Carnival 2026Jauntlet.comhttps://jauntlet.com/Day 29. The Day of Reckoning! In the middle of last year we made a conscious decision to try and spend as much of the winter away from the UK in order to enjoy a better climate and more light through the winter months. I made a plan and we have executed it fully. We therefore started our travels on November 19th with a flight from Luton to Lisbon in Portugal. Today on March 12th, our winter wanderings ended, and to keep things relatively symmetrical, we will fly back to Luton airport from Porto in Portugal. It has been 114 days since we set off on these prearranged trips and we have now travelled 26,000 miles in total. Just a little over the circumference of our planet. A fair old trip! We have visited Portugal twice and one time each to Spain, Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina & Chile in our wanderings. We went home to the UK for two short visits;https://jauntlet.com//97198https://jauntlet.com//97198Thu, 12 Mar 2026 14:00:00 +0000Day 26; Buttocks Abroad - Not a soggy bottom in sight! Yesterday I mentioned the concept of a firm bottom. Mary Berry our renowned chef, often references the avoidance of a “soft” or “soggy” bottom in her pie and tart recipes and it’s clear everyone wants the bottom to be “well developed” and clearly defined, crisp and fit for purpose. It’s the only way to enjoy! Our pizza yesterday had crispy flavourful edges but sadly it was slightly soggy with a “sludgy centre”. Taste was good, texture was wrong. It’s the same sometimes with a British steak pie where the top might be golden and crispy but down below it sags. Trying to get the right balance is so important for everyone to enjoy. Then of course we humans have our own bottoms to address. They are part of our emotional psyche. Now, even the slightly prudish (or shy sorts) will have glanced at a bottom at some point in their lives and thought “that looks fit”. I certainly have, and to be perfectly honest I still probably do every day. There is not a day that passes without my eye being drawn to an alluring curvature. But the fashions for trousers, skirts and shorts change so frequently that this makes checking out a potential “rear of the year” sometimes a much more tricky process. What is clear however is, that on mainland Europe, the rear styling can be different. In the UK “bagginess and shapelessness” seem to have become the very acceptable appearance of current fashion for modern British people, whereas in Europe, there can be looseness without losing “definition”. There seems to be a much better fit of body to clothing, especially in Mediterranean countries. Maybe it’s tailoring differences or are different countries producing people of different definitions. For me it’s the fashion difference between a soggy bottom (of a pie) in the UK and the crisp definition of a “continental tart”. I’ve always been drawn to the pleasures of a continental tart, and long may it last. Bottoms up! Cheers! Day 27; The Sandeman Can!  Today we took a visit to one of the many port cellars situated across the river from Porto. There are many tastings and tours on offer and we have chosen one which has Scottish roots. We have visited the Sandeman cellars which was started in 1790 by brothers George & David Sandeman, who were born in Perth, Scotland. The bothers founded the company with capital of £300, a loan they negotiated with their father. (This equals about £60k in today’s money). In 1798 George was left in sole charge of the business when his brother David decided to return to Glasgow to found a new bank. The Sandeman port business stayed in family control based in London until 1979 when it was sold to Seagram. Today the business is owned by Sogrape Vinhos SA, a Portuguese based and owned company with wine production interests throughout the world. There remains a single direct descendant of George Sandeman on the board of the company today. Today’s tour was hosted by Eliana who provided a comprehensive and illuminating explanation of how the port industry has evolved and how the range of ports differ in taste. Our tour concluded with a five glass tasting session in a private room which turned into a very social gathering. We were 12 people;https://jauntlet.com//97201https://jauntlet.com//97201Mon, 09 Mar 2026 14:00:00 +0000Day 24. Figuring out Figueira da Foz We’re having a two day road trip south of Porto to the silver coast of Portugal. The Costa da Prata, as it’s called by the locals, begins in the north close to the canal city of Aveiro then meets up with the coast at Figueira da Foz. As the name suggests, figueira, was a fig tree that once stood at the mouth, or foz of the Mondego River. According to legend the town was named after a fig tree that fisherman once used to tie up their boats. Both Aveiro and Figueira are two of the tourist hubs along the Silver Coast—and for good reason. Colorful boats cruise the canals of Aveiro as they have for centuries. Once they used to carry seaweed, today they transport tourists past art nouveau homes along the bustling waterfront. It’s a popular spot and we will visit there on Sunday. Further south of Figueira is the fishing village of Nazaré where fisherman still head out to sea in small boats just as they have for centuries. Enormous waves entice daredevil surfers who embrace the challenge, while others come in summertime to chill on the beaches. Summertime is for the sunbathers but autumn is when waves are at their highest for the surfers, so tourists and locals alike come to watch the show But on this trip we are visiting just Figueira da Foz on Saturday and Aveiro on Sunday. Figueira is friendly and busy in a laid back way but we are reminded that it is only March. In the summer months the place goes from busy to buzzy when tourists arrive from the cities of Portugal and Spain. There is a very nice feel to the city here and a slight feel of south western France to the atmosphere. I am reminded very much of a trip to Mimizan in Les Landes on the Atlantic coast of France (south of Bordeaux) over 45 years ago. The terrain is similar and I suspect the breeze from the Atlantic to the west is also. Let us enjoy the coast. Day 25. Aviero and back to Porto! Our weekend road trip continues at the north end of the Silver Coast at the lagoon city of Aveiro. The city sits on the south side of the Aveiro lagoon and the city has a network of canals allowing boat access to many points in the city. It’s an energetic popular place and just a jump away from dune-ribboned beaches on the Atlantic coast. Aveiro is perhaps the least “Portuguese” city we have visited – but not in a bad way. The architecture is full of art nouveau facades, which deliver a very alternative backdrop to the usual typical Portuguese style. There are Gondola-like boats as transport rather than vintage trams. And the “ovos moles”, a local “eggy sweet” treat push the pastéis de nata into second place. I prefer the tarts, but that’s just me. But Aviero is still Portugal and there’s enough baroque gilding, seafaring stories, hand-painted porcelain and the wonderful provincial wines to keep this university city undeniably Portuguese. We have enjoyed our short visit on the way back to Porto from Figueira da Foz, but to be honest there were just too many tourists around to get a real feel for the place. Our mid afternoon return to the Porto base has allowed us to refresh ourselves with some local wine at the small tapas bar adjacent to where we are staying. At €8 for a half litre of local wine, we very quickly became super refreshed. A lovely feeling! We are also now regular customers! Sunday evening is going to be pizza night and I have researched the local possibilities for our meal this