Monday, October 31, 2005
Four Swedish tourists killed in Tenerife bus crash
MADRID, Oct 30 (Reuters) - A bus carrying Swedish tourists to the airport after a Canary Islands holiday crashed on Sunday, killing four passengers and injuring more than 20, Spanish officials said. They said the bus, travelling on a motorway near Arona in the south of the island of Tenerife, swerved to avoid another vehicle, overturned and crashed into a car filling up at a petrol station.
Four Swedish tourists killed in Spanish bus crash
Sunday, October 30, 2005
Giant Squid Finally Captured On Film
(ED: After a giant squid was found off Tenerife last week, I am including this as extra background on these fascinating creatures - lurking in the depths around the islands - and as more information on the recent historical first filming of a live specimen. Seeing that these giant underwater monsters are so camera shy, I wouldn't bank on seeing them on any island whale and dolphin safaris - but know they are out there!)
On 27 September 2005, the greatest zoological discovery of the century was announced. For the first time ever, a live giant squid was caught on film.
The Animal
The giant squid (Architeuthis) has been known to humans since ancient times. Giant squid were regular features in many Norwegian tales (where, many believe, it inspired the creature known as the Kraken). The first substantiated report of a real giant squid, was in 1873. The animal was reported to have been attacking a minister and a young boy, near Bell Island, Newfoundland. Five years later, scientists received their first giant squid specimen, when a carcass washed ashore in Glover's Harbor, Newfoundland.
What's in a Name?
The scientific name for the genus containing the giant squid is: Architeuthis, which translates to: "The ruling squid."
How big?
The largest giant squid on record was a female that washed ashore on a New Zealand beach in 1887. From end to end, the creature measured 16.8 meters (55 ft) long. Because of the "springiness" of their tentacles, though, this has been viewed as an exaggerated length. If the animal were still alive, it resting length would have been closer to 9.8 meters (32 ft).
Elusive Monster
Despite knowledge of the existence of this beast for the past 127 years, scientists have never been able to actually capture the creature alive; either in a net, or on film. This was due to a variety of different factors that were not conducive to human capture. Some of these factors included:
Depth - Most large squid prefer depths of several hundred, to one thousand meters. This makes it very hard to place fishing nets and bait.
Time - Suggested by their gargantuan eyes, and verified by observations of other species, large squid prefer to hunt in areas of the water column, which remain very dark. They usually only come closer to the surface at night. These scenarios present a problem for anyone wanting to film these animals.
Pressure - Water pressure increases by one atmosphere for every 9.8 meters (32ft) in depth. Giant squid appear to favor depths between 600-900 meters (1,968 - 2,952 ft). At 900 meters, water pressure is 92 times greater than at the surface. If a large squid were caught at that depth, and brought up, the rapid change in pressure could possibly kill the large animal long before it ever reached the boat. The only choice would be to bring the creature up slowly; a process that would leave plenty of time for it to escape.
Seeking Help
One telltale way to find giant squid, is to follow one of their primary predators: the sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus). These animals are known hunters of giant squid. Many individuals are known to carry large sucker and claw marks believed to be souvenirs from their epic underwater battles. By figuring out where sperm whales like to hunt, one should be able to get a good idea of where the squid live. By following this process, scientists have been able to get a fairly good estimate of the general living depths for giant squid.
Minor Success
In February of 2001, Dr. Steve O'Shea, along with the Discovery Channel, caught the first ever living giant squid. In fact, he caught of few of them. The only catch was that they were only larvae. The babies had to be maintained in special pressurized tanks, in order to keep them alive. Unfortunately for Dr. O'Shea, the larvae did not survive the trip back to the mainland.
Patience is Key
Japanese researchers: Tsunemi Kubodera, and Kyoichi Mori, set out to capture film of an adult giant squid, in the wild. From 2002 to 2004, Kubodera, Mori and their crew, set up remote camera systems in Japanese waters, which were known to harbor sperm whales and giant squid. They hooked depth loggers to the cameras, along with bait rigs dangling below them. For the bait, the researchers used a Japanese common squid on one end, and a mesh bag filled with shrimp, to use as an odor allure on the other end.
