuesday 5th January. In Machico, the performance will be on Saturday 2 January at 20.30 in the Largo da Praça. At Porto Santo, the show will start at 21.30 on the 5th January, in the Largo das Palmeiras. All shows are free.

Thousands of Euros in gold stolen. Thieves burgled a jewellers shop in Rua do Bom Jesus in Funchal on the night of  25 – 26 December at around 1.30 am. They stole 60 gold necklaces, some worth 1,500 Euros, despite triggering the alarm. They disappeared before the police arrived.

Elaine also found these articles in the New Year’s Day edition of the Jornal da Madeira. Many thanks.

Cuisine combines with the New Year’s Eve party. New Year’s Eve in Madeira, or reveillon, as many prefer to call it with the use of foreign words, typical of a tourist region par excellence, is an event appreciated by Madeirans. Inevitably, as the festa was celebrated at the table with plenty, New Year’s Eve is another reason to gather family and friends. But those who have neither home or family living in the district of Funchal, overlooking the amphitheatre, continue to celebrate New Year’s Eve by carrying food and drink to the chosen location to see the fireworks display. There is not an exact menu for New Year’s Eve, however being a special night and traditionally cold, one cannot miss the delicacies to "warm" the body and soul.

At the table there are many liqueurs with various aromas and flavours, new wine and our traditional Madeira Wine. In small dishes are served the "teeth" (dentinhos), normally pickled vegetables, stewed beans, pig’s feet, stewed offal of chicken, and meat in wine and garlic. In terms of sweets, home made bolo de mel, cheese, and broas de mel. Under the influence of large areas of food distribution, the "bolo rei" is also present.

At the time of celebrating New Year’s Eve, superstitions come to the fore. A piece of new underwear, money in the pocket, raisins and champagne are among others. The famous 12 raisins represent the 12 months of the year. It is believed that if you make a wish with every piece of dried fruit you eat, they will become a reality. After the euphoria of New Year’s Eve and fireworks, it is an ideal time to enjoy reinvigorating chicken soup, served hot and according to tradition, accompanied by chicken sandwiches. All around the region, New Year’s Eve supper is not much different, although in some counties a festive tradition leads many families to taste other delicacies.

In Porto Moniz, the Festa is seized by many families for the traditional "Carne Santa", a mixture of beef and pork marinaded overnight, mainly consumed on Christmas Eve but also tasted during this festive season. Alongside this traditional dish, on the table in the north is "Semilhas Bêbedas", potatoes cooked in wine. Also in the north, "Carne da Noite" cooked with potatoes, pork products from the recent "funcao" made with dry wine, accompanied by vegetables. On the south coast, particularly in Machico, the emphasis is on tasting "Bucho de Porco Recheado". Traditionally served at Christmas, this delicacy is enjoyed at the table until the festivities of Santo Amaro. In Santa Cruz, the tradition is the "Carne Frescal" which is somewhat similar to meat in wine and garlic. With white wine, red wine, Madeira Wine, herbs and garlic, the meat is marinaded for three days then baked in a pan. In Funchal, the lead role is taken by two dishes; roast pork with potatoes or chestnuts and chicken in the pot, following the traditions that pass from generation to generation without major changes.

Funchal welcomed thousands in the farewell to 2009. Thousands and thousands of people descended into Funchal. With the help of good weather, the capital of Madeira "was alert" already with some movement, and the tourists were the largest "slice" of those who thronged the streets of Funchal. Our news team made a circuit of the city and found that, indeed, the "smell" of the new year was already in the air. We started by going to the Mercado dos Lavradores where flowers, typical or not of Madeira, were the most photographed and acquired. The flashes did not stop going off.

After a walk around the space which that night would be the scene of celebration, we went down Rua do Visconde de Anadia to the Praça da Autonomia. Of the six stalls located there, two were already open by 10 am, selling the bolo do caco and bread with chorizo. Ahead of us on the promenade by the sea, the seller of roasted chestnuts was doing business with the tourists from the three ships which were already docked in Funchal, "Queen Victoria", "Boudicca" and "Aida Luna". Three more ships would arrive later, the "Amadea", "Oriana" and "Saga Ruby". Next to the stall of chestnuts, company officials responsible for the fireworks display tended to the material already placed at the stations ready for the stroke of midnight. On the pier hundreds of people watched the bay from the capital of Madeira and some posed for photos.