evening. Pizza is not my favourite type of food but if it has a well made bread base and delivers some good authentic Italian flavour on top, then I will be happy. We are trying a place this evening called “Pizzeria Bella Mia” which has great reviews and an interesting menu. I’ll let you know. And it was an interesting place, queued up outside when we arrived and still queuing when we left. The food was a perfect mix of flavours. I started with a Nordic salad of cured salmon, walnuts and buratta cheese. And following this we shared a mushroom. ham and red onion pizza. Service was super. But the pizza for me needed a firmer bottom. But that’s the story of many of my preferences!! C’est la vie! We are now ready for Monday!https://jauntlet.com//97200https://jauntlet.com//97200Sat, 07 Mar 2026 14:00:00 +0000https://jauntlet.com//97197https://jauntlet.com//97197Thu, 05 Mar 2026 14:00:00 +0000Day 2 Horizon Dream Our apartment is called Horizon Dream and sits on the south coast of Madeira about 3.5km to the west of central Funchal. The topography of Madeira is very hilly due to its volcanic evolution and as a consequence ocean views are abundant. We have a south west facing view with a nice balcony which can be accessed from the bedroom, the lounge or the kitchen. It’s situated in a residential neighbourhood which is good to get access to local bars and restaurants rather than those more geared towards the tourists. We look down towards Formosa Beach which is a great place for some afternoon drinks. We look over the blocks of residential apartments which in turn look over two fairly large hotels which are on the beach walk path. And of course looking past all of the building is the slow never ending path to the eventual horizon. Everyone eventually finds their own personal horizon. It’s been a lovely warm day and we enjoyed a late lunch snack at Formosa Beach and some sundowners on our balcony before dinner. Where we are staying has lots of low key neighbourhood bars and restaurants and being carnival weekend every is out for fun. Everywhere is busy with a joyous buzz and we are soaking it up. And this evening we had a Venezuelan meal at a local restaurant. We had a stuffed cornbread with cheese and chicken. (Cachapa) Very very tasty. It was my first time trying Venezuelan cuisine this evening. We might try it again. Day 3 Valentines Day Today in Funchal is the main Carnival parade day and we are heading downtown later this afternoon to have an early dinner and then join in the festivities of the parades. A full report on this evenings activities and all things “carnivale” to follow Today is also Valentine's Day here in Madeira & across the world. It’s also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, and is celebrated annually on February 14. I had a friend at school who was named Valentine because his birthday was February 14th. (Happy birthday Valentine wherever you are these days). I have another friend also born on 14th February but not a Valentine. Just Kevin - Happy Birthday Kevin. Valentines Day originated as a Christian feast day honouring a martyr named Valentine, and through later traditions it has also become a significant cultural, religious and commercial celebration of friendship, romance and love in many regions of the world. There are however a number of stories of martyrdom associated with various “Saint Valentines” connected to February 14, including an account of the imprisonment of Saint Valentine of Rome for ministering to Christians being persecuted by the Roman Empire in the third century. According to an early tradition, this Saint Valentine restored sight to the blind daughter of his jailer. Numerous later additions to the legend have better related it to the theme of love: a tradition maintains that Saint Valentine performed weddings for Christian soldiers who were forbidden to marry by the Roman emperor; an 18th-century “embellishment” to the legend claims he wrote the jailer's daughter a letter signed "Your Valentine" as a farewell before his execution. Anyhow across the world the greetings card suppliers, chocolate and confectionery sellers and florists are having a bumper day. Commerce makes the world go round and all the better with a little bit of love to oil the wheels. Hope you “lovelies” are all having a “love” packed day!! Day 4. Carnival Sunday The carnival runs until Tuesday (Shrove Tuesday) and finishes just as Lent begins. Lots more exhibitions to come, but we enjoyed the atmosphere in town last night. Everyone was ready for a celebration and the weather was reasonably kind. In the evenings in February it rarely gets below 15c but whether that’s warm enough for Brazilian Samba Displays is another thought!! Today however, has been glorious and we have had full sun all day. We therefore took some time to explore the south coast and see a few of the small fishing villages that dot the coast. Madeira is sometimes called the Swiss Cheese Island due to the network of tunnels connecting the communities all round the island. The EU has provided significant financial support to improve the road network on the island. Madeiras mountainous geography resulted in the construction of a network of expressways and tunnels which now has more than 135 bridges and viaducts and over 150 tunnels throughout the island. The tunnels are not straight. They have steep gradients, turn offs within them and numerous bends and curves to deal with. The longest tunnel is over 2 miles long. Sometimes challenging!! We finished today off at one of my favourite restaurants in Funchal (PVP). It’s a Portuguese restaurant catering for locals and tourists and provides super food in more than adequate portions at very affordable prices. I was peckish so I had melon and Portuguese ham followed by a mix grill of fish including salmon, tuna, scabbardfish and king prawns served with sautéed potatoes and beans. I finished off with passion fruit mousse and washed the whole lot down with a crisp Douro white wine. Best meal of our visit so far. Day 5 Going Bananas in Madeira Madeira has many longstanding food traditions and production of some of its products have a long history. When you arrive in Madeira, you are immediately greeted by an unusual sight: the steep terraces of the island are covered in lush green leaves that cascade down the volcanic slopes like huge fans. At the end of nearly every stalk hangs a bunch of bright yellow fruit. Bananas are everywhere in Madeira, from the gardens of cottages to the steepest cliffs of Ponta do Sol. The subtropical climate and fertile volcanic soil give its bananas a uniquely intense sweetness and a very creamy texture. The “Banana from Madeira” is so distinctive that it has recently been granted Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status, ensuring that only fruit grown on the island can carry the name. This Madeiran small fruit, (usually shorter and plumper than standard UK supermarket bananas) is one of the most recognisable icons of Madeiran gastronomy. However bananas only arrived in Madeira in the 16th century as curiosities brought by Portuguese navigators from their tropical voyages. Over the next few centuries the plants became an important subsistence crop for the local population. Commercial cultivation began in the mid‑19th century when the first “Dwarf Cavendish” variety was planted. Since then, bananas have reshaped the island’s landscape and economy. Today hundreds of terraces along the south‑facing slopes are devoted to banana plantations. Workers still cultivate and harvest the fruit by hand, clambering up and down steep hillsides with bunches that can weigh 50–90 kg. The banana is also present in everything from the islands’ cuisine – try the famous black