Thursday, November 30, 2006
Canary Islands Population Growth in 250 Years
Data from this study published by the Instituto Canario de Estadística (ISTAC) (Canarian Statistics Institute), reveals that, in the last quarter of a millennium, the overall population of the Canary Islands has multiplied by thirteen.
The study shows the growth in the Canary Islands' population since the first modern census in the history of the archipelago, the Census of Aranda in 1768, the first which counted all of the members of the population and not just heads of families.
At the time of that 1768 census, there were 155,763 people living in the Canary Islands. By 1797, the number had risen to 173,865. At the beginning of the 20th Century, in 1900, it was 364,408, which has risen to almost two million today.
An interesting piece of side information we can derive from this, is that with 283,931 "outsiders" (142,375 from other parts of Spain and 141,556 foreigners) living in the islands in 2001, the remaining population growth of 1.3 million over the last century must be due to the expansion of the "native population" itself and, firmly refutes the widely held belief that immigration alone is responsible for the explosion.
Tenerife and Gran Canaria have always been the most populated islands of the archipelago, with Gran Canaria occupying first place between 1940 and 2001.
Historically, La Palma had been the third most populated island and, had remained so until as recently as 1998, when Lanzarote took over that position.
The most populated city, since 1768, has been Las Palmas in Gran Canaria, except in 1910, when Santa Cruz in Tenerife took over the title briefly. The second most inhabited city was La Laguna, in Tenerife, back in 1768, Telde in Gran Canaria from 1787 to 1842 and Santa Cruz in Tenerife from 1857, until the present day.
Santa Cruz' population, back in 1768, had numbered a mere 7,399. By 2005, it had multiplied almost thirty times to 221,567. The population of Arona, in the south of Tenerife, has multiplied by almost 38, from 1,516 in 1768, to 57,445 in 2005.
Whereas, in more rural areas, such as in the municipality of Buenavista del Norte, which had begun with 1,376 inhabitants in the 18th Century, had merely quadrupled its numbers to it's highest point of 5,664 in 1996. Since then, the population has actually been slowly dropping, to 5,300 in 2005. In some rural districts on the island of La Gomera too, the population has only doubled in those 250 years.
Despite the population growth, the number of homes only multiplied by 9.6 in the 233 years, from 57,218 in 1768 to 552,497 in 2001. The average size of family has dropped from 4.2 in 1842, after reaching a peak of 4.8 in 1920, to 3.1 in 2001.
For those of you who also like numbers, the data is very easy to play with and will give you these figures for any island or town, just by using the dropdown boxes.
En los últimos 250 años la población se ha multiplicado por trece en las Islas
Meeting of Saints in Tenerife
The exhibition, which is open until Sunday, contains 56 pieces of iconography.
San Roque (Saint Roch), San Sebastián (Saint Sebastian) and San Lázaro (Saint Lazarus) are the three healing saints (Holy Helpers) most venerated in the Canary Islands and images of the three are found all over the archipelago. However, there is a prevalence above all others for San Roque in Garachico, which arrived in the municipality after an epidemic of plague between 1600 and 1606.
The figure of the saint that has been venerated in Garachico for four centuries provides the focal point of the exhibition, Roque de Montpellier, along with iconography of the various "saints of the plague", figures of San Roque from all around the islands and of other, associated, guardians of health.
The exhibition has received 7,000 visitors since it opened on October 20th, which is a record number, given that it is outside the usual cultural circuit. It remains open until Sunday, at Garachico's Convento de San Francisco (Former Franciscan Convent).
(Photo: Town Hall and Plaza Glorieta de San Francisco in Garachico dressed for the Fiestas de San Roque in Garachico, in August. The entrance to the Convento de San Francisco and the exhibition is through the arched door in the yellow building on the left. This is a museum, open to the public, and is well worth visiting at any time, if only to see the gorgeous architecture, stone floors and its heartwood cloisters.)
Reunión de santos en Tenerife
Just what is a Tenerife Calima?
Recently, just after we'd been on alert for high winds and heavy rains, the weather turned straight into a hot air calima. It was a surprising combination or sequence of meteorological events, particularly for the time of year. The good news is that calimas only happen a couple of times of year, but just what is a Tenerife Calima?
Michael Hopkins wanted to know and says, "I have often heard the word Calima talked about when I am on holiday in Tenerife and I was wondering just what a Calima is, what does a Calima do and why do Calima’s occur in Tenerife? So I thought I would do a little investigation into Calimas ..."
Just what is a Tenerife Calima?
Labels: Tenerife Weather
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Where to Sample Tenerife Wines
The premises are housed in a traditional large Canarian house (more images here) that is also a wine museum, open to the public, where you can learn all about wines and winegrowing in Tenerife and sample the product. (Wednesdays to Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 9.30 p.m. Sundays 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.)
This year's harvest from the Icoden-Daute-Isora wine region was 48.74 percent larger than last year, with this region alone producing 1.3 million kilos of grapes; 843,939 of them white and 477,984 of them red this year. There are 900 individual growers and 23 bodegas registered in the region - the most ancient but most recently Denominated of Spain's regions.
Harvests from the Orotava Valley and the Tacoronte Acentejo region also showed increases over last year. Councillor for Agriculture, José Joaquín Bethencourt, has classed the 2006 vintage as excellent, both in terms of quantity and quality.
