Camacha Apple Festival ; 2 sharks born in captivity ; Fatima statue on the move
TODAY’S PHOTO : Thanks to Tobi … This, according to Tobi, is the Porto Santo Wolf Spider. I actually wonder if it is a wind-up. Can anyone confirm? Talking of animals, you should take a look at this page of animal photos, all taken on Madeira, all taken by Tobi. YOU WILL BE SURPRISED
I went to a bit of a do in Serra da Água Saturday night, but through lack of transport I decided to make the return journey on foot, thinking it was an hour or so at a brisk pace, which was actually far from the reality. Having got a little lost at the start of the town itself, which is a lot bigger than I thought, I stopped somebody to ask directions, and he ended up taking me the last couple of kilometres in his car. Then on the return walk, after about half an hour of walking, someone stopped and picked me up and took me home, but that was after buying me a beer en-route. What kindness and generosity indeed!
A couple of today’s main headlines :
The main news headline in today’s Diário : Pain Unit Without Resources – The lack of human resources and changes made in the field of work contribute to the reduction in capacity of the unit in Funchal Central Hospital. The unit should work with three full time anaesthesiologists, but for the last year has only had one. The monthly average of procedures carried out so far this year is 1,064, compared to nearly 1,500 in 2007 and 2008. The lack of trained staff and specialists means the unit has to turn to other specialists in the hospital for help, but that is not sufficient to fill the shortfalls.
The other main story continues from yesterday (see below) : Haemorrhage In Caniçal – Burst piping in the transfer of fuel oil leaks an undetermined quantity of spillage in the sea. The transporter was pumping fuel into the tanks of Companhia Logística de Combustíveis da Madeira (CLCM), when a union burst. The official opinion is that the spillage is not large, as the problem occurred at the end of the transfer, and teams were quickly on the scene to deal with the matter.
New Disappointment – Marítimo again falls by the wayside in the first round of the cup. Camacha and União continue in the competition. Marítimo managed a shock result yesterday in the Azores, losing 2 – 1 to lowly Santa Clara, in the Portugal Cup. The other two local União and Camacha teams won their games on Madeira and go on to the next round. Machico and Canicense also got knocked out.
Today is the big day for Portugal, who will learn their opponents in the 2010 World Cup play-offs, to be played on 14th and 18th of November. The home leg will be played in the Stadium of Light "Luz", the home of Benfica. Portugal are the clear favourite in FIFA rankings, whichever opponent they meet.
Yesterday’s top news stories, many thanks to Elaine :
Apple Festival to change date next year. On Saturday afternoon, there were few visitors to the festival in Camacha. There were 1,500 kilos of apples from 14 farmers for sale. The main interest to visitors was the traditional cider production/selling. The President of the Parish admits that the festival has been loosing strength in the past three years despite increased production and quality of apples. The organizers will attempt to revitalize the Apple Festival next year and by request of the producers, want to hold it in late September/early October as the apples mature early. They are hopeful that Sunday will bring more visitors. —-I hope they can resurrect the festival. Perhaps trade was better on Sunday afternoon. Did anyone go?
In comparison, they said that several hundred people took advantage of the sunny afternoon to attend the Regional Meeting of the Philharmonic Bands in Ribeira Brava. Yes I can confirm Elaine, lots of people there, as this event goes from strength to strength each year. This year seating was provided for everyone, and yet amazingly there was still enough space for the drunks to dance. Also, they used the super-duper big stage this year, with the roof that goes up and down. That must be the fifth time this year, so they might as well just buy the darn thing.
ARMAS has carried 24% fewer passengers per trip than last year. The average per trip this year has been 24% less than last year and 40% less than 2007. The highest average was in 2007 when it was 280 passengers per trip but this year has only been 166. There have been 40 more trips this year but with only a gain of 563 passengers (25,959 passengers this year so far). Although the total number of passengers has increased, it has been offset by the cost of an increased frequency of service. The major increase in trade has been Portimão / Canaries (57.9%) and Funchal / Portimão (17.3%). The only decrease in passengers was 3.4% less on the Las Palmas / Funchal route. The transport of vehicles is slowly increasing each year. Cargo transport has increased over 500%, so helping revenue.
In addition, the airport had 4.9% less passengers and 3.6% less flights in the first nine months of this year, compared to last year. Domestic passengers increased 12.7% and a decline of 18% international passengers.
No candidates for the City of Culture 2010 award. Eight municipalities could have entered by the deadline in June but none did, possibly due to elections. Last year, Santa Cruz, Machico, Funchal and Câmara de Lobos entered and the latter won. The award was started in 2007 by the Government and they must either end the award or invite a particular municipality.
Less patients had to travel to Portugal for treatment. Since 2006, an average of about 2,000 patients had to be diagnosed / treated in Portugal. So far this year, only 1,200 have had to go. The Health Department pay for air fares at short notice, local transport, subsistence and also the transportation and subsistence of a companion. This year, no patients had to be referred out of the Continent. This is partly due to the opening of the new Radiotherapy Unit in February, which they hope will save more than 1 million Euros by the end of the year in costs.
Two sharks born in Madeira Aquarium. A shark, commonly named Caneja, gave birth to one on Saturday afternoon and one on Sunday morning. This is an unusual event and the mating sharks have been in the aquarium in Porto Moniz for ten months.
Pilgrim statue goes to the regions. After a Mass, the statue of Fátima goes to Boaventura, accompanied by a procession of about 300 bikers from the Madeira Biker’s Club. The police hope that the quiet traffic on Sunday will not lead to too many queues.
Suspected murderer returned to freedom. Continuation of the case of a man killed in Nogueira on Wednesday after an argument. The deceased man was from Mozambique and had gone to the alleged murderer’s house with a knife in his hand, where he was killed. The suspected murderer has been freed as long as he regularly reports to the police, as they pursue enquiries, and his family have moved out of the area for their own safety.
Ecological Park has planted 63,000 species. A daily activity between Autumn and Winter, involving employees, schools and associations. The projects have EU support. They aim to eradicate evasive alien species and restore natural vegetation cover, especially in areas to resist erosion. The Ecological Park is a protected area of Funchal, founded in 1994. The Reception Centre was developed in 2004 and has had more than 4,000 visitors.
Shipping news. After two failed attempts, the 290 tonnes generator engine has finally been unloaded at Câmara de Lobos. In another event, during the transfer of fuel from a supply ship to Caniçal, there was a spillage which meant the emergency ‘absorbent blanket’ (looks like foam) was sprayed into the sea around the spillage.
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