They stood at the edge of the Atlantic Ocean, deep in contemplation.
After a while, Romaine whispered, “So what should we do now?”
Cedric thought for a while and replied, “I have no idea. Something like this has never happened in the entire history of Madeira.”
As they stood lost in thought, confused, their vacant eyes gazed at the gathering dark clouds over Funchal,
the abandoned promenade,
the empty pracas (squares),
the shuttered shops,
and the deserted restaurants.
“OK, let’s do it then” Cedric snapped suddenly, “you tell the people, I’ll tell THEM.”
A few minutes later, Romaine walked up to the platform, and turned to face the crowd of thousands waiting on hundreds of boats outside the harbor.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” he announced theatrically on a microphone, “you all can end your strike and come back now. As we speak, my co-Mayor Cedric is informing those two tourists that no establishment in Madeira will serve them poncha any more. Your shops, houses, and the peace of this island are safe now.”
As the crowds broke into a thunderous applause, a sudden cry pierced through the atmosphere of joy.
” That’s Cedric, ” cried out Romaine ” I guess I spoke a bit too soon. Please remain on your boats for some more time, while we wait for commandos from the mainland to come and handle the situation.”
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Note : Poncha is a cocktail native to Madeira, and is made of aguardente de cana, or distilled alcohol extracted from sugarcane juice, honey, sugar, lemon juice, and orange juice. Wikipedia tells me that it is based on a traditional Indian cocktail recipe that used five ingredients, so yaaayyyyyy.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poncha
jagahdilmein 