Madeira News Blog

Today’s Photo Thanks to Eiryl … Parakeets at the Bird Park near to the Botanical Gardens, don’t worry about the headless one as I am assured he is in good health.

Some fantastic cloud / mountain photos here : Madeira – Island above the clouds

A sneak preview of the first Christmas lights that were switched on Friday. I recommend you turn the sound off first …

Enjoy your public holiday today – A trip to Porto Moniz Aquarium sounds nice!

November was a good month for blog visitors, the best since the new format. Over 3,000 different visitors visited nearly 9,000 times. I hope our sponsor is pleased. Many thanks for those who have supported it during November, and whilst there are several people who deserve credit, Elaine stands out for providing another whole month of news stories without a day off. The following stories included :

Tradition of singing the Charamba dying. The cold was felt at the site of the mill Ti Jesuina situated at Estrada Camacha/Poiso but it did not cool the enthusiasm of the participants at the Fifth Meeting of Xarambistas. The event was scheduled for 15.00 but started at 16.00 The five participants ranged from the ages of 70 to 81 years old and were accompanied by a 49 year old playing the viola de arame. An enthusiast lamented: "The charamba is dying because children are not interested in this artistic expression that comes from our ancestors. And the people who sing, because of their age, also are disappearing."

Machico Council vote themselves out of a Christmas dinner. Saving internally so as not to compromise the street festival. The decision of the Municipality of Machico ‘debunks’ the traditional Christmas lunch for the officials and also the gifts for their children. The decision was well accepted by the 200 employees with 60 children affected. "Our priority is to keep the festivities in the county and people understand why because they also feel the crisis at home." The same number of light bulbs as last year will be used to economise. The festivities will begin on December 6 with an opening play entitled, ‘The True Spirit of Christmas’. Circus Brazil starts on December 11 underneath the airport runway. On December 20 there is a Gospel Christmas concert in Forum Machico. The live nativity scene from December 22 is in the cultural activities room in the Junta da Freguesia. The Christmas Program 2009 ends on January 10 with the Singing of the Kings in Santo da Serra from 15.00. —- A true Christmas spirited Council!

Edificio Santa Luzia wins award. This is one of the contemporary Portuguese buildings to receive the award IHRU 2009, to promote municipal and regional buildings. Designed for the Housing Investment of Madeira (IHM), the award is from the Institute for Housing and Urban Regeneration. This apartment block contains 10 apartments for people with reduced mobility and includes an elevator, garden and communal room. It is designed for single people or couples, especially the elderly.

‘Excellence’ lobbying against civil construction. The delegates of APAVT (congress of the Portuguese Association of Travel Agents and Tourism) praise the "intelligence and courage" of Conceição Estudante (Tourism Minister). This is due to the region having already taken a significant step in the direction of alerting politicians and those responsible for the tourism sector to environmental sustainability. This had led to the region being classified as a ‘Destination of Excellence’. The strategy pursued by her is thought to act as a very strong lobby against civil construction, the major cause of deterioration in the quality of our tourism product. The tourism product has been degraded by overbuilding, insensitive urban planning and not enough defence against building and cultural heritage. Poor management of the law of supply and demand is also a problem. The growth rate of supply has been much faster than demand and not adjusted accordingly. There should be no new licensing until the occupancy levels recover to above 65%. As far as Funchal is concerned she is a good few years too late. Uncle Bertie won’t be pleased that one of his cronies wants to cut back on concrete use, how will the shareholders survive? Der

Funchal represents 45% of energy certification. This figure shows that this is the most active area for the real estate market. These certificates for energy efficiency and air quality have been awarded since 2001, a total of 2,881. The most (46.4%) of those in Funchal have been awarded in São Martinho. These have been awarded for all new buildings, those rented and those sold. The second main area of activity is Santa Cruz where 60% have been awarded in the parish of Caniço. Other counties have relatively few certificates issued, either due to a stagnant property market or the councils not enforcing the law. In the case of residential buildings, these certificates are valid for 10 years. The responsibility is the seller or owner of the building and they should be checked by the legal bodies when contracts are concluded for sale and/or lease.

