Back in Madeira again and so pleased we were. The hotel (Quinta da Casa Branca) included the manor house as well so lots more garden area to wander around in - perfect bliss for someone like me. The grounds also included a banana plantation and the leaves were catching the sunlight really prettily as I strolled around on our first afternoon.

As you can see, the manor house was pretty grand. It was really nice to be able to walk around it rather than just see it over the hedge.

The gardens were as spectacular as ever with lots of useful labelling so you could learn what you were looking at.

Lots of colour around (as always!)

Lunch was at the garden pavillion and was as good as we remembered. The surprise of the day was that Jonathon volunteered to eat salad!

As we had lunch so late we weren't going to have dinner but the dessert menu in the bar looked too good to resist so we just had to try one each (and share).

Boat trip booked for Sunday but, depending on which forecast you looked at, it could have rained.

Sunday and I had a lovely morning wandering round with a camera taking photos of the beautiful flowers.

The plants on the right are called Flamingo flowers. They're almost obscene!

As you can see, there was a lot of colour in the garden!

We saw a small pod of sperm whales

The weather was kind to us, especially bearing in mind showers had been forecast.

A driving day on Monday to explore (or re-explore) the island and we headed east. First major stop was Baia D'Abra - a beautifully scenic spot.

You can walk to the end but Jonathon preferred to photograph some of the path instead of walking it!

Jonathon walked very purposefully to the edge and then stood and watched and photographed. He looked so tiny against the vast landscape!

From there we popped up to Pedras Brancas viewpoint (at least that's what I think it was called). The views were spectacular.

A bit of wildlife spotting before heading off for lunch. We were aiming for Faial but spotted a sign for Restaurante Gale so ventured up a winding lane to there instead - very tasty.

Back on the road and we put our next destination into the SatNav. All I can say is it was a good job we had a map with us because the SatNav lady was taking us goodness knows where but not where we thought we should be going.

The aim was Pico do Arieiro - the highest point of the island. We got there to find stunning views.

We were above the clouds and even saw a few kestrels flying around to add interest.

Tuesday morning's stroll focussed on the Manor House. As mentioned, it's a new addition since we were last here and it's lovely to have the extra gardens to walk around.

As you can see, it was beautiful from an architectural point of view with lots of different designs to make it really interesting.

No wonder the bananas tasted so fresh when they are grown on the plantation on site.

There were also loads of lovely old trees which added a lot of character to the grounds.

Funchal from the boat.

Back out to sea on Tuesday afternoon, this time with Ventura do Mar. There were lots of Cory's Sheerwaters skimming the surface and occasionally flying a bit higher.

Some were more energetic than others.

Back on land and dinner at Marina Terrace again followed by a trog up the hill back to the hotel and bed.

Wednesday and we set off to go across the east / west spine of the island only to find the road was closed at the eastern end. Instead, we went further north to Sao Vicente and enjoyed lunch at Restaurante a Cataplana.

The sea was very choppy and the sky very grey - completely different from the sunny weather we had left behind in the south.

Not to be foxed by closed roads, we went south then part way across the centre from west to east, climbing through and then above the clouds. We found a very different landscape up there.

The next part of our plan was to head out west to watch a sunset so back towards the coast for a snack (delicious passion fruit mousse) at Restaurante e Marisquira Cantinho da Madalena in Madalena do Mar. Pretty but I wouldn't fancy sunbathing on this kind of beach!

Whilst there we decided to change plans and head back up to Pico Do Ariero. Jonathon wanted to try some more time lapse work and thought he could kill two birds with one stone there with clouds playing around the mountains and a sunset.

The light was amazing when we arrived there and the sunset spectacular.

Looking away from the sun, the sky was full of pretty colours as well.

Finally the sun went down - what a lovely sight.

I couldn't believe that it was Thursday already!

This time we did head west but called in to visit Cabo Girao on the way. We've seen this cliff so many times from the boat trips that we thought it would be good to see it from landside as well.

The views were amazing.

Jonathon was very brave and stood on the glass floor looking down (it was an awfully long way down!)

Further west and we called into Jardim do Mar for a break and a bit to eat. Lovely food at the Hotel Jardim do Mar and very friendly service.

Still further west and we finally reached the most westerly point of the island - Ponta do Pargo. The local people were getting the village ready for a festival this weekend so everything looked really pretty.

No, Jonathon didn't walk to the lighthouse - there was a road down to it as well as the path above!

As you can see on the right, the views were fabulous. Madeira has such a lovely coastine.

All too soon it was time to head back to the hotel. We were booked into the Manor House for dinner - it was yummy and the setting was lovely as we could sit outside overlooking the garden.

Friday and time to start making sure all the "admin" was caught up with. Car had to be returned full, postcards posted, final visit to the steam room, jacuzzi etc. to be enjoyed, packing to be thought about - the list went on! At least we had one more boat trip to enjoy before leaving the following morning.

The highlight of the boat trip was seeing a baby sperm whale. His mum had just dived - no idea how long she'd be down so he was just floating around on the surface waiting for her.

Other "highlights" of the trip included:

1. having to turn around and recover the tender that had been left behind mid-ocean because the knots didn't hold;

2. picking up a whole bunch of people, some out of the sea as they'd decided to swim to the boat rather than wait to be collected after a day out (this was a pre-planned pick up); and

3. being bounced around on the boat because of the current.

Life is never boring on Gaviao!

Back on dry (and stable) land and a final dinner at Marina Terrace, the last long walk up the hill to the hotel and bed, ready to go to the airport and back home tomorrow.

Looking at the history, we seem to visit Madeira every couple of years so I guess that means we'll be back in 2019!