Some facts about Madeira History

The island of Madeira was discovered by Tristão Vaz Teixeira, Bartolomeu Perestrelo and João Gonçalves Zarco,

two Portuguese explorers, in 1419, which dubbed the island ‘Madeira’ (“wood” in English) due to the abundance

of this raw material.

Noticing the potential of the islands, as well as its strategic importance, the colonization of the islands began in

1425.

At the beginning of its settlement, some agricultural crops, such as cane sugar, were introduced, which quickly

afforded the Funchal metropolis frank economic prosperity. This meant that, in the second half of the fifteenth

century, the city of Funchal became a mandatory port of call for European trade routes.

The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were marked by the emergence of a new culture that would boost

the Madeira economy again: wine.

Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Madeira flourished for the birth of the tourism sector,

quickly becoming a mandatory reference for the European aristocracy that has set temporary residence here,

attracted by the natural therapeutic qualities of the island.

In 1976, Madeira became an Autonomous Region of Portugal, thus having the power to legislate.

Please check these links for more information:

http://www.visitmadeira.pt/Admin/Public/DWSDownload.aspx?File=Files%2fFiles%2fVisitMadeira%2fMaterial

_Promocional%2fNovo-Material-2018-19%2fItinerarios%2fBROCHURA_ITINERARIOS_MADEIRA_EN.pdf

http://www.visitmadeira.pt/Admin/Public/DWSDownload.aspx?File=Files%2fFiles%2fVisitMadeira%2fMaterial

_Promocional%2fInstitucional%2fBrochura_Institucional_IN.pdf

Some facts about Madeira Weather

Air temperature - The average temperature on the island of Madeira is higher on the south coast of the island

than on the north coast. The average annual temperature in Funchal is 18.8ºC and in Santana 15.2ºC.

Throughout the year, the variation is small, being that in August it reaches 22.2ºC and in winter 15.9ºC.

Sea water temperature - Throughout the year, the temperature varies between 17ºC (March) and 22ºC (August).

The temperature rarely rises from 25 ° C and drops below 15 ° C.

Precipitation - Precipitation values range from 553 mm in the funchal to 3084 in Pico do Arieiro (the second

highest peak on the island). On the north coast, the values are usually higher than those on the south coast. The

rainiest months are October to March.

Cloudiness - The months where there is greater cloudiness are between October and March.

Some facts about gastronomy

Because of the geographic situation of Madeira in the Atlantic Ocean, the island has an abundance of fish of

various kinds. The species that are consumed the most are espada (black scabbardfish), blue fin tuna, bigeye

tuna, spearfish and many others are found in the local dishes as they are found up and down the coast of

Madeira. Espada is often served with banana. Bacalhau is also popular, as it is in Portugal.

There are many meat dishes on Madeira, one of the most popular being espetada. Espetada is traditionally

made of large chunks of beef rubbed in garlic, salt and bay leaf and marinated for 4 to 6 hours in Madeira wine,

red wine vinegar and olive oil then skewered onto a bay laurel stick and left to grill over smouldering wood

chips. It is usually accompanied with the local bread called bolo do caco. Other popular dishes in Madeira include

açorda, feijoada, carne de vinha d'alhos.

Traditional pastries in Madeira usually contain local ingredients, one of the most common being mel de cana,

literally "sugarcane honey". The traditional cake of Madeira is called Bolo de Mel, which translates as

(Sugarcane) "Honey Cake" and according to custom, is never cut with a knife, but broken into pieces by hand. It

is a rich and heavy cake. The cake commonly well known as "Madeira cake" in England also finds its naming

roots in the Island of Madeira.

Into the Nature in Madeira

Levadas are small irrigation canals that can be found on Madeira Island and on the island of La Palma, in the

Canary Islands. This term is also applied to canals, usually smaller ones that direct the water to watermills.

On Madeira Island, the use of levadas resulted from the need to bring large amounts of water from the north-

facing springs where it is abundant, to the south side of the island.

The levadas began to be built in the sixteenth century and the most recent ones date back to the 1940s,

supplying water to hydroelectric power plants and also used for irrigation purposes. Their total extension is

approximately 3.000 km and you can stroll through them on foot; allowing you to reach the heart of the island

where you will encounter breathtaking landscapes. From 0 to 1,862 meters the excitement is guaranteed!

The Madeira “Levadas" are among a number of protected areas including, most importantly, the Madeira

Natural Park and the Funchal Ecological Park.

http://walkmeguide.com/en/