After breakfast yesterday I was ready for the day.

And what a day it had turned out to be.FA-BU-LOUS.Why would any-one with a good pair of legs want to take a bus to town after spending three solid days aboard a ship,I cannot understand.It is a sacrilege.Having been on Madeira numerous times and having seen all there is to see in the capital,around the capital and all over the island,having walked through the hills following old irrigation channels[levadas],having been on a boat trip for whale and dolphin-watching[and saw nothing,not even a fish],the time has come to simply enjoy Funchal and that in my vocabulary means walking,shopping and then sitting down to a cup of coffee and a Portuguese tart,and not necessarily in that order.So taking the road so well travelled a shop window full of shoes and bags enticed and in I walked[Eureka shoes,69 Rua do Aljube].I love shoes and I love bags.And this little boutique had both in abundance.Adorable utterly divine and sexy ankle boots,combination of dark brown leather,suede,delicate buckles and laces on a perfect slightly higher than kitten heels.How could I resist ?And then I saw flat off white leather and white mesh and zipper at the back ankle creations.Love at first sight.Several doors along there used to be the most delightful boutique owned by a very talented lady who designed everything sold in the shop.Her adorable rings I will treasure for ever.I have never seen anything like it anywhere else. She did not stock other people's works. Mistake.The shelves and rails always looked half empty.She went bust.The shop was boarded and the windows covered with newspapers and every time I came to Funchal I went to see if anything had changed.Nothing did.Until yesterday.The most beautiful frontage, window full of nondescript jewellery, with a large "J L" in the middle.I like Jennifer Lopez very much.But why on earth did she have to put her name to those things I will never understand.Bland and ugly.Ugly and bland.So I walked to my favourite shop on the island.[3 Largo do Phelps]If you want unusual and different this is where you go.There was nothing I "to fall in love with" clothes-wise,but there was a bag,my goodness,a bag of all bags.The lady owner has in stock one of everything,the stock changes daily.You hesitate,blink an eye and it is gone.Well,I did not hesitate.There were some lovely necklaces and I chose two.And a cloth multicoloured shopper.Then just a stone throw away there is a place where I get the best latte in Funchal,Docura Madeirense.Their Portuguese tarts are not the best I have ever had, neither are the sandwiches,but the service is lovely,the position second to none.I love it.Having walked some more,I was suddenly hungry and sat down in an absolutely splendid little shop selling all kinds of bread,rolls, simple cakes and freshly pressed orange juice.This is,in fact,the only place I know that does sell fresh juice.Slow walk back to he ship,just one last stop to pick up the most comfortable loafers at 18 euro a pair,I come here every time I am in town.Burgundy for myself,black for my sister.The sun was high in the sky,gently breeze playing with my hair as I walked back to the ship.The sun was on the balcony,I dropped everything and undressed,wanting to have at least half an hour sunbathing,it seemed the sun was going to disappear above the ship soon.But the sun did not seem to be moving. And then it hit me - the way the ship was positioned,the sun was not going to descend across it, but alongside.Could the day be any more wonderful? Blissful 2 hours in the nude.Dinner was excellent,the neighbours on one side the usual- a morose unpleasant pair drinking heavily.On the other side that rare breed-two charming cultured people,she once very beautiful,kind,friendly,he once very handsome,now as I had learnt, 5 years dying a slow death thanks to some degenerative illness that is slowly consuming his whole body.They are making the most of the little precious time left.