Further exploration on the island of Madeira!…Photos!…

It was surprising how much cactus there is on Miradouro referred to as a promontory.

Yesterday, while Judite was cleaning the house, we decided to get out of her way. We’ve never liked hanging around when the cleaning person is there when it feels that we’re in the way. Needing to purchase more meat from the little market with the expert butcher, we decided to tour the more remote areas of the island we’d yet to see, finishing up our day at the market.

When we first saw this jutting promontory, we knew we had to make our way to the top.

We left cash for Judite’s services, US $27.23, EU $20 for four hours of housecleaning, explaining with hand signals that she locks the door when she was done. Off we went on our way, not to return until she’d be long gone.

When we saw this sign, we knew we for in for a treat.

As time marches on, Tom’s become a less jerky stick shift driver on these steep hills and I’ve acclimated to the remaining jerkiness, no longer feeling queasy. As a result, driving on these steep, winding roads with frequent hairpin turns and cliffs with no guardrail has become easy, rarely feeling fearful or anxious.

Unfortunately, it was cloudy and rainy.  We hope to return on a clear day.

It’s funny how it was only a year ago in Italy when I cringed every time we drove anywhere. I think back to my pointless angst over the four hour road in Belize, flying in the little plane to and from the Maasai Mara while going on safari and the steep roads in Italy. I chuckle to myself over how much I’ve changed!

Miradouro is a promontory, a piece of high elevation land that juts out into the sea.

Finding one’s way around the island, as I’ve mentioned is challenging when  searching for a specific address.  Driving for pleasure with no destination in mind is easy. If we can see the ocean, we’re never too far from the main motorway that surrounds the island.

We walked out to the end of the promontory.

Each time we take such a drive, we choose a new road to follow. Tom’s great sense of direction and our combined good sense of remembering where we’ve already traveled, enables us to make new discoveries each time we’re exploring.

This is the end of the point of Miradouro. There was no guard rail and the terrain was uneven and rocky. We stayed as far away as we could from the edges but did move in closer a few times for photos.

Whether it’s scenery, goats, chickens, birds or dogs, our eyes are always peeled for the next photo worthy scene. It’s ironic how our desire to post interesting (we hope) and appealing photos here each day, has made both of us more in tune with checking out our surroundings with an intense eagle eye.

This was the view from the right side of Miradouro. We laughed when we realized after all the time we’d been driving, that below us was the village in Riberira Brava where we go to dinner and  shop at the supermarket.

With both of us constantly on the visual prowl for fodder, we revel in each other’s discoveries, stopping when possible to take photos. At times, stopping is impossible, although Tom always offers to either back up or return on the same road. Often, I’ve taken advantage of his offers, never wanting to miss what we perceive as interesting and noteworthy.

The view from the left side of Miradouro.

Of course, each person’s perspective of what is interesting is different. As we walked a popular tourist spot we stumbled upon yesterday, I mentioned to Tom how ironic it is that he expresses considerable interest in vegetation, which he ignored in our old lives. 

I didn’t intend to include this cactus paddle in this photo.

Over these past 20 months since leaving Minnesota, the acuity with which we observe our surroundings has changed dramatically. In a large part, we credit writing here each day. Its a huge motivator. If we were traveling with the same intent as most tourists, we’d take our zillions of photos and leave it at that, hoping one day to bore our family and friends with our thousands of photos.

The above flowers were growing on this tree.

Instead, we can bore our family, friends, and readers from all over the world, one day at a time, or for some, we can brighten their day in a small way as we share the treasures of this magical world in which all of us live, in photos and stories.

These unusual flowers hung from the above short tree.

Once again, dear readers, we say thank you for sharing this journey with us, for your willingness in reading our frequent mindless drivel of the mundane aspects of daily life and for making us feel that you are always at our side.

At the moment, the excitement escalates for as we continue with bookings in the South Pacific, aka Oceania, all the way to May 16, 2016. Photos coming out this weekend.

Be well. Be happy. 
__________________________________________

Photo from one year ago today, June 27, 2013:

This was the road that we walked in our neighborhood in Boveglio, Tuscany, Italy in order to go to the popular local bar, Bar Ferrari. Not quite as steep as the hills in Madeira but it certainly was good exercise as our the streets in Madeira, steep, steep, steep. For details of that day, please click here.