Rescue effort off the Desertas Islands. At 15.00 on Friday, the crew of a French vessel sent a warning message that the João Amndio fishing vessel was adrift with no crew activity on board, despite normally having a crew of 10 men. Fears deepened when the contacts of the Subcentro de Lisboa went unanswered. The Maritime Search and Rescue Centre in Funchal, Maritime Authorities and the navy launched a rescue effort. Two SANAS semi-rigid lifeboats were launched, one from Santa Cruz and the other from Funchal, and the naval patrol boat put on standby. The rescue effort proved unnecessary as the crew were all safe and were having a rest period with the person on watch away from the VHF equipment at the time, which is why he did not respond to the message.

Câmara de Lobos firemen discontent over non-payment of updated salary. They should have had their salary increased by 2.9% on January 1 2009 but have only received additional pay since September 2009. Some firemen also complain about inconsistencies. The president has appointed a relative into the corporation, who receives almost double than others in a similar position. They also complain about money spent on the 60th anniversary party and the Christmas party. The president, Rui Fernandes, is an ex-deputy of the PSD and also president of the Municipal Assembly of Câmara de Lobos. He argues that this criticism is just in bad faith as the anniversary party was also to award merit badges. He denies there is an unwillingness or refusal to meet with the union leaders as there is another meeting in January. Also, the firemen have no grounds for complaint as they have good working and employment conditions. Nepotism in the fire brigade, hard to believe I know, and I wonder who might set such a bad example? Der

Judicial Police seize more heroin and hashish in 2009. Quantities have already surpassed those in 2008. The amount of hashish has almost tripled and heroin increased from 57,469 to 73,800 doses. In contrast, cocaine has decreased remarkably from 632,395 to 21,400 doses. The major seizure last year of cocaine was of 57 kilogram or 570,000 doses at the airport in Operation Check Out, probably not all for the regional market. There were 78 people arrested this year for trafficking compared to 43 last year. Three firearms have been seized this year in relation to drug trafficking.

The port is too small for the number and size of cruise ships visiting.  The photo taken yesterday illustrates the problem; when two large cruise ships berth at the South Terminal and another at the North Terminal, the port has exhausted 90% of its capacity. The increase in length and tonnage of cruise ships means that for 18% of days of this year, the port has exhausted its capacity. The large cruise ships circuit can include Southern Portugal, Madeira and the Canaries. A large ship can represent an income of 12 -18 thousand Euros for APRAM (Ports Authority) and another 150,000 Euros in revenue for companies that provide tourism services. On December 15, there will be four large cruise ships visiting meaning that the Oriana has to berth offshore. The passengers are mainly over 70 years old and many will be unable to use the ship’s tenders to visit the island. Eight cruise ships are already booked for the last night of the year. A ship unable to berth and having to stay offshore looses the Administration of Ports 40% of revenue and penalizes local businessmen, as only 30% of passengers come ashore. The present investment for development of the port is the most important decision taken for a long time due to the limited size and increasing size of ships visiting. This topic was continued in another article stating that next year, there will be 24 days when the Port of Funchal cannot receive any more ships. 20% of days there will be three ships and for four days there are four cruise ships booked, and for another three days, five booked simultaneously. March, April, November and December are the months when capacity is limited. In 2010, there will be newer and larger cruise liners visiting. The new Queen Elizabeth is due on 21 October 2010.

Five arrested for attacks on the police. Sporadic violence occurred in Funchal and Câmara de Lobos. The first incidence occurred on Friday in Funchal when three men were detained for violence against an officer. On Sunday in Câmara de Lobos, a man and a woman were eventually arrested after intervention by the police. In Machico, a man was arrested for possession of a bat and a knife.