La comarca Icoden-Daute-Isora experimenta un incremento del 48,74 por ciento con respecto al pasado año
Solving the mysteries of volcanoes
Scientists are on a mission to find out why volcanoes erupt and what signs could help people predict future eruptions, by studying the “Hawaii of Europe”, Tenerife, reports Allison Doty in The Daily Evergreen. The report says that, "Tenerife is a unique volcano because, unlike most volcanoes in Europe, it is active and has a relatively young span of volcanism, giving the opportunity to study chemical processes before the magma erupts." If you are hoping they will tell you when it might be likely to do so, sadly you'll be disappointed, but it's gratifying to know they're working on it.
Solving the mysteries of volcanoes
Canary Islands Bananas are not to blame
Recent reports of the biting spider - Steatoda nobilis, commonly known as the false black widow - terrorizing the south of Britain, claim that the "The spider is native to the Canary Islands but arrived in England in around 1870 through bananas sent to Torquay." This information, it would appear, is not quite accurate.
Quoting Antonio Machado, a biologist who has spent a good part of his life classifying Canarian "bugs", this report by Bernardo Sagastume in ABC, tells us that, "It is probable that they are from here, although they could also come from Madeira, as ships in those days called at both archipelagos".
What he does not believe, however, is that the banana can be to blame, because, as he says, "there are spiders in plantations, but they are not the ones that bite."
Besides that, Machado adds that the spider is not exclusively endemic to the Canary Islands, nor is it a native and was probably introduced into the Canary Islands.
It's a strange thing, but I can remember when I was a kid, growing up in England that adults were always concerned - really concerned - about spiders in bananas. Of course, this was not something I questioned at the time, but I wonder if they were still reacting to inaccurate 1870 reports (mere assumptions) over the spider's arrival?
Es canaria y le teme Inglaterra
Electric Light Orchestra at the Autitorio
From Christmas lights to electric lights ... with this report that Birmingham's own "supergroup" Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) - formed in that British city in 1971 - are to bring their mythical sounds to the Auditorio de Tenerife in Santa Cruz on December 3rd and 4th as part of the "Legendarios" series of concerts.
La Electric Light Orquestra traerá míticos sonidos a Tenerife
Christmas decorations Tenerife style
Whist decorations are yet to go up in some smaller towns and those in homes are not traditionally put up until December 8th, the Immaculate Conception, Diario de Avisos report that the street lights are up in the capital, Santa Cruz, which seem to be these same blue and white ones - that's OK, I approve of them saving money - confirmed in this report. If you are just visiting, you will probably find it much more pleasant and convenient to go there by bus, as will become apparent.
This year Buenavista del Norte will be holding it's first Concurso de Escaparates (Christmas Window Dressing Contest) among the shops in the town. One of the changes in recent years here is that there are now enough, lively enough shops to hold such an event. When I first came over to this side of the island, Buenavista had merely a handful of dusty old establishments, generally devoid of customers.
Those will be on view from the beginning of December to January 7th, so hopefully, will provide me with a few photo opportunities as the season develops.
Meanwhile, here are some photos of more Christmas light decorated palms, Christmas decorations Tenerife style, colored lights in the Plaza de España and Santa on the streets of Tenerife amidst the cactus plants and tropical weather to wet your appetite for the aesthetic delights of the Christmas season, Tenerife stylee.
Labels: Christmas
Christmas Concerts in Tenerife
The most famous is the annual free, open-air Concierto de Navidad (Christmas Concert) given by the Tenerife Symphony Orchestra, in the evening on Christmas Day itself, in Santa Cruz. (+/- 9 p.m.) This is usually located in the Plaza de España, but since that area has been undergoing a complete reformation this year, it may be elsewhere nearby this year. It is a tradition that draws a crowd of thousands, is also normally televised and, is followed by a grand fireworks display.
In smaller towns, such as in Buenavista del Norte, the municipal band also puts on a free concert in the evening of Christmas Day, every year. This one is indoors in the cinema in the main street and, afterwards, just about everyone gathers in the square to chat, have coffee - still warm enough outside - and generally mingle.
Labels: Christmas
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
One Year On: The Day That Delta Dawned
Dawn sky over Tenerife on Monday, November 28th, 2005.Today is the first anniversary of Tropical Storm Delta that whipped through the Canary Islands on November 28th and 29th, 2005. Later denominated as an Extratropical Cyclone, though the precise distinction in terms is lost on the "ordinary folk" of these islands. Whatever it was, we remember it for the wake of damage it left, valued at $364+ million, with 7 deaths and 12 disappeared.
Delta was the worst storm that these islands have suffered and local media cannot help but comment on it again today and point out that residents in the Canary Islands still live with the fear that that something similar could happen again. The question of course, is whether these islands are prepared, if such a storm should hit us again.
Despite the alerts, nobody took it seriously enough and, therefore, for the most part, Delta took the Canary Islands almost completely by surprise. Some 200,000 people in Tenerife, the hardest hit, were left without electricity, a number of whom were also without water and, some of those lacked these basic services for up to a week.
Many point to the lack of provision for such emergencies in the archipelago, remembering that most of the population was left without electricity at some point and that there were no generators on the islands to cope with the situation.
Many of the population were left without water, most of us suffered damages and loss of electrical appliances, frozen food had to be thrown away, agriculture and business suffered huge financial losses, yet, so far, there has been no indemnification.
Electric tower fallen. Photo: Mataparda
One of the most impacting images was that of the fallen electrical pylons, found to be in an "elevated" state of oxidation.
Several towers were brought down by the high winds alongside the TF-1 motorway, causing chaos, not just with the electrical supply, but also with the traffic.