Finally, on 30 September 2004, Kubodera, Mori and their crew struck gold. A large, 8 meter (26ft) adult squid was caught attacking a piece of bait the researchers had dangling 900 meters below the surface.
The Battle
At 9:15 AM, the squid attacked the bait. The camera captured the attack on film. During the initial attack, a portion of the squid's tentacle became snagged on the bait rig. At 1:28 PM, the squid finally broke free from its snare. It had struggled on the line for a mind blowing 4 hours!
Unexpected Souvenir
The struggle to break free was so violent, that the animal actually ripped off the tentacle that was stuck to the bait rig. This tentacle remained attached to the rig, as the researchers brought it up. The leftover squid remnant measured 5.5 meters (18 feet) long! The tentacle was observed to still be sucking and attaching itself to anything it could get a hold of.
Truth is Stranger than Fiction
Prior to these observations, scientists had assumed that giant squid were sluggish creatures that remained neutrally buoyant in the water column; dangling their long tentacles in order to lure fish in. Now we know that these animals are much more active, and aggressive than we had once thought.
Not Over with Yet
With the announcement of this discovery, a renewed interest in the giant squid has begun. Many documentary film companies are now attempting to capture even better footage of these animals in their natural habitat.
There's Always a Bigger…Mollusc?
With all of this renewed hubbub over the giant squid, it should be pointed out that it is not completely unique among squid. As with many things named "giant" in zoology, there always seems to be something else that comes along to dwarf the previous "biggest."
Enter the colossal squid (Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni). Though this animal has been known to science since 1925, it never received the acclaim it's smaller (but longer) relative, Architeuthis, got. While the colossal squid doesn't appear to grow as long as the giant squid (their tentacles are shorter), they are many times larger than them. Furthermore, while giant squid are often viewed as the antagonists in battle scenes with sperm whales, there is good reason to suggest that the colossal squid might be responsible for so many battle scarred whales. As previously mentioned, many large sperm whales are found with deep claw marks on their heads. Giant squid tentacles do not have claws on them. They only contain suckers. Colossal squid tentacles, on the other hand, are laced with numerous hooks.
Who knows what else awaits discovery down in the murky depths of the ocean.
About The Author: The Iconoclast is a student at the University
Of New Mexico and part of the web building team at
http://www.Gifteteria.com :Gift Giving With A Smile.
Saturday, October 29, 2005
Volcano Cake
Tenerife in Kansas? No, I assure you we didn't move the entire island, but this Volcano Cake by Wendy of Cake Space in Kansas could certainly represent Tenerife.
Oh, yes, we have plenty of great cake shops here on the island. Just ask my mother ... she's been to all of them!
The very best though is the Pastelería El Aderno in Buenavista del Norte. Even the official tourist guide call it "an obligatory stop". Resistance is futile!
Treasure island
The Scotsman's Jeremy Lee, in Treasure island, had doubts about Tenerife for all the usual reasons including the ridicule and pity of friends who only see "the seedy fleshpots of resorts such as Playa de las Americas where drunken young Brits indulge their wildest excesses by night and sleep off their hangovers during the day".
What he found later as he "lounged beside a Roman-colonnaded swimming pool" was another experience entirely and said, "if it's good enough for well-heeled Madrilenos then it was ample for four white whales from the frozen north." The south of the island has certainly done much recently to revamp and improve its image.
The Lees stayed at the Mare Nostrum resort, a citadel of five, five-star hotels, which include the Cleopatra, Julius Caesar and the Sir Anthony.
As well as the essential luxuries such as a spa, Lee informs us that the "Mare Nostrum must be one of the few resort hotels in the world to boast its own navy."
He also indulges in a bit of timeshare "internet holiday" club tout-baiting, which I seriously advise you to avoid. Probably your best defence is to tell them you are visiting your son/daughter who lives here. Look knowing. Wink. It worked for my parents! :)
Friday, October 28, 2005
Perfect Paella
In Spain On A Plate Maria Jose Sevilla refers to cocina de aprovechamiento - the efficient use of available ingredients - and this is definitely the style of cooking you will find in my kitchen.