Corpse of a tourist found at the bottom of a ravine. The body of a tourist who was missing since 19.00 last night has just been recovered this morning from a ravine of a depth of 80 metres. The 30 year old was separated from his parents in Levada da Lombada in Ponta do Sol. The mountain rescue team of the bombeiros recovered the body.

German camps in the Almirante Reis garden. A German citizen aged more than 60 years old has lived there for over a month in unsanitary conditions. He came to Madeira as the weather is favourable for his illness. He sleeps in a small tent pitched by the walls of the hotel and is well educated, walks with difficulty, wears the same clothes and has hygiene problems. The Town Hall was not aware of the situation but now alerted, say they will quickly resolve the situation in a humanely way and a person cannot be allowed to camp in a public area which is also a tourist attraction.

Then my contribution from today’s front page stories … Der

Today’s main Diário headline : ‘Order of Doctors’ doesn’t want doctors to give advice against the vaccine – The doctors that judge inopportune that people submit themselves to vaccination against Gripe A swine flu, should not ignore the instructions of the World Health Organisation and the Directorate General, that are advising the take up of this precaution. So says the Order. Some doctors apparently have been advising their patients against getting vaccinated against H1N1, but that has to stop. These patients are considered as ‘risk groups’ due to age, medical factors, or pregnancy, and the instruction is that the ‘opinions’ of medical staff are not to be offered. Some doctors  have doubts about the product ‘Pandermix’ based on lack of tests and scientific studies about the efficiency of the vaccine. Some doctors are saying say it is better to strengthen the immune system with other methods, through rest, good nutrition and vitamin supplements. The president of the Order says that presently, there are pregnant women, parents of small children, and the chronically ill who do not know which is better: to take the vaccine or hope that the Gripe A flu does not infect them. There were 123 new cases of Gripe A confirmed by the Health Service last week. 57 are female, 66 male. There were 39 confirmed outbreaks of the virus in Madeira’s schools, a similar ratio to that happening throughout Portugal. I won’t be taking the vaccine under any circumstances, and have reinforced my supplies of © Toranja Poncha © over recent weeks as my means of prevention and cure, as well as it’s properties for aiding a good nights sleep during the early morning mega-bangers, due to start any day now. However as there are some who take things I say a little too seriously, I am not recommending this approach to others, who need to make their own decisions, and ‘the blog’ does not accept any responsibility for those who follow my chosen path. Besides that, the glut of cheap toranjas (grapefruit) that I have been enjoying for the last couple of a months seem to be coming to an end.

2009 is a black year in the economy of Porto Santo. Consumption plunged. Airport and port register sensitive losses of movement. We have been reading the stories for the last year or more, about reduced hotel occupation and travel, projects and developments stopping mid-term, or not even starting. The only recent positive highlight I remember was the opening of the new animal shelter, but I am not even sure now if that was just an election stunt and is still open. The golden island, two or more years ago, was the top of everyone’s  agenda, including Cristiano Ronaldo, for a new hotel. The island was hosting direct charter flights from Italy and the UK, and there was so much employment (low pay admittedly) that recruitment was focused on immigrants. Speculators and others were buying property at inflated prices. The article gives some stats on what is mentioned above in terms of economic factors,  but nothing we didn’t really know about before. It has to be said that Porto Santo is treated differently as a separate island, and clearly has differences, but in reality the other regions of Madeira, especially outside of Funchal, are suffering in equivalent and similar ways, but don’t get the same media attention. At least Porto Santo still has it’s own separate weather forecast, whereas the rest of us are usually lumped in with Funchal, regardless of climatic considerable differences.

Institute of Francês Marie Curie studies levadas. A French investigator, Jean-Luc Sabatier, has come to Madeira to study our network of levadas, and will stay here for two years to complete his work in the study titled ‘Irrigation and Society’. He will focus on the anthropological and sociological perspective of the famous mountain waterways, funded by a grant from the prestigious Institute Marie Curie. I just can’t go on with a straight face … it’s another ‘jolly in disguise’, despite lots of technical justifications in the article. How do people get these jobs, as I certainly don’t see them advertised in our newspapers? If I come up with a study, say the ‘Saltiness of the seas around Madeira’, or ‘Regional differences in the beers of Madeira’ will someone stump up the dough to pay for me to ‘research’ for two years … please email me if you can.

