Only the one carnival photo received at ‘going to print’ , so back to normal today.

Tess asked me to plug her Madeira carnival coverage on her blog A YEAR IN MADEIRA. Happy to oblige, and well worth a visit with a ‘first hand’ write up of Saturday night’s cortejo, complete with photos.

Many thanks to Elaine (out East) for this web snippet :

Demographics of Madeira. This fotopedia site has photos and information about the island. Combines Wikipedia articles and photos from flickr. Also projects for Portugal and other countries.

Tobi recommends : "This is a great site, shame there are only 2 places on the south coast covered but I hope they add more". VISIT MADEIRA

Paul asks : Could trams be a solution to traffic congestion in Funchal?

What it could be like … some video clips of the trams in Lisbon including what’s like a rollercoaster ride: Lisbon tram 28. Stay with the film to where the streets get really narrow and there’s a car parked where 2 tracks pass! VIDEO

Tram Clip from the Wim Wenders film too: Lisbon Story 1994: VIDEO

This one is from Tom … did you know Cristiano Ronaldo likes blondes OVER 18s ONLY

Nacional only managed a home draw 1 – 1 yesterday against Rio Ave. Braga hosted Marítimo and won 2 – 1,  keeping the home side just four points adrift of league leaders Benfica, with a game in hand. Both our Madeira football teams are now on equal points (25), and both in reach of a European placing.

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories & some web links :

Diário now has a slide show of 32 photos of the Carnival Parade. PHOTO LINK

They certainly had the right Carnival theme this year for the weather. Diário has an 11 minute video. I suppose YouTube will have videos soon. VIDEO LINK

This theatrical piece, God’s Garden, was mentioned in January 30th blog. A critic’s review in yesterday’s Independent newspaper. 

God’s Garden, Linbury Studio, London. Breathing Irregular, Gate, London. Don’t tell the bride – there are oats to sow in paradise. Lush: that’s the word for Madeira. The plant life, the landscape, the fado singing, even the local Portuguese dialect – all aspire to the luxuriant softness of its cosseting climate. The choreographer Arthur Pita has family there, and in God’s Garden, a striking 75-minute touring piece of dance theatre and live music, transmits the distinctive colour of island life, including its darker shades. In outline it’s the prodigal son story, a tug-of-war twixt home – all be it a poor, peasant one – and the lure of elsewhere. In a sunny courtyard (design by Jean-Marc Puissant) three generations of one family eat, drink, squabble, even sleep, when the wine and late-night fado render them senseless … Independent newspaper

DIÁRIO DE NOTÍCIAS 14/02/2010

FRONT PAGE NEWS

‘Ponta do Pargo Resort’ opens in April 2012. (Drawing of the main building of the hotel complex). The new luxury hotel complex, Ponta do Pargo Resort, seeks a rating of five stars and is due to be completed in April 2012. This is when the new golf course will open in the area, which is to be built by the Society for the Development of West Point. An initiative of the British company, Morgan Forbes – Developing Investments, the new resort-hotel will have 68 accommodation units, some suites with an area of 80 square metres. It will be located in one of the best areas surrounding the new golf course and is so far the only hotel unit planned for the site. The project has been submitted for planning permission. The project has been designed by the Madeiran firm, MSB Arquitectos, for minimal impact on the site and to overlook the sea and golf course. The budget is 12 million Euros and will be supported by sales of units in the international market. The project has been reported in the British press and there are already 20 customers interested. The sales of portions of properties adjacent to golf courses is a widespread practice in Southern Europe and Northern America. The construction could begin later this year. Meanwhile, the project is being marketed in England and there are negotiations with a prestigious international real estate promotion and sales company in Madeira, aimed at attracting the more wealthy client. Morgan Forbes is bringing the press to Madeira, British and Swedish journalists and TV stations, to promote the resort to golf lovers. The director of the investment company, Michael Nascimento, has parents in Porto da Cruz and is a Londoner, and owns a chain of food and drink outlets around Canary Wharf. He admires Madeira and has some investments here but this is his biggest project on the island.

Hospital is at the limit. Disruptions in the supply of medicines, lack of beds, old and outdated facilities, not enough money and a climate of conflict between health professionals and administration, the Central Hospital in Funchal is on the edge. A new hospital is desperately needed but the relationship with Lisbon does not help. Marmeleiros is even worse, the hospital should have been closed years ago and the wards are cold, poorly insulated with mould growing on some walls. The President of the Union for Nurses wants it to become a home for the elderly when the new hospital is built. Medicines sometimes run out due to a lack of money and late payment to suppliers. There are also difficulties in paying suppliers of other requirements. There are also pressures from the ageing population, the economic crisis making private consultations less affordable and a poor network of primary care. The number of complaints to the management from doctors has increased from an average of five per year over the last ten years to 110 last year. The clinical director insists the unions’ complaints about the quality of health care provided are nonsense and that Madeira has good services in terms of quality and safety. The new hospital plans were drawn up in 1992 and finally submitted in 2004 to the Regional Government. Land for it in Santa Rita is still being expropriated. The same plan recommends the closure of Marmeleiros.

MADEIRA

São Roque do Faial Carnival Parade. Casa do Povo de São Roque do Faial is holding a Carnival Parade next Tuesday, February 16, at 18.00. The parade will be through the centre of the parish as it has been for the last four years. From the Casa do Povo, along Rua da Igreja, across the new bridge to the restaurant Sanroque and back to the Casa do Povo. Activities will continue in the evening in the Casa do Povo. This initiative is to maintain the tradition.

Works in Cabo Girão close road. Access to Quinta Grande closed for three months. Upgrading of the viewpoint and access, which includes widening of the road.

JORNAL DA MADEIRA

Sonhos and malassadas sweeten the Carnival. The Carnival is celebrated three days before Lent, which begins on Ash Wednesday and ends at Easter. The traditional foods at this time of year are the sonhos and malassadas (deep fried doughnuts), The recipes can have either pumpkin or sweet potato added to improve the taste and lightness, and they are served drizzled with regional cane syrup. Malassadas are made from dough made from flour, water and baker’s yeast then eggs added. Pumpkin puree can be added. Spoonfuls of the mixture are deep fried. Some people use baking powder but this gives a more compact texture. Historically, Carnival time started on the Dia dos Reis, 6 January, and each Sunday was celebrated with large meals, thus known as Domingos Gordos. Each parish has its specific feijoadas de Carnaval (bean stew), the best being made in the north of Portugal, especially transmontanas where they use the regional smoked meats. In Beira Litoral, a feijoada with pig’s ears and turnip is accompanied by white rice. Recipes for traditional Madeiran food and drink on the following website, in Portuguese only. MADEIRA RECIPES

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

A very thin newspaper today. I reckon after a late night covering the carnival in Funchal on Saturday, the boss must have given the reporters the day off yesterday.

Abortion law reduces paternity tests – Besides the analysis of illnesses, of cytogenetics, and the tests for paternity, The Genetics Laboratory wants to move on to forensic [criminal] work. Due to the effects of the abortion law introduced in 2008, the need for paternity testing has reduced, and the laboratory in the University of Madeira is looking at new business in new areas, and is almost saturated with work. 

Today’s main news headline :  Finland is going to send five weekly charter flights – Good news for tourism : the operators guarantee to the hotels of Madeira 10 thousand tourists until May. The predictions of various Finnish tour operators that offer the Madeira option are for an increase of sales to our island, and the consolidation of an increase in capacity over the next few months. Although it is unlikely that the levels of Finnish tourism achieved in 2008 will be achieved this year, the indications are positive. A big fat welcome to our Finnish friends … lovely people.

