On this, our
last day in Madeira, I had only one request - to go on a levada walk. The
levadas are stone and concrete irrigation channels that began being built in
the 1400’s, but the most recent of which were constructed in the 1950’s. They
were built for transporting the ample quantities of rain water that fell in the
mountains in the north and west of the island to the more populated south and
east where most of the productive farmland was located. In yet another miracle
of engineering on this fascinating island, these 2000 kilometres of levadas
were built mainly by hand and run through mountains, valleys and forests, all
built with sufficient slope to get the water to where it is needed. To maintain
these levadas, small trails were built beside them and then “levada-keepers”
are assigned to particular stretches to ensure they are kept free of debris and
do not develop leaks. Although not originally intended for this purpose, the
levada trails are a hiker’s dream.
I did a bit
of basic research and found one that was very close to Funchal, so we drove to
Jasmin’s Tea House, one of the access points on this 10-kilometer-long trail.
This quaint tea house is run by an English couple and sits on a hillside,
overlooking the ocean, with its outdoor patio completely enveloped by jasmine
bushes and many other flowers, giving off an intensely intoxicating aroma. We
enjoyed a most lovely cup of tea, and in such situation our young Stella always
develops a right proper English accent, that drives her brother mad. Before
long Ana started joining in with the accent and Magnus nearly threw himself
over the jasmine bushes. Fortunately, they stopped just seconds before he was
ready to jump.
We met a
lovely lady who I think was the mother of the owner. She had been living in
Madeira for 20 years and told us all about life here, and how it’s changed so
much over the years. She also told us a love story about how her and her
Portuguese husband met each other, after each losing their spouses, and have
lived their happily ever after in Madeira ever since.
The levada
walk was serene, and quite unlike anything I’ve experienced before. Although it
was located just on the outskirts of Funchal, most of the trail ran through
forest, and there was little sign of civilization. The levada channel itself
seemed to be about three feet wide with perhaps 18 inches of water, but the
capacity to hold twice that. As I looked at it, I could imagine trying a couple
of pool noodles around my waist, jumping in, and enjoying the longest Lazy
River in the world!
During the
walk we passed a few houses, one which had a barn full of chickens we could
smell far before we reached it, one other tea house, and about six other hikers
in the span of a 90-minute hike. The family was initially not too keen on doing
the hike with me, as we seem to have gotten more than we bargained for on the
previous hikes this trip, but this one was flat and easy. I admit, this was
just a very small taste of the levada walks that are available on the island,
so the next time we visit (on our own boat…if all goes well!) I would love to
do more of these. Actually, I would like to hike all of them.
This was our
last day and therefore our final chance to absorb some sunshine before
returning to the miserable weather they are currently experiencing in Ontario.
After the levada walk we drove to the Lido swimming complex in the west end of
Funchal, where most of the large hotels are located. It was only about 18 or 19
degrees, but it was quite sunny, so that was just warm enough to be able to lie
in beach chairs for two hours and slowly roast. It felt great and I think both
Ana and I fell asleep for a while. The water in the pool was quite cold, but
both of the kids went in for a short swim, but I was just too lazy and
comfortable to take the plunge.
We left at
3:30 to ensure we could get a parking spot back at the apartment, which we did,
and then Ana and I enjoyed a drink on our balcony while the kids did some
homework. We talked about the Azores, we talked about Madeira, and of course we
talked about future vacation ideas, which is what we nearly always do at the
end of a vacation. Gotta have two trips in the hopper!
Our final
dinner was at a restaurant called Jardin de Carrera. The grubby front of the
restaurant opened into a huge, beautiful courtyard that had a nice garden, a
patch of banana trees and, incredibly, a giant mango tree, with ripe green
mangos hanging off its branches. I finally got a chance to eat lapas, which are
these small, local clams in star shaped shells that are cooked in garlic and
butter and are predictably delicious. As we ate, Ana watched as a ripe mango
fell from the tree and hit the ground. I went over, picked it up, and put it on
our table with the thought of slicing it up later for dessert, but the waiter
came by and grabbed it, plus another he had found, and returned at the end of
the meal with our mangoes carefully sliced up and arranged on a plate, ready to
eat. He received a handsome tip.
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