Haylofts and huts in Chão da Ribeira cause controversy. Reconstruction and widening of the structures result in a meeting between the council of Porto Moniz and the Natural Park. This story one I will leave for someone else to translate … thank you.

and finally, today’s football story : World Cup 2010 : "Portugal are going to feel at home". Eusébio is already in South Africa. He revealed his expectations to the Diário about the final stage of the Wold Cup. Portugal’s ex-most-famous-footballer is already in South Africa, sussing out the situation ready for 2010. It must only be in today’s printed edition of the Diário, as I can’t find it online. Dare I mention the ‘J’ word once again?

That’s all from me news-wise for now, as the Diário advert for the car sale at the Technopolo has smothered the links into the pages and individual news stories, and it can’t be closed down to delve into the newspaper. I presume everyone is on holiday at the Diário, which is why the fault still hasn’t been corrected by 10.30 am. Elaine has found a way around the problem if you look in the comments. Thank Elaine.

I already mentioned that today is ‘Restoration of Independence’ day for Portugal and Madeira, and as such a public holiday … for some maybe. At 6.22 am I was awoken by a grand rumpus … the local band starting playing at that time of the morning … just one song … and then they stopped. Well, it was too late by then to return to deep slumber. Restoration of Independence indeed, how about restoration of my lost sleep! This is normally the sort of comment where a blog sniper pops up and says ‘why don’t you move away from Madeira if you don’t like it’?, so just to pre-empt such a stupid comment, the answer is I don’t want to. Why are the snipers out in force this last few days I wonder, maybe not much doing on the Madeira Island Bulletin Board (for a change!), where some snipers often lurk, or just pure Christmas humbugism … who knows what drives these people? Do they sit at home and watch TV programmes they don’t like, and then write in and complain?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

UPDATE : 

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

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

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

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

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

(9th June). ‘Jersey Warns Traffickers From Madeira – The authorities on Jersey came to Funchal to protest and correct the situation with the police to stop the drug traffic from here to there. They are also preparing a campaign to alert about heavy prison sentences’. The advertising campaign warns of heavy penalties of imprisonment for those caught drug trafficking, involves the Jersey Police and Customs, and is aimed at drug dealers from Poland, Madeira, Portugal, and the United Kingdom. The Jersey authorities, with police and other security units, came to Madeira in May to meet their counterparts here to discuss strategies to prevent the problem, which is rife over there because of the high prices that drugs are sold for. Only last August, a Madeiran was sent to prison for 3 years for possession of less than 10 grams of heroin, and another in October for three and a half years, caught with 12 grams of the same drug, brought from Madeira. In one of those cases the prosecution even accepted the defence that the drug was for personal use. What an embarrassment … even I feel embarrassed! That’s one export Madeira doesn’t want, especially to a country that provides work for so many Madeirans, and welcomes them into the community as well. I know it’s just a few idiots spoiling matters for everyone, but can’t they see the potential damage? There are expressions that covers this situation, that have the word nest, backyard, or bed, but as they contain a swear word I will refrain from repeating, oh hang on, how about ‘biting the hand that feeds you’. The equivalent announcement from yesterday (in English of course) is here in the JERSEY EVENING POST