scabbard fish with banana – and there are local banana festivals and even a museum celebrating the banana’s heritage. As mentioned previously, the banana did not originate in Madeira. Portuguese traders brought the plant to the island sometime around the 16th century, probably from their voyages to West Africa and Southeast Asia. At first the plant was a botanical oddity, grown only in noble gardens, but the favourable climate encouraged more widespread planting. By the 19th century the “Dwarf Cavendish” variety had arrived in Madeira and became the first commercial banana grown on the island. The Dwarf Cavendish is prized for its relatively compact stature and short production cycle, making it suitable for the terraced plots of Madeira and today today accounts for about 60% of the island’s banana crop, with the Robusta variety making up most of the rest of production. In addition to these commercial varieties, small gardens still grow heirloom types such as the silver banana and the apple banana, although these varieties are not produced on a commercial scale. By the early 20th century, bananas were one of Madeira’s main exports mainly to Europe and the industry boomed in the 1920s until the 1980s when the EU intervened. It was banana-gate!!. In the 1990s the European Union set & adopted standards for the length and curvature of bananas. It made headlines in the UK and was a significant issue in Madeira. The Madeiran banana, which is naturally smaller and shorter than bananas from Latin America, failed to meet these EU criteria. Locals refer to this as the “Bendy Banana Law.” As a result, exporters could no longer sell their fruit on European auctions and shipments were largely restricted to mainland Portugal. The restrictions forced many farmers to diversify into other crops and some removed their banana groves altogether. Nevertheless, banana cultivation remained an important part of the rural economy because the fruit still sold at a premium in mainland Portugal due to its taste. In recent times, the regional government and producer cooperatives have worked to protect the banana’s reputation and the PGI designation, officially recognised by the European Union, ensures that bananas marketed under the “Banana from Madeira” label are grown, harvested and packaged according to specific EU guidelines. Thanks to this combination of tradition and modern regulation, Madeira’s banana industry has survived the “Bendy Banana” crisis and continues to thrive today and 20-25 thousand tonnes of bananas are produced every year Bananas are deeply woven into Madeiran culture and cuisine. Besides just peeling and eating, they appear in a surprising array of dishes. The most famous is “ com banana”, a dish pairing deep‑fried slices of black scabbardfish with a caramelised banana. The unusual combination works because the fish’s mild flavour complements the banana’s sweetness. The dish has become a staple in restaurants all over the island. Bananas also star in desserts such as bolo de banana (banana cake), fritters dipped in sugar cane honey and liqueurs. At local bars you might also find banana poncha, a twist on Madeira’s traditional sugar cane spirit with added banana pulp. In Ponta do Sol, the Banana Museum (BAM) has opened to celebrate the fruit and let tourists learn more about the Banana. They can learn about the history of banana cultivation, see tools and photographs, and sample banana cake and even banana beer. The museum underscores the fruit’s importance, noting that the banana is more significant to the island’s economy than Madeira wine. The “Rota da Banana” is a short trail in Madalena do Mar which leads visitors through the island’s largest banana plantation. Along the path, information panels describe the growth cycle and the role of levadas the in irrigation and production. In July every year the town hosts the Mostra Regional da Banana, a festival celebrating the harvest. Producers display perfect bunches, while cooks prepare banana‑based dishes. Meanwhile, the colourful terraces of banana plants provide a backdrop for live music and folk dancing. So, the banana is a big thing! Something to celebrate and never ignore. Bananas can pop up in all different places sometimes unexpectedly. For me I had a gradual association with bananas in Glasgow when I grew up. They were a scarce almost endangered thing!! When I was allowed I enjoyed a slightly ripe banana on squashed gently onto generously buttered wholemeal bread. It’s juicy and healthy. So always enjoy a banana. We’re not crazy, just bananas!! Day 6 My Birthday I look forward to my birthdays quite a lot, especially when I am somewhere sunny and warm. For the last few years we have been away most of my birthdays very often here in Madeira. The downside of course, is that every year the number gets bigger. I remember back in 1975 just after my 17th birthday and I had passed my driving test, I got my new license and it said valid until 2028 which I thought was ridiculous. The concept of reaching 70 in my head was near impossible. Well I am now just two years off that “impossible milestone”. I was born on a very cold and snowy February morning in Glasgow in 1958. So snowy the ambulance couldn’t get up the drive so my mother had to walk down to the ambulance around midnight in labour and in wellington boots. It was a very different time then, and my father chose not to accompany her to the hospital and instead go back to bed. My mother made it down the drive to the ambulance, and to the hospital and I was born just after 6 o’clock on a Monday morning. My father then chose to take the day off work and told his boss, he needed a day off “because he had had disturbed night”. Wouldn’t happen today I reckon but it was a different culture back then. So over the years, I’ve celebrated my birthday to a greater or less extent depending where I was. It’s was difficult sometimes to celebrate in the depths of dark & wintry Scotland in the sixties and seventies but celebrate we always did. However, birthdays are more than cakes, cards & presents. They can be milestones that mark the passage of time to reflect on our life journey. It’s also an excuse to celebrate with the people we love and care for. But have you ever wondered about the origins of the celebration of birthdays. The history of birthday celebration stretches back thousands of years with its roots in ancient rituals, religious customs and sometimes cultural traditions. The first recorded origins of birthday celebration are in Egypt when pharaohs’ birthdays were celebrated. This was around 3000 BC. These weren’t birthdays as we know it. These were birthdays to celebrate the coronation of the pharaohs. This is a bit like celebrating the “official birthday” of the King or Queen in the UK. The Greeks then followed this by celebrating some of their gods (e.g. Artemis) with the preparation of round cakes representing the moon to celebrate their “birthdays”. This may have been the origin of the birthday cake. Following this, the Romans were the first civilisation to start to celebrate the birthdays of ordinary people. But the Romans were a bit like the Glaswegians of the 60s and focused just on celebrating men’s birthdays. The Romans also started the tradition of giving presents at birthdays which continues to this day. Then along came the Christians. The early Christians sadly believed that celebrating personal birthdays was a pagan practice. They instead preferred to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ at Christmas time. But over time these attitudes softened and changed and it became the norm to celebrate personal birthdays for all religions and faith groups. It is thought that the 18th century Germans popularised the