Curral das Freiras

This is what some of the roads still look like. Down in Funchal, the remaining cobbles are actually cut, white and black stones, having a flatter surface, and laid in patterns. These stone roads are unique to Madeira. I will be uploading more photos to show this once I get all the photos uploaded.
Hard to believe, but there are so many working young women who manage to negotiate this surface with high heels. And I do mean HIGH.

We came across an artist, and Noreen went to investigate.

The background shows the densely populated hillside. Most houses are built over two or three levels because of the slopes and there are very few problems with movement!! The old Jewish cemetery at the end of my sisters street is slowly falling into the sea.....as with the terrible floods around 18months ago, nature WILL do its thing. I marvel at mans tenacity.

Madeira remains a predominantly Catholic Christian country although, with the growing tourism industry, change is inevitable in all sectors. The churches, like the UK,are pretty much devoid of youth and dare I say, predominantly due to a lack of fore-site, progression, and making an effort to BRING the youth to church.

Life is a tentative balance between old and new. Too much progression has changed value systems from grounded simplicity, to commercialism and the resulting greed and too little progression has resulted in churches loosing touch with the needs of our modern youth and the resulting apostasy.