and north to south from northern Italy to Morocco. Surrounding the Mediterranean Sea, the hotspot's 2,085,292 km² also include parts of Spain, France, the Balkan states, Greece, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Egypt, Libya, Tunisia and Algeria, as well as around five thousand islands scattered around the Mediterranean Sea. West of the mainland, the hotspot includes the Macaronesian Islands of the Canaries, Madeira, the Selvages (Selvagens), the Azores, and Cape Verde. The basin's location at the intersection of two major landmasses, Eurasia and Africa, has contributed to its high diversity and spectacular scenery. The region boasts mountains as high as 4,500 meters, peninsulas, and one of the largest archipelagos in the world. The climate of the Mediterranean Basin is dominated by cool, wet winters and hot, dry summers, and rainfall ranges from as little as 100 millimeters to as much as 3,000 millimeters.
Idülliline Madeira saar, mis on oma staatuselt teatava iseseisvusega Portugali autonoomne regioon, paikneb Aafrika läänerannikust umbes 550 km kaugusel. Madeira sai autonoomia pärast 1974. aasta 25. aprilli revolutsiooni, millega Portugalis kaotati Salazari diktatuur. Saarestik koosneb kahest suuremast saarest Madeira (828 km², 255 000 el) ja Porto Santo (42 km², 5000 el) ning asustamata saaregruppidest Desertas ja Selvagens. Pealinnast Funchalist (101 000 el) lääne pool Cabo Giraos asub kõrguselt teisel kohal olev kalju maailmas. Nii nagu mandril räägitakse ka saarel portugali keelt. Turismipiirkondades on kasutusel ka inglise ja saksa keel. Saare kliima on väga pehme: keskmine temperatuur suvel 21 °C ja talvel 16 °C, ning meri pidevalt soe Golfi hoovuse tõttu: suvel 22 °C ja talvel 17 °C. Talvel sajab kuus-seitse päeva kuus, kuid päris päikeseta päevi on harva
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