Finally, yesterday, the parliamentary commission set up to investigate the response to Delta, decided unanimously, that responsibility for bad management falls jointly upon both central and Canary Islands administrations, as well as the electricity company, Unelco-Endesa, for the weaknesses in the Canarian electrical supply system.
Some are interpreting that decision as good news, but I think my friend Bernardo Sagastume at ABC gives us the best analysis on the subject, saying that, "those culpable ... are various and, at the same time, nobody."
That was my reading of it too: the commission has been seen to have done it's job, just about, but it carefully avoided upsetting anyone in particular. That is hardly the way to make changes that will really improve the situation for the future.
In particular, the commission's report does recognize that the electrical pylons were in a poor state and only capable of half their designed capacity - for which Unelco was sanctioned - yet, the conclusions of the report fail attribute blame on Unelco for the resultant, prolonged, up to seven days, power outages in Tenerife.
Only the politicians themselves seem to be satisfied with the outcome and, as one would expect here, they also seem to have spent time arguing over what to call the storm, some claiming it was really a hurricane of force 3 or 4. (Like we care?)
Central to the issue, of course, is whether the storm should be termed "de fuerza mayor" - what English speaking insurers, even atheist ones, call an "Act of God" - because from that depends who (if anyone) will pay out to those affected.
Specifically too, the estimated damages reported earlier and mentioned in the reports at Wikipedia (English | Spanish), were all well in excess of $300 million (228 million euros at today's rate). Nevertheless, the commission has now valued the global damages caused by Delta at merely 41.7 million euros ($54.8 million).
As to the future, the new president of Unelco, José María Plans, says that energy distribution has improved from the "critical" state it was in a year ago, but the archipelago continues to require new power stations to diversify risks.
We all hope that there will never be another storm of the like of Delta in the Canary Islands, but merely hoping would be foolish in the extreme. Unfortunately, from these conclusions, Canary Islanders are still left merely hoping that what the authorities might do to prepare, if it does occur, is enough and in time.
La ´comisión Delta´ confirma la debilidad del sistema eléctrico
La ’comisión Delta’ reparte las culpas entre Endesa y toda la Administración
Hace un año el Delta "nos destrozó"
El día en que el Delta rugió (With photos)
Tormenta Tropical Delta
Tropical Storm Delta (2005)
Días de crisis
Labels: Tropical Storm Delta
Monday, November 27, 2006
Canaries & Caving
It seems logical that there must be a whole world of caves to explore in the Canary Islands, since the aboriginal inhabitants, the Guanches, preferred dwelling in caves. Cave homes still exist in some areas and had remained in use in many other places until the relatively recent past as this photo - Cuevas-vivienda en Tenerife - shows.
The typical situation was to use the caves on the sunny side of a valley for habitation caves and those on the shaded side for burial caves. Often, but not always (in the case of "nobility") bodies were mummified. In 1526, a man named Thomas Nichols explored a cave containing approximately four hundred mummies. In 1770, a cave containing 1,000 mummies was located between the towns of Arico and Guimar in Tenerife and, in 1773, a smaller mummy cave was found. [Source]
These volcanic isles have no karst caves, but several lava tubes and a huge amount of mostly artificial volcanic caves. Whilst some caves have been turned into tourist theme parks, many others are not accessible to the public, so expert guidance should be sought before rushing here to explore their murky depths.
Caves in Tenerife
There are many caves around the area of Güímar, such as, "The Cueva del Cañizo, an aboriginal cave that was the summer residence of the Menceyes (Kings) of Güimar, is in the ravine. It gets its name from the network of tubes inside it."
Once thought to be the largest volcanic cave in the world, is the extraordinary Cueva del Viento (Cave of the Wind), near Icod de los Vinos in Tenerife. There are guided tours of the Cueva del Viento available, with expert guidance from the Grupo de Espeleología de Tenerife Benisahare (Benisahare Potholling Group).
Here it is probably best to ask someone who has actually been to the cave: "In March 2001 a 9-man team from Kraków led by Michal Gradzinski visited lava tube caves in the Canary Islands. Cueva del Viento on Tenerife Island was the main objective of the expedition." They also visited the nearby Cueva de San Marcos. Report with photos. These latter caves, also known as the Cuevas de los Guanches, were considered to be a seasonal habitat of the island´s aboriginal people.
One of the most famous caves of Tenerife, writes Jochen Duckeck at ShowCaveBlog, is the Cueva de Bencomo in La Orotava. Although this was once the residence of the Guanche "Mencey" (Chief) Bencomo and has been declared a cultural interest site, he says, "Currently the cave is in use as a goat pen and any content of archeological interest is protected by a 40cm thick layer of packed goat excrement."
In El Palmar, the local supermarket, La Cuevas, is named after the caves, the Cuevas del Palmar. There are caves, known as Las Cuevas, that look as though they have been used for dwelling, on the perimeter of the village of Teno Alto.
Caves Elsewhere in the Canary Islands
On the tourist route is the Cueva Pintada (Painted Cave) in Gáldar, in Gran Canaria - a small cave with geometric paintings from the Guanche era. This "archaeological theme park" can easily be visited by the public, even the non-adventurous types.
On El Hierro, the most noted cave is the Cueva de Don Justo - the second longest cave on the islands - but this is located on private ground and is not regularly open. Even though it is 200 years since the last volcanic eruption, El Hierro has the highest density of volcanos in the Canary Islands, with 500 open cones, 300 more that are covered by more recent flows and some 70 caves and volcanic tubes.
