Madeira is an island traditionally steeped in festivals. Throughout the year saint days, village festivals and holiday celebrations can be witnessed and experienced across the island. However, the climax of the year has to be the Christmas festivities and the awe inspiring New Year’s Eve firework display.

Christmas starts early. From about mid October onwards signs of the forthcoming celebrations begin to appear but what really heralds the change for me is the chestnut sellers. Along the sea front the air is awash with the smell of roasting chestnuts and the hiss and crackle of the salt as it explodes in the heat. And the result? A delicious hot and floury chestnut, which simply melts in your mouth. Working in tandem with the sellers are the men whose painstaking job it is to put up and arrange the Christmas lights.

 

The roads and the side streets of Funchal are bedecked with illuminated angels, presents, holly, poinsettia, and baubles while the creativity of their designs is amply appreciated, especially as no two years are ever the same. There is simply too much to take in all at once and several trips to the capital are needed to really experience the atmosphere and the Madeiran enthusiasm for Christmas.

It is not only Funchal that lights up at this time of year. Perhaps less showy the smaller towns and villages all have their own illuminations and at night the skyline changes into a mass of twinkling coloured lights.

On the 23rd December the ever popular labourers market heralds the start of the Christmas celebrations. Open for 24 hours, the number of traders is such that they spill out onto the adjacent street. Madeirans from Funchal and elsewhere on the island jostle with each other to obtain the best bargains and juiciest produce, while visitors mingle with the throng soaking up the festive atmosphere while being gently propelled by the ebb and flow of the crowd. This event is a must, and as the evening progresses the atmosphere intensifies.

Throughout this period the streets of Funchal are alive with traditional yuletide music while the shops compete with their more ‘popular’ arrangements. Dazzling pyramids of red and cream poinsettias adorn fountains and other public places around the town while slipper orchids doze gently at their feet. In the city centre the many festive displays add to the attractions as stylised angels lift their unheard voices in various locations.