We walked up the Avenida Zarco and travelled throughout the central area of Avenida Arriaga. There the movement was even greater. Many, many people visited the various Christmas projects that the Regional Government, through the Regional Secretariat of Tourism and Culture, conceived for that space. In front of the building of the Regional Government, in the bandstand put there, a band played "Adeste Fidelis".  At the tables on the nearby terrace, as well as on the concrete benches scattered around the avenue, the avenue was crowded with people. "Fantastic" we heard a foreigner, probably British, say to her husband as she photographed the crib next to the Se.

On the return to JM, we passed along the streets João Tavira, Queimada de Cima e Baixo and the Largo do Chafariz. No time to enter the establishments, we launched a sneak peek inside some of the shops, noting that many had chosen to buy a new item of clothing for the entry into 2010. There are many superstitions, one of them for example, enter the new year wearing a piece of yellow clothing. The Rua dr. Fernão de Ornelas was also full of people. Increasingly, we heard the words "Bom Ano". Already at the end of the morning and near the closing hour of our edition, folklore groups roamed the main streets of Funchal leaving an increasingly festive atmosphere. As we guessed, a great New Year’s Eve, as always.

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

(The truth is I didn’t expect a newspaper today, so I will have to keep it short as I have other things planned).

Most of today’s front page is taken up with a magnificent photo of the night sky over Funchal, lit by an abundance of assorted colour fireworks : Luck with the weather helped fortunate firework display – The magnificent spectacle ‘Ilhas Afortunadas’ was the usual success and counted on the help of São Pedro. But the night saw several fires, an injury through a ‘bomb’ and some people in alcoholic comas. 19 thousand tons of fireworks and 97 thousand explosions guaranteed the success of the night of the new year, but the show had luck on it’s side through the weather which eased off for the night. Somehow I doubt if it was 19 thousand tons of fireworks, but the Diário seems to be littered with mistakes today, but hopefully not through alcoholic comas. Not many photos, but you can see some small but excellent ones HERE in the Diário.

Today’s main news headline : Heroin at the front of the fears – At least in this decade, it is the first time that heroine tops the list of various types of drugs seized on Madeira. This hard drug causes greater damage than cocaine and the others of the type.

Socialist against gay marriage – The parliamentarian Carlos Preira  concedes on the union of people the same sex, but is against the PS from there on the idea of marriage.

 

Lara was born in Funchal in the first hours of 2010. The first baby of 2010 was born at 1.35 in the morning of 1st January, weighing 3 kilos and 700 grams. She is called Lara, and already has a three year old sibling. Mum even managed to watch the Funchal fireworks before the birth, albeit through the windows of the maternity unit.

 

 

And finally the sports / football headline : Public return timidly to the stadiums. More than half of the growth of spectators derives from the influx at the Stadium of Light [Benfica]. The overall crowds at the first 14 matches throughout Portugal saw a growth of spectators of 5.4% compared to the same period in the previous season. The 7 home games of Nacional have so far attracted just 14,680 spectators (9,275 – 2008), whilst Marítimo fared better as always with 27,651 paying fans but with a considerable fall (38,294 – 2008). There’s a chart with all the figures HERE, but again it has a few obvious mistakes.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated. 

Another daily blog visitor record set yesterday, with a whopping 594 visits, mostly looking for information or footage of our new year firework display.

I reckon the nets at the offshore fish farm at Campanário must have broken again, as looking down to the beach there are loads of fishermen there again this morning, and the numbers seem to be growing daily. The fishing bonanza now seems to be an annual event, always after rough seas,  and must cost the owners of the fish farm a small fortune in losses.

