Christmas day blog – Weather videos & news from Market Night 2009
Today’s photo – Many thanks to Selina … Angels amongst the Funchal Christmas lights.
Today there are no promises of what is to come, and as I write this I don’t even know if there will be much in the way of news stories, aside from the continuing bad weather that is. Feel free to use the comments for Xmas messages, or whatever you like. Sometimes on Xmas day we get a celebrity visitor or two …
Tobi kindly sent in some video links, bad weather and a very dodgy aborted plane landing … many thanks :
I saw this on Don’s blog, and I realise it is 2008, but it’s better than nothing … which is what I have … not a single photo.
Many thanks for the messages and emails. Merry Xmas to all … have a great day. Der
Elaine (East) noticeably absent for a week, dropped me a line yesterday, and now all is crystal clear :
Der, Happy Christmas. Glad you are having a day off and company (hopefully). I have finally sat down with a glass of wine (first of many), ready for the festive season. I had an enforced stopping of blogging – did anyone notice—- No? Is it worth me keeping going after Christmas, writing fewer news items with less time taken up? Why do all the devils come at once and at Christmas? Devil no.1 the man downstairs who will not allow the condo. to put scaffolding on his ‘private property’, to repair cracks in the walls (again). Means our living room and bedroom walls are cracked, discoloured, growing mould and plaster peeling off. He has already spent 15,000 euros and will fight all the way to the appeal courts etc. if necessary. More money than sense and a long expensive battle. Devil no. 2 the weather. Combined with no.1 the walls downstairs are worse and for the first time, water down the attic walls. The wind has raised the tiles and rain seeped underneath (according to the condo. man). Silicon tube needed and a new place to live. Devil no.3 the f*** b*** who killed my computer. Why? Thought the bloggers might want to know what NOT to do if they have a similar attack.
WHAT NOT TO DO IF YOUR COMPUTER IS ATTACKED
1. Don’t just pray the anti-viral software will find the Trojan warriors – it won’t. Especially if embedded in the antiviral software/start-up screen and they keep turning off windows defender and firewall. Applications then slowly shut down until the computer becomes completely unusable, even in safe mode. Should have used registry clean-up tool?
2. Remember to take the computer details to the shop so you can buy the correct hard disc drive. O.K. as remembered after buying the wrong one last time.
3. Don’t get confused with the BlueRay manufacturer of HDD and Blue Ray videos, or the shop assistant has to try to understand why you are saying it is the wrong HDD.
4. Replace HDD – easy as have done it before. Screwdriver handily included in the box.
5. When re-installing windows, get the correct discs (not your older version from a previous computer) or you waste money at the local Internet cafe trying to find out why it won’t accept the product key. Wrongly conclude it is because you have activated windows once. (OEM software).
6. Then read the Microsoft manual and find you could have used a settings transfer wizard before the old computer died.
7. Find you can’t get the Internet. Ring up ZON and get someone who mutters about network adapters (?) He says you can set up the modem with the USB port and you realise you have been following the wrong instructions as you are using Ethernet (?) Modem is OK – phone working etc. so you phone again and get a different operator who says she will send someone out.
8. Wait 2 days for ZON to come (wrong time of year) and he fixes it in 6 minutes. Still wonder why you were supposed to install the VGA driver.
9. Screen still not right – small square on a wide screen. Find more cds you need to install.
10. Getting there – slowly. Download antiviral software as soon as you can. Any other defences possible.
11. Spend the next week (or so) updating old software/trying to get the computer back to how you had it before.
Silver surfer 10/10. Computer skills 1/10.
HAPPY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE. HOPE NEW YEAR IS BETTER.
Thanks Elaine, igualmente, and great to have you back. Der
And then at 00.34 thus morning Elaine then sent in news from yesterday’s Jornal da Madeira … many thanks.
Market Night fulfils tradition. Thousands of people have kept alive the traditional Market Night, and the rain which struck the evening in Funchal, did not dissuade the enthusiasts of the festival, sponsored by the City of Funchal. The streets surrounding the Farmers’ Market, crowded with people, were filled with joy and colour, with stalls of various fruits, flowers and plants of the season, food, drinks and toys. Inside the flagship establishment of almost 70 years, thousands of people made last minute purchases to cheer the "Festa", with particular emphasis on fruits and vegetables. Animated, small groups of friends and family gathered, at times arousing the attention of the many tourists who were passing through. The group of singers, led by José Alberto Gonçalves, warmed the night in the fish market, with dozens of voices singing Christmas carols. The PSP controlled the traffic and public order, ensuring public safety.
