The Island of Madeira is situated in the Atlantic Ocean. It is below the Azores but above the Canary Islands. This is off the North West coast of Africa. Its situation means that it has a sub tropical mini climate all of its own. The temperatures here seldom climb out of the mid to high seventies but neither do they fall out of them either. Even at night the temperature is nice, steady and warm.

Madeira is often referred to as the "floating garden" due to its abundance of flowers. It is also classed as a holiday destination for those of us who are a little older. Most holiday makers tend to be in their mid fifties. However Madeira has plenty to offer all ages. It does not have excessive noise and clubs though, which for me was a bonus, but I guess if you are young may be a down side.

Among all of the different sights to see around the Island of Madeira, the tiny village of Santana is well worth a look.

We took a local coach tour to visit Santana. It was actually a small min bus which was comfortable and the people were friendly. The bonus with this form of transport was that we explored the side roads and villages which large coaches could not access. When we visited the Nuns Valley, another day, we actually travelled further into the heart of the Valley which the coach tours were unable to do. We used Turitanor perhaps they were called Turitas Tours and booked via an agent in our holiday resort of Canico. I suppose that really this word though just means tourist tours?

I had read about the houses of Santana in a travel guideand just wanted to see for myself. I have to say that they were better than I expected. The village is pretty, the air clean and the views are breathtaking. The tour was part of a Best of the East of Madeira and took in plenty of other interesting towns, villages and local attractions.

As the second map shows the interior of the Island of Madeira is mountainous. This is due to the fact that Madeira is a Volcanic Island. The beaches of Madeira are made up of volcanic rock apart from the odd man made beach. This is probably why all of the hotels have fabulous swimming pools and many are set near to the coast. Ours was just a few paces from the volcanic beach and the ocean.

Santana is the most famous village in Madeira. Its main attractions these days are the tiny, traditional houses that, once upon a time, would hold large families but these days are more like a museum village. These have been lovingly restored. They have thatched roofs which go all the way down to the ground. The houses are triangular in shape and very distinctive.

It is possible to book a short stay in one of these houses. Apparently honeymooners are the most likely to book this unusual accommodation.

The house that we visited was still occupied by a middle aged man and his extremely old, but friendly, Mum. This house was beautifully painted on the outside and looked like something out of a fairy tale. Our local driver knew the man and had arranged our visit. There were only 6 of us on this tour and so it was relaxed and personal.

This house had been extended over the years but was still small. The guy invited us all in handing around a tray of delicious Madeira wine. We had already drunk a little of the local fire water, or as they call it liquid Viagra, and we were in a merry mood. This fire water is called Poncha. If you visit Madeira aim to drink some that is freshly, and locally, made. The bottles that you can buy in the local supermarkets are OK but not as good as the real McCoy.

Still back to my experiences.

Along with the Madeira wine came home made biscuits. As we left the chap's home we all tipped him but this was not demanded. It was really up to the individual. However we had enjoyed our visit and felt a small payment was in order.

We finished viewing this house by sitting outside with the old lady. In the small garden there was a fish pond and lots of plants. This old dear prattled away although none of us could understand a word she said. Still a smile and nod are universal, aren't they?.

From here our driver took us to the main tourist area of these houses. Most of these are unoccupied now and set out as museums and shops. Some where painted but not as beautifully as the one we had just visited. That one reminded me of reading the story of Hedi as a child and the accommodation she lived in with her grandfather. It was a sweet house but hard to imagine a whole family living there all the time.

As we drove to a local restaurant for lunch we passed some of these old houses that were falling into disrepair and they were not much more than simply barns. All in all though we had a great day visiting Santana. It helped as our driver, the English couple and the German couple who were our travelling companions, were all fun and great company.

Strictly speaking the Portuguese word Santana translates to Saint Anne. Santana is located in the north of the Island of Madeira near to the coast and tends to receive most of its visitors as passing trade. It survives on tourism and farming these days. Coach parties and local excursions call in at Santana to have lunch and explore the traditional Madeiran houses. These are only really found in and around Santana these days but once upon a time would have been the main type of accommodation for all locals..

The Madeira Theme Park as it is called is situated in Santana and details some of Madeira's history and culture and has a lovely open area of park, come garden, that suits Madeira perfectly.