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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 photo or video, 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 don’t send in automatic translations (like Google translator) without checking them through and correcting them first, thanks.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

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Today’s photo – Many thanks to Eiryl … Roasted chestnuts / castanhas

"Have just returned from Madeira, super weather except for one very wet day. It was lovely to see the Xmas lights and displays. Sending 3 of my pics, first, fish drying on a boat at Câmara de Lobos, second, the roasted chestnuts – I can still smell them when I look at the photo, and third, sailor spotted at the top of the mast. There were so many cruise ships in this time and it was good to read on the blog about the history of the old yacht with funnels which we saw coming into harbour. We have a long wait to our return in February". Eiryl.

Apologies to Eiryl, as that was sent in nearly 3 weeks ago … you remember, when we used to have good weather? The other photos mentioned will follow in the next few days.

On the 1st of January 2010 the owners of classic cars and motorcycles will meet together at 4 pm in Praia Formosa to take part on a new year’s parade through the streets of Funchal. This is the first time this event takes place and it was named "Funchal ON". So if you will be wondering around Funchal do not miss this opportunity to admire some old beauties riding along the city. Thanks to Madeira Help for that little snippet.

What 2010 might have in store for the travel industry – TravelMole Guest Comment by Thomson and First Choice managing director Dermot Blastland. "… As for destinations, we’re expecting the top short haul destinations for summer 2010 to be the Balearics, mainland Spain, the Algarve, Italy and Madeira". LETS HOPE SO!

"In 2008, Italian and European investigators uncovered a €3 million fraud over subsidy claims for fictitious tobacco, involving at least one cooperative, putting 80 individuals under arrest and recovering the cash. Meanwhile, on the small Atlantic island of Madeira, which is part of Portugal, two banana cooperatives benefited from almost €1 million in illegal subsidies or nonpayment of duties during a decade of scamming, according to court judgments. In the harshest of a series of sanctions, the president of one of the cooperatives, Fernando Gonzalez, received a five-year prison sentence and €1,000 fine, under appeal, after being convicted of looting €316,000 in subsidies. Some of his cooperative’s claims were made in the names of farmers who died years earlier". This was published in some American newspaper WHAT CORRUPTION ON MADEIRA – WHATEVER NEXT!

Elaine (East) sent in the final article from the Christmas traditions series that was running in the Jornal da Madeira in the run up to Xmas. Many thanks.

Traditional food at Christmas. Delights to mark this season are bolos and broas de mel, liqueurs, meat in garlic and wine, chicken soup, ‘torresmos’ and pork cooked in many forms. Christmas Eve guests are offered typical seasonal sweets, like bolo de mel, broas and home-made liqueurs. Lunch on Christmas Day has a very special significance for the vast majority of local people. It is a time for the immediate family to meet and those who have departed to eternity remembered, and not to forget those who are absent in countries of emigration. The main menu integrates chicken and pork, and especially meat in wine and garlic, which is made in different ways according to the parishes. Modern families use restaurants. In the past, meat from animals raised at home had a special flavour. The fruit for dessert is traditionally pineapple, both for flavour and aroma. Pickles are made at the beginning of December, an English condiment based on an assortment of vegetables (or fruit) pickled in vinegar, whose origin refers to the time of British rule over India. Good cider vinegar is flavoured with cinnamon, black pepper, cloves and nutmeg. Spring onions in sauce are often included, and the meat seasoned with wine, wine vinegar, garlic, cloves and bay leaves. Also on the table there should be pao jamon, bolo de rei, stuffed turkey and bacalhau.

Local specialities are as follows. Porto Moniz, ‘Carne Santa’ – pork and beef marinated overnight. Santana, ‘Carne da Noite’ – pork from the animal killed a week before in the ‘função do porco’, with wine, bay leaves and pumpkin accompaniment. Santo António da Serra in Machico, ‘Bucho de Porco Recheado’ – pork entrails stuffed with rice, garlic and parsley. In Santa Cruz, ‘Carne Frescal’ – meat marinated in white and red wine, Madeira wine and garlic for three days. In Funchal, ‘Sarapatel’ – pork blood and pork liver cooked with onions, tomato, parsley, pears, nuts and raisins.

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories :

The web-cam photographer has been down to Av. Arriaga again. A good photo of the camels on Sunday, CAMELS Today it’s Santa’s train.  TRAIN

Sales started yesterday. December 28 to February 28, the official dates of the winter sales. Some shops are waiting until January. There are discussions to reduce the period as two months is too long for the size of the population here, and to have a later starting date.