concept of the birthday cake starting with children’s cakes with candles on it. The children were told that when they blew the candles out and made a wish, the smoke from the candles would take their wish to heaven to be granted. And this tradition continues everywhere to this day. But back then cake was expensive and the “birthday cake” was the preserve of the rich families. However, after the industrial revolution, it became easier and cheaper for birthday cakes to be manufactured and everyone can now get a “slice” of the action. Around the world there are many different traditions relating to birthdays and birthday celebrations, but at the end of the day it’s all about celebrating with the people closest to you. Over the years, the way we celebrate birthdays has changed, but the meaning stays the same. Birthdays remind us that every year on this planet is worth celebrating. So the next time you blow your candles out and make a wish, remember you’re taking part in a tradition that goes back almost 5,000 years. And that’s something worth wishing for. Day 7 Ash Wednesday Reflections Today is Ash Wednesday, the day after a busy day of important festivals which included the Slapstick Carnival Parade here in Funchal, my 68th birthday and the wonderful final feasting day of Shrove Tuesday (UK) and Mardi Gras. All of these intertwined events are traditionally celebrated with much food and drink and one specifically (Shrove Tuesday) with freshly made pancakes. There’s something wonderfully nostalgic about the traditional Pancake Day. We all have our childhood memories of flipping pancakes in the kitchen or the simple pleasure of covering them in lemon and sugar or jam, Shrove Tuesday/Pancake Day is one of those food traditions that never loses its charm and it’s something that most people will have cooked at some point. Shrove Tuesday also marks the final day before the beginning of Lent in the Christian calendar with lent traditionally being a period of fasting and reflection leading up to Easter. Historically, households would use up rich ingredients like eggs, milk, butter and sugar before the fasting period began. In many countries pancakes became the perfect solution: simple, comforting, and made entirely from those indulgent ingredients that couldn’t go to waste. Over time, the tradition stuck. Today, Pancake Day is less about fasting and more about gathering in the kitchen, flipping pancakes (sometimes unsuccessfully), and enjoying one of the simplest pleasures in food. Carnival or Mardi Gras is on a similar theme to Pancake Day but less specific about the food. Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday continues the theme of consuming all those wonderfully indulgent fattening and sweet foods before the fasting period of Lent begins. The word Carnival comes from the Latin “Carnem Levare” which literally means to take away the meat/flesh again a reference to the removal of all the luxuries in the diet. So on the days leading up to Ash Wednesday and Lent there are formal and informal celebrations all around the world. Whether it’s the Carnival in Rio, Mardi Gras in New Orleans or Pancakes in Paris it’s all about the food, the music and the fun. It’s unusual for my birthday to coincide with with all these important dates due to the transient nature of Easter dates, but this year it all landed on 17th February. So as demanded by tradition we feasted at 3Ls restaurant and enjoyed a massive spread of tuna steak cooked on the stone, king prawns in garlic butter, pork tenderloin medallions, chicken Kiev, salted cod, stuffed potato skins, passion fruit cheesecake and chocolate mousse. No pancakes on offer sadly!! But as a homage to the “pancake” and with the possible observance of any type of fasting, we are hoping to enjoy some flambéed crepe suzette this evening at another of my favourite restaurants - O Tapassol. Day 8. And it’s goodbye from M&M We have completed our first week here on Madeira and it’s time to say goodbye to Martin & Maggie as they head back to the UK. We have enjoyed a great week together in their company and had a load of laughs together. We have had a mixed week of weather which is do typical of Madeira. But every day has delivered some hours of sunshine and some breeze but thankfully not a drop of rain. Martin & Maggie enjoy relaxing in the sun and they have enjoyed some relaxing hours in the gardens of The Residence where they have been staying. We’ve also had many varied evenings out for dinner and drinks with a few high points and some lower notes. The best meal of the week goes to PvP near the Porto Mare hotel which has always held its head high in the eating stakes. The low point might go to the Prince Albert pub not because of the food quality but more about the overall value. It seems overly expensive for what it offers. But that’s something I’ve noticed this visit. We have been coming here for 9 years and while prices have increased year in year the differences to last year are particularly noticeable in some places. Madeira has always been a great value quality destination. And these places where value has diminished are those catering primarily for tourists. I’ve noticed 30% increases in price since last year in the tourist friendly places. But not in the bars and restaurants focused on serving the locals. There is a small restaurant near Formosa Beach which has been serving locals and tourists alike for over 40 years. Mainly fish and seafood, but you can enjoy a grilled tuna steak for €11. The tourist oriented places are asking €20+. Our steak pie and mash this week at the Prince Albert was €21 with house wine coming in at €25 a bottle. In PvP a mixed grill of fish was €17.50 with wine at €16.50. That’s a big difference in price and tbh the Portuguese place was so much better. Today we had a last lunch with M&M at the lido in an Irish themed place and they want €21 for sausage and mash. Big bucks for a big banger!! And so to Thursday evening. We’re having a night in with the tennis from Qatar and some good home style snacks. Getting ready for the weekend!! Day 9 Fishy Feasts One of the best parts of travelling is getting to taste many different foods either alone or in combination. And in Madeira there are quite a lot of unique tastes and some fairly unusual combinations. Now foods that “grow together go together” is an old chef’s mantra but in most cases is so true. And in Madeira we get to sample quite a few unusual combinations. As an island, fish and seafood take a daily prominent position on just about every menu. I previously wrote about the bananas on Madeira so it’s not surprising to discover that bananas are combined with fish in a dish synonymous with Madeira. Scabbard Fish with banana. Usually roasted or grilled together or alone but served up happily on your plate. Some restaurants elevate it further with a sauce of passion fruit which is also abundant in the island. The scabbard is a deep sea fish local to Madeira and similar to a sea eel. It can be up to 1.5m long and is butchered into steaks across the spine or filleted into rectangular portions. It’s delicious but the added sweetness from the passion fruit is a matter of taste. I love passion fruit in desserts but I think it belongs there. Not on a savoury plate. Banana on the other hand fits well with the delicate flesh of the fish adding some sweetness and soft texture. I also like banana in curried dishes for the sweetness and aroma they impart. Now as many of you know Steve is mainly a cod and chips kind of guy with the occasional addition of parsley sauce. But he likes the scabbard served with the grilled banana or in one restaurant he gets it served with a curry sauce. A piquant combination. Sardines roasted or