Madeira Island
October 6, 2019
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Day 7 featured a trip to the Nun's Valley with Lido Tours. During its early settlement, access to the valley of Curral was difficult,
and was only attempted by shepherds and slaves who gained their emancipation or escaped. A small hamlet developed towards the end of the 15th century.
The settlement was part of the dominion of João Gonçalves Zarco, who led the explorers who discovered Madeira Island. In 1480, João Gonçalves da Câmara
(Zarco´s son) donated it the Santa Clara Convent in the name of his daughters Elvira and Joana, who lived in the convent.
During early colonization, the settlement was simply known as Curral da Serra for its extensive pasture-lands, used for grazing cattle and small herds
of sheep and goats. Some believe the name was subsequently altered to Curral das Freiras when these lands became the property of the nuns of the Santa Clara
convent (between 1492 and 1497). Others credit the name change after 1566, when the nuns of the Convent took refuge in this area for about
three weeks, during the French pirate attacks on Funchal.
The last page features a few pictures on the final day in Madeira, a beautiful sunny day, with breakfast on the veranda watching the ocean.
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Above: Looking northwards into the Nun's Valley and the town of Curral das Freiras from on top of Eira do Serrado, 1095 m above sea level.
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1 and 2 show the north and then west view of Funchal from my hotel room.
3 is the Igreja de São Martinho (Church of St. Martin, high on a hill in western Funchal.
4 is the southern coast of Madeira on the way to the Nun's Valley.
5 and 6 show the old narrow highway tunnel through the mountain to get to the north of Madeira.
7 to 11 show northern views into the Nun's Valley from on top of Eira do Serrado, 1095 m high, including the village of Curral das Freiras in #8.
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