Madeira and Portugal News from Paul Abbiati:
A year after the floods and mudslides caused by extreme torrential rain which killed 42 people there cannot be enough words. Common ones in the Press including Madeira’s Diario de Noticias are: reflection, tributes, memorials, solidarity. And Madeirans will and must: “o olhar para a frente” in very difficult times.
On the anniversary of the Floods, President Jardim refuses to discuss the cancellation of the new hospital to be built at Santa Rita.
All around the Mediterranean rim, peoples are demonstating and willing to forgo their lives to gain freedoms not granted them by leaders who have been in power for 30 years or more.
President Jardim should be aware having been in power for so long he is bound to be out of touch.
Martin
Coming to Madeira tomorrow to swell the island economy by buying much food and drink -mainly drink.
The Restaurant Londres seems a good place – we also like Os Combatantes near the Park.
Please arrange fine weather with El Presidente Bertie.
Cheers
Look forward to seeing you at the Cambatantes, it also fills up with the office trade at lunch and I aagree has good reasonably priced food with taste.
Too much of Funchal tourist food lacks taste.
Espada and banana you can overdose on!
Lovely day today, hood down to Faial and Santanda for frango lunch.
Jolly Good it was too.
Maybe bump into you before we return end of March.
Got to get back for the Wedding you know!
Speaking to one Pestana Bridge timeshare salesman, who has been doing the job for many years, since the first tunnels, he feels Madeira’s tourism suffers from having Easyjet as the main contractor.
Bring back GB airways and BA he says and their associated clients who enjoy comfort against price.
This lack of client base together with the Cruise ships offering ever better services and improvements continually being implemented are major causes of tourist numbers reducing.
Interesting observation.
Madeira like Portugal always went for top end tourism.
Why change?
It’s a day ending in Y. Meaning it is time for the ECB to go ahead and sweep another billion or so Portuguese bonds under the rug. Because you can’t have the 10 Year yield at all time highs (as in yesterday) and for that relentless stream of lies emanating from every ECB bureaucrat’s orifice to be taken seriously, can you. We give the ECB another month before they realize what the SNB figured out long ago: it’s best to give up when it comes to direct market manipulation. We are confident Portuguese bonds will hit another all time high yield by the middle of next week. And at some point European taxpayers may just ask what all their money is being spent on.