Numerous habitation and burial caves have been found in the area known as the Degollada de Peraza on the island of La Gomera. The most famous of these is the Cueva de Guahedum or Guadejume. Shepherds reused this cave and built the wall over the opening. (See photo) It is nothing special, but it is a sort of historic site - a story of love and murder - at least, if you believe contemporary chroniclers.
The Cueva de los Verdes (Spanish meaning "green cave") is a cave located on the island of Lanzarote in the Canary Islands, created around 3,000 years ago from a volcanic eruption. The cave is famous for its concert hall which is located near the entrance and the exit of the cave, but the cave has now become unstable so performances in the hall are not permitted in case the cave collapses.
On the island of La Palma too, speleology - the scientific study of caves, or potholing - is not unknown either. "As the island of La Palma has experienced the majority of all volcanic eruptions which have occurred in historical times (the last 500 years), it should not surprise us that there are a great many caverns, which in turn are connected with volcanic tunnels." Report with photos.
Where to get more information: PuntoInfo list the Canary Island Potholing Federation. C/San Sebastián 76, 1piso (Casa del Deporte) S/C. Tel: 922 22 72 55. Sports: caving and potholing, descent of canyons and ravines and cave diving. I phoned them today and they gave me the address for the Club de Espeleologia Tajinaste C/ San Juan, 15. 38320 La Cuesta (La Laguna) Tel: 922 641 558.
Sunday, November 26, 2006
Promotion: 20% Off Tenerife Calendars
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Thursday, November 23, 2006
Morocco-Canary Island ferry to start in 2007
Hidden behind the large headlines about a great illegal traffic of migrants from West and North-West Africa to Spanish archipelago lies the fact that trade and legal traffic in persons in rapidly growing. Canarian investors and charter tourists from northern Europe are increasingly travelling to north-western Africa, while traders and shopping tourists from Morocco, Mauritania and Senegal are becoming a visible part of urban life in the Canary Islands. President of the autonomous islands, yesterday announced that a regular ferry service between the Fuerteventura port of Puerto del Rosario and southern Morocco's Tarfaya was to commence "before next summer."
Morocco-Canary Island ferry to start in 2007
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
The First Thanksgiving was Held Where?
Many Americans mistakenly believe that the Pilgrims of 1620 were the first to settle, however, many preceded them. On April 30, 1598, Spanish nobleman Don Juan de Oñate and a group of settlers traveling northward from Zacatecas, Nueva España (now Mexico), reached the banks of El Rio Bravo (Rio Grande). The first recorded act of thanksgiving by colonizing Europeans occurred on that day in 1598 in Nuevo Mexico, about 25 miles south of what is now El Paso, Texas. Two thirds of the colonizers were from the Iberian Peninsula (Spain, Portugal) and the Canary Islands.
The First Thanksgiving was Held Where?
Monday, November 20, 2006
Canary Islands Prepare for Royal Visit
Although the program, facilitated by the Canary Islands Government, could change for "possible complications of security", says the report, the King and Queen will arrive in Tenerife on the morning of Wednesday, November 22nd, for a five-day visit to all seven of the Canary Islands and will have "lots of contact with the street", i.e. public.
Tenerife
In Tenerife, the King and Queen are set to visit the Canary Islands Parliament and then to inaugurate an exhibition of images at the headquarters of the CajaCanarias bank in Santa Cruz, entitled, "Imágenes Reales" (Royal Images), organized to celebrate the centenary of Alfonso XIII's visit. They will then visit the El Polvorín center in the district of Taco, before going on to La Laguna - by tram - to visit the Royal Sanctuary of the Cristo de La Laguna (Figure of Christ). In the evening, they will meet with representatives of various institutions and organizations related to immigration, before dining with the President of the Canary Islands, Adán Martín.
El Hierro and La Gomera
On the morning of November 23rd, the monarchs will arrive in El Hierro, where they will be received by the president of that island's corporation and visit an exhibition on communications in the archipelago, commemorating the fiber optic cable connection that is to be inaugurated that day. After a reception in El Hierro, the King and Queen will travel to the island of La Gomera for lunch and to visit various emblematic sites on the island, as well as to unveil a bust of Christopher Columbus, a gift from the Canary Islands Government to La Gomera. In the evening, they will return to Tenerife, where their majesties will offer a reception to Tenerife society.
La Palma
First thing on Friday, the King and Queen will travel to Los Llanos de Aridane on the island of La Palma. There, they will visit an exhibition of paintings, entitled "El Platano como Identidad Canaria" (The Banana as a Canarian Identity) and, will afterwards go to the La Palma capital, Santa Cruz, to visit the Palacio Salazar, an exhibition on the centenary of the visit of King Alfonso XIII and the works of the Gran Telescopio de Canarias, which is set to be inaugurated during 2007. They will also attend a military parade and will have lunch at the state run Parador hotel on La Palma.
Fuerteventura, Lanzarote and Gran Canaria
On Saturday, their majesties will travel to Fuerteventura, where they will inaugurate an art exhibition and will later travel to Lanzarote for lunch and to open a new health center. On Sunday morning, they will visit the Cueva Pintada (Painted Cave) in Gáldar, Gran Canaria. They will then attend mass at the cathedral in the Gran Canaria capital, Las Palmas, before having lunch with the President of the Canary Islands government in the Hotel Santa Catalina, afterwards transferring to the airport to conclude the Royal visit to the Canary Islands archipelago.
