Floating garden in the Atlantic. Madeira, Portugal

Madeira Island is famous throughout the world for its natural beauty and is often called the 'floating garden in the Atlantic'. For a traveler there's nothing like the ambience of a typical market! Originally, these regional markets were set up for selling flowers but with the time they expanded to all kinds of agricultural products and local food specialties (such as ‘bolo de caco’ bread, grilled chicken and wheat soup) to be consumed there or to take away. ‘Mercado dos Lavradores’ in Funchal, is still a bit the case, and is my favorite. Mainly frequented by the local population living in the area who do their weekly shopping there. Usually taking place during the weekends, you will find these typical markets a bit everywhere on the island, but the most established ones are those in Santa (Porto Moniz), Ponta Delgada and Santo da Serra. You want to experience something really local? Then look out for one of these traditional markets on your tour around the island! Unfortunately this February the island was affected by heavy rain, turning some streets in capital of Funchal into raging rivers of mud, water and debris. The storm — the worst to hit the island since 1993 — also kill displaced a lot people. Nobody can remain indifferent to the disaster and the reconstruction effort is enormous. Join us on a journey to Madeira Island’s this year given confidence to the tourism and help rebuilding the trust to this Atlantic paradise … this visit will surely delight you!