Communists note Funchal is less competitive. The Assembly of the Municipal of Funchal will vote this afternoon on a proposal of the CDU for an immediate formation of a working group to investigate alleged loss of competitiveness of Funchal, even in the regional context. The proposed study will take a year to report back. The Communists propose that representatives from the Municipal Assembly should form the group. The data has been collected by the National Institute of Statistics in a study called, ‘Local Purchasing Power’, which indicates that Funchal looses purchasing power compared to other municipalities in the region. Funchal Council is also discussing its budget today and plan to reduce running costs and maintain investment in priority sectors. More rigour will be applied when assessing investment projects. The accounts need to balance with a decrease from a 114 million Euros budget this year to 108 million Euros next year. They expect to save 3 million Euros in operating expenses – a large sum. 48% of the budget is retained for investment. They want to take advantage of low interest rates in the international money market and only spend 75% of the budget by the end of the year. The Socialist Party indicate they will vote against the budget as it lacks rigour in defining priorities when the Council has less money to spend. Half of the investments are in public works and bureaucracy instead of the environment, culture and social action.

8,000 to see the fireworks. 8,000 tourists and 3,300 crew will take the opportunity to see the fireworks on New Year’s Eve. The increased port traffic starts tomorrow, December 30, with the cruise ships Queen Victoria (2,000 tourists, 900 crew) and AIDAluna (2,250 tourists, 634 crew) due at 7.15 and 12.00 hours, respectively. The Cunard ship will stay moored until the early morning of December 31 and then has to go out to sea at 6.00 am to make room for another ship. The lifeboats will be used to ferry tourists ashore, weather permitting. She finally sails at 1 am on January 1 2010. The AIDAluna normally calls on Sundays but the timetable has been altered for the fireworks spectacular and will also leave at 1.00 am on January 1 2010. On December 31, the Oriana  (1700, 760) will occupy the position vacated by the Queen Vic., arriving at 07.00 and the Boudicca  (793, 363) will be alongside until 2 am the following day. At 22.00 on the 31 December, the Amadea (600, 244) will moor behind the AIDAluna and remain until 18.00 hours the following day. The sixth and final ship to arrive to watch the display is the Saga Ruby (650, 379) which approaches at 23.00 on December 31 and stays offshore until 7am on January 1 2010.  The Lobo Marinho ferry will join other boats at sea at 23.00, for spectators to obtain a sea view. — Hopefully, the Oriana will not miss out this time.

Porto Santo may have ‘anopheles’.  Continuation of yesterday’s report about malaria in the region. Anopheles is the mosquito which can transmit malaria, if infected with the Plasmodium parasites. A detailed study about climate change in the region since 2006, discusses the possibility that the mosquito is present on the island of Porto Santo, although it is not found on the island of Madeira. It is thought the risk of contracting malaria is very low as the the local population of mosquitoes on Porto Santo are not infected with the parasite. Climate change will make it more favourable for the development of the parasites in the region but they need to be introduced by infected vectors, and all cases of malaria between 1996 and 2004 have been contracted abroad. The Department of Social Affairs ensures there is no cause for alarm as there are no vectors present in Madeira and malaria cannot be transmitted from person to person. The labs here can test for malaria. The relatives of the man in intensive care are upset about the way he was ‘shuttled around’ for four days before admittance. The hospital originally sent him to Santo Antonio Health Centre for a test and immunization against influenza A, then on feeling worse the following day, he went to Machico Health Centre and sent home. He was finally admitted on Christmas Eve and is showing signs of organ failure. The other two infected men are responding well to treatment and should be released soon. — No mention of the number of malaria cases that have been brought here over the years. The symptoms of malaria – fever, headaches and malaise – are typical flu symptoms, especially prominent at the present time. Why didn’t the men take precautions against malaria if they were working in a highly infectious region (Equatorial Guinea)?