grilled are another regular offering in Madeira and for this it is generally served simply with buttered boiled potatoes with some lemon. For me this is a perfect light lunch. I enjoy sardines immensely and my favourite is when they are butterflied and grilled with olive oil and lemon juice. We enjoy many vacations in Greece where butterflied sardines seem to be more common. I’ve yet to find them butterflied here in Madeira. Then there is tuna steak. If you visit the market in Funchal, the lower floor is the fish hall. Go early and you will see all the local fish and the enormous tuna fish being prepared for the restaurants and the domestic client. I have eaten two types of tuna here in Madeira. Tuna here is most commonly served grilled with a side of onion sauce and fried cubes of corn (Milho Frito). Another way to enjoy tuna is in a soft buttered bread roll with a generous portion of mustard spread on the tuna. An unusual combination but it does work. Fish stew is also popular here in Madeira (Caldeirada) which is tomato based multi fish dish made with the addition of onions, garlic and potatoes. Slow cooked with the flavours of bay leaves and parsley it can be rich and indulgent. Again it’s a warm homely dish served very simply with bread and wine. And for the more specialised palates are the Lapas (grilled limpets). I’ve tried them once but they are not my thing. Simply grilled and served hot with lemon juice and garlic butter. Try them and see. So you see, there is something for everyone in the fish department here in Madeira. And all super tasty. They eat meat too but that’s for after! Day 10. On the Beach I grew up in the 1960s in Broughty Ferry which is located on the estuary of the River Tay as it joins the North Sea on the east coast of Scotland and we had a long shingle and sand beach there which ran the length of the town. Coastal Scotland wasn’t famous for beaches or beach life but when the occasional warm day did happen, we did spend some limited time on or by the beach. Later when I was in my 20s I became was very keen on the beaches in the Mediterranean. I had many holidays in Spain and Greek Islands and a significant amount of time during these trips was spent relaxing on the beach. This was probably a direct result of if partying late into the night and needing to recover in the horizontal position during daytime hours. But also at that time my skin seemed different and appeared to be more resilient to the sun in those days. As I spent more time in the sunshine in the 1990s when I lived in France, I became much more aware of potential sun damage that can be done. And the beach slowly became less important to me on holidays. Nowadays I very rarely even walk on a beach let alone sunbathe on one. I do however enjoy being by a beach sitting in semi shade, preferably in a beachside bar or bistro. And I can happily sit there for hours just watching people and the waves. Yesterday, we sat at the eastern end of Formosa Beach for most of the afternoon enjoying some wine and veggie sushi and today it’s a repeat performance at Formosa. I am writing these thoughts today doing something I truly enjoy. It’s sunny and about 20c with a light breeze and I am at the western end of Formosa Beach in Madeira. Our apartment looks down over this particular beach and I like it here. I brought Martin & Maggie here last week for lunch and I was extolling the virtues of the location and the views. Maggie who just adores soaking in the sun was less impressed. She spends quite a bit of time in Antigua and I think beaches and beach life there are very different to those here in Madeira. The geography of Madeira doesn’t lend itself to miles of sandy family friendly beaches. Where there is sand, it’s black volcanic sand with lots of rocks of all sizes spread liberally around. Formosa is a big beach space. Many other beaches are much smaller with little or no sand. Two exceptions are Machico and Calheta where golden sand was imported from the Sahara Desert in North Africa to create a more “traditional” beach for families. (Not without a certain amount of controversy). So the beaches and the general hilly terrain shape the visitor profile in Madeira. It attracts very few beach bums and nowadays there is a mix of walkers and older types happy to enjoy the land aspects of the island. There are also some areas where surfing is popular mainly on the north coast of the island. So for beach lovers the Canary Islands are probably a better bet for a winter beach holiday. But there is a hidden gem, a part of the Madeira archipelago which has a beautiful long sandy beach and is a mere two hours by boat from Funchal or twenty minutes by plane. It’s Porto Santo. I’ve never been but it might make an interesting place to spend a week or so. The Porto Santo Beach is 9 km long and is unbroken golden sand. The sea at the beach is generally calm and the waters are a crystalline blue. Porto Santo beach is now one of the top of beaches to visit in Europe. In 2022 it was voted the best beach in Europe. So wherever you want to be, there is a beach just for you. Sunning, surfing or just people watching. It’s all there!! See you soon - On The Beach! Day 11. Bolting around ….. It’s another beautiful day here in Madeira with some very faint and high cloud and very warm sunshine. It’s Sunday and we’re gonna take it easy most of the day; which basically has no meaning, because we do that most days!! Over the years we have driven all over the Madeira through one of the many tunnels from north to south and east to west and we have also enjoyed driving over the top of the mountains where dairy cattle and other animals roam free. We generally rent a car while we are here, but increasingly we use it less and less, as we don’t go very far. And where we do go, we tend to walk (downhill) and then perhaps take a taxi back. We try to walk 5km every day. The rental car has become a shopping trolley pretty much just used for restocking the fridge with holiday essentials. Some years ago getting a taxi in Madeira to get around, required looking for a taxi rank and waiting around until some old yellow town taxi showed up. A lot of these yellow taxis are very, very old. We got one at a rank downtown once and it was an old Mercedes of 1960s style driven by a vintage driver possibly from 1940s. I would generously describe the driver as “post war” and career driven. The car had covered some 400k kilometres which is pretty good going on such a small island. The driver looked like he needed a full service as did the car, which clinked and crashed all the way back to our accommodation. Even though it was metered it didn’t feel good value and was not at all comfortable. About five years ago, the online ride app Bolt started here Madeira and it works tremendously well. Just like Uber does in many UK locations, the Bolt network is incredibly efficient here in Funchal. Because Madeira is so hilly, we plan our days to be walking down the hills to our eventual destination, usually by the sea and then some wines later, we summon a Bolt to take us back to our hotel or apartment. The cars are generally very new, often electric and the drivers are younger, from the 21st century and more switched on. You can choose the type of car you get when you order the ride, with choices from compact through comfort to XL. (Very similar to buying underpants in fact). Then your chosen ride appears within a few minutes and you can get pretty much 2 to 3 miles in any direction for about £4.50. Amazing value and very easy to use. The other upside is everything is paid online and you have a record of your trips and who drove you. On our first night here this trip, we met Martin & Maggie at Leeno’s and Steve managed to