After our wine tasting, we decided to explore the ‘old town’ or Zona Velha, as it’s known.

We started at the Mercado dos Lavradores. This art deco hall was originally designed in 1937, and its colours blend in with the traditional Maderian architecture.

We were amazed at the number of different types of passion fruit, and we tried a few different ones, including lemon and pineapple. And we bought some too!

We also tried and bought something known as delicious fruit, which tastes like a mixture of banana, pineapple and anona. It’s really tasty when ripe but can be toxic when it’s still green.

The street of Santa Maria is full of amazing street art where local artists have painted on most of the doors.

At the end of the street is the Chapel of Corpo Santo. This was built at the end of the 15th century and marked the original end of the old village. The Chapel is dedicated to Corpo Santo (Saint Pedro Gonclaves Telmo), the patron Saint of fishermen and sailors.

We walked past another church, Igreja de Santiago Menor. We wanted to go inside but it was shut. The church was originally built in 1530 but was destroyed by the earthquake in 1748 and then rebuilt in 1750.

At the end of the Zona Velha is the Fort of Saó Tiago. This was built in the early 17th century and was built to defend the port from pirate attacks.

We stopped here for a toasted tuna sandwich, which was very dry, and a poncha. The poncha is a traditional Maderian drink made from rum, honey or sugar and lemon or orange juice, very tasty.

On our walk back to the city centre, we could see the white chimney, which is part of the Savoy Residence I Insular Project. This chimney is apparently an iconic element of Funchal.

Along the waterfront are a number of different sculptures.

Obviously, we had to pose by the Madeira sign.

And then it was a walk down to see Christian Ronaldo!

We continued walking down the street to the casino. This is an amazing building built in the round and designed by Oscar Niemeyer.

Just round the corner from the casino is the statue of Sissi. This is a life-size bronze statue of the Austrian Empress Elizabeth of Bavaria, known as Sissi, who spent part of her life in Madeira. On 24 December 1893, precisely on her 56 birthday, the empress arrived at Funchal, Madeira, aboard the steamer Greif. British Navy ships in the bay of Funchal greeted her with an imperial salute and would continue doing so every morning for the full duration of her stay. After Sissi lost her son, it was believed he committed suicide, she decided to travel as much as possible. She was considered a free spirit who defied conventional court protocol.

After this, we went back to the city garden, where the friary which was once a hospital, is now government offices.

In the garden, we saw one of the infamous dragon trees. The sap from these trees is used as a dye, commonly known as dragon’s blood.

We also saw a ‘Sausage Tree’. The fruit from this tree is poisonous when raw but can be eaten if cooked. Apparently, it tastes quite earthy, like a potato. The tree can grow 6-12m tall, and the fruit can grow 30-60cm long and can weigh about 7kg.

There were some very strange birds in and around the park, kind of a mixture between a duck and a turkey. The babies were very cute, though.

In the garden is a statue of St Francis.

On the way home, we stopped off at Blandys Wine Lodge. The lodge is set in the surviving parts of a 17th-century Franciscan friary. Most of the friary was demolished when Portugal passed a law banning religious orders in 1834. The Blandy family has owned the premises since 1840, since which it has been used to make Madeira wine.

Madeira wine is fortified by adding brandy at the final stage of the fermentation process. It is also heated as it ages in the casks in a hothouse.

After all this walking, we headed home and decided to go somewhere local for dinner – Cantino do Pestico. There were some nice views on the way.

The restaurant was like a small cafe and had some interesting objects inside.

I decided to go for the scabbard fish again, although this time it was deep fried. Nicola had beef in gravy with chips.

We washed it all down with the local beer, which was really nice.

As we walked home, the sun was starting to set.

We finished the evening off with a glass of the Madeira wine we bought.