Rain causes the dropout of six vendors. A councillor of Funchal, Rubina Leal, said that six vendors withdrew, who had requested from the authority licenses for Market Night. "This year the Market Night has 76 stalls selling food and drinks and joy. On the other hand we had six withdrawals of vendors, but this week the Board had more requests," said the councillor. Rubina Leal emphasized the involvement of different Council services in organizing the event; the office that organizes and distributes in the areas of market trade and services, civil defence with six teams, the fire department, transit and PSP.
People seek the gastronomic elements. Enthusiast of the Market Night, responsible for the ‘Gastronomic Memories of the Convent of Santa Clara’, Joao Dionisio, praised the adhesion of Madeirans in maintaining the tradition of the Farmers’ Market. "Despite the rain and cold, this is a night to mark the experience of the Madeirans," he stated, adding that "the market is well placed to handle all these thousands of people." The islanders are increasingly looking for gourmet items. The space available in the market receives again this year many people who have tried tasting the sweets of the convent.
Not even the rain deters those who live the tradition. The lawyer and former president of the Parish of Santo António, Antonio Rentroia, is a constant presence at the Market Night. Despite the unstable weather, he did not want to miss, this time, the tradition two days before Christmas. "This is a night with a lot of tradition which does not waive," he stressed.
For Antonio Rentroia, "The rain does not thwart the good Funchalenses and Madeirenses to come to celebrate this evening, which is wonderful for keeping alive the tradition." The lawyer, assumed gourmet, did not abdicate from tasting the dishes typical of the season and "Festa", and was there to fulfil the ritual.
15 thousand sandwiches of meat in wine and garlic, during the night. By early evening, Heliodoro Caldeira, owner for 20 years of the establishment Bar Cyca, at the entrance to the Farmers’ Market, told JM that he had available for sale, about 15 thousand sandwiches of meat in wine and garlic. "We prepared 15 thousand sandwiches which represent about two tons of meat, i.e. the same quantity as 2008." The trader noted that the best year was 2005, when he beat all records with almost 20 thousand sandwiches and about 2.5 tons of meat.
In the House of Rui Adriano
A presépio to delight. An hour is not enough to identify the details of the big presépio built by Rui Adriano, president of the Society of the Development of the North of Madeira. The JM had the privilege to view a charming setting that captured our attention from the first to the last minute of the visit. Over 400 miniatures, of shepherds and figures, make up the presépio, staged with pictures that depict moments in the tradition of the people of Madeira, such as the traditional arraial (which does not lack the espetada), the "Balinho da Madeira", the folklore, the Christmas romagens , the bordadeira, the killing of the pig, the making of the wheat soup, among other experiences. Porto Santo is represented by a scenic landscape, in which there is a mill. Also a vulcao (designed with the use of electricity) takes a prominent place in the immensity of detail, identifying the history of the region. Aspects of the Azores archipelago, including the re-creation of the procession of the Festa do Senhor Santo Cristo dos Milagres (held since the seventeenth century in Sao Miguel, Ponta Delagada) also are evident. Besides the two Portuguese islands, Brazil is also represented, through a selection of pieces that Rui Adriano acquired in areas in Vera Cruz. "This is a diaspora," classified Rui Adriano, who, with artistic vision, took into account its aspects: movement, depth and space. Running water and light effects make the overall scene even more attractive. The making of the presépio, mounted in a room of his house, under the stairs, began in late October. "A thorough job," complicated to make, but the final result, gives "a pleasure." For example, says Rui Adriano, the implementation of the square (with movement) took 15 days. Also the construction of an elevator took days to complete. Traditional elements, combined with creativity and the pleasure of seeing the work done, is more than enough reasons for all the years Rui Adriano has created a presépio, always surprising. "Christmas without a presépio is not Christmas!", considers Rui Adriano.
Snow covers Europe. Eleven European countries were yesterday, experiencing snowfall, including Portugal, but none of the states of the Old Continent were on red alert, according to the network of European meteorological services (EUMETNET). The snowfall in Bragança and Vila Real, on the mainland, was anticipated but the alerts in force were only yellow or orange (third and fourth levels of a scale of five). The Portuguese were more fortunate than other Europeans, including the United Kingdom, where the conditions indicated snow and ice, with the country on yellow alert. Travel of thousands of British continued yesterday, conditional, with serious accidents on roads in England, one of which killed two people, causing a further 47 injured. The most serious accident, in Townshend, occurred when a bus crashed on an icy road, killing two women and injuring 47 people. The bus, carrying 48 passengers plus the driver, left the road before it landed on its side. A police car that went to the rescue of the victims, also crashed, with the victims of the bus accident finally retrieved by helicopter.