Jardim already lost the ‘home game’ with Passos Coelho – In the previous election, Coelho won in Funchal, against the instructions of Jardim. This story, over a squabble between between these two PSD politicians, has been running for a few days since the National Council of the Social democrat Party convened  to discuss the selection of a new party leader. Jardim has a serious problem with Coelho [as well as most of Portugal] whose attitude he did not like over the amendments to the Regional Finance Law.

Change of [bus] routes leaves Horários empty.

This one is ‘off’ the front page, but I read it anyway : Mobile phones should be unblocked without charging. DECO, the consumer defence organisation, and the competition authorities are recommending the prohibiting of charging for unblocking mobile phones [tied to single operators], once the contract, called here the loyalty period, has expired. And if it doesn’t happen then then courts should force the operators to refund the unblocking fees. "There is not any reason, technical or legal, for the operators of mobile phones to continue keeping the phones blocked after the loyalty period has expired, the period in which the customer is tied into a contract", said a DECO spokesman. Fees charged for unblocking range from €50 to €116, and a study shows that only around 30% of customers currently have unlocked phones.

The main sport / football headline today : Irregular launch in the origin of the victory of Braga – Madeira lost in the stadium of the 2nd placed team, following a glaring error by the referees assistant, Pedro Proença. At the Choupana [Funchal], Nacional drew with Rio Ave continuing without a win in the premier league in 2010.

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.

If you post a comment and are not registered on this site (free), your comment will be moderated, so please do not waste time with spam postings.  If you register, your comment will be posted automatically. If you register, your email address will not be passed to any other party … promise!

Please send any topical or Madeira related photos or videos to Der at blog@madeira4u.com to appear on this blog. Photos may take a while to appear, depending on the number waiting. Please don’t send copyrighted material.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Madeira News Blog © 2007 – 2010 All Rights Reserved

Today’s normal photo – Many thanks to Pete … "Madeira life starts here …"

Many thanks to Becky for some more videos and a web snippet :

Some dramatic surfing in Jardim do Mar and Paul do Mar. I admire the skill, strength and tenacity required by those who surf to any degree. Like me, do you ever wonder who first thought of doing it? And what did they use… a plank of wood? (Uncle Bertie’s wallet perhaps … Der).

Max sings “Bate o pé” and shows us how to dance the Bailinho da Madeira…. 3 hops to the right, 3 hops to the left… come on everybody! (Probably easier after a glass or two of Poncha)

“We were taken to a typical tiny vineyard where picking was in progress. It was one of the most astonishing sights I’ve witnessed in 20 years of vineyard visits. The vines were mixed up with potatoes, cucumbers, tomatoes and melons. The fruit was shaded under heavy overhead pergola canopies. I saw bunches of grapes dangling alongside squashes. Looked at through the optic of conventional viticultural thinking, it was crazy”. WHAT THE HELL IS VITICUTURAL?

Tom sent me in that yesterday, but is it relevant to Madeira? Possibly, as Greece and Madeira have both been mentioned in the same news stories many times over the last week … but anyway I thought it was hilarious. Thanks Tom.

As promised, Tobi has come up trumps with a recipe for Sonhos :

You need :-

250 ml water
250 ml milk
1 teaspoon cinnamon
zest of a lemon
pinch salt
9 eggs (med)
120 grams butter
300 grams flour

Heat the water, milk, cinnamon, lemon zest, salt and butter in a saucepan, bring to boil, remove from heat and add all the flour, mix quickly with a wooden spoon, it will all come together like a dough, then start adding eggs 1 by 1, mixing them well into the dough before you add the next, the mixture will separate but don’t worry, but mix well, it really is hard work on the arm. When all mixed you should have a thick batter type, grab a tablespoon type spoon and get a spoonful of batter and push it off the spoon with another spoon into hot oil, they will puff up and float to top, turn and cook both sides till golden, remove and drain on kitchen paper, best served with Cana de Mel.

The texture of the batter needs to be thick, but not too thick, it should fall from a spoon but not fast and not run from it as you spoon it into the hot oil it will stay together, if the batter is a little thick add a bit more water and mix in well.

The oil needs to be very hot, I suggest you cook 4 at a time, try one and if it’s too heavy and doughy you need to thin the mix a little. Thanks a lot Tobi, got me thinking about Kentucky Fried Chicken now!

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

MADEIRA

Bad weather cancelled Children’s Carnivals. The Children’s Carnival Parade in Câmara de Lobos was cancelled because of persistent rain. According to Diário, similarly in Ribeira Brava, the parade through the town was suspended and they went to the local sports pavilion instead (photo).

Rather odd that Elaine, but I have the photographic evidence to prove that it did actually go ahead Friday morning. Der

Bad weather threatens parades. Orange alert. The weather forecast was not good for last night’s Carnival Parade and throughout the weekend. Showers today will be more frequent, with strong to very strong winds and gusts could reach up to 100 km per hour in the hills. The bad weather will continue on Monday but the rain will become weaker from the beginning of Tuesday afternoon in time for the Cortejo Trapalhão at 16.00 in Funchal.

Ribeira Brava Carnival Parade on Sunday. As mentioned yesterday by Der. Sunday afternoon at 16.30 with more than a 100 participants. The Cortejo Trapalhão goes from the secondary school to the sea front promenade. A similar event in Campanário begins earlier at 15.00.

Dolce Vita with the rhythm of Geringonça. A samba party celebrating the spirit of the Carnival in Brazil starts at 18.00 on Monday, in the restaurant area of the Dolce Vita commercial mall in Funchal. Visitors are invited to join in.

Carnival in Porto Santo will be on Monday evening. Several major changes this year and instead of Tuesday, as traditional, it will take place on Monday at 21.30.

ECONOMY

Promotion of Madeira in Dublin. A promotional campaign begins on February 15th in the main areas, shopping centres and railway stations in Dublin. A 45,000 Euros campaign finances 120 posters on the streets and on the 125 urban buses. Since October last year, SATA has a weekly flight to Dublin on Saturdays. This island is promoted as a "destination for nature with good weather all year".

TAP will not abandon Venezuela. TAP will continue to fly regularly between the main Portuguese airports and Venezuela. The local population in Caracas were worried it might abandon the route because of economic difficulties and foreign exchange rates. The number of flights decrease between April 22 and 4 June as there is a reduced demand for places. The strong bolivar currency, formed by a scheme of Hugo Chávez, is now at a rate that is three times lower than a year ago, which is forcing people wishing to travel to buy dollars three times more expensive than a year ago. (Travel in Venezuela is sold in U.S. dollars). The flight pattern might have to be adjusted in the following months and trade is seasonal. There is little competition for TAP, just the local carrier SBA Airlines. TAP has lost a few million Euros since the bolivar exchange rate was altered in January. The money it holds in Venezuelan banks has lost value.

