Porto Santo was discovered in 1418 the year before Madeira when Henry the Navigator sent Joao Goncalves Zarco and Tristao Vaz Teixeira to Africa but they were driven off course by a gale and ended up on the island which they named "Holy Island". A rapid passage back to Lisbon was followed by a hasty return with orders to colonise this dry uninhabited island before continuing southwest to discover the more mountainous Madeira.

Although we went for walks almost every day and I did yoga every morning, there were more challenging hikes and we regularly set off either on our own or in small groups. A particularly enjoyable day was spent with Soren when we walked the whole length of the south coast, climbed Pico de Ana Ferreira, had lunch in Calheta then took the same coastal road back. What a great days exercise! We all slept well that night.