Los Reyes, que llegan a Tenerife el próximo día 22, estarán cinco días en el archipiélago y visitarán las siete islas
Los Reyes tendrán la oportunidad de estar con toda la sociedad canaria
Ricky Martin wants to come back to the Canaries
In the middle of February next year, Martin will embark upon a new tour, starting in his native Puerto Rico and which will continue through the rest of Latin America, the United States, Europe and the Middle East. He will reach Spain around May or June and has announced that "Canarias has to be included in the tour", because of the warm welcome he received in the islands during the signings.
Ricky Martin quiere volver a Canarias
Sunday, November 19, 2006
Blogger Turns to a Jobber in the Canary Islands
Femi Jaye a blogger in the Canary Islands now offers a personal information service for travelers so that they can check out their resort destination before they even get there. The service will initially cover Gran Canaria and Fuerteventura, with Tenerife and Lanzarote to be added next year.
Many people wonder if the private apartment or hotel room that they have booked on line is as good as the show photos. Well now there is a way to find out. Femi Jaye, a UK expat is offering just that service from his blog.
He went on to say that he will include finding suitable restaurants for people and checking to see if a destination is disabled friendly and other bits of information that it are not always easy to discern on the web.
http://www.canary-islands-info.blogspot.com/ Via: PRWEB
Thousands still say NO to Granadilla Port
Brussels recently gave the go-ahead for the port to be built, although with conditions, but protesters still say that the environmental risks are just too high. The protest too was as much against the growing levels of urban corruption in Spain. They accuse the Canary Islands parliament of "living off cement" with growth accelerating out of control and, are demanding a referendum over the building of the port.
Miles de personas se manifiestan Tenerife contra el puerto de Granadilla y la corrupción urbanística
Miles de personas dicen 'no con mi voto' al puerto de Granadilla
Thousands demonstrate against planned Canaries port
Labels: Puerto de Granadilla
Final Day: 25% Off All Greeting Cards
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Canary Island Native Makes Home in Britain
(A later report suggests that this spider was not originally native to these islands and, that it was unlikely to have arrived in the UK on a banana boat.)
The source of that information is this story in the Telegraph, by David Sapsted, Watch out, the black widow's sister is ready to bite you, about Jason Fricker, 34, who was bitten three times on the chest and stomach after one fell down the front of his shirt a week ago. This is not the first time, as is confirmed by this case of a young woman in Worthing being bitten on the shoulder by the immigrant spider.
Back in 2001, the BBC reported that the Biting spider widens its web. Having gone native in Dorset, it was then also setting up home in Devon, Cornwall and Essex. In recent years, say the Telegraph, it has spread from the West Country across southern England as far as Sussex and is now migrating north through Surrey.
This listing at UK Safari also agrees with it's probable Canary Island origin.
One of the things I like about these islands is that you do NOT meet huge spiders like you do in the UK, because I have a really great fear of them. There, I had a theory about them: the size of the spider was relative to the age and grandure of the house they lived in and I have personally seen them stretching right across the width of an 8 inch diameter cornice decoration in a fine Victorian villa built in the 1870's.
Here in Tenerife, I have actually spent the last 15 years under the impression that we do not have any poisonous or biting varieties of insects or animals and the largest spider one ever sees is around 1 1/4 inches long. I would have almost doubted that these little beasties had come from these islands, except that here in the El Palmar valley, one sees a lot of spiders that fit the description of the Steatoda Nobilis or False Widow Spider. From now on, I shall be giving them an even wider berth!
The bite is no more severe than a wasp sting, unless you are one of the unfortunate people to have a severe reaction to them and, if you are one of the weird people who actually likes spiders, now you know where you can find them in the wild.
Saturday, November 18, 2006
Sunday opening in the Canary Islands
Whilst the rest of the "civilized" world is used to 24 hour shopping, 365 days a year, the Canary Islands have been notably slow to catch on to the modern idea.
Consumers welcomed the recent initiative of the Volkswagen network in the Canary Islands to open on Sundays and Public Holidays, however, the Government has begun a case to sanction Volkswagen over their Sunday opening. Volkswagen have decided not to carry on with the Sunday opening, so as not to cause a confrontation with the government, who could demand the definitive closure of their premises.
The basis seems to be that, the sale of goods outside the nine "exceptional days" allowed is an illegal activity, however, by law, a vendor is obliged to sell the items it has on offer on all the days that they open. Volkswagen were merely opening to show what they have available and give prices, without actually selling on Sundays.
Consumers' associations say that the current law, is "contrary to the necessities of consumers". They also say that they opposed the law from the outset as, they opine, that it was "born with a perverse aim". Reading what this is supposed to be - to limit the implantation of large shopping malls - I have to say that I agree with them.
Given that none of the islands is that large and that every family and his dog has two cars, even a limited number of such establishments are well within everyone's reach. And there are several. And they do seem to open at times, including Sundays, when everyone else isn't allowed to. That does, indeed, seem perverse logic, which at once, puts the small business at a distinct disadvantage in the marketplace.
Another criticism has been the lack of stores open on Sundays when cruise ships dock in Santa Cruz and this is a clear case where it would benefit everyone - bored tourists, shopkeepers and the island's coffers alike - to have those stores open.
The Canarian authorities, however, say they have no plans to make any changes to the current law, because, during the first quarter of 2007, a new European directive to regulate Sunday and holiday opening is due to come into force.
The new regulations, they say, will be much less restrictive than the current law, with the emphasis on environmental issues and economic parameters - which sounds like it might translate to good news for shops and shoppers. They did add, that, of course, the islands will have different treatment in relation to their distance from the European Union, so exactly what it will mean, still remains, very much, to be seen.
