Lazy Wednesdays

After a workout, some parcel wrapping & a Post Office run, a morning of charity shopping and a frenzied afternoon of washing, ironing and mending, that's not a description of our day. Lazy Wednesdays was the tour we'd booked days before leaving for Gran Canaria and, at 9am a fortnight ago, we made our way to the designated pick-up spot in Vegueta to meet Pavel, the host and organiser of the trip. 

Twenty minutes later and we arrived at our first destination, Caldera de Bandama. It was formed five thousand million years ago along with the ancient volcano Pico de Bandama. The crater is 216 metres deep, 574 metres high and 1,000 metres wide. The views from the peak were amazing.

To the northwest of Las Palmas lies Santa Brigida, a stunningly pretty mountain village surrounded by lush vegetation, which has been attracting visitors since the 19th Century.

We loved that this little bar was called El Despacho (The Office), so you could legitimately tell your partner that you were going to the office and actually spend the day in the pub. Pavel had taken drinks orders on the way and phoned ahead so complimentary coffees and goats cheese & tomato bocadillos were already waiting when we arrived.

The red house (above) is a guesthouse, I've found it on Booking.com (HERE) 

We carried on to Pico de las Nieves, the highest point on the island, which stands at 1,949 metres above sea level (by comparison, Britain's tallest mountain, Ben Nevis, is just 1,345 metres). Pavel suggested we prayed to the weather gods for the mist to clear - and for a safe journey up there - handing out homeopathic travel sickness pills to any passengers who needed them (not us!) The gods were on our side, Salvo, the driver, managed to successfully navigate the bus to the top of the cliff and, as if by magic, within minutes of stepping down, the mists vanished revealing the mysterious rocks of both Roque Nublo and Roque Bantayga as well as offering us a tantalising glimpse of Gran Canaria's sister island, Tenerife.

We'd been told to dress in warm clothes, it's cold up there!

You might remember me writing about my Dad being a mountaineer (HERE). Like him, I'm not in the least bit bothered by heights, scaling a rock like a mountain goat while Jon looked on in horror.

We stopped at San Bartolomé de Tirajana, which is a bit of a mouthful, so it is known as Tunte.

Tunte is on the Camino de Santiago trail, the only route located outside of mainland Europe. 

 The village's folk museum, formerly the home of a wealthy 19th century doctor, contained a stash of vintage textiles & costumes to die for.

Another idyllic Canarian mountain village, surrounded by palm groves with traditional cobbled houses with wooden balconies and masses of bougainvillea, Fataga was our next stop and the destination for lunch, which wasn't included in the price of the trip but the reviews were good and there were lots of choices for vegetarians and vegans so we were more than happy to partake (packed lunches are for home, not for holidays!) Again, Pavel took our orders on the way and phoned ahead we didn't have long to wait before our food arrived.....broken eggs & Iberian ham for Jon and a Spanish tortilla for me.

On the way to Maspalomas, situated in the southern extreme of the island, Pavel passed round photos taken in 1899 and in 1960, warning us that mass development in the 1960s and 1970s had all but destroyed the area likening it to Disneyland. 

Whilst the surrounding sand dunes and nature reserve were undeniably beautiful, the resort of Maspalomas left us cold.

Running the gamut of waiters waving menus and trying to usher us into bars we had a look around the ethnographic museum located within the old lighthouse and were back at the bus fifteen minutes before we needed to be. We'd definitely done the right thing by shunning package holiday hell and staying in Vegueta.

Our Lazy Wednesday trip was the highlight of our week on Gran Canaria. Pavel was an absolute joy, radiating warmth and enthusiasm. In addition to his impressive knowledge of the history, folk law, geography and agriculture of his native island, he pointed out locations used by Rhianna and J-Lo and Penelope Cruz's favourite hotel, gave gardening tips, recipes, told us about the best hiking trail and even taught us a few words in Canarian Spanish. 

Fancy a Lazy Wednesday?

Cost per person : £35 

Book HERE

What a week. Mountains, volcanos, art, culture, dazzling architecture and amazing food, we loved Gran Canaria! I can't wait to hear what Jane thinks of the island, she & her husband are off this weekend.  

Thanks for coming along, see you soon!

A Town Called Teror

In our quest to prove that there's more to the Canary Islands than purpose-built beach resorts, we took the guagua into Gran Canaria's mountainous interior. An independent parish since 1514, the astonishingly pretty town of Teror is one of the oldest urban centres on the island and declared a world heritage site in 1989. 

Teror is known as el corazon verde de Gran Canaria (the green heart of Gran Canaria). Thanks to the considerable winter rainfall, the region has lush ravines, palm groves and an area of rare laurel forest. Above the town, the Caldera de Pina Santo (the holy pine crater) has been declared a protected landscape in recognition of their natural beauty.

Here's the view from the window on the bus:

Being so high up, Teror was a lot cooler than the 21°C daytime temperatures we'd been used to in Las Palmas and we were glad of our scarves and jackets.

On 8th September 1481 the Virgin Mary appeared to some shepherds in the branches of a pine tree in the forest on the outskirts of the town. The Virgin of the Pine became the island's patron saint and pilgrims still travel from near and far to pay her homage. The Basilica de Nuestra Senora del Pino, named in her honour, has been replaced twice, the current church built in 1767.

The Treasure Room is, as you'd expect, stuffed with all manner of religious idolatry. 

Not being in the least bit religious we had to giggle at this woman, she looked like she was trying to flog us a souvenir tea towel rather than lamenting Jesus's death.

You know how it is when you're really not to supposed to but you can't help laughing. The statue with the long blond hair looked like a reject from an Eighties hair metal band. Thank goodness there was no pilgrims around to be offended by our infantile behaviour. 

UPDATED: I've just remembered this man-child cherub, there's something very disturbing about him, isn't there?

For hundreds of years, the faithful have embroidered the flamboyant cloaks that adorn the virgin (above), many of which are on display. I'd wear that red velvet dress in a heartbeat!

The 18th century octagonal clocktower is a replica of the 17th Century original.

The town has some stunning examples of Canarian architecture with traditional carved wooden balconies and red tile roofs, especially on the buildings found in the main street, Calle Real de la Plaza.

This pretty perfumery was doing a roaring trade.

Although this boutique selling handmade, one-off designs was more my thing....

I thought of Sheila and her leather painting skillz when I spotted these jackets. I've been keeping everything crossed that Madonna plays Glastonbury this year, I'm hoping True Blue below is a sign.

Lord Jon was far more interested in this a vintage VW Type 3, on official council business, taking down Teror's famous Xmas lights.

Teresa de Bolivar, the wife of the South American revolutionary, Simon Bolivar, came from Teror and her family crest adorns the square named in her honour. 

The town is renowned for its Chorizo de Teror, a locally produced spreadable garlic sausage.

Jon had some in his bocadillo, mine was made from local goats cheese with grilled pumpkin and beetroot. 

Prized in the UK, it's odd to see Aeonium growing like weeds on the town's roofs!

After several hours of wandering, all that pure mountain air was starting to bite so we hopped back on the guagua and made our way back to Vegueta.

Fancy seeing Teror for yourself?  The 229 leaves the San Telmo bus station in Las Palmas every thirty minutes. The journey costs €3 each way and takes 45 minutes.

Stay tuned for my final instalment.

Thanks for reading & see you soon!