Whist many foreign residents will spend fortunes buying imported food that is familiar to them, I prefer to make adaptations of local dishes using the cheaper, healthier local ingredients.
Where possible, these ingredients come right off the land.
The moors brought rice to the Iberian Peninsular in the eighth century and paella started it's life as a peasant dish, eaten in the fields and vegetable gardens. Now it is considered more "special" and often gets reserved for parties. This is a shame, I think, because it is so simple to prepare to enjoy for every day.
Purists will probably say that you have to be born and brought up around Valencia to make a "real" paella. Locals here too will call anything that doesn't adhere to a strictly traditional paella recipe, merely "arroz" - rice. Whether my paella inglessa is a paella or an arroz is, I think, less important than getting my dinner!
So, this is not your snobby, professional paella, this is something to eat!
Where I am most fortunate is that I can buy ready mixed spices or even pick saffron right out of the fields. I can also buy mixed packs of seafood; prawns, muscles, cockles, squid, etc. There are two types of these packs - ones specifically intended for paella that include spices and vegetables, which I am not at all keen on, or ones that are just seafood "selection packs", intended to make a seafood salad and which I prefer to use half with rice and use the rest to make a seafood soup.
If you do not have these packs available, you can buy seafood items separately, of course, including, at the very least, prawns and muscles. With or without shell, as you wish. For "high days and holidays" add a few langostines whole. If you are dead broke or want to make paella for kids, you can even chop imitation crab sticks into it! 
Ingredients (4 portions appox.)
Seafood of your preference
Onion, peeled and chopped
Red pepper, peeled and chopped
Olive oil
Paella spices (saffron and sweet paprika)
Handful of frozen peas
Six tablespoons of rice
600 cc fish stock
Method
Soften the onion and the red pepper in a little olive oil. Add the seafood and fry for a couple of minutes. Add a teaspoon or so of spices (to taste). Add the rice and stir so that it all gets yellow colored. Throw in the handful of peas. Cover with the stock, then turn the heat right down low and walk away. It should take about 20-30 minutes cook, depending on quantity, until all the water is absorbed and the rice is evenly cooked.
My Personal Tips
Two things are essential: cook the paella on the largest, widest burner you have or it will cook unevenly. The other is that you must resist all temptations to stir it.
The fish stock can readily be made with a fish bullion cube.
The proportions mentioned here are merely ones that I have experimented with and found to work for me. That is 100 cc of water to each tablespoon of rice. More and it stays wet. Less and the rice doesn't cook. Stick to those proportions and you can make more or less paella, depending on the number of portions you require.
100 cc = 0.211337641 US pints OnlineConversion.com
Six tablespoons of rice assumes you will serve this as a main dish. You may get more portions if you serve it as the fish course or less if you are very hungry types!
Serve with slices of lemon and the beverage of your choice.
Supplies
If you don't have the selections I do in the regular supermarket, US viewers can get everything for paella making; the proper rice, saffron, paprika, fish bullion cubes, paella dishes or entire kits from Tienda.com. I guarantee that your mouth will water browsing there. Some of their products are also available from Amazon
If you are based in or nearer the UK, get your paella dish here
If you are looking for authentic paella recipes, we recommended: Paella! by Penelope Casas US visitors | UK visitors
Thursday, October 27, 2005
Santiago Calatrava: Sculpture into Architecture Opens
NEW YORK.-Santiago Calatrava, the world-renowned architect who has designed some of the most beautiful structures of our epoch (among them the new transportation hub he has designed for the World Trade Center site and Tenerife Auditorium in Santa Cruz, Canary Islands), is the subject of a new exhibition, Santiago Calatrava: Sculpture into Architecture at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. This exhibition, on view through March 5, 2006, will demonstrate that many of the forms of his celebrated buildings originated in his independent works of art. Source: artdaily.com
Tenerife in Winter
For travel this winter, Sophie Butler in Travel Telegraph says, "A good option is the Canary Islands, where temperatures remain consistently pleasant through the winter months. Average daily temperatures in Tenerife and Gran Canaria are in the low 70s, with around six hours of sunshine a day and about six rainy days a month."