Los consumidores critican la ley que impide abrir domingos y festivos
Industria inicia un expediente de sanción a Volkswagen por abrir los domingos
Tenerife Volcano to get a CAT Scan
Forty scientists are to undertake an investigation project, coordinated by the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science, from January 10, 2007, to study the volcanic structure of Tenerife and produce a three-dimensional map of the island, much like the analysis provided by computed axial tomography (CAT scan) used in medicine.
Scientists from the University of Granada, the University of La Laguna, the University of Liverpool, the Island Corporation and the Observatory of Vesuvius in Italy, are among the participants from around the world.
Measurements will be taken via 150 points over 1,600 square kilometers and to a depth of 10 kilometers. The sismic signals will be recorded by the oceanographic ship, "Hespérides", to analyse the area of the Cañadas, Teide and the Pico Viejo for sismic activity and which will allow the scientists to observe where there is more or less magma, where rock is more or less solid and any zones of fractures.
Cuarenta investigadores determinarán la estructura volcánica de Tenerife
Canary Malmsey set for return after 300 years
The Independent reports that, "... the government of the Canary Islands is hoping to project a different image of the sun-kissed Spanish outpost by resurrecting the fortunes of a wine whose qualities were once lauded by Shakespeare and reputedly drowned the brother of a medieval English king."
"Malmsey (known as "Canary" in Elizabethan England), a sweet fortified wine made on the islands since the 15th century, was the drink of choice on the British Isles for aristocrats, writers and merchants for more than 150 years, until the trade suddenly ended in the 1680s.", they say.
This wine was exported through the north Tenerife port of Garachico and the rebellion, called the "Derrame del Vino", that the article talks about, took place in that town on the night of July 3, 1666, in protest against the abusive policies of the British monopoly in the trade. Three or four hundred masked men broke down the doors of the bodegas, destroyed the barrels, spilling the wine and causing "one of the strangest floods in world history", wrote Viera y Clavijo. [Source]
In other words, the local producers decided it was better to have washed the wine down the drain than to let the British have it for next to nothing. No doubt, we haven't yet been forgiven, but can hopefully now be trusted to pay a fair price!
There is a monument commemorating the 500th anniversary of the Wine Rebellion of 1666 - a statue of a man and some barrels - in Garachico alongside the main, coastal road through the town (towards the Icod de los Vinos end.)
The "Derrame del Vino", plus other disasters, among them, the 1706 eruption that destroyed the town's port, contributed to the end of Garachico's fortunes.
Canary Malmsey set for return after 300 years
Ricky Martin Signs Autographs for Tenerife Fans
Puerto Rican artist, Ricky Martin, was in Santa Cruz in Tenerife yesterday to sign copies of his latest CD, MTV Unplugged, for fans at department store, El Corte Inglés in the island's capital. One 15 year old fan travelled all the way from Miami just to see him.
The multitude of the singer's fans began congregating at ten in the morning, although it was not until ten past seven in the evening when Martin arrived. Dressed casually in a black shirt, jeans and black boots, Martin declared that Tenerife reminds him of Puerto Rico. (Photos I have seen of old San Juan in Puerto Rico, where Martin was born, remind me very much of Canarian architecture too.)
It seems that fans were well happy with Martin's presence in Tenerife and, during the afternoon and evening of screaming and shouting, one fan reportedly fainted.
Ricky Martin firmó su último disco a sus fans tinerfeñas
Canary Islands looking for solutions to the EU liquids on planes security restrictions
Funnily enough, I saw this one coming a mile off and, was discussing this with my friend down at our local supermarket recently. It occurred to me that the restrictions would inevitably impact on sales of cheap booze and other products on the islands and I didn't think the authorities would sit back and take it. It seems I was right.
Given that, in supermarkets, you can buy a really nice wine for a couple of quid, local liqueurs for around four or five quid, or a bottle of branded whiskey for under a tenner, most tourists will take their allowance. Times that by over 10 million tourists a year and, it is easy to see that this is a huge and lucrative business for the islands.
Stopping tourists from transporting these goods must represent a great loss.
Diario de Avisos report that members of the council of Agriculture, Fishing and Food, representatives for regional Tourism, for Transport and other departments, along with representatives of regional airline, Binter Canarias, called a meeting to discuss and search for solutions to the restrictions on the transport of liquids on planes.
The government has declared that the meeting was part of a round of talks aimed at facilitating the possibility that local produce, including; wines, sauces, spreads and others of similar characteristics, such as honey, can be transported on planes to make the recent European Union security restrictions, imposed on the transport of liquids in hand luggage, compatible with commercial activities.
According to those present, the meeting was called after a recent drop in sales.
Binter say that they are willing to accept goods as hold luggage with a "fragile" or similar label and to make special consideration for these packages en route, from check in to when they are returned to the passenger.
Meanwhile, travellers are reminded that they can acquire these articles in the airport shops, once they are beyond the security check points, except in La Palma, La Gomera and El Hierro, which do not have this service available.
(The only problem with that, is that the prices in the airports are considerably higher than the prices in shops and supermarkets elsewhere on the islands.)
Another article on the same subject, reported by ABC, also says that the Canary Island government is searching for solutions to allow visitors to transport Canary Islands products, such as wine, honey or sauces, in their hand luggage, so that the European Union rules do not have a great impact on the sales of these products.
One idea they mention is the implantation of mechanism in commercial establishments in airports that are outside of the secure zone, so that clients can pick up their purchases - by producing receipts - inside the secure area.
