Quinta Vigia - Austria's Empress Isabel "Sissi". by Jerelis
It was quite a hike to get all the way up there, but once we arrived we were glad to be there. A bit of a disappointment was that our travel book said that the quinta should be open for the public from monday to Friday - from 09:00h to 17:00h, but we were definately not allowed to get in. Pretty weird huh? So, instead, we just walked around the quinta. The building work on this baroque and neaoclassic style quinta lasted throughout the 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th century. It is surrounded by parkland and overlooks the Port of Funchal and is one of the most famous quintas on the island.Some celebrities have lived in this house, surrounded by the beautiful garden. Some of the most important people who lived here were Queen Adelaide of England, Austria's Empress Isabel "Sissi", the Archduke Maximiliano and the Prince of Oldenburg. The original quinta disappeared in the 1970s to make way for a hotel, which the Regional Government acquired in 1979. At that time all remaining buildings and the gardens were completely remodelled. Nowadays it's the official residence of the President of the Regional Government of Madeira.