A visit to Madeira won't be complete without spending some time looking around the charming and bustling capital of the island - Funchal.
For plant lovers (and tourists in general), one of the first port of call is city's main market Mercado Dos Lavradores. It can come across as very touristy but it still is a living and breathing market used by the locals which in turn attracts tourists to have a look at.
And they do cater to tourists too of course, especially the charming plant stalls by the entrance that sell plants, seeds, and bulbs in various sizes including small ones convenient for taking back home as souvenirs (local customs permitting).
Fruits, vegetables, spices,and sea foods can also be bought there, as expected from a traditional market.
And of course more plants on the second level...
And to finish off our amble we had a stroll at the Jardim Municipal right in the middle of the old quarter and having exotic plant specimens that notably old too.
Our amble in Funchal are by no means finished. We still have at least two more 'gardens' in the city centre to check out before we wrap up our visit to this lovely island.
Mark :-)
This gardening blog follows our journey as we create our Tropical and Exotic themed garden. We hope you'll enjoy the journey as much as we do. We started our Exotic Garden in 2005 and this site will show its development, as well as our travels, both abroad and within the UK to gardens, nurseries and friends.
looks wonderful and sunny! I'm a sucker for photos of markets -- love the color and texture! Hope you're having (or had) a great time!
ReplyDeleteThe temperature difference in the island at the moment is remarkable Alan. There's snow up in the mountains an hours drive from the coast where it's sunny, warm, and definite tshirt weather.
DeleteBeautiful city with gorgeous colors in the market. The window planters on the restaurant are so inviting.
ReplyDeleteIt's a well manicured city Shirley, actually nearly the entire island is!
DeleteFunchal looks like my ideal vacation destination. It looks small enough to explore on foot, and it's on the ocean.
ReplyDeleteThat market is something else. The tropical fruits! The flowers! The plants! And since it's part of the EU, you can bring back anything you want, right?
Thought of you Gerhard, you'd enjoy exploring the island especially beyond Funchal! No problems bringing back plants, soil and all.
DeleteIt does look lovely. So lush. The tree lined streets are fab. I remember bringing back some Bird of Paradise seeds from the Canaries, many years ago. They germinated too.
ReplyDeleteWith Madeira part of the EU, no problems bringing back plants and all :)
DeleteProtea galore! The market looks like a fun place to visit. What are those cement-look things near the ocean in the 17th photo from the bottom?
ReplyDeleteThey're like sea defences, quite cool looking functional things!
DeleteWhat a gorgeous market with plants, seeds, bulbs to boot! How cool is that? Did you buy any plants to take home?
ReplyDeleteJust a couple to hand carry :)
DeleteThe Protea....they're so big! Amazing!
ReplyDeleteThanks for all the "around town" photos, yu packed a lot of beauty into the post.
The entire island is just so beautiful, very photogenic!
DeleteWonderful tour, thank you. Reminds me of San Diego. Spathodea campanulata(?), Jacaranda, Erythrina, Dracaena draco. Oh, those Proteas!
ReplyDeleteSome places have me of sceneries of California, not that we've been though!
DeleteThis travelogue has me wanting to go to a place I had never considered...good work. Salivating over the market (considerably tidier and more tourist-friendly than the one in Calcutta, tho that one was wonderful too).
ReplyDeleteYou'd love it here!
DeleteThe market looks amazing. How much did you buy?!
ReplyDeleteNot much Janet as we only had hand carried bags, five plants only :)
DeleteWhat a charming market! If I were a local, I would be a regular visitor. Funchal looks like a great place to live, as well as to visit.
ReplyDeleteWelcome back! I didn't know you were back blogging again. I've been quite inconsistent myself, which is how I probably missed you. What wonderful markets! Looks like you're having a great time.
ReplyDeleteHallo Mark and Gaz, just stumbled on your blog when I was feeling full of wanderlust and yearning for some sunshine.
ReplyDeleteThank you very much for the lovely pictures, I happily and diligently scrolled through your various Madeira-posts which cheered me up enormously for I too have been to Madeira numerous times and simply LOVE the island. Last time I went was August last year.
I know it is not the done thing to plug your own blog on someone else's site but I hope you will forgive me this once as perhaps you might enjoy the read. It is precisely on the subject of Madeira's stunning flora and the link is http://www.lifeinplants.com/life-in-plants/can-gardeners-turn-green-with-envy (there's also a follow-up one on its "native" plants).
I hope you are either still enjoying your holiday or didn't find it too hard coming back to the UK! I will look in more often from now on :-).
Wow!! What an amazing market!! And a beautiful city!! now I want to visit some day...
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