The Beach At Orca Praia Funchal Madeira

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I was recently on holiday in the island of Madeira, a Portugeuse island in the Atlantic Ocean. The hotel's rooms all faced the ocean. It was so relaxing and soothing to sit and listen to the sea roll in and roll out again, tossing the black basalt rock pebbles back and forth as the tide ebbed and flowed. Even the coarse sand is black. The island had been volcanic and the terrain shows that too.. wild rugged and steep sided in many places.

Anyway. You have the mental picture.. I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed sitting, listening, watching and writing....

The beach at Orca Praia – Funchal Madeira

The powerful deep blue ocean
Expends its tidal force
Pounding down upon sea pebbles
With thud and smash so coarse

Watching from a vantage point
From the horizon to the shore
The lines of sea swell building up
Growing bigger more and more

Low, rumbling ocean rollers
Waves curling with such symmetry
Then the breakers quickly form and crash
Tossing up a plume of spray of sea

Incessant surf on shingle
Swash, swoosh and susurrate
With that endless marine motion
That will never dissipate

The waves break up and flatten
The tidal rush now gone
As the pebbles roll and rattle
Against each other as they tumble on

The roller spent, the wave now dead
Or that is what it seems
Then the backwash slithers downwards
Sluicing pebbles like big grey beans

The unending flow and ebb of tide
Today a calm but restless sea
Incessant waves wash and whoosh
So soothing it can be

But at other times she’s not so kind
Or benign to beach or land
Dashes disastrous desolation
With a fury on rock or sand

But for now I stand and wonder
At Mother Nature’s gentle reach
And watch and taste and listen
To the ocean on that basalt beach

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Jan Allison

Date: 12/3/2014 1:55:00 PM

Thomas you portrayed this so brilliantly - we went to Madeira a couple of years ago - such a wonderful Island:-) hugs jan xxx Its a 7 fro me

Jan Allison
Date: 12/3/2014 2:38:00 PM

above where you type in your comments is a box that says rating - was 3 months before I realised lol - a 7 is the top rating you can give:-) Hugs Jan xxx

Thomas Mansfield
Date: 12/3/2014 2:35:00 PM

Hi Jan... If you have been there then you will have seen and heard it.. I will go back again to listen to that lovely sound. Thank you very much for your comments. I am not around ling enough or often enough to understand what a 7 is but coming from you I can only imagine it is good.. so a double thank you :)