We spent 3 weeks in Portugal - Lisbon, Sintra, Coimbra, Porto and then finished our trip in Madeira - best decision EVER.
We were really busy on the mainland - what we call 'travelling': seeing sites, busy crowds, larger cities - busy days and nights.
We flew out for the last 6 days of our trip and this was our 'Vacation'. Fantastic and beautiful location. The moment we walked in we pulled back the drapes and opened the windows - and didn't close them until we left. The view to the ocean was spectacular and so very, very peaceful. I spent three solid days on the patio reading and relaxing and many times just sitting in peace, watching the birds, butterflies, honey bees and lizards do their thing.
The garden is beautiful with many different flowers - the angel bells were my favorite and smelled incredible.
The house was clean and had the basics that we needed. We found a mercado and stocked up on simple foods - cheese, jamon, sparkling water, and other snacks - it was all we needed.
The owners were very responsive and gracious. We were able to catch up on laundry and had racks to easily dry them outside. Coffee pot, microwave, fridge, stove, dishes and cutlery - everything we needed. They left a nice basket with wine, bread, jam and other goodies.
We live in California and if we come back, will again spend a long week on Madeira - the island is beautiful - tropical and reminded us of Hawaii but much quieter. The houses are built into the side of the mountain so was hard to find one without a view . The folks there were gracious and helpful.
We found out the island has 420 tunnels! Our ride from the airport was 50 minutes and were told before the tunnels were built it would take over 3 hours. We knew there were many beautiful locations and historical sites to check out but this leg we were ready to just decompress.
If you're coming don't let the 50 minute drive to the location deter you - you'll be very glad you came out this far and it was super easy to rent a car.
Thanks to Irina for a wonderful stay.
PS - they had a fascinating library, dvd's and cd's and I read a few of her books while there.