‘Barardo Remembers That He Invested Here Instead Of Favouring Brazil – The businessman is irritated with the delay of the Câmara that holds up the demolition of the Savoy. Among many messages, he says that "talk doesn’t create jobs" ‘. Joe Barardo, the administrator of the group responsible for the Savoy’s plans, believes the plans submitted for demolition are complete, and that Funchal council (CMF) has no real grounds for delaying the matter. In the plans the destruction of the two hotels by implosion is preferred as being quicker and cheaper, but CMF are looking into dismantling as a safer option. Referring to Sunday’s election results, Berardo is "concerned with the dissatisfaction of the Portuguese people" with the political situation, enough to "spread fear also in the business world", and he shows growing concern for the growing support for the Left Block and Communist Parties, and fears for nationalisation. Joe Berardo again emphasized that "investors can not wait that long for the administrative decisions of licensing authorities, because the market position is very complicated". He also refers to the plans to 10 years ago to demolish the site for the Royal Savoy, and said there were no reservations or objections then. I think I must have woken up on a different planet this morning … communism, nationalisation, implosions in busy tourist zones … what has this guy been smoking!

‘Fishing Boat Was In Danger At Open Sea Near São Vicente – 5 crew members were rescued by another boat in the area’. The ‘Encumeada’ was spotted adrift early this morning, with the alarm raised at 5am. The authorities mustered all the resources they could from civil protection and the fire brigade, to rescue the crew members from the boat that was taking on water 3 miles offshore, and even the Merlin helicopter was summoned. But a nearby boat, the ‘Felicidade Rocha’ actually beat them to it and made the rescue, and was in the process of towing the vessel in distress towards Porto Moniz.

‘The Cherry Festival In Jardim da Serra next Sunday’. The regional secretary of the Environment and Natural Resources, Manuel António Correia, will be present next Sunday in the festive ceremonies of another year of the ‘Festa da Cereja’ in Jardim da Serra. The celebrations start on Saturday, at 2pm, with great entertainment, followed on Sunday by a number of initiatives, which include several musical performances, sporting tests, allegorical parade, and a cooking demonstration, among others. The event is organized by the Casa do Povo (House of the People).

An employee of Funchal Council (CMF) was convicted yesterday of ‘diverting’ €46,000, and sentenced to two and a half years imprisonment, suspended for the same period. The case dates back to 3rd July, 2007 when the Funchal Police announced that it had arrested an employee of a council, on suspicion of the crimes of embezzlement and falsifying of documents. The 47 year old woman admitted the charges, apologised, and acknowledged the need to repay the money.

Porto Moniz hoisted its ‘blue flag’ for beach quality this morning.

The residents of different parts of Caniço are dissatisfied with the current postal service, that is being undertaken by a company subcontracted by CTT (Post Office / Mail). The problem is not only in Caniço, but also in other areas of Madeira complaints are being made. Important correspondence such as bank letters, and water, electricity and telephone bills disappear without trace. Even if the victims go to the post office (Correios) to complain of the disappearance of letters, they are poorly served and end up without an answer. If the ‘CTT’ does not solve the problem, and refuses to reveal what it intends to do, the people of Caniçal are considering taking the case to another extreme. Join the club, my postal services went downhill two years ago. I am still waiting for my June TV magazine, which was sent from Portugal two weeks ago.

This from the UK Daily Telegraph today : Cristiano Ronaldo could miss Manchester United’s pre-season training next month, after withdrawing from Portugal’s squad for Wednesday’s friendly against Estonia with a suspected hernia injury. Ronaldo, 24, has returned to his home island of Madeira after complaining of pain in the lower abdomen prior to, and after, Saturday’s World Cup qualifying victory over Albania in Tirana.

‘Nenê Is No Longer Going To Dubai – Nacional and Al Nasr don’t reach agreement on the payment terms. Germany could be the destination for the goal wizard’. Following on from the news yesterday about the €5 million offer from Al Nasr.

(8th June). ‘Giant Fig Fed Five People – It was the result of a graft, and grew to 300 grams’. Found in Caniço, the fruit "seems to have been blessed with divine generosity". This fruit was protected from blackbirds until it split naturally, and then went to provide pudding for a family of five.  Not my area of expertise, but it doesn’t look that miraculous to me. I know a lot of readers here like to discuss fruit, so that’s why I included the story.