Funchal Port surpasses the Canary Islands.  The movement of passengers on cruise ships through ports in Madeira and the Canary Islands last year amounted to 1,622,548 passengers, 6.6% more than the previous year. The Port of Funchal was the busiest with 435,821 passengers, having captured 26.8% of the tourists who made a cruise in the area of the Atlantic. Santa Cruz de Tenerife had 25.7% of the passengers. At Funchal, the increase was 7.5% and at Tenerife, 4%. This January, the number of cruise ship passengers grew by 6% over the same month last year and the number of calls increased to 25, two more cruise ships than last year. The market is expected to grow this year with 159 cruise ships already booked in the first half of this year, 19.5% over last year. There are a record 11 inaugural visits. April is one of the busiest months in Funchal due to the repositioning of ships in the southern hemisphere for the Mediterranean and Northern Europe.

CULTURE

23rd anniversary of ‘Tunacedros’. Tunacedros perform traditional songs remembered by the local residents and use traditional instruments. Founded in 1987, ‘Tunacedros’ da Casa do Povo de São Roque do Faial on Sunday celebrates its 23rd anniversary, with a series of initiatives that begin with a Mass of Thanksgiving in the parish church. At 11.30, flowers will be placed at the municipal cemetery to honour deceased members of Tunacedros. A birthday concert will begin at noon in the Casa do Povo with songs from the repertoire of tuna.

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

€12 million for hotel in Ponta do Pargo – The project, of the son of emigrants from Porto da Cruz, is going to complement the investment in the golf course. Work will start this year and the inauguration will be in 2012. I wonder who will doing the inauguration, as President Jardim says he will be leaving next year. Does the concept of a 19th hole exist here? Uncle Bertie would like that bit of a golf course the best I am sure.

Technology destroys professions – In just 14 years, two thousand specialities have disappeared. And the knife sharpener  [person] that exists on Madeira doesn’t have a ‘heir’. I suspected that last bit might not be quite right, so I typed it in the Google translator and it gave me … And the knife that exists in the Wood does not have ‘dolphin’, so I stuck with my original attempt. The Diário says "The economy is not compatible with dreams and, in Madeira, the craft of knife is the next to disappear". During the period between 1980 and 1994, according to the records of the National Classification, 2100 job types were lost, including the typist, the laundress, and housekeeper, but the truth is that since then many other occupations have become obsolete. Technology in the manufacturing sector takes much of the blame, but more recent realities affect other sectors, such as banking. 20 years ago, the banks Totta or Banif for example, had twice as many employees as they have today, but many of these jobs have gone to outsourcing, and the introduction of the ATM / Cash points / Multibancos of course. Cutting to the chase, it  seems that the ‘knife grinder’ is one of the next professions likely to become extinct.

Today’s main news headline :  Conflicts and shortages put the hospital at the limit – lack of money has led to shortfalls in medicines. There are too many patients for too few beds. The number of staff complaints has soared. And now the clinical director cuts the leave for days off in the surgeries.

A cracking carnival photograph (not the one shown) has most of today’s front page, glamour, dancing, smiling … you know what it’s like I am sure: Parade in the rain – The rain damaged some of the parade floats, soaking the feathers and the spangles, but it didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of the thousand revellers.  It certainly pelted down where I was, well away from Funchal, but in the capital the Cortejo continued despite the rain, weaving it’s way around downtown Funchal. Umbrellas were all over the place, clenched by locals and tourists alike, all wanting to see the pirates, nymphs, jellyfish, sea gods, and mermaids, all there to create the theme of ‘The Seas and Oceans’. There were 8 troupes taking part this year.

MORE CARNIVAL PHOTOS FROM THE DIÁRIO (thanks Paul)

The main sport headline today : Bernardo : The moment of glory without any effect on the ranking – The Madeiran driver beat Loeb, Hirvonnen, Sordo, and Latvala yesterday in the superspecial of the rally of Sweden, but in general terms went down.

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. 

—————————————————————————————————————————————–
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.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

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

If you post a comment and are not registered on this site (free), your comment will be moderated, so please do not waste time with spam postings.  If you register, your comment will be posted automatically. If you register, your email address will not be passed to any other party … promise!

Please send any topical or Madeira related photos or videos to Der at blog@madeira4u.com to appear on this blog. Photos may take a while to appear, depending on the number waiting. Please don’t send copyrighted material.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Madeira News Blog © 2007 – 2010 All Rights Reserved

God’s Garden – at the Royal Opera House (London). Date: February 11th until the 13th. "As the sun beats down on the village of Porto Moniz, Madeira, a young man prepares to take the biggest step of his life and get married. While his family and friends rejoice at this momentous occasion, he is uneasy. The young man decides to take matters into his own hands and flees on his wedding day to sow his wild oats, leaving his heartbroken bride behind. When he eventually returns to the village, his family are delighted and celebrate his homecoming. He laps it up, believing that everything is as it was before he left, ignoring the fact that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. God’s Garden is the latest full-length work from choreographer Arthur Pita and is based on the parable of the Prodigal Son. Using a combination of text, live music and dance, Pita’s exploration of love and betrayal promises a highly-charged and exciting evening’s entertainment". Anyone who happens to be in London on the dates mentioned might like to savour a little taste of Madeira MORE

I noticed one or two ears pricked up with this story yesterday, so this article gives more details on the birds affected … "Ponta do Pargo – the destruction of an IBA for a golf course. Unfortunately the economic crisis did not hit Madeira Island as it should and money is still being spent on the worst things… One of Madeira’s Important Bird Area (IBA) is being destructed for the construction of another unprofitable (the 3rd one already!) golf course… Ponta do Pargo is the westernmost tip of Madeira island and it was a very good spot for bird watching some of the endemic birds as Berthelot’s Pipit, Rock Sparrows and Spectacled Warblers but also for migrant birds where Stonechat, Wheater, Woodchat Shrike, Lapwing, Golden Plover, Hobby, Peregrine Falcon, Buff-breasted Sandpiper were some of the species already recorded there. MORE

And the last of today’s web snippets came in from Becky … many thanks :

Anyone need a Life Coach?! You have one on the island, and here she describes her move to Madeira: LIFE COACH – IS THAT A REAL JOB?

Extracts from an old (2003) BBC radio programme about Madeirans on Jersey, learning the language and some returning to Madeira. You need ‘Realplayer’ to hear the clips.

Becky has also very kindly donated a couple of stories from yesterday’s Diário de Notícias … many thanks.

Custody for suspected drug trafficker – The cocaine seized could yield close to 126 thousand Euros if it were to be sold on the street. A man of 33 years, of foreign-birth, is in custody in the Prison of Funchal (EPF) after being caught by the Judicial Police (PJ) last Tuesday with 5,070 individual doses of cocaine. The arrest, revealed yesterday by the coordinator of the Criminal Investigation Department of the PJ in Funchal, Ricardo Silva, was made in Madeira International Airport, where the individual, who is originally from an African country, landed on a domestic flight. "From the prevention investigations carried out, we collected strong evidence that culminated in the seizure of 5,070 individual doses of cocaine, carried inside the body, which was aimed at being trafficked in the Autonomous Region of Madeira," said the Judiciary in a statement. The man was taken to the Hospital Dr. SMF Mendonça, where the drugs – valued at around 126 thousand Euros – were withdrawn from his body. This was an isolated situation, which is not related to other investigations of the PJ, which has already prevented about 10 thousand individual doses of drugs – heroin, cocaine and cannabis – from arriving on the streets of Madeira. The numbers given are not read as indicators of increased consumption, but with a more effective police force and the dwindling supply of drugs in Madeira.

