Retired Nomads - Part 3 https://retirednomadspart3.blogspot.com/
Well, it seems I have filled up another blog. I no longer can post photos, so I have started a Retired Nomads - Part 3. I will leave the last 3 posts here on this one, but all photos are now on the new one on the duplicate posts.
Lanzarote, Canary Islands – Apr 18
Day 7 with no voice, but it is starting to feel like it
wants to come back. I turned to say something to Greg at lunch and it came out
a HONK. He turns to me and says “you honked at me!” I laughed so hard it sent me
into quite a honking coughing fit. (not pretty)
What a great day we had in Lanzarote. It really was like we
landed on another planet. Angela with ToursByLocals https://www.toursbylocals.com/ was our guide and she was
very flexible and arranged our day perfectly. Very knowledgeable and honest about
life on the Island.
Next, we visited the National Park of Timanfaya, with the
route of the volcanoes. Covering over 12,600
acres, this lunar landscape looks much like it did after violent volcanic
eruptions spewed chunks of molten lava over the entire area.
We started with a few demonstrations. First, we held some
very hot lava pieces. Then, went to see another area that was all heat and it
came up under the restaurant above it. Angela said when she was young her mom
would bring them there and cook their meals on the grate and picnic. It’s not
allowed now; the site is much too busy with tourists. Angela got us to the
front of every line which saved us a ton of time.
We then had some free time before driving the route of the
volcanoes. She could slow down and even stop for a bit, but we weren’t allowed
out of the vehicle. Just awesome colors and formations. Angela played music
that enhanced our volcano viewing drive.
After that we took a camel safari through the park for around
30 minutes. We have ridden camels before but had never sat on seats on either
side of the camel. What a blast! We were in a long caravan, and we had the first
position and Tom & Cathy were behind us. Their camel seemed fixated on me.
His head was right us next to mine for most of the trip. He was a noisy
breather and I asked if he needed a decongestant spray. Roberta & John
opted not to ride, and John got some great video of all of us. We could turn
around and get photos of Tom & Cathy and the camel guy took our photos. It
was the highlight of the day for some of us. Cute photos & video will come later.....
We left Timanfaya National Park for the vine-growing region
of La Geria. We stopped for a photo op here, but she said that due to a bad
weather year last year, the wine wasn’t that good, so we skipped the tasting. It was very interesting to see how they grow crops here with deep circles to collect what little rain they get surrounded by lava walls to block the wind.
We stopped for a wonderful lunch which our guide suggested
by the water at El Lago in Punta Mujeres. It was windy and cool outside, so we
moved indoors to have lunch. Greg had the fish of the day platter, and I had
garlic prawns and garlic bread. Dessert for us was chocolate mousse. YUM to
all.
The route then took us north, to visit Jameos del Agua which
is a massive open-air cavern that is part of a four-mile long volcanic tunnel
that was formed by molten lava after the eruption of the La Corona volcano
3,000 years ago. Due to the pressure built up by volcanic gases, the tunnel
collapsed and developed openings in the solidified lava. These openings were
discovered in 1968 and, based upon an idea by Manrique, were turned into a
tropical garden, a pool, a bar and a 600-seat concert venue. We saw only a small
portion of the tunnel that is open to the public and of course it’s a mix of
natural and made-made beauty. These tiny albino crabs are in the water, and it
was quite pleasant in there with atmospheric music. She gave us an hour to
explore here. It really was a great day with a mix of such different things to experience.
We had some time left and Angela noticed we enjoyed seeing
the cactus at La Geria, so she took us to a beautiful cactus garden for about
20 minutes before we had to return to Arrecife.
Located in Guatiza, municipality of Teguise, El Jardín de Cactus is the last great work of César Manrique in Lanzarote, a fascinating creation that houses about 4,500 specimens of cactus of about 500 species from five continents. The artist chose an old deposit used as a landfill in an agricultural area of extensive cactus plantations dedicated to the cultivation of cochineal, thus representing the rehabilitation of a place of great landscape value on the island in a state of neglect.
There are also many sculptures made of volcanic stone and basaltic monoliths turned into sculptures. Also, some very interesting bathroom signs. (wait for the photos)
We were back to the ship on time, and we commented that it
was a great ending to all of our private tours together on this voyage. Nice to end on a high note!
We had dinner at the buffet and went to see the comedian Keith
Bender and he was quite funny.
Tomorrow, we visit our last port of La Palma.
Lanzarote, Canary Islands https://photos.app.goo.gl/tRLvBsPuFXMdsgZz6
video will follow
Birds seen:
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