Tickets and passes increases – confusion! Someone cannot do their sums or the information is too vague. Bus tickets and fares will increase next year, as usual on January 1. According to the Regional Secretariat for Tourism and Transport, the average increases will be 1.85% for interurban buses and 1.19% for urban transport. An average increase of 5 cents per ticket. A 1.55 Euros ticket will cost 1.57 Euros, according to the Diário but a 1.55 Euros ticket in Funchal will increase to 1.60 Euros (3.2% ?), according to the J. Madeira. A 35.50 Euros social pass will increase to 40 Euros (12.7% ?). More detailed information will be published later this week. Better news is that milk and bread will not increase until at least March. CTT has published details of new prices for the postal service. PT will reduce fixed line prices by about 10.5% and offer unlimited calls within their network at weekends, from January 1. It is thought that mobile phones will have the same tariffs.

Vandalism puts gas tank at risk. The gas tank that supplies a block of flats situated near the Pico dos Barcelos viewpoint in Santo Antonio, was yesterday at risk of exploding. Two rubbish bins were destroyed by fire and damage to the infrastructure meant a temporary interruption in  ZON and Portugal Telecom cable television and Internet in the area. Immediately behind the rubbish collection containers is a gas tank, which could have easily caught fire. Vandals set fire to the area at 1.30 when there was poor visibility in the high zone. The Funchal bombeiros extinguished the flames but the charred remains are an eyesore for visitors to the viewpoint. There have been similar acts of arson at ecopoints recently, all at night, in the area of Courelas and near this viewpoint.

Urbanization Plan for Santa Cruz to be released on January 7. The plan is for the Portinho area. There will be installation of new equipment, transfer of public facilities and the creation of several recreational areas and green spaces. A new kindergarten and a new school are planned. Changes also planned for Vargem; some areas of the centre of Caniço will be closed to traffic with new litter bins and seats to make the area pleasanter for pedestrians, with new roads and areas of health and leisure. The cemetery, which is being repositioned, will become a garden.

Regional Government announces support to agriculture ranging from 85% to 100%.  At last, a statement from the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources announces financial support for storm damage which can cover between 85% and 100% of eligible expenses. The office of Manuel Antonio Correia said the Executive would use EU funds and the Regional Budget. The support will cover the costs of restoring agricultural land and infrastructure, eg crops, walls, buildings, irrigation systems and equipment. To cut bureaucracy, call centres have been set up from today and claims are a priority for processing. The CDU want the Government to  immediately use the Insurance Fund created in 1983.

Socialist lodges a complaint against the Regional Director of Forestry, Tamega and Coito Pita. The Socialist Party leader Joao Gouveia wants prosecutions against the Regional Director of Forestry (Rocha da Silva), the construction firm Tamega, as well as the Social Democrat Coito Pita, for storm damage. The construction firm is accused of illegal activity in the area of Ribeira Grande. The Director of the Forestry Department has direct responsibility for the construction of the road between Rosario and Encumeada. The Director of Forestry permitted Tamega to put stones in unsuitable areas as illegal landfill. Coito Pita owns the land situated below the Chao-dos-Louros, contiguous to Rocha da Silva’s property. Coito Pita blocked access to farmland via his road and after negotiations with Rocha da Silva, an alternative road was constructed. This involved removal of trees which were carried down the slopes in the storm.

Hectic day at the airport. Yesterday, due to strong gusts of wind, several hundreds of passengers had long waits to fly from Madeira. 17 cancelled flights (departures/arrivals), and delays in all flights scheduled to land on Monday morning. Some passengers had to wait more than eight hours and criticized the lack of information. Reporters could not find a satisfactory answer to the fact that charter flights from the U.K., Helsinki and Copenhagen were landing but not those of TAP and SATA. Ground Force could not explain why and the TAP headquarters in Lisbon could not be contacted.

Storm leaves families poorer. In Ribeira do Porco in Boaventura, the storm leaves stones deposited on the highway. Downstream, there is major damage. Five cars in Lombo do Urzal were damaged and walls and agricultural land have been destroyed. In Falca, machinery and a warehouse belonging to a construction firm have water damage. Heavy rain still falls in Ribeira Grande and Rosario, where there are more landslides and swollen rivers. The Councils have not yet drawn risk maps, which would take political courage, due to land becoming devalued and many present buildings disallowed.