Another solution that has been put forward is to instal shops in the embarkation areas, although this option presents problems in some airports, such as El Hierro and La Palma, where space is limited. They are also discussing the idea of secure packaging to prevent breakages, so that items can be checked in as hold luggage.
Currently, the European Union is elaborating regulations, expected to be approved in early 2007, that would unify security rules within the member states, which is already subject of a pact and which would allow for the possibility of exemptions. In this case, Spain, could ask the EU to evaluate risks. The Canaries intend to carry out a study over the coming months to evaluate the economic impact.
El Ejecutivo autonómico busca salidas a la restricción sobre líquidos en los aviones
El Gobierno quiere que los pasajeros puedan viajar con productos canarios
Thursday, November 16, 2006
Cayuco, internet & chat enter Spanish Dictionary
The new essential dictionary (a reduced version of the academic dictionary that contains 54,000 of the 90,000 terms) of the Royal Academy of the Spanish Language is to contain terms such as cayuco - wooden boats that arrive almost daily carrying desperate Africans to Canarian shores - internet and chat amongst its entries.
Users of the new dictionary will find, amongst others; the initials ABS, acronims such as NIF and terms such as rap, salvapantalla (screensaver), droga de diseño (designer drug), matar al mensajero ([don't] kill the messenger), tarifa plana (flat rate tariff), terapia ocupacional (occupational therapy) and vaca sagrada (sacred cow).
Apparently, 80% of the vocabulary that appears in the essential dictionary is common to both Spain and America, while 12% are terms that are only used in Hispanic America (grouped by geographic area.) We couldn't help noticing though that 80% and 12% only adds up to 92%, so we're not sure where the other 8% is used. There are certainly enough Canary Islands specific terms to make up some of the difference, but well, I guess language - not maths - is their speciality! :)
El nuevo diccionario de la Real Academia incluye términos como cayuco, internet y chat
The Singular Taste of the Canary Islands Tomato
The Canary Islands are working to unify the currently 167 different brands of Canary Islands tomatoes that are exported to the United Kingdom into one unique brand. Although negotiations have been very slow, as they commenced two years ago, the Council of Agriculture expects to close the pact within the next week, said Pedro Rodríguez Zaragoza, speaking from London, after visiting the famous warehouse at Harrods.
Although exterior sales have been consolidated during the last two years, those imported into Britain, the main importer of of Canarian tomatoes, arrive from the islands under 167 different labels, something that the executive wish to end.
This is not just to improve the image in the British market, but in all of Europe. Canary Islands tomatoes are also imported through the port of Rotterdam in Holland and, from there distributed to various states, in boxes under 132 different names.
The biggest obstacle to these unification negotiations, says the Council of Agriculture, has been that some cooperatives, who consider that they have made greater efforts over quality, wish to maintain their own distinct mark. The government, meanwhile, insists that it is necessary for all Canary Islands tomatoes to be exported under one, singular regional identity, which could begin to be used in 2007.
The current export season will commence within the week and harvests indicate that 100,000 tons of tomatoes will be exported to the United Kingdom, 30% of which will come from Tenerife. This year, promotional campaigns have centered on fortifying the presence of Canary Islands tomatoes in three large supermarket chains in Britain and on an advertising billboard campaign at 17 principal train stations and airports in the UK, thereby taking advantage of tourists' prior knowledge of the islands.
El Gobierno unificará las 167 marcas de tomate canario que van al Reino Unido
Major Reforms for Puerto de la Cruz Port
The marina and fishing port in Puerto de la Cruz is to be increased in size by 50,000 square meters. The not so good news is that it is calculated that 68,000 lorries (c. 100 per day) will be coming and going through the tourist resort during the two years that the works will take to complete. The works will also be delayed slightly as the plan needs to be changed to prevent effects on the nearby Playa Jardín beach.
Nevertheless, the new project contains notable improvements on the original design, says Puerto's mayor, Marcos Brito. The increase in size translates to double the number of berths to 600. The exterior dock is to be lengthened by 200 meters, but the biggest difference is that the mouth of the new port will open to the west (Punta Brava), instead of towards the east (Martiánez), as it does currently.
What does not seem to have been included - at least for the moment - is the government's wish to include a wharf to take passenger ships.
El puerto deportivo se amplía 50.000 metros con el proyecto reformado
Chestnut Fair in Acentejo, Tenerife
The Island Corporation of Tenerife these days is making a study into the possibilities of the commercial production of chestnuts, during the III Semana de la Castaña (Chestnut Week) in the regioin of Acentejo in the north of the island. Events during Chestnut Week also include a cooking competition, chats over their nutrative properties and the development of a plan for the production of this product, as well as various workshops, cookery demonstrations and a fair that is open to the pubic at the weekend.
Members of the public can see - and taste - the chestnuts, the local wine, honey, and various traditional arts and crafts, from November 16th to 19th, at the Farmers Market in La Matanza.
El Cabildo analiza las posibilidades de producción y comercialización de las castañas
Storms Possible in the Canaries
Canarias7 report that cloudy skies will predominate in the Canary Islands today, with light to moderate rains that could become heavy and accompanied by storms in northern and western areas of the islands, according to the National Meteorological Institute. Winds will be moderate, with strong gusting on high ground. Temperatures too will drop slightly, with a minimum of 21 degrees centigrade and maximums of 27 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife and 26 in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
Posibles tormentas en Canarias
Immigrants 'drive Spanish growth'
The BBC report that, half of Spain's recent economic growth can be attributed to immigration, according to a Spanish government-backed report. It says 30% of growth in the past 10 years, and 50% in the last five, has been thanks to immigrants.