drop his phone in the Bolt on the way there. A quick call to the driver and the phone was delivered back to him and crisis averted. Try that in a black or yellow cab. I like interviewing our drivers to find out where they are from and whatever else they might do for work. The younger guys are a mix of full time drivers and students while the few older guys are generally full time drivers. There is a mix of nationalities also evident with a 50/50 split between Madeira and Venezuela. Occasionally another nationality but that is rare. Now, in Oakham where we technically live, there is a main traditional taxi company operating and we know most of the drivers, as they have seen us home frequently over the last seven years. There are some we don’t know but they seem to know us! I wonder why. Well, a similar pattern is developing here in Madeira with repeat rides with the same driver and for some reason they remember us. This trip we have had five repeats so far. We feel almost local. And well looked after!! Roll on another ride with our Bolt buddies this week!! Day 12 Life is a Mixed Salad A salad is in principle a concoction, which bring together a medley of food Ingredients and with a little bit of saucy inspiration, turn these basic ingredients into a meal or a side dish. Every country and era has a unique approach to salad. In Scotland during my formative years, a salad was a carefully arranged selection of two lettuce leaves, some sliced cucumber, quartered or sliced tomatoes, maybe one spring onion and the main ingredient of the salad. The main ingredient could be ham, cheese, corned beef slices or maybe chicken or sometimes even nothing. Nothing too adventurous in the Scottish culinary way. Sometime if you were lucky there might be a hard boiled egg. To glue it all together was the ubiquitous bottle of salad cream. No one really knew what was in salad cream but it had “salad” on the label and with a salad it remained. Mayonnaise and French Dressing hadn’t reached Scotland at that time. But we had salad Scottish Style. Then someone discovered coleslaw salad and it was everywhere in all its variations. We had creamy, light, chunky, deli and with or without added cheese. Coleslaw was everywhere. Slopped on the side of many plates as a “heathy” accompaniment. As we travelled more extensively, our exposure to salads became more noticeable and more complicated. We saw the prawn salad or prawn cocktail rise to fame in the 60s & 70s served with pink Marie Rose sauce and sometimes with a shelled prawn hanging off the dish. Then we were introduced to the Waldorf Salad in the 1980s, which was presented as a sophisticated lunch dish originating in the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York and incorporating walnuts. apple and celery. I figured this was the celery farmers trying to make celery popular. They are probably still trying. One of my first trips to France was in the mid 1980s and we ordered some salad expecting a mixture of vegetables etc, but in France “salade” is another name for lettuce. There are two names for lettuce, one is “salade” and the other is “laitue”. If you want a mixed salad in France, then you must ask for a “salade compose”. This confusion in France exist into this day with many foreign tourists gazing disappointedly at a plate of green leaves. In Germany, I was introduced to a beautiful warm potato salad dressed in oil and vinegar. I think it was an Austrian recipe . I really enjoyed this. It was tart but sweet and super lovely. (Thank you Christiane) Then in Italy there are so many combinations of tomato, olives, onions, sweet peppers and cheeses served with herbs and natural juices and oils which made every salad the delight. The same exists in Greece where they combine nuts, oranges, local cheeses, and vegetables to create the most wonderful fragrant and tasty dishes. One of my favourite tastes in Greece is the combination of feta cheese, figs and citrus served over local leaves. In America, of course they have the Caesar salad which I think they claimed was invented in California somewhere in the 70s. I think it was designed for “ladies who lunch” and others who lunch, to eat what they believe was healthy to maintain their pristine figures. A well made Caesar salad can be very enjoyable but so many are just diabolical. One of the salads in Greece I enjoyed the most was a beetroot and yoghurt salad with walnuts and olives set on some fresh leaves. Very fresh and very tasty. At Christmas time last year as a starter, I brought a salad idea back from South America, which was a combination of orange segments, strawberries, toasted almonds, and blue cheese accompanied by crispy beetroot shards and beetroot leaves. The dressing was orange juice and olive oil with salt and pepper. It was so fresh. Then more recently there have been a spate of warm salads from celebrity chefs bringing a whole new dimension to the concept of salad. We have warm winter vegetables salad. Then we could have a warm mushroom salad with sesame dressing. We also see warm kale and quinoa salad. And warm roasted cauliflower salad. And of course the pub favourite the “warm chicken and bacon” salad. Now I may be wrong but most of these just sound like hot side dishes that have been allowed to cool a bit. Or am I just being playful? Whatever you like, just enjoy. I had grilled sardines and a very basic Portuguese side salad for lunch today. The star was the sardines but the salad was a strong runner up!! Enjoy!! Day 13 Dining Extravaganza One of my recent discoveries about taking longer holidays is that eating out continuously loses a little bit of sparkle. At home we might eat out twice a week, which seems a reasonable balance, but on holiday there is a constant draw to go out and eat, far too often and often far too much. It becomes an extravaganza of taste and indulgence. Well there comes a limit. And we are there. We have reached the point where we need to rest our bellies. To reduce maybe even fast. To slow our eating to zero. To recharge. All very possible and we will now have a 48 hour minimalist menu time. One meal tonight shared and that’s adequate. The other thing about being on holiday is if you don’t pay attention, it can all become extremely tiring. Almost exhausting. Doing very little absorbs enormous energy. So today has been a day of recovery. We slept late, ate a small early evening dinner, then took in a movie in our apartment. Very relaxing. Ready for anything tomorrow! Day 14. Whether you can Weather the Weather!! Madeira is an island full of contrasting landscapes and environments and even after multiple previous visits here, I still discover much about the nature and climate of the island on every visit. One thing that confuses new visitors is the changeable nature of the climate. Many online groups are constantly discussing what clothing to bring or wear during visits, but the whole island is a series of mini microclimates changing constantly. So there is no correct answer. Even within the city of Funchal the climate can vary with altitude and whatever direction you might be facing, mainly due the natural amphitheatre geography which makes up Funchal Bay. Today for example, the morning has been a little cloudy with a couple of showers in Funchal. So we have driven along the coast where it’s bright, warm but breezy. We’re in Ponta do Sol this afternoon and it’s 2c warmer than funchal 16km to the east. However 16km to the north of us on the coast in Porto Moniz it’s 2c cooler than downtown Funchal. That all changes so we headed back to Formosa Beach where it’s bright and then a shower starts and it cools again. It’s just the way of Madeira and it doesn’t keep people indoors. We were back on our balcony