Funchal

Flight took off precisely at 9:25 from Edinburgh to Funchal. Very smooth flight over and of course we had the weird approach to the airport - the mountains, the sharp right turn over the sea, short runway land then the breaks hard on and then screaming to a stop.

I was row 15 and I was last on the bus which meant first out and I was first in thequeue for border contr ol. I didn’t even have the passport out . I was out in no time and then queued for the airport bus into Funchal .

The bus wasn’t too busy but there was an incident when this nasty POS confronted the driver over the price of the ticket (which has risen) and the driver said he didn’t speak English and the guy said well you will understand this and yelled F*ck Off! About six of us (including me) shouted back at him telling him how rude, ignorant and disrespectful he was . I said if he had been in Glasgow the. The bus driver would have shoved him off. What an ass.

Got off the bus and walked 5 mins to my apartment. What a lovely studio it was. On the top floor with a huge veranda. I’m here for three nights then I move to a hotel, also in the old town.

The owner of the studio , Carlos, messaged me and asked if I wanted to meet him
And his friend later for a ‘poncha’, to discuss places to go.

First though, I unpacked and then got ready to have a walk and find my bearings. Walked down by the waterside, there were theee big cruise ships in the harbour! Walked to a park , and then checked somewhere for food. Found a place near my apartment with a good review and had grilled prawns in garlic, chips, vegetables and the amazing garlic bread from the island. It was absolutely delicious.

Back to the apartment for a quick cuppa then round the corner to meet Carlos and Dhalia. What a fun time we had. Carlos has a great sense of humour. He offered to take me out on the back of his scooter. They gave me great tips of where to go. They also suggested I hire a car and Carlos said he would let me use his garage but I’m not going to hire a car, I’ve seen the switchbacks! I left them around 8:30 and they went home too.

Was shattered. FaceTime with S and Lucca. Then bed.