Today was my last day in Madeira. Nicola had a really early flight, so we were up at 530am. so she could get her taxi to the airport. It was really sad to see her go, but we would be seeing each other a few days later in England.

Once Nicola had gone, I went back to bed for a couple of hours. At breakfast, I got talking to our host, Stefani, and she suggested a trip to Cámara de Lobos.

So after breakfast, I checked out of the room, leaving my suitcase at reception. I then walked down the hill into Funchal.

I hopped on a bus going to Cámara de Lobos, and on the way, we went past the church in Santo Antonio.

I got off the bus just outside the town so I could walk in via the bay.

It was a really nice walk, and I obviously made a furry friend along the way.

The area is used as an open-air boatyard, and the traditional fishing boats, Xavelhas, are repaired and painted here. The boats are morred during the day as most of the fishermen are fishing for the scabbard fish. These eel like fish only come to the surface at night, during the day they stay at depths of around 1500m.

The town is very pretty, with lots of little bars, shops and restaurants. The terraces are mainly used for banana plantations.

Amongst the bars is a little church, the Fisherman’s Chapel, Nossa Senhora da Conceição Chapel. This is where villagers give thanks for the safe return of the fishermen after a long night at sea.

I wandered around the bay. Cámara de Lobos was the first settlement on Madeira, between 1420 and 1424.

The name Lobos, meaning wolves, refers to the monk seals that used to live here and bask on the beach.

I carried on walking around the town. I was intending to go down to the beach, but they were doing some work on the promenade, and the path was blocked.

So , instead, I walked up the hill to Coroa do Ilheu. This sculpture was placed at the top of the hill in 2019 to commemorate 600 years since the discovery of the island.

The views from the hill were pretty impressive.

After a bit of time at the top, I walked back down to the bay, passing the Winston Churchill statue. Winston Churchill was invited to Madeira to the reopening of Reids Palace Hotel in 1950, after WWII. He and his wife took a trip to Cámara de Lobos, and he fell in love with the place. He found his favourite spot and started to paint. He was supposed to stay longer in Madeira but had to return after 12 days due to a general election being called.

After all that walking around, it was time for a little refreshment, so I ordered my last Poncha. This one was very lemony.

As I had quite a bit of time before I had to be back at the hotel, I decided to walk back to Funchal along the Cámara de Lobos promenade. This is 2.2km long and then connects with the Lido promenade in Funchal.

Part of the promenade is built on pillars to lessen its impact on the environment. I passed lots of lovely beaches on the way.

At one point, I had to walk through a small tunnel, the Doca do Cavacas tunnel, at Ponta da Cruz.

Eventually, I came to Funchal and the Lido Gardens.

From the park, I walked into the city past some of the lovely hotels and the marina.

I caught the bus back up to the hotel. I got changed and freshened up in the toilet before getting my taxi to the airport, Cristiano Ronaldo Airport.

Unfortunately my flight was delayed by over an hour so I had a beer and watched a couple of planes land.

I took a couple of photos as we took off as I was lucky enough to get a window seat.

I arrived home in the early hours of the morning and went straight to bed.