For the most part, I agree with her. However, whilst it CAN rain, especially between November and March, these rainy days are more likely to come in mere pairs and if it happens, there are still plenty of places to see and things to do other than the beach.
It is also true that accommodation - even the type we live in permanently - is not cut out for dealing with cooler days. Nevertheless, it will never be as cold as it would have been in the UK! Provided you pack long trousers (such as sweat pants) for lounging indoors and a medium weight sweater or cardigan style jacket, this will be enough.
You will want those anyway for your trip up a possibly snow-tipped Mount Teide.
This might sound silly, but some wooly socks are also a good idea for sitting around on winter evenings, on account of those tiled and marble floors we have everywhere.
The other antidote to this, of course, is simply to keep active! If you are cold and it is wet outside, repair to the nearest hotel with a gym, sauna or steam bath.
CCC profits up almost a quarter
Compania Cervecera de Canarias (CCC) has posted a healthy rise in operating profit. The Spanish brewer said yesterday (25 October) that operating profit for its fiscal year to 31 March leapt by 22% year-on-year to €17.7m (US$21.4m). Just-Drinks.com
The Canarian beer company was founded in Santa Cruz de Tenerife in 1939 and began brewing the Dorada brand. In 1994, they merged with Sociedad Industrial Canaria (SICAL) of Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, which was formerly the La Tropical brewery.
Some years ago, they also acquired the independent brewer of the Mas brand beer.
These beers are uniquely found in the Canary Islands, with Dorada continuing to be typical in Tenerife and Tropical the favorite in Gran Canaria. Info: Marcas de cerveza.
Visitors really should try these lager beers instead of the imported ones. I find them to be smoother and less gassy than more familiar names, apart from which you will find their relative prices amusingly cheap and, your purchase helps the local community.
First Choice reports dip in short-haul demand
Tour operator First Choice today indicated that consumers were losing interest in traditional winter breaks after sales of its short-haul holidays fell. Bookings for mainstream short-haul holidays to destinations such as the Canary Islands, Egypt or Morocco this winter were 13% lower than a year ago and customer numbers were down by a fifth. British-based First Choice has seen its traditional market eroded over the past three years by the growth of budget airlines such as Ryanair and easyJet.
First Choice reports dip in short-haul demand
Wednesday, October 26, 2005
Giant Squid Found off Los Cristianos, Tenerife
The Giant Squid Caught by The Alecton off The Coast of Tenerife, 30th November 1861 Buy this Giclee Print at AllPosters.com
Canarias7 report that a giant squid was found floating dead in the area off Los Cristianos, in the south of Tenerife, last Monday, October 24. The animal was of the species Architeuthis sp and had a large bite on the fin area at the back of its body.
This bite could have been the cause of the giant squid's death, but this could not be confirmed with any security, as it could also have been attacked when it was already dying. [1] A cetacean of medium build is wanted in connection with the attack.
(No, sorry, I made the last bit up. The Spanish report translated literally that it had been bitten by "a cetacean of medium stature" and that's what it made me think! :)
The immature animal of seven and a half meters in length (blimey, what's a grown up like?), whose sex has not been able to be confirmed, is now being studied by scientists of the Centro Oceanográfico (IEO) de Canarias (Canarian Oceanographic Center).
A local fisherman found the 8 metre long cephalopod, say Tenerife News, which weighed in at around 100 kilos, and dragged it to the shore where scientists examined it and took a biopsy.
Although present in all the world?s oceans, Architeutis is rarely seen, living as it does at depths of between 300 and 1,500 metres, in total darkness. According to experts the waters in the south of Tenerife are home to one of the largest populations of giant squid in the world.
[1] Mere speculation, but I suppose it could have suffered a post-coital attack, such as is described here, "However, the frenzy of copulation and the rigors of mating weaken the squid and those that do not die outright are quickly munched by the many sea lions, sharks, and dolphins that gather in the wings during such "festivals."