Aldo Lima takes ‘stand-up comedy’ to Chega de Saudade. It is an initiative of solidarity that brings Aldo Lima to Madeira. The comedian presents a show of ‘stand-up comedy’ this Friday at Chega de Saudade. The event will help the earthquake victims in Haiti and will also feature live music and dj’s. According to Chega de Saudade, there will be no entrance charge at the door, so it is through the consumption at the bar that the money will revert to the AMI.

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

DIÁRIO 29/01/2010 – FRONT PAGE NEWS

Jewellers feel unsafe and make their own security patrols. There have been a number of robberies on jewellery shops in the centre of Funchal despite alarms, surveillance cameras and reinforced doors and windows. The shop owners complain about the low police presence on the streets at night and at weekends and visit their shops several times to inspect the premises. Most of these jewellers are uninsured against burglary because of the expense, conditions imposed and not many companies will provide cover due to the high risk involved. Most of the robbers are not caught or items recovered. The target of robberies at these shops and private residences are gold items as the price is high because of global demand.

MADEIRA

Work at Jardim da Serra moving ahead without a budget. The Parish Council of Jardim da Serra has draft plans for the renovation of the Quinta Leonor but have not costed the project. This building belongs to the Region but has been assigned, on a temporary basis, to this Parish Council to be used in a project for the development of socio-cultural research and agro-forestry. It is thought to be a potential use of community funds and will also need private and public investment. 4,000 square metres of land in the Sítio da Fonte Frade, practically opposite the School of Jardim da Serra, are included in the plan. This project is of public interest as it concerns the development of rural communities, the development and promotion of farming and regional products and the social, economic and cultural role of farming. There will be three areas of work: preservation of ethnography, preservation of biodiversity and rural tourism, leisure and education.

Over €58 million spent on medicines. During 2009, Madeirans spent more than 58 million Euros on medicines and pharmaceuticals, buying 6,700,000 units (packages). There has been a decline in the amount spent since 2007 despite more units dispensed in 2009. The explanation is the decrease in prices ordered by the Government of the Republic and generic medications accounting for 9% of those bought. There is still a lot of self-medication and Infarmed (government organization) warn of the dangers of buying over the Internet as there are many illegal sites. They produce a list of approved sites on their website: APPROVED PHARMACIES.

Giga Park continues in Ponta do Sol. A smaller version of the Christmas entertainment park will remain until at least Easter, possibly until October. It has been renamed the Amusement Park of Ponta do Sol. The new opening hours are: Friday 19.00 to 2 am; Saturdays, Sundays and holidays from 16.00 to 2 am.

Customs seize a kilo of drugs. Customs at Madeira Airport arrested a Madeiran man in his 30s who had heroin and hashish hidden in his underwear. This kilogram of drugs is equivalent to 5,500 doses. He had flown from Lisbon. This is the second arrest this year by Customs, the previous amount was two kilos of heroin or 27,000 doses.

ECONOMY

A classic in port. The tall ship, Stavros S Niarchos, returns to the Port of Funchal and will stay until 14.00 on Sunday. This ship belongs to the Tall Ships Youth Trust, a non-profit making organization. Since 1956, TSYT has catered for 70,000 young people of different nationalities. Madeirans first joined this initiative in November 2006 with the support of Navigation Blandy. The ship will take on youngsters at Funchal for an 11 day trip of the Canary Islands at a cost of 229 Euros each. Tomorrow, 40 youngsters of different nationalities, some flown in, will join the ship. The ship has two masts with 18 sails, is 60 metres long and was built in Devon in 2000, modelled on a XVIII Century sailing ship. The ship has two engines, an air conditioning system, desalination plant and modern radar, sonar, GPS and communications systems.

55 fishermen were considering protesting. Due to the renovation of the Port of Funchal, São Lázaro was to be closed at the end of this month. The boat owners, who said it was difficult to remove their boats, met yesterday afternoon and were considering various forms of protest. The area has been used for 40 years, some boats for fishing and others for sport, some to earn a living. The owners were pleased to negotiate the permanency of their craft in this area.

JORNAL DA MADEIRA

Carnival 2010 – Turma do Funil depict mythical figures of the oceans. In line with the Carnival Parade overall theme, Seas and Oceans, this group takes the theme, The Ocean in Folia (Infopedia – lively dance or great fun, spree). On the night of 13 February, there will be 150 participants in this dance group and the costumes will focus on orange, green, purple, black, white, silver and turquoise. Accessories include feathers, stones, pieces of mosaic and chains of coloured sequins. Rehearsals take place in the Casa da Cultura de Câmara de Lobos. The Flag Bearers are the Goddess of the Sea and the ‘Mestre de Sala’ symbolising the King of the Ocean, Neptune, in foaming waves. Following, there will be fishermen delighted by mermaids, and floats depicting the lost island Atlantis with oysters containing precious pearls in the ruins of the submerged island. Then young children will depict pirates looking for treasure followed by animated girls dancing next to sailors. The Rainha da Bateria and revellers will pay tribute to the people of Câmara de Lobos introducing the Espada-Preto fish and  the boat ‘O Xavelha’. At the opening of each group of dancers, there will always be a pair of open wings representing the magnificent coral reefs. A guest will represent Vasco da Gama.

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

Catalogue lacking from the war in the west – The artists of the exhibition ‘Linha de Partida’ [Line of Departure] that has been running for a year in the Casa das Mudas, has Ricardo Veloza under fire.

Today’s main news headline : Horários of Funchal in technical bankruptcy – the company shows it’s own capital as negative and has already had a passive loan [debt] of €30 million at the end of 2008.

Government puts forward another €250,000 for management of the Jornal da Madeira. Is this never going to end? Despite the complaints of the Diário de Notícias at an international level, nothing changes, and the taxpayer is still funding the political mouthpiece of President Jardim’s government. And no doubt the other negative aspects of this state sponsored propaganda mechanism are alive and well, with government advertising expenditure deliberately targeted to ensure that the competition to the Jornal is pretty much excluded from benefitting.

Salaries in arrears prompt rout in the Association  of the Casas do Povo [Social Centres].

Opposition make possible inquiry of the Socialist Party about regional debt – The PP and PCP ensure enough signatures to allow a commission of inquiry proposed by the PS , in order to determine the value of the debt denied by President Jardim.

In Lisbon, after several concessions, there is discomfort on the Social Democrat bench with the Regional Finance Law.

Agreement : Transition period began and nobody understood. I bet a few people will look at this headline today and wonder what this is all about, as it shows a paper with various Portuguese words shown and their new replacements with simplified spelling. The idea is to ensure some level of language consistency in the Portuguese speaking world, a move which is not going down particularly well on this side of the pond at least. Some examples : Lectivo will become Letivo, Correcção will become Correção, and Jóia will become Joia. The changes should also reflect better the way the words are actually pronounced.

The main sport / football headline today :  Madeira doesn’t attract stages – Other regions of tourism try to attract teams. Through here there is a lack of reaction. Today Nacional – FC Porto 17h – SportTV and TSF. Despite what it sounds like, the article is saying that at the moment there are national teams looking for warm-up games in preparation for the World Cup this year in South Africa, and are looking for fixtures, or training venues at least, in Europe. The article says it is up to the Regional Government to attract interest, since there is no other entity that can promote all the sports facilities and stadiums of Madeira and Porto Santo. The Diário was unable to get any response from the relevant government department.