Temperatures approaching historic lows. Yesterday, they were an expected 12 million people on the roads of the United Kingdom, under severe weather conditions and temperatures approaching record lows in some places. The freezing temperatures also disrupted air travel, with dozens of flights of Easyjet and British Airways cancelled.
An accident was recorded involving an American Airlines plane that overshot the runway while trying to land at the airport in Kingston, with 91 passengers slightly injured. In another incident, a Ryanair plane overshot the runway after landing at Prestwick airport in Scotland, due to bad weather. However, the Eurostar service, linking London to Paris and Brussels by the English Channel, resumed on Tuesday, after a three-day suspension due to bad weather, but Eurostar said yesterday that it was not yet operating completely normally.
With an indication of snowfall and strong winds, Austria had a yellow alert in place, and also Spain (orange alert). The Czech Republic was on orange alert, with estimates of snowfall throughout the country, a situation similar to that of Finland, the country on yellow alert in some locations and orange in other locations. In Germany, a yellow alert, was due to snowfall in most of the area, with strong winds and fog. In Ireland, there were indications of snow and fog, with yellow alert, while Italy was on orange alert, with expected rain and strong winds over most of the territory and snow in Piemonte. In Latvia, a country on yellow alert, it was assumed that the entire country was covered with snow. In Norway, on yellow alert, the weather service predicted snowfall and strong winds.
People defy the bad weather and come down to Market Night – The rain came at the time of the interval yesterday at the start of the night. The people took advantage. (hope that makes sense, as it doesn’t to me). I saw some coverage on the 9 pm local news last night, and quite a few people were milling around, but not too many smiling it seemed. Less people attended than usual, a fact confirmed by the fact there was less rubbish to clear up this morning. The clean up team was organised by the council to start work at 5.30 this morning in the Market Night vicinity. The counsellor in charge of the clean-up, Henrique Costa Neves, commented that "there could have been a little more civility", because the garbage ended up outside the catchment area and to some extent all over the city. Well of course he is right, and whilst I have no idea whether there were adequate rubbish bins spread around, he is being a bit of a humbug. Of course people make a mess, but when their behaviour is influenced by alcohol into the early hours of the morning, things can get even messier. Who supports the event, who issues licences to the sellers (who originate the rubbish), and who issues licences to those who sell the booze? … Funchal Council of course. Sr. Neves didn’t create the rubbish, but his council facilitated it!
The main photo today continues the weather theme of most of the last week, and shows a road and supporting wall which has half collapsed into a river, and looks like it will be very expensive to repair. Storm continues its destruction and the spread of chaos – In São Vicente, isolated locations and houses are at risk of collapse.
Most of the front page today is taken up with a ungripping photo of a stopped (abandoned?) car in a street littered with flood debris … but no flood (maybe the Diário photographer arrived a bit late?) : Night of panic – Rivers spill over in São Vicente, Ribeira Brava, and Madelena do Mar. Sue kindly covered the weather stories above, so not much more to add. All was under control in Ribeira Brava town, but the flow in the river was the strongest I have ever seen. I can’t normally see the actual river from my balcony, but last night for a while I could, and the noise was incredible. The water clearly coming from somewhere with much more rain than we actually had in the town. The poor ducks (around 70 of them) were homeless with no high ground left to sleep on. They ended up clustered on a few rocks very close to the sea and the threat of high waves. Don’t forget if you have some leftovers / bread etc. you can spare, they really do need help to find food at the moment and probably for a good few weeks to come.
Rain and wind threaten the most popular night in downtown Funchal. The rain hasn’t helped businesses, and now with the stalls of flowers, fruit, vegetables erected around the fruit market (Mercado dos Lavradores) ready for Market Night tonight, traders are apprehensive about the night and trade being ruined by more bad weather. The roads are closed to traffic and full of traders trying to make the most of the last few days before Xmas. The sun umbrellas amongst the stands are serving to provide some protection from the repetitive rain, but there has been no protection against the financial damage they have all suffered as a result of the poor weather.
