Day 1: Sunshine, blue skies and 70 degrees. Yes, please and thank you. Such a wonderful climate change from Paris to Tenerife. Merika met me at the airport this afternoon and then gave me an overview of the area. I can’t wait to explore more this week.
Oceanfront Puerto de La Cruz
Merika and I after dinner.
Cute little park
Ocean view from Merika’s home
Day 2: 8 miles of a spectacularly beautiful hike today from the house, to downtown, through banana plantations, and down to a black sand volcanic beach. Tenerife is the largest of the Canary Islands and has various micro climates as you travel around the island.
Banana plantations and farm terraces.
Beautiful colors and structure.
Playa El Bollullo
Puerto de La Cruz
Day 3: Took a 30 minute flight from Tenerife, over to the island of La Palma. La Palma was the scene of the large volcano eruption from Cumbre Vieja. It started erupting in September and was declared to finally be over last week. Over the three months of lava flow and earthquakes, 3,000 homes were destroyed, as were banana plantations and vineyards.
Los Llanos // loved the colors and this mural
Tazacorte colors.
Heading out to see the volcanic magma from
the recent eruption of Cumbre Vieja.
Not the best weather day to see the magma, but it’s there
(black) and still smoldering. The eruptions started in September
and continued until just a few weeks ago. As of last week,
geologists declared it over.
Day 4: Another gorgeous day on the island of La Palma. Temperatures were in the 70s with sunny skies. We left Tazacorte and traveled by bus back to Santa Cruz de La Palma. On the way, we passed by the still smoldering Cumbre Vieja Volcano and its lava field. Once we got in town, we had time to eat, drink and enjoy the old town and holiday lights.
Beautiful hibiscus in Puerto de Tazacorte
Volcanic ash and Cumbre Vieja, still smoldering.
Cumbre Vieja Volcano and one of the lava flows.
While heading to the bus, we came upon an impromptu concert
to raise money for volcano relief for the people of La Palma.
Santa Cruz de La Palma
Day 5: “Live in each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influence of the earth.”
—Henry David Thoreau
We hopped back over to Tenerife today and Merika drove us all through the Teide National Park. Mount Teide is said to be the 4th tallest volcano in the world and is currently dormant. Skies are so clear in this park that there’s an international observatory. As we drove through the park, the rock formations and various types of vegetation were incredible to view.
Sunset over Puerto de La Cruz
Mt. Teide
Long, winding, mountain roads.
Day 6: Spent my last day here walking a few miles to Punta Brava and back, checking out the beaches and rock formations along the way. I returned in time to get my Covid clearance to fly tomorrow, though I think the nurse also removed a bit of brain matter in the process. Cheers, to a Happy New Year!
Protea Flower
Playa de Castillo
Punta Brava
Canary Islands mural. I visited the big red one left of
center (Tenerife) and the green one top left (La Palma).
Sidewalk greenery
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