An extra headline article that I thought was worth a mention, or a look rather, shows our great President Alberto João Jardim in his famous peg-leg pose. "I will not resign". Jardim asks the parties not to further postpone the vote on the Regional Finance Law. The guarantee of Jardim is that if there is no change in the Law of Regional Finance (LFR), the president of the Regional Government of Madeira is not going to resign. Well he has given them Hobson’s choice really, and getting rid of Uncle Bertie in exchange for losing a few million Eurobucks would have been a worthy exchange indeed. Back to the grassy knoll plan then I think.

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. 

—————————————————————————————————————————————–
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.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

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

If you post a comment and are not registered on this site (free), your comment will be moderated, so please do not waste time with spam postings.  If you register, your comment will be posted automatically. If you register, your email address will not be passed to any other party … promise!

Please send any topical or Madeira related photos or videos to Der at blog@madeira4u.com to appear on this blog. Photos may take a while to appear, depending on the number waiting. Please don’t send copyrighted material.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Madeira News Blog © 2007 – 2009 All Rights Reserved

Today’s Photo Thanks to Tobi … a sunset from his balcony

"Today we were exploring some of Madiera’s fertile and mountainous interior, passing by steep slopes of banana plantations, and roadsides of the colourful flowers that the island’s famous for. Madeira is renowned for being locked in an "eternal spring", with consistently warm weather that rarely deviates from 20 degrees centigrade, and almost-constantly blooming flowers". PRIVATE TRAVELOGUE

For those who like silly things, here is the video of the ‘planting’ of the underwater Christmas tree as mentioned the other day, by the Madeira Diving School.

A 200º panoramic view of Ponta de São Lourenço, made up of 8 shots stitched together and then some tone mapping. PHOTO

Six days after being placed in an induced coma after contracting an infection following surgery, Manuel Machado, Nacional da Madeira’s coach, is on the road to recovery as he was brought out of it earlier this week. Doctors at the Dr. Nélio Mendonça Hospital have said the highest risk period has passed and they are optimistic the manager will make a full recovery. Manuel Machado became ill after abdominal surgery in a clinic in Oporto around two weeks ago. After suffering terrible pains for four days, the Nacional da Madeira coach was put in an induced coma for just under a week. On Monday, doctors announced “The highest risk period is over. He has woken up and is in a good mood. Things are evolving in a positive manner and, if things continue as they are, hopefully we can turn off his assisted ventilation next week, keeping him only on medication to control some of the pain he is still feeling.” The cause of the infection is still not know, with the manager’s wife saying he was operated on a hernia, despite several sources claiming it was due to a liposuction. Thanks to PORTUGAL NEWS ONLINE for that story.

One for the diary : 8-11 April 2010 – Men’s golf, European PGA, Madeira Island Open.

Many thanks to Paul in Paul do Mar for the following articles :

The first two are from an article on the Ministry of Economy & Innovation Site: 26 Nov 2009

1.  ‘Paul do Mar’. Quote: "The ISA World Surf championships have been hosted on the islands which are better known to be held in areas such as Hawaii. Paul do Mar region of the island is respected throughout the surf community as it offers eight metre high waves and fantastic tubular tunnels."

2. Ponta do Pargo five-star Hotel. Michael Nascimento, the Director of Morgan Forbes is developing a five-star Hotel in the Ponto do Pargo region of the Island. Morgan Forbes, a low risk commissionable broker ship that specialises in asset backed investments, has already been given permission to build a high-end apart-hotel scheme, with off-plan units, available on a share certificate basis, offered for a deposit of as little as £5,750, with a low total investment of just £15,620. These prices will increase on the Monday the 30^th of November 09 with the official Launch of Phase 3, locking in now would be a shrewd move.

Morgan Forbes five-star project could offer the perfect mix, with a forecasted return on investment of 142.7%, taking advantage of the Islands buoyant tourism trade and stable property market. Official Government statistics reported that in 2008 the average occupancy for five-star hotel developments across the island was 91.1% and in some parts as high as 99%.

Following on from the success of the recently constructed Palheiro Golf resort on the island, planning consent has been award for the construction of a new Nick Faldo designed 27-hole golf resort in the Ponta do Pargo Construction of the golf course, which will be built to PGA standards, will commence in just two weeks time.

Dr. Paulo Sousa who is the minister of Madeira has indicated that there are no plans in the near future for any other hotel or apartment projects around the golf course other than the Morgan Forbes project making this a highly attractable investment.

Madeira is also supported by the extension of its airport to allow more flights and larger planes to land on a daily basis. Easy Jet land a minimum of three flights a day and other airlines are extending their routes to cater for the ever growing demand for the island.

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

Mega Park now not open until Wednesday. Delays in signing the contract meant that the equipment could not begin to be assembled until yesterday, the day when it was advertised to open. It should now open on Wednesday December 16 and on that day, as other Wednesdays, the 14 entertainments will cost 1 euro each.

Public Prosecutor calls for 3 years in prison for Lobo. The Public Prosecutor asked for three years in prison for the former mayor of Ponta do Sol, António Lobo. He called for the acquittal of the four co-defendants, all accused of bribery. António Lobo was accused of serious fraud and bribery but the prosecutor decided the facts fit the crime of malfeasance (2 to 8 years in prison) due to violation of official duties. The defence called for the acquittal of the former mayor because he was tried and convicted of malfeasance in the previous proceedings. In the Constitution and law, no one can be tried and convicted twice for ‘factos contemporaneous’ (non bis in idem). Besides, no prevarication can be associated with António Lobo but with the ‘schoolboy government institution’ that approved the project. In terms of prevarication, 52 of the 271 urban development projects were approved by the Council of Ponta do Sol in 2001 (52 when the PDM was suspended). The prosecutor said the ‘smell of corruption’ came from the fact that the land for the controversial construction of  29 apartments was co-owned by a council valuer familiar to António Lobo. The links political, construction and football complement the ‘odour’. Minimum standards have not been met; the defendants had not entered any initial investment, there was no technical input to the draft amendments and the PDM (public discussion) was suspended at the time of project approval. The Public Prosecutor also asked for the Directorate of Finance to investigate the suspicion of tax evasion by the property promoters by ‘skilled’ accounting. The defence lawyer said that the property had been approved in the average time span so it could not be viewed as favouritism. The verdict will be known on January 8 2010.

GPS mapping of the seabed around the Selvagens. The structure of an extensive area (70 x 70 km) of the seabed around the Ilhas Selvagens is to be mapped via the GPS system. This area is the real link between the islands of  Madeira and Porto Santo. The contract between the Government and the Navy was signed aboard the Navy’s NRP Almirante Gago Coutinho, berthed on the north quay of the Port of Funchal. The most significant act of the protocol is the placing of a GPS antenna on Salvagem Grande, allowing the territory to be geo-referenced accurately. Using the Navy ship, eight GPS stations will be placed at sea, (5 at Selvagem Grande, 3 at Salvagem Pequena, Madeira and Porto Santo, respectively). The seabed elevations and submerged rocks can then be located, some known from old charts. There have been an accumulation of 888 days at sea for scientific research projects and an area of 1,700,000 square kilometres probed. The Gago Coutinho has a crew of 34 sailors and can accommodate 15 researchers at sea for up to 60 days.