Bad weather stories round-up. In Vasco Gil, the electrical cables were ripped down by a storm-felled eucalyptus tree. In Funchal, various roads closed, especially the Estrada Luso-brasileira, due to landslides. Officials had to use chainsaws to remove buganvilia (bougainvillea) from the Ribeira de Santa Luzia, after heavy rain caused it to fall into the water and block the water course.This plant also caused problems and had to be cut back on the Rua 5 de Outubro in Funchal. The only access to Curral das Freiras, the Estrada da Eira do Serrado, was cut off by falling eucalyptus trees, destroying power lines. Rubbish discarded thoughtlessly has washed down to the coastline, especially in Serra de Agua and Ribeira Brava. Falling trees destroyed the roof of a residence in Camacha (photo). Three eucalyptus and two pine trees fell onto the roof of the unoccupied Villa Viera Cardosa in Rochao. The owners live in South Africa. Neighbours had asked the family to cut the trees two years ago, as they recognized the potential danger. The family displaced at Monte yesterday will be temporarily housed in lodgings by Funchal Council. A landslide near the electricity station at Serra de Agua left about a dozen families isolated at Achada dos Aparicios. The only access road to the power station and their houses was blocked by the landslide. The Council unblocked the road by the end of the morning. The sea invaded at least one bar on the esplanade at Praia Formosa. The bar Barra Azul was affected last night and the bar is half destroyed. In front of the Atlantic Gardens, the footpath has been closed due to waves threatening the beach area. According to the IM, the coast of Madeira will be hit by strong waves until the end of the year. Two large ships are sheltering from the weather off the north coast and are being monitored by the Harbour of Funchal to ensure they do not come too close to shore. One is a large container ship, en route to Rotterdam, the other is a tanker.

—– The Bishop of Funchal reassures parishioners that the Church is still here for them during this terrible time. The Government has other matters on its mind; Jardim has put his ex-journalist skills to work by writing another preface to a book – this time about tax systems in the Region. New Year’s ‘Sexy Party’ at the Farmers’ Market will be safeguarded against the weather, already 500 tickets sold, mainly to the VIP area. The prices are 10 and 15 Euros whereas the Wine Institute’s Hollywood party tickets are 20 Euros.

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

The sea makes difficult the unloading of fuel – The tanker-ship ‘Madeiro’ has been waiting 5 days for suitable sea conditions to unload 18 thousand tons of fuel. The time is uncertain, but there are stocks to last at least a week. The three fuel terminals located at Caniçal, Socorridos and Porto Santo have been inaccessible due to weather / sea conditions, and supplies are running low for products like diesel and other fuels. The tanker-ship arrived here on Christmas day, and when conditions allow will unload firstly in Caniçal, and then Socorridos, before heading off to Porto Santo. At least that is the plan, but the reality is likely to be quite different as only safe unloading conditions will determine. The ship has been ‘sheltering’ unanchored off the north coast of Madeira, between Ponta de São Lourenço and Porto da Cruz. Most of the fuel is destined for electricity production, where existing stocks should last until 6th January. Around 1,000 tons are for petrol stations. EEM spokesman Rui Rebelo said "Only a lot of bad luck will prevent the ship from docking in the next ten days," after which a break in electricity supply will be possible.

Today’s main news headline : Sócrates pays the electricity bill – Lisbon decided to end the stubbornness and deliver to EEM the value of the convergence rates. The process was started in 1998 by an agreement between the central and regional executives. But the money was burning until now. €26 million arrives today or tomorrow. This was an agreement to ensure that Madeirans were not disadvantaged in terms of the prices they pay for electricity consumed. The Electricity Company of Madeira produces electricity at a higher cost than in mainland Portugal, because of the cost of importing raw materials, transport costs, and the fact that that the Madeira market is comparatively small. A payment agreement made in 2003 was to ensure that the state contributed an amount annually until the year 2013, but until now any subsidies have been funded by the Madeira Government. Now, after a long struggle the state has agreed to pay the subsidies along with late payment costs (interest), after the matter was referred to the courts.  The money will be used to settle bank debt incurred due to the delay, and will not affect the prices paid by EEM customers.

