Once upon a time on Madeira Island - Funchal

Hello everyone and welcome to my blog :-)

I'm back with more postcards from Madeira.
Do you know who the best player in the world is? Here in our country and for the majority it is Cristiano. Whenever we talk about the island it is more than normal that Cristiano's name is associated, as in addition to being born and raised, his mother still lives here.
Now upon arrival at the airport it is possible to find a bust of the player, but we were unable to photograph it due to the crowd.
After renting the car we went down to Praça CR7 to see the imposing 3.4 meter statue and visit the museum (super hyper mega special request from the youngest).
We purchased our tickets in advance and took advantage of this first stop.

From there we continue to Praça do Município, which is surrounded by buildings such as the City Hall, the emblematic Church of São João Evangelista with its College, the Museum of Sacred Art, and a fountain dating from 1942, whose obelisk has the city's coat of arms and nationalist elements.
Here we can also find the City Gates. They date back to 1690 and mark the end of Funchal's defensive wall. They were relocated to their current location in 2004, as part of the city's 500th anniversary celebrations. These doors have significant historical relevance for the city and are a very important tourist attraction.
From here we head to our "little house" to rest.

The next morning, we left the car and went to buy fresh fruit!!! Madeira is vibrant, full of colors and flowers everywhere. We went to the Mercado dos Lavradores and the colors and smells of the fruit delighted me :-) We realized that it is very much aimed at tourists but don't miss it.
After buying some fresh fruit we went to Santa Catarina Park.
Here we find an immense lawn, a huge amount of trees and shrubs from various parts of the world. Furthermore, Santa Catarina Park has a small lagoon with an islet, designed to provide rest and nesting for the birds that live here.

Opened in 1966, this garden also includes statues in honor of Infante D. Henrique and Christopher Columbus, a playground for children and the Santa Catarina Chapel. However, the main point is the panoramic view, which goes from the bay of Funchal to Ponta do Garajau.
We then wandered through streets and alleys and passed several churches and chapels. This time we didn't waste so much exploring them as there are many of them but the itinerary is mapped out and we really have to stick to it to be able to enjoy everything we set out to do and discover.

However, we could not fail to mention some of those that caught our attention.
Right here at the foot of the park we have the Fuchal Cathedral, whose construction dates back to 1514.
As we walked, we also passed the Church of Santa Maria Maior (Socorro), which from what we could determine is from the 18th century.
If we had taken this route of around 5 km by car, we would certainly not have noticed these architectural beauties. I continue to say that the more we can walk, the more we will be able to discover and observe.
I'll be back tomorrow with more new places.

I hope you enjoyed.
See you around.
Wishing you much peace and health

Those who pass by us do not go alone. They leave a bit of themselves, taking a piece of us."
Author: Antoine de Saint-Exupery, The Little Prince.

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Text & Photography by @Onyfest

With love @onyfest