Attempted murder – 10 years in prison. A young man accused of trying to stab his wife to death in Caniço. The Court of Santa Cruz sentenced a 25 year old man, J. M. Santos, to 10 years in prison for attempted homicide (a crime punishable by between 28 months and 16.5 years). On 13 March 2009, he attempted to kill his 22 year old wife by stabbing her, in front of their 5 year old son. They had lived in Caniço for five years. The cause was a bad relationship and the wife intended to divorce him. She suffered more than a dozen cuts and due to the amount of anger the man felt, he kept picking up different knives and it is unknown how many were used or how many times he stabbed her. His intention was, "If you’re not for me, are also not for anyone." The woman’s life was saved only by prompt intervention of a social worker and hospital doctors. The defendant was also ordered to pay the Health Service 10,460 Euros and the Social Security Centre 2,111 Euros for services rendered that night. The defence council may consider an appeal. On the night of the crime, the wife informed her husband that she was leaving with the son to live with her mother and intended to proceed with a divorce. They were in the kitchen at the time and he rejected the separation and refused to allow the wife to leave with the son. She then went to the computer to ask a friend for help when he stabbed her in the back, she began to faint and fell to the floor where he continued to stab her. A neighbour entered the house, faced with a ‘Dantesque scenario’ in the presence of the boy. The assailant was arrested the following morning and taken to Ribeira Brava police station. At the trial, the defendant declared repentance and despite no criminal record, the Court did not believe he was truly sorry but had a possessive personality. Justified by the high probability of guilt and that the crime was so treacherous, especially in the presence of the child, it required a prison sentence. In 2009, there were 26 deaths in Portugal resulting from disputes between men and women, and 42 attempted murders.

Division in PS gives €79 million to Madeira. The PS gave the authorization of a loan in order to postpone the ultimate test of the Regional Finance Law. The PS offered yesterday, contradictorily, the possibility of Madeira having a loan of 79 million Euros to pay debts to suppliers in exchange for the Law of Regional Finances going down to the Committee of Budget and Finance of the Assembly of the Republic without a general vote. With this, the PS managed to avoid the embarrassment of the approval of the Law of Madeira, which yesterday was challenged by the Minister of Finance, with the deciding vote by the socialist deputy, the Madeiran Luis Miguel França. There was a ‘tug-of-war’ between the leader of the socialist parliamentary group, Francisco Assis, and the Madeiran socialist deputy Luis Miguel Franca. Assis did not want to give the vote to a Madeiran and França did not want to abdicate a vote that would differ from the election manifesto of the PS-M. In view of this opposition, the leader of the socialist parliamentary group was forced to give a ‘gift’ to the PSD, to hide the fact that he could not control the dissent which would be difficult to explain to José Sócrates and the general public. The PSD-M Guilherme Silva made a victory speech although he could not have the original 129 million Euros loan the Regional Government needed to pay suppliers. He said this method was a redistribution of resources. The socialists risked this scenario. The proposed Madeiran revision to the Finance Law has 20 days to be scrutinized  by the members of the Budget and Finance Committee. One of the issues that Alberto João Jardim is not going to get the green light for is to increase the indebtedness of Madeira as he wanted. CDS-PP, PCP and BE emphasized the injustice of the law and criticized the expenditure of the Regional Government. They did not want to give a blank cheque to Jardim and the communist said the law was against the people of Madeira. The CDS-PP defended the law saying it was necessary to prevent even more imbalances in public finances. The Madeirans dominated this debate and it left them in a strong position. The Finance Minister Texeira dos Santos strongly criticized the revision of the law and noted that Madeira had been authorized to incur debts in 2008 amounting to 256.7 million Euros under the plan Pay on Time and €50 million in 2009. He accused the Regional Government of expenditure and being irresponsible in the management of public accounts. "There are clear signs of indiscipline and lack of control." The Madeiran deputy Hugo Velosa countered saying that the Government of Madeira has less expenditure as a proportion of gross domestic product than on the mainland. Teixeira dos Santos said that, "The Continent has to pay for the folly of the Government of Madeira."  The approved €79 million loan will only pay a few suppliers to the Regional Government. The leader of the regional CDS-PP estimates the debt already amounts to 200 million Euros. The figure of €79 million instead of €129 million was because the Regional Government had already taken out a €50 million loan, however this was used for projects co-financed by the EU. The authorization for borrowing €79 million will be discussed on Monday by the Legislative Assembly of Madeira, the eve of the discussion of the Budget for 2010.

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

Today’s main news headline : Region produces a thousand million tons of CO2 – Energy billing on Madeira already costs €500 million per annum. A value that will climb in 2013 if there is no reduction in current emissions. Also the main front page photo, with a very large and smokey industrial chimney in full action. Theoretically the word ‘billion’ in continental Portuguese means a million million, but for English speakers, a billion tons of carbon dioxide gas are created on Madeira (yearly?), the main culprits being transport, waste management, and electricity production. Their emission licences are going to cost more than €20 million. Madeira has 3 years in which to reduce it’s dependence on fossil fuels. For the sake of the environment and public accounts, as from 2013 the permits to emit CO2 will be paid in full by the companies that produce electricity, while the industrial units will have to pay a third of their value. Electricity production (59%) and the 130,000 vehicles that are active on the streets (35.4%) are by far the greatest polluters, with garbage treatment responsible for 5%. The average emission per inhabitant of the island is 4,337 kilograms. If Madeira is obliged to pay the carbon emission licences, they would add up to €25.8 million per annum. A long and interesting article on the cause and effects of CO2 emissions, and the bottom line is that domestic consumers will have to pay pollution taxes somewhere along the line. Personally, I find the figures staggering and unbelievable, and reckon that an extra zero at least has crept into the figures.

Funchal council requires €250,000 – Marítimo has to pay €250,000 to CMF to obtain the license for the works in Barreiros. The redevelopment of the stadium in Funchal is currently  stuck on account of this issue. The club has also reacted to a statement made by one Funchal counsellor (PND – New democrats) claiming that there are possible illegalities in the construction of the new stadium. Marítimo have denied the accusations, saying that all the development works meet current legislation and the requirements of the licences issued, and it has nothing to fear. However the Diário was able to confirm that the club does not in fact have in its possession the required construction license, because it is in dispute with Funchal council on the matter. The club refused to pay the amount asked, claiming that the sum of €600,000 was exorbitant, and that other sporting clubs were exempt from such charges. Last week at a council meeting the sum was reduced to €250,000, and that amount has not yet been paid, and so the redevelopment work is as such still unlicensed. The matter could be resolved tomorrow if Marítimo agree to the new lower charge. The PND counsellor claims that the club are also doing works that are not included on the licence(s) in question. Of course Marítimo hold the trump card in the situation … their number one fan ‘Uncle Bertie’, and no doubt with the current president of Funchal council being a key contender to Uncle Bertie’s throne in 2011 … well, anything is possible. Marítimo football club at one time may have been a sports club of the people, but these days it is first and foremost a business … a very fortunate business that has been given a prime land stadium that belonged to the people of Madeira, and €45 million of taxpayers money to develop it. Yet it complains about paying a relatively small fee for a redevelopment licence, and continues with the work regardless. Disgraceful attitude and behaviour!

Water more expensive – New tax law dictates the size of price increases in monthly bills. The ‘Law of taxes’ requires a revision of taxes applied on water supply, waste water, rubbish, and markets / fair permits. Until now the councils (câmaras) of Madeira haven’t yet increased prices charged in their areas, but the new law means they will have to update them in the short term. The reason there have been no increases so far is down to uncertainty surrounding the subject, as the law was adopted in 2006 but has faced repeated delays, and the lack of price increases was not to protect household economies. Water prices for one will rise in 2010, but even though the law is effective on 1st January, the effects are unlikely to be felt until mid-year. There will also be reductions for some, where they are found to paying over the correct rates.