at 4pm sitting in glorious sunshine once again! For those who want uninterrupted sunshine through the day perhaps Madeira might not be best for you. Last year during a cloudy day by the coast, we actually drove up through and above the clouds and enjoyed a drink in full sunshine, watching the clouds tumble down the mountainside. A very special watch! There are two basic weather seasons. Winter from November to the end of March is generally wetter and cooler with temperatures ranging from 17-22c. Then April to October when it’s drier and warmer; 20-27c. Overall the temperature average is 20c all year. Just very pleasant. So to warm up this evening we had a nice curry. Super tasty and possibly the best peshwari naan in Europe. Day 15. The Speed of Taste The speed of eating and enjoying is something which I think about quite a lot. When I am asked what type of meal I enjoy I tend to opt for the “long slow lazy lunch” starting about 2pm preferably somewhere in the Mediterranean. The Greeks, the Spanish and the Italians do it ever so well. The French also do lunch very well, but in my eyes they start too early for me. Growing up we did not have relaxed lazy meals. Most meals were fraught with danger due to my mother’s inconsistency in the kitchen department. Most things were just about edible. Some things were good. Few offerings were excellent. The speed of consumption of a meal back then directly corresponded to its edibility. The more edible the faster you consumed hoping for seconds to keep you going till the next pot luck production. The absolute culinary disasters were picked through carefully and slowly for health reasons. School dinners were equally fraught as most of us kids seemed to come from food deprived homes and it was a panic to get as much as possible consumed on the lunch break available. As I got a little older and wiser I started to be more aware of food and eating quality. I learned the basics of cooking and took control of my culinary destiny. I tried new things. I had adventures in the kitchen. And while there were many long lazy Mediterranean lunches and dinners along the way, the majority of my meals seemed to be consumed in a hurry. Along this journey, the term “fast food” developed and “food to go”. All of these new eating concepts contribute to the speed of choosing and consuming. Some years ago I was involved in a project packaging food items for McDonald’s. In a McDonald’s food project it’s not just the taste of the item or the ingredients under investigation; it’s the speed at which it can be used, prepared, cooked and eaten. All of the speed matters so much in the fast food industry. During this project someone informed me that me that McDonald’s have worked out the average time from ordering a Big Mac to finishing it is 13 minutes. This sort of information allows them to plan their seating and customer flows in their restaurants. Sort of a bit crazy in a way. But that’s the fast food industry. During my business travels my meals were often on the go, in the air, during a meeting or the post meeting evening meal while on a conference call about something ridiculous. None of these were good for digestion. I tasted very little but consumed a lot. When I did have more time at home or with friends, I noticed I was usually first to clear my plate. I thought it was normal. But it was the result of 50 plus years of rushing. Rushing everything and everywhere. So over the last 15 years or so I have made efforts to slow things down. I now have more time so I eat slower. I take time. I taste more. I enjoy! Bon Appetit Day 16 Cruise Candour Cruise ships have a particular effect on the ports they call at. I see the effects both as a cruiser visiting a port and as a resident visitor in many of these ports. The impact can be significant and is part of the money making effects of the cruise industry around the world. While cruise arrivals at most ports are undoubtedly very good for boosting local business in the hospitality or souvenir sectors, they have another effect which is sometimes less positive. And this depends a lot on the location and the capacity. When I started to have holidays in Mykonos in the early 1980s, the island was still marginally isolated with a short runway which restricted the type of flights coming and going to the island. The port facilities were all about the old Blue Star ferries which jog between the islands that make up Greece and the mainland. Getting to Mykonos was a task which made it very worthwhile when you got there. That was part of the charm of Mykonos during the early 80s. Through the years, the airport runway was extended and new terminal buildings built. This increased the resident visitor numbers, which in turn led to development of many more sophisticated hotels and resorts as the popularity of Mykonos continued to increase. Then, the cruise port facilities were developed at Tourlos, separate from the town ferry port closer in the old harbour. These new cruise terminal facilities were 2km north of the town and increased the day visitor capacity to the island which was welcomed by many. During my visit in 2010, I would look down from my hotel to Mykonos town to see if a cruise ship was in port before descending. I would always avoid the town when a ship arrived, as the narrow streets were simply overrun with bewildered cruisers and enjoyment became difficult and unsurprisingly prices seemed to increase. Our last visit to Mykonos was 2015. At that point there were often two cruise ships a day visiting. It was simply too busy for me. It was recently reported that over 950 cruise ships called at Mykonos during the 2025 season. Further expansion is planned for the Tourlos cruise port and port fees of €20 per passenger are planned. This port fee is one of the highest charges in the Mediterranean and as such generates tens of millions of euros for the island. And that’s before the visitors spend a penny. It was also previously reported in 2023 that the basic sewage infrastructure of Mykonos town was being overwhelmed by the influx of day visitors. (literally spending a penny!) I’ve not been back to Mykonos since 2015 and to be honest I will not be going back. It’s become simply too busy for me. We have found a new small island to enjoy which has one propellor plane a day bringing visitors from Athens and some ferries from Piraeus and Kos. It’s calm and beautiful. It’s Ast……. It’s a secret!! Here in Madeira, the cruise terminal is also a busy place with up to three cruise ships regularly docked here. In the winter months there are many ships which do a Canary Island & Madeira weekly circuit and there are also many transatlantic ships that call at Madeira on the way to and from the Europe, the Caribbean and South America. My very first visit to Madeira was on a cruise ship in 1998 - on the Thompson Topaz (my cruise from Hell). Funchal and Madeira are bigger than most Greek islands and are generally better equipped to absorb these day visitors. Certainly better than Mykonos is and the cruise visitors are clearly good for local Madeiran businesses. Every new year, the bay and port are at full capacity for the annual New Year’s Fireworks which is a world renowned event. Normally 4 ships will be at the port with up to 10 others anchored in the bay ferrying passengers to land by tender for their day visits. The city is buzzing on New Year’s Eve. Yesterday the Queen Victoria was in town on her way with 2000 passengers to the Caribbean. She departed at 5pm yesterday. Today the overnighting Marella Explorer 2 departed Funchal at 5am this morning with another 2000 cruisers en route to Fuerteventura. Which today rather unusually, leaves the city “cruise ship free”. The city will be quiet (possibly). So we headed down town by courtesy of Nuno our local bolt driver. No car or parking to worry about. Just for a few early afternoon drinks, a wander round and a late, tasty & slow Mediterranean lunch!! (I had ravioli of smoked ham and fresh figs in a sweet cherry tomato sauce). Once more Bon Appetit! Day 17. Gently Gentry As most of you know my friends are very important to me and over the years many have had a big impression on me. In these recent travel ramblings I am very regularly and happily supported by their comments and suggestions and I read and appreciate every word. These wonderful friends of mine are based all over the world and pretty much represent every aspect of society so I recently started to think perhaps that they should feature in some of my disconnected musings. Many years ago I floated a concept of a chat show without guests to Channel4. A show where the host or hosts would just talk “about” people. No presence required; just agreement that they could be talked about, for a fee, of course. Nobody at C4 wanted this idea. Too risky. But where to start with the surprise guest feature. I have always had or tried to have, a fairly democratic approach and allow everyone to represent themselves equally. So to kick off my “MaxPal” feature of friends, I have selected one of my most democratically opinionated buddies. He literally bounced unannounced into my life some 20+ years back, by turning up in Tuxford in plus fours after a clearly energetic and enjoyable shooting weekend. I knew of his name but I did not know the man. Anyway, he described in graphic detail how his weekend had evolved and it was frank and enlightening. Nothing was unclear. To be honest I felt overwhelmed on that first meeting, but he made an indelible impression on me as he occasionally does on most people. He is of course the individual, the irreplaceable, maybe unenviable, but very straightforward, Paul. In the years to follow I learned much about his political thinking and his various tolerances to the ethnicities and make up of the modern world. Paul has very clear views in this department and is very consistent. This is a trait missing in the more slippery political populist types in today’s political arena who are generally all over the place with their views. Paul is clear. No ambiguity. In the enduring years Paul has gently persuaded many of our mutual acquaintances about his views on a multitude of topics and it’s fair to say his views can be robust and unforgettable. Some of you will have guessed already who I am talking about, but I suppose it was the “Big Dave & The Gay Boys” story that cemented Paul’s place in my contact list. Paul is unashamedly part of many stories in my circle of friends whether we like it or not, and he is a regular commentator on my musings. Thank you Mr Gentry for your always welcome support. Keep me fully informed!! PS; Steve sends hugs!! Day 18 Refections on Ageing. When you are young and life inexperienced, you don’t think much about how things might become for you as you get more mature. In many ways it’s quite unimaginable to become old when you are young. Youth is about everything being easy and generally fun. However taking responsibility for our life as we get older is important. I certainly took for granted that my health and agility during my youth and middle years would last pretty much forever, and I sometimes feel a little shortchanged by the fact I now realise that this is an impossibility. You must enjoy your life & body while your body is fully able. Do not waste time. For all your work and life experience there are few obvious bonuses as a reward for your maturity. In the UK, you get to know it’s the beginning of the long slow road “to the end” at the age of 60. On your 60th birthday you become entitled to free prescription medicines. It also seems at that point that some of the normal aging aches and pains are no longer to be diagnosed and fixed. Instead it’s easier all round for more and more drugs to be prescribed by the health care services. By the time you get to 70, the drugs cabinet (or drawer) looks like a department of Superdrug. Also, somewhere between 60 & 68 depending when you were born, you are awarded a state pension for the rest of your life. The actual value of this generosity depends on how long you have been paying into the state system during your working life. (Perversely if you have never worked and lived on benefits all your adult life, you get the maximum pension.) Anyhow, the maximum you can get is about £12k from the state, which in today’s money is about half what government determines is the minimum national living wage. So, don’t plan to go mad on this very limited generosity!! As a bonus though, you also become eligible for a bus pass on the same day you qualify for the state pension which is particularly useful if you live in an urban area. Aside from these two important benefits, there can be assorted discounts to cinemas and theatres and other entertainment venues for the oldies. Then today I had an email from my energy company. It seems they take a special interest in their older customers and I have been enrolled in their Priority Services Register designed to assist with priority help if required during power outages etc. I can even nominate someone to assist me if I am confused. The joy of ageing! I am sure I will discover more “perks” to being older as the years pass by. In the meantime I will keep calm and carry on (carefully) with a slightly slower but still present “spring in my step”. Day 19. I’ve Got Wind It’s been a few breezy days here in Madeira which has brought down the daytime temperatures to below average and changed our dynamics. There are two significant effects of this wind locally. One is the lack of completely indoor venues to avoid the draft and more importantly the impact on arriving flights. Madeira has long had a reputation for challenging aircraft landings, and even though the runway has been extended, the topography and location of the airport and runway means it has regular crosswind issues. In the last week there have been a number of instances where flights have been diverted and today is again one of these. It is particularly gusty today all over the island, not just down at the airport, and easyJet and Jet2 have cancelled most of their services to the island. There is a storm in the offing! Ryanair are somewhat more adventurous and keep flying and have flights arriving today from Lisbon, Porto, London and Shannon. Other morning flights today from mainland Europe got halfway here and either returned to the departure airport or diverted to Spain or mainland Portugal. The British Airways daily flight from Gatwick diverted to Faro earlier today and has subsequently returned to the Gatwick base. All of this can be a logistical nightmare, but the islanders here are used to the weather disruption and cope admirably. Tourists caught up in the disruption are much less tolerant and get their holiday knickers well twisted during these times. Chillax my holiday friends. It will all work out fine. It’s weather!! However, on a practical note and while it’s already gusty, it seems a more significant storm might be approaching Madeira with weather warnings now in place from 6pm. There are three flights on the radar still trying to get here from Finland, Poland and Lithuania. After that nothing more today. Some other advice about “wind” which was given to me by my wise old buddy Siegfried, many years ago. He told me when I reach 60 to observe three important rules;https://jauntlet.com//97196https://jauntlet.com//97196Fri, 13 Feb 2026 02:30:00 +0000https://jauntlet.com//97195https://jauntlet.com//97195Thu, 12 Feb 2026 00:20:00 +0000