EEK! And we thought that sex takes it out of you!
If you also thought these beings only existed in Jules Verne novels, James Bond stories, Harry Potter and a host of other fictional settings, rest assured you are not alone. Everything you ever wanted to know about Giant squid From Wikipedia.
It was only a month ago that Japanese researchers, Tsunemi Kubodera and Kyoichi Mori, released the first pictures of live giant squid caught on camera (BBC report) and Giant Squid Finally Captured On Film (related article).
Monday, October 24, 2005
Flyin South For The Winter Canary Style
Rosina Tinari Wilson in Wine X Magazine, says she found, "... an island paradise (seven of them, in fact), virtually undiscovered by Americans, where the food's cheap and good, the local wine flows like water (and costs not much more) and it's springtime all year."
"... and if you push it, you can drive all the way around Tenerife in a day. But it's much more fun to explore the back roads and tiny towns slowly, sipping coffee with the locals at a mountainside cafe, bodysurfing at the instant beach made from four million bags of Sahara sand, and sampling the specialties -- cured ham, olives, almonds, fruits, cheeses and fresh-caught fish -- in every corner of the island."
Yup, we'd pretty much agree with that!
Flyin South For The Winter Canary Style
Wednesday, October 19, 2005
Tenerife for teenagers
For those of us who are no longer teenagers (more's the pity), Nigel Tisdall's article offers a look at a good selection of the things to do - like a visit to the pyramids, a cultural night at the ballet or eating fig ice cream with palm honey ... and those to avoid, such as "a noisy track full of fellow white trash from the UK.".
Tenerife for teenagers
Tenerife T(r)ots
Before you blame your next dicky tummy on the foreign food, better do a pregnancy test! (Of course, this may not apply to blokes.) Britain's youngest mother of triplets, thought she had come down with food poisoning on a summer holiday to Tenerife.
Girl, 16, shows off triplets
Fat people told to move on plane
Passengers on a half-empty plane on a Britannia Airways flight from Tenerife to Gatwick were shocked when an air hostess asked for eight 'fat' people to move to the front of the plane as the captain was unhappy with weight distribution in the cabin.
'Fat' people told to move on plane
Fat' holidaymakers asked to move
Joy at coma mum's amazing recovery
"A mum who suffered terrible head injuries in a fall in Tenerife has defied doctors' predictions that she will never walk again and is beginning to make an incredible recovery."
Joy at coma mum's amazing recovery
Tuesday, October 18, 2005
Lucky seven
What are all these dissimilar people doing together?
There are families with young children side-by-side with middle-aged ramblers. Baseball-capped clubbers stand next to elderly gents in Panama hats. There are beer-swilling boozers, golfers, honeymoon couples, bronzed surfing types and fashionable young women clutching copies of Vogue and Tatler. Some are speaking English, others German, Dutch or Scandinavian (and quite a few Castilian Spanish).
A social anthropologist would have a field day at Tenerife airport.
Travel Telegraph's Paul Mansfield reminds us that on Tenerife and its surrounding islands - well known for their hedonistic beach culture - there are alternative attractions.
It's Your Move
Calling all chess players in Spain and the Canary Islands for the the "Dia De Internet" chess festival, which takes place from October 20 to 22 on the Playchess.com server. There is a prize fund of no less than €4,000,00 to be won – the first prize alone is €800.
The tournament is played in three stages. The first stage is a regional qualifying tournament, for which all players from Spain and all inhabitants of the Canary Islands are eligible. This tournament will take place on Thursday, 20. October 2005.
More details can be found here »
Monday, October 17, 2005
Untidy Tenerife Curtains Inspire Invention
It isn't just the magnificent scenery in Tenerife that inspires people, it's also our unsightly curtains, as the Rochdale Observer reports: "Valerie Clegg is seeking to patent her special curtain hook which wraps up the tailends of the cord that is always left after putting up curtains. It could soon be available to buy in the shops. Mrs Clegg, was inspired after visiting a friend's apartment in Tenerife."