Refuse collection in Funchal stops between 25th and 27th of December. Nice Xmas party for the rats then!

Government treats the PSP police badly – The Regional Command is the only one in the country without access to the funds from the fines ; Council helps the police in Ponta do Sol.

30% less – Not even the traditional Christmas dinners allow restaurants to recover in a year of crisis.

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 Thank you in anticipation.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–
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.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

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

If you post a comment and are not registered on this site (free), your comment will be moderated, so please do not waste time with spam postings.  If you register, your comment will be posted automatically. If you register, your email address will not be passed to any other party … promise!

Please send any topical or Madeira related photos or videos to blog@madeira4u.com to appear on this blog. Photos may take a while to appear, depending on the number waiting. Please don’t send copyrighted material.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Madeira News Blog © 2007 – 2009 All Rights Reserved

Tobi found this Madeira online radio station MIRADOURO I had a listen when I was reading through the Diário yesterday, It’s was all pre-recorded music early morning, although there was some talking around 8 am.

Tobi, also said : "A friend of mine Luis Filipe Pessoa e Costa has an exhibition on in the Electricity museum of paintings and some other artwork on the theme of Africa, they are there till the 14th November, and its free to enter, just ask to see the Africa Exhibition.  I have added a link to the photos I have". AFRICA ART

Don has updated his blog with a preview of a Madeira Christmas FUNCHAL’S EVENING DRESS

"Portas do Mar in Ponta Delgada, São Miguel (Azores), has unveiled a New Year’s Eve program set to rival that of Funchal, Madeira". I DON’T THINK SO!

It’s the day of São Martinho tomorrow, a special saint’s day for bacalhau, castanhas, wine and good deeds. The Roman soldier died in 397 AD, and his first and most famous good deed was to cut his cape in half with his sword to help keep a half naked beggar warm.

And talking of good deeds, I’m in a better mood today, particularly cheered up by a kind soul that used the PayPal button (just down there on the right hand side of this page). How he got through the rust I don’t know, but he managed, and it is now loosened and working OK. Anyone else encouraged by this act of kindness, please bear in mind that without volunteers to contribute to this blog there are no guarantees as to how long it will keep going. At the moment it’s just a few regulars, and in particular Elaine, who has been providing the daily news, keeping this going.

The rumours last week were true, with the TVI series set on Madeira, Flor do Mar, coming to an end after nearly 300 episodes. Anyone wants to know who shot Ana-Maria, I’m your man. It finished in an action packed fashion, with yet another murder, and the suicide of the baddy (of the feminine type).  That should save the government here a few Eurobucks in hotel bills.

There were 8 new cases of Gripe A swine flue on Madeira last week, half of the victims  were aged 15 or under. Two cases of the virus were caught here. 27 suspect cases were tested.

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

Delays in Santa Cruz Court. People in Santa Cruz are having problems obtaining compensation due to delays in court hearings, now taking three years. Both cases cited were against Vialitoral for damage to cars when hitting loose stones on the motorway at Porto Novo and near the airport. One case was dismissed and another is still awaiting a trial date. One person sent a letter to the President of the Supreme Court of Justice asking him to intervene to make the court enforce the Civil Procedure Code and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, so there would be justice without delay.

"The worst is yet to come." Unemployed immigrants from Eastern Europe are going in increasing numbers to the Presbyterian Church for social assistance to help pay their utility bills. The Church has limited funds. Employment is increasingly scarce whereas in the past, unemployed workers could obtain temporary work in agriculture, e.g. banana cultivation. People can not see a way out of the crisis and often become alcoholics and both men and women turn up drunk when they go to ask for help. The Pastor stated, "The most serious are the middle class in poverty, feeling embarrassment and shame. This has not yet appeared in force, but I believe it will appear. They are hoping the problem is resolved. The worst is yet to come." Many of the other 200 Presbyterian population are also experiencing hardship, pensioners needing help with obtaining medication. At one stage, there were 4,000 Ukrainians resident in Madeira, and now are less than half, but they are having problems getting their permits renewed if they cannot provide evidence they can support themselves and their families. They do not want to return to the Ukraine where the economic situation is worse and they have families here with children in the education system. As well as the Catholic Church, the Presbyterian Church receives Government aid and the Pastor thinks there could be better social assistance by a united effort of all the Christian religions.

Criminal Register Certificates. These are for criminal convictions handed down by Portuguese courts and foreign courts for both Portuguese and foreign residents. The Criminal Register Certificate  can be obtained from judicial offices, Loja do Cidadão and representatives of Foreign Consulates or Embassies and costs 3.5 Euros.  It should take no more than three days to obtain and the content depends on the purpose it is intended for. It can be used for employment, licence, permit or registration of a public nature. It is required to obtain Portuguese nationality, change of name, taxi drivers, children transport services, freight forwarding businesses, public service workers etc. There is also a certificate for public companies, organisations and institutions. Misuse is punishable by either a fine or imprisonment of up to one year.

Diocese of Funchal held vocational meetings for young people. For people interested in entering seminaries for the Priesthood. About 20 boys of year seven or above at school attended the meetings where there was a screening of an American video about the life of a priest, called ‘Fishers of Men’ and is available on YouTube. They also learnt about the three components of seminary life; prayer, relationship and living and study. In the 96 parishes of the Diocese of Funchal, there are 76 priests and 22 are more than 70 years old, and 4 between 50 and 60 years. There has been 10 years with no ordinations and there will be 3 new Priests in Madeira next year. On average, there are 2 ordinations a year.

Socialists call for an inquiry into RAM debt. The "rampant debt" and the "illegal debt" the Madeira Government has been mounting up, could lead to a 100 million Euros penalty in State transfers in 2010. The 150 million Euros in loans which "violated zero indebtedness" under applicable laws could result in a penalty of more than 50% of transfers in 2010. The Socialists justify the initiative as follows: "The need for the commission of inquiry stems from the fact that the Government of the PSD shows a great sense of irresponsibility and makes politics a weapon against the Madeirans since launching  a state siege with the loss of two million per year in the Regional Finance Act (between 2007 and 2009), and calls into question more than 100 million Euros in transfers in 2010, with the bad governance it practices." They also accuse the Government of the "obvious inability to act" with incentives to overcome the crisis that have proved "clearly insufficient". They proposed seven initiatives to help the crisis.

‘Almanaque PEF’ celebrates 150 years of existence. The cover picture is a reproduction by a forgotten artist from Madeira, Jayme de Sa. This yearbook has 200 pages of regional events, religion, agriculture, history and cuisine and in addition to the tributes each month, a chapter on the British participation in the economic, social and cultural Madeira. —– I assume there is not an English translation. It sounds interesting.

‘Delights of Israel’ in Reid’s Palace Hotel. The Embassy of Israel in Funchal is promoting the cultural event to be held on the 7th and 8th December. Specialities in ‘Les Faunes’ restaurant will be provided by the Executive Chef of the Sheraton Plaza Hotel Jerusalem with music provided by the singer Ya’ara Olchik.

Mission Recycle short of expectations. After three days in Funchal and Machico, only 72 used coffee machines deposited, enough to represent the planting of only 18 trees. No one showed up later on at Ribeira Brava after the initial queue at 7.15 am for the offers of 10 coffee machines at 10 Euros. .

