There is a cliff west of Funchal which, at 580 metres, is the second highest seacliff in the world. At Cabo Girao there is a walk extending over the edge of the cliff and a glass floor so that you can marvel at the incredible distance below you to the water. Almost as spectacular is the drive up to this lookout point in a large bus which just barely makes the turns in the switchbacks on the road. We saw our first vineyards here, terraced on the steep hillsides. The vines are just starting to bud out for spring.
Blandy's is the number one name in Madeira wine. Actually, it is the Madeira wine company, an amalgamation of smaller wine producers on the island with the bigger Blandy winery at a time when the consumption of Madeira wine was decreasing. At their "Lodge", one can take a tour, learning about the different grapes used, location on the island, fermentation and again style, history of wine - making, with museum, and finally a tasting of two different Madeira wines. It was a pleasant way to spend an hour on a lovely spring afternoon, but we were not so impressed that we needed to purchase some to bring home.
The bolo de caco is a traditional sweet potato bread done on a hot stone griddle almost like an English muffin. It is a very common bread, even being made on the street (complete with industrial size mixer in the booth). It is baked on one side and then flipped over pancake style. Every bakery and grocery store sells their own slightly different version and they are a lovely accompaniment to just about anything sweet or savoury.
And for dessert, one has to try the many different versions of the honey and cinnamon cake (bolo de mel de canel) usually with a very few dried fruit and nuts. This dense spicy cake is reminiscent of dark fruit cake, but features the cake rather than the fruit.
So that's the end of our two day hop-on-hop-off tour. Tomorrow we plan to try driving again.
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