Inventor is hooked on tidiness
Man struck by car in Tenerife
A widow has re-lived the horror of seeing a body flying 20ft through the air, turning to tell her husband - and realising it was him. They were on the first week of their holiday in Costa Adeje, southern Tenerife, when the tragedy happened on April 9.
Wife tells of tragedy
Saturday, October 15, 2005
Melchior present at Clinton’s Big Apple summit
Cabildo president Ricardo Melchior was in New York last week, rubbing shoulders with the great and the good at the Clinton Global Initiative meeting, an invitation to which was extended by the former US president during his recent visit to Tenerife.
Melchior present at Clinton’s Big Apple summit
Friday, October 14, 2005
Three tons of cocaine seized off the Canary Islands
Voice of America report that police have seized three tons of cocaine from a cargo ship off the Canary Islands and arrested 16 people. Police boarded the Panamanian-flagged cargo ship Thursday, at the culmination of an investigation that lasted over a year.
Spain Seizes 3 Tons of Cocaine from Freighter
Thursday, October 13, 2005
British hero has never been forgotten in a corner of Tenerife
Many now know about Nelson's connections - maybe disconnections might be a better term, since it was here in Santa Cruz in Tenerife in 1797 that he was parted from his arm - but what do you know of the Nelson relics that still live on in the island's capital?
"Stroll along the Barranco de Santos in the old quarter of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and, with a bit of luck, you might stumble across an unassuming looking watering-hole called Bar Casa Nelson." But don't be put off by the name, says The Telegraph's Fiona Dunlop, "It's a godsend on this island known for its soulless resorts and "English breakfasts", as are Nelson's excellent home-made salads and tapas."
Cut off in his prime
Wednesday, October 12, 2005
Columbus in The Canary Islands
Christopher Columbus may have been born, in 1451, in the Italian port city of Genoa (which is also where many of Tenerife's early settlers hailed from), but his real origins remain a mystery. (More about alternative theories and new evidence for the location of Columbus' remains can be found here).
What is known is that on August 3, 1492, Columbus left from Palos, Spain and first sailed to the Canary Islands, where he re provisioned and made repairs (in Gran Canaria). He would also have seen Mount Teide on Tenerife erupt in 1492 on his way past the, at that time, as yet, unconquered island.
On September 6 he started the five week voyage - from La Gomera, where the date is a fiesta - across the ocean.
Christopher Columbus accidentally discovered the Western Hemisphere on October 12, 1492, although he continued to believe he had reached Asia until his death in 1506. He also believed the peaks of Cuba to be the Himalayas, which gives one a sense of just how lost he was. He never reached the United States where "Columbus Day" is celebrated. The holiday has also been celebrated here in Spain since 1958, as Día de la Hispanidad.
Controversy and Concubines
Columbus' later lover and mother of his second son Ferdinand, Beatriz Enriquez, should not be confused with the infamous Beatriz de Bobadilla - the widow of Hernán Peraza, Governor of La Gomera - who later married Alonso Fernández de Lugo, the conqueror of Tenerife, although popular legend, speculation and contemporary report suggest that Columbus may have been in love with this Beatriz too.
"Although La Gomera's most famous association is with Christopher Columbus, its most infamous is with the aristocratic Beatriz de Bobadilla, by reputation a vicious medieval nymphomaniac, and by all accounts - including a portrait in the Parador Nacional - a great beauty."
"Rumours of a liaison grew and on subsequent trips Columbus would add to the circumstantial evidence, interrupting both his 1493 and 1498 journeys on the island. In 1498 he was disappointed to find that Beatriz had married Alonso Fernández de Lugo, the conqueror of Tenerife, so that on his final 1502 voyage Columbus didn't even bother to weigh anchor in San Sebastián."
References:
Christopher Columbus From Wikipedia
Columbus Day Historical Perspectives
Christopher Columbus NNDB
Beatriz de Bobadilla on Destination Guides - La Gomera
Columbus’ Rendezvous in La Gomera
Columbus Links Page