PS Rui Caetano warns of illegal container park. He was at the entrance of the food market in São Martinho yesterday morning to highlight the fact that the illegal parking of trucks and containers has occurred for four years. The problem starts when it rains and the mud floods the road and obstructs access for residents and customers of the food market. There is also the issue of unfair competition as there are some companies with the same activity which conform to the payment of taxes. The land is a public space and is not licensed by the Council and taxes are not paid to either the Council or the Government.

Another container site in between Machico and Santa Casa de Misericordia has been complained about to the police and the Council of Machico, as the container has been placed there without prior written permission of the owner since 2006. Manuel Franco Santos told the Diário, "I went to the Council of Machico, where I was told it was illegal and they would notify the owner of the container to remove it within 15 days." So far, nothing has happened. The President of the Council says he will send an inspector to investigate as the situation is illegal and an invasion of private property, so justifies informing the police. In 2007, Manuel Franco Santos filed a complaint with the police but they said they could do nothing as it was private property.

Habitat restoration projects are important. 10th November is the anniversary of the Natural Park of Madeira becoming the second protected area in Madeira in 1982. (Interview with the Director). The objective of the Park is to improve the quality of life of the people of Madeira for the long-term. The Director of the Natural Park said, "The mission is to contribute to the sparing use of our unique natural heritage, preserving our cultural identity and landscape, three elements crucial to creating wealth and employment interests of sustainable tourism." The Natural Park occupies 70% of the island, includes several different habitation areas and some species in danger of extinction. One of the many projects being developed is the recovery of the habitat of the Freira da Madeira (Zino’s Petrel) to help its survival. Another project is to minimize the impact of wood pigeons on agricultural fields. Surveys are looking at the use of natural plants in the everyday life in the rural parishes and in Fajã da Ovelho, and cultural and heritage uses of natural materials. The Marine Reserves are an asset to the island; Garajau, Rocha do Navio, Ilhas Desertas and Selvagens and around Porto Santo.

Almost half of the olive oil consumed in Portugal comes from Spain. Between 40 and 50 thousand tons imported per year but within four years Portugal will be self-sufficient. This is when the recently planted olive groves will be in full production. Spain is the main investor in Portugal in this sector, especially in the regions Alentejo, Beja, Serpa and Ferreira do Alentejo. The price has almost increased 50% worldwide in two months. Portugal exports 32.3% of its olive oil production, mainly to Brazil. This year, Tras-de-Montes predicts a fall in production, Alentejo region estimates a 20% increase in production and Beira Interior promises to be the best harvest in recent years.

SATA and TAP reinforce code-sharing agreement. The Azorean airline increased the agreement it has with TAP to destinations linking Porta Delagada and Funchal to northern Europe and Lisbon-Zurich. —- Details given but I haven’t a clue what code-sharing means. It just means they share the same plane, but from a passenger point of view they are separate flights … until they board that is. Der

Cristiano Ronaldo receives compensation from the Daily Mirror. The British tabloid newspaper accused him of drinking excess alcohol and dancing while recovering from a foot operation in Los Angeles in July 2008. He received an apology and an unspecified amount of damages.

Madeira nurses are better leaving the region in search of better working conditions. The complaint of the President of the Order of Nurses, due to motivation and difficulties in finding employment. Nurses have left due to recent changes made by the Regional Health Service for nurses with more years of service and difficulties for recent graduates in finding work. The President said that the future is black and within six or seven years, Madeira will have to import nurses from less developed countries. For these reasons he calls on the Government to reverse the health policies in the region. He said the health service lacks human resources and the 75 nurses who qualified this year are not enough to make up the shortfall.

Of the six patients in Portugal who had severe problems after eye injections at Santa Maria Hospital, two have just been told they are permanently blind. The hospital later denied that the blindness is irreversible.

Interest rates threaten to double by the end of next year. Opinion of many analysts that the Euribor rate will settle at around 2% in 12 months time, i.e.. late 2010. At present the rates are at a historic low at 1% and there has been a downward trend since October 2008. Last September mortgage rates reached the lowest value at 2.361%.

Holders of firearms unaware of amendments to the law. The Regional Command of the PSP has found irregularities in the supervision of individuals with firearms due to amendments of the act in May 2009. Failure to comply with standards of conduct leads to fines, forfeiture of licences and confiscation of weapons. There is "frequent confusion" between liability insurance policies, and safe storage of firearms to ensure against loss, theft and accidents.

Praça do Município in Funchal illuminated blue. From last night until Sunday the three most  important buildings in the square, the Town Hall, Sacred Art Museum and the Church of the College, are illuminated due to an initiative of the International Diabetes Federation. 10.9% of the population of Madeira suffer from diabetes. 26% of those aged from 60 – 79 years suffer from the illness.

A quick peek at the front page of today’s Diário newspaper :

Today’s main news headline : Alcohol sends 600 a year to hospital. Liver cirrhosis problems account for 95% of the hospitalizations in the Service of  Gastroenterology. The Nucleus of professionals of that sector, who celebrate 25 years, meets Friday and Saturday in Funchal. Too many medical terms in this one to make sense to me, but the 600 alcohol related admissions mentioned in the headline, would be higher, but the unit is limited to just 15 beds.

São Martinho : Bacalhau without music – The celebrations today on Madeira are the initiatives of the  traders. And, with the exception of São Roque in Faial, new wine and cod fish is served without music. Even in São Martinho. There will be less barracas than usual in São Martinho tonight on the eve of it’s patron saints day, but the urge to mark the tradition will be the same as always.

Minister says that Madeira received €10 million more – Office of Portugal’s Finance Minister insists in the advantages of the current Finance Law. The PSD-M social democrats say that the Regional Finance Law loses Madeira €200 million, the PS-M socialists say it amounts to just €6 million, and now the chancellor of the Republic says it benefits Madeira with an extra €10 million. As the Diário correctly points out, analysing the Finance Law is like analysing the election results, with each party having a different angle on the subject. They all agree that Madeira has lost out however, and there seems to be no doubt that the Azores receive more than Madeira from the State Budget. And why shouldn’t they, if the need is greater.

Golf of Ponta do Pargo already awarded – It just lacks the money. The €40 million needed has not yet been secured, even though the consortium of Somaque and Zagope has already been awarded the €16.4 million construction contract for the new golf course. The 100 hectare site has already been acquired at a cost of around €20 million. With an area of around 1 million square meters, the design conceived by Nick Faldo will include an 18 hole course, a 9 hole ‘pitch and putt’, a driving range, and a club house. The work will not start whilst the finances are unresolved, and the banks are tightening their lending criteria, and will not now lend against the original concept of the project to minimise their risk. So big deal … we need another golf course here about as much as we need Uncle Bertie’s debt management skills. I have been living here since before the concept of this new golf course, and despite the picture, I swear that there has never been a report of Nick Faldo ever coming here, so maybe his kids designed the complex with some coloured crayons when they were like 6 years old.

Ronaldo provokes ‘Iberic war’ – Portuguese Football Federation pressures, but Real Madrid won’t back down. Portugal want to call up Ronaldo for the game against Bosnia, but Real Madrid say he is injured and won’t be ready to play. But the Portugal manager reckons that Real are pulling a fast one, and said send him anyway and we will get our own doctors to check him out, and if there is any risk we won’t play him. Ronaldo himself when asked said he just wants to play football, so he is keeping out of the politics.

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