7th of July

I am a light sleeper, any noise will wake me up, no matter how small it is. So at 7.30 when I heard my ex just peeking into Mishal’s bedroom I was up. He is up at 5, wondering around the house, having coffee outside,just waiting for us to come down. He likes having us around, like some kind of background noise, makes him feel home I guess. Silence can be so lonely for those who don’t like to be alone with their thoughts.

After breakfast we had Vera around, nice woman who speaks 7 languages! I wish I could do that. She is the one who deals with the bookings, so they went over the number of the days the house being rented. My ex husband bought this villa as an investment and for also getting the golden visa. Him coming from the Middle East it’s a wise decision with the way things are going there right now.

Next on was Louisa, we discussed what to plant in the garden. So far they did a good job, though I find the local grass a bit weird, apparently can stand the heat and doesn’t require much water. The leaves are very hard and sharp, makes a funny crunchy sound when you walk on it.
Louisa comes from the Blandy family, who owns the Estate. It consists of the Palheiro Garden, (listed among the 250 most beautiful gardens in the world), Palheiro Golf, Palheiro Village and the Florialis orchid nurseries.

The weather seemed to have changed. Got much clearer and warmer. We found out that if the waves are going from the east towards west, it will be clear and quiet. So when I look out the window that’s the first thing I check. I need to know more and more about the island.
Just like when you meet someone, you find him interesting, not sure why, but there is chemistry between you and him. Decide to spend more and more time with him, want to know everything, trying to justify the feelings you had for him from the beginning, just didn’t even want to admit it to yourself. This is how I feel about Madeira. The first time I stepped on this Island, the first time I took a breath on it, I was in love, instant, unconditional love. Kept coming back, still hoping to find something that will make fall out of love, but so far nothing could change my feelings for her.

So with all this love in my heart went down to Funchal to run some errands, meeting the lawyer, bank,shopping. Did manage to buy some hiking shoes for Mishal and myself. Getting ready for our levada walks. Must decide which ones to take. 60 to choose from.
Visited Ritz for a capuccino . They were busy this time, a cruise ship arrived in the morning, saw it from “above” as it slowly found its way into the port. The villa is situated on a hilltop,approximately 500 m above sea level, so the city and the port is at our feet. Didn’t I mentioned this before?

Late afternoon was spent by the pool. Luckily we literally just have to cross the street to get to the pool, lovely warm water, late afternoon sun, gorgeous views, what more could you ask for?
Tried a bit of “street” tennis with Mishal, was fun till the ball landed and got stuck among some flowers high above us.

It was past 9 by the time we left the house again. Still pretty warm. Went down to the old city. Love walking around,never ceases to amaze me, the old buildings, the trees ( did find a jacaranda tree that was still flowering), the people. They seem to be happy, no, the right word is content. Even though the average monthly income in Madeira is about 700€, they seem to be satisfied with their lives. We had one particular taxi driver, and old guy , who came to pick us up in April from the hotel. It happened to be a cloudy day with a slight drizzle. He kept saying ” I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry” till we reached the Ritz. He was apologizing for the weather not being perfect, like it was his fault. So nice!
We aim for at least 10000 steps, an app. is counting for us. We gave up around 7000. Tried to eat at the Porto Bay Hotel, but the receptionist told us that only children above 16 can enter the premises( by that age they are not children, mind you) ,so we opted for the Almirante, another favourite of ours.
They know us by know, service is nice. This is where I first time tasted their other local speciality, the golden espada. This is a fish dish served in passion fruit sauce with a banana on top. As a side dish you can have fried polenta cubes and sweet potato. For appetizer you should try the grilled limpets, delicious eaten just with a squeeze of lemon.
Mish just had his usual Brisa apple juice, he is hooked on it, don’t know what they’ve put in it.
His Dad had Quinta do Carmo, a full bodied red wine we tried back in October and stick with it whenever we can.

Beautiful weather, delicious food, just wish we talked a bit more. Little said when everyone is on their respective iPhone/iPad. This is the evil of the 21st century? Or blessing in disguise? This way we can avoid issues that are unpleasant, pretend to be a normal, happy family. We are in a way, while we both have our private lives which we don’t ask about. Weird? Maybe. But that is the only way we can function right now, giving our son the family he craves so much.