Day 17.... last day

 We had another full day. We chose to go on a tour (bus) of the eastern side of Madiera. It was a great tour. First a drive up to the second highest point on the island at just under 6000 feet. As advertised, we were in the shifting clouds. Caught a few pictures from the top.


Leaving the top we headed north and east into a valley. The valleys and cliffs are breathtaking. Very steep and yet they do terraced farming here. The sheep wander around and they do have cattle.......somewhere. Our guide said they keep 1-2 in a barn. There's not enough land for them to graze or to fence them in from falling off the terraces. 



A short coffee break as we continued to the eastern side of the island.


We drove to Santana on the east side for lunch. Quite a view. Here the land is a bit easier to garden. They grow a variety of produce including apples, pears and cherries.











This is one of the saved original thatched homes found in this area. 




More views as we headed back. You can see two colors of sand. The dark sand is what is around this island. The light colored sand was brought in by some rich person from Africa, so this area would have 2 colors of sand. 



We ended at the botanical gardens.



And now we say goodnight Madiera









 




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