In the Canary Islands, Diario de Avisos report that 17.5% of workers are foreigners, which has seen an increase of 34% more than the national average, according to data on the profile of immigrants, collated by temporary work agency, Adecco.
Between July 2005 and July 2006, 798,000 jobs were created in Spain, 415,000 of which are occupied by foreigners. Nationally, 40.75% of foreigners contracted in the last 12 months are from Latin America, whilst 19.73% are from North Africa.
There are some differences in the percentages in the Canary Islands, where 50.5% of foreign workers are from the American continent and only 9% from the Maghreb - despite the flow of poor African arrivals - but the figures also highlight the fact that some 26.7% come from other countries in the European Union and 1.2% from other locations on the Old Continent. What the document does not count are the number of workers in the Canary Islands who come from other communities in Spain.
The study found, not surprisingly, that the majority of foreign workers (60.64%) in the islands are employed in restaurants and hotels. A number are also employed in industry, although the report says that foreign workers are "not called to work in administration." In my experience, this is because we are never given access to nor consideration for those jobs, except in a few also foreign owned companies.
The profile of the typical foreign worker in the Canary Islands is of a Latin American woman, between 26 and 35 years, with an elementary education and who works in an hotel. By contrast, at national level, men working in industry predominate.
Immigrants 'drive Spanish growth'
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Puerto de la Cruz Culture
BienMeSabe report that as from today, a new website has opened to inform the public about all the cultural offerings in Puerto de la Cruz, at elpuertoescultura.com
It's a shame they don't have an English version, but, I guess it's early days. In the meantime, there are photo galleries (currently down the left hand side of the page) that you will understand. One to look at is the gallery covering San Juan 2006.
There you'll see photos showing how the fountains in the town are decorated for this fiesta and I am not aware of this custom being carried out elsewhere on the island.
http://www.elpuertoescultura.com Via: BienMeSabe
Monday, November 13, 2006
Life on Mars, recreated in Tenerife
Tenerife has done an admirable job in the past of pretending to be other planets in fiction (Planet of the Apes, Star Wars) and, well, they say that truth is stranger.
In this fascinating article in The Guardian, about urbane spaceman, Lester Waugh, engineering manager in charge of designing the ExoMars Rover - scheduled for launch early in the next decade and known as Bridget - says that Waugh also supervises the prototype's field trials. As part of that, he is the person who must consider where they can go to mimic Martian conditions. Yeah, Tenerife.
The urbane spaceman
Are Tenerife Hotels Geek Compatible?
In the remote, rural area where I live, any internet connection is a hit and miss affair. Broadband only just reached us this year and it struggles up hill, frequently running out of energy and failing, puffing and panting. What it certainly isn't, is always-on!
But in decent sized towns and resorts and, in big name hotels with a few stars, you would hope and expect that they are able to cope with "the modern world."
Apparently not, as this report at Hotel Chatter about, arguably, what is supposed to be the Tenerife capital's top, five star hotel, says that, "The Sheraton Mencey Hotel should be ashamed of itself.", as one frustrated guest found that the advertised WiFi service was "erratic to the point of being unusable."
At the Sheraton La Caleta, on the south of the island, however, one guest says that, "The hotel is definitely geek compatible. Besides providing a fine working Wireless LAN with an affordable weekly rate the room also includes a safe which is large enough for a notebook. The safe even has a power outlet on the inside which allows you to recharge your equipment while it is locked away."
Amazing, which shows that they can do it right, when they try.
Sunday, November 12, 2006
Free Desktop Wallpapers : Christmas
Though the decorations in towns and villages will not be appearing for another month, you can have your Tenerife style Christmas decorations for your computer now with these three, exclusive and original Christmas Desktop Wallpaper images.
North Pole
This delightful and amusing tableaux in a half igloo shaped tent, complete with polar bears and husky dogs pulling Santa's sleigh, was seen on a garage forecourt in the north of Tenerife.
Arrival of the King
The much anticipated Parade of the Three Kings in towns and villages all over Spain and the Canary Islands. (Their schedule is only rivalled by a bloke in a red suit on December 24th.) Here's Rey Gaspar arriving in the town of Garachico. 
Flor de Pascua
The Flor de Pascua, or poinsettia, is an essential part of Christmas in the Canary Islands and they grow wild, mostly on the northern slopes of the island.
All three, plus other Desktop Wallpapers can be downloaded here free
Labels: Christmas
Saturday, November 11, 2006
Cannabis Refreshments in La Palma
Refrescos de cannabis en La Palma
Natural invaders: How the Canary Islands are changing dramatically
"Though many think of the Canary Islands as little more than holiday resorts which boast year-round sun, they are home to highly unusual and scientifically important habitats. The tropical forest environment of the Cruz del Carmen on Tenerife fascinated Charles Darwin in the 19th Century. Yet in Cruz del Carmen and elsewhere on the islands, native plants and animals are slowly being replaced by outside species.", Expatica reports.
Natural invaders: How the Canarys are changing dramatically
Friday, November 10, 2006
Experiences of a Tinerfeño in England
We could collect many stories of English folk living in Tenerife, but less often come across the experiences of a move in the opposite direction. It's hard to imagine anyone coming from Tenerife putting up with the British weather to start with.
However, this is exactly what Antonio Salgado did and lived in England for three decades. Now