Curral das Freiras (‘Nuns Valley’) is a small village nestling between almost perpendicular mountains in the heart of the island of Madeira. The huge cauldron in which Curral das Freiras is sitting was either formed by erosion, which is the more recent theory, or as many still believe, by volcanic activity.
In 1566 the nuns from the Santa Clara convent fled from pirates attacking Funchal and found seclusion here, where they also brought the convent treasure. Curral das Freiras was the property of a couple that sold this land to the captain of Funchal, João Gonçalves da Câmara. This captain gave the lands to his daughters when they entered into the Santa Clara convent (also built by him).
The village is very isolated and locals mainly live off what they grow. The local chestnuts are delicious and are used in everyday cooking, and this has lead to a great annual celebration in ‘Nuns Valley’ known as the ‘Chestnut Festival’. This festival originated when the local parish had a surplus of chestnuts. These were then used in culinary delights from soup to cakes, and from pudding to liqueur. Today the festival is a big attraction with plenty of food, music, dancing and of course, wine.
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