French Tourism grows in times of crisis – ‘Top of Travel’ brought 16 thousand French in 2009 and wants to bring 20 thousand next year.

Classical Orchestra gives three concerts in Lisbon.

Storm insists on punishing Ponta do Sol. The sea has been relentless in the West zone – The force of the waves partially destroyed the beach bar at Ponta do Sol. The bar named ‘Maré Alta’ was damaged as the high waves ‘threw rocks’ at the structure.  Also Marina do Lugar de Baixo has two more ‘leaking’ fissures in the wall, and Calheta golden sand beach has returned once again to be a pebble beach. The president of Ponta do Sol council has said that he wants to enrol in the 2011 government programme to completely transform the protection for the town sea front. WATCH THE VIDEO Who said "water water everywhere, but not a drop to drink" … was it someone in Ponta do Sol?

Today’s top sport / football story : Marote doesn’t know the future of the ‘Series Madeira’ – The president of AF Madeira alerts to the uncertainty around the regional clubs. Marote wants to see three Madeirans at the 2010 World Cup Finals. No time to delve into the full story, but I am certain Sr. Marote will see his wish come true. For sure Uncle Bertie will wangle a few top match tickets for his pals and cronies, and no doubt the taxpayer will need to assist in this essential diplomatic mission. Whether the Madeiran footballing trio of Ronaldo, Danni and Micael will be there I have no idea.

An extra article from Elaine (East) from yesterday’s Jornal da Madeira, an  interview with the Manager of Macedo’s Fireworks. Many thanks Elaine.

Fireworks stations begin to be placed tonight. The placement of the launching stations for the fireworks display at the end-of-year in Funchal will start from tonight. According to Carlos Macedo, Manager of Macedo’s Fireworks, tonight they will begin to put the fireworks stations at the Avenida do Mar. He said, roughly at 00:00, one of the lanes of the Avenida do Mar will be cut off to traffic, for the placing of containers at the fireworks stations. This operation will continue even through the course of tomorrow, when there will be placed stations at sea (in areeiras) and the closed stations. Finally, on December 31, the remainder will be placed, particularly those that "are in more public areas, such as parks, streets, parking lots, etc.", to avoid bottlenecks and impediments to movement. It should be noted that this year, there will be 39 stations to launch fireworks in Funchal and one in Porto Santo. Compared to last year, there is one more fireworks station, namely the one that will be located at the Garrison of the Regiment No. 3. In total, as already announced, there will be 97,172 firings, that over eight minutes will bring a lot of colour and magic to this important tourist attraction of Madeira. "Fortunate Islands" is the theme of the show, which, as Carlos Macedo stressed, is inspired by the International Year of Biodiversity, which starts precisely on the 1 January. According to him, "our designer decided to set up a project to honour this jewel of nature, that is the Floresta Laurissilva and the fauna associated with it." As such, he stressed, "we will have a very colourful show, very noisy, with themes and effects related to nature and fauna." A variety of colours including green, orange, violet and white will cause a great show, which will be accompanied by a variety of sounds such as whistling, whooshing and crackling. "Let’s have a bit of everything," says Carlos Macedo.

The manager says that everything is being prepared for a great show and hopes the weather conditions will not ultimately harm it. This is because, he said, rain and humidity will not allow the smoke to lift. Moreover, he hopes that the sea is not choppy, so as not to hinder the process, also as regards the placement of fireworks. "We really fear the rain and the storm that’s going around," he confessed. It should be noted, however, that as Lusa (News Agency) said, citing the Regional Secretary of Tourism and Transport, weather forecasts point to an improvement in conditions from today in the archipelago of Madeira, "and there is expected a pleasant temperature and good weather for the last day of the year."

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated. 

I think I have found another website that will show the world record attempt (breaking it’s own record) for the 2010 new year fireworks tomorrow night in Funchal, Madeira. I am still checking it out, and if I don’t confirm it later today I will ensure it is on tomorrow’s blog ready to click on and watch.

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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 photo or video, 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 don’t send in automatic translations (like Google translator) without checking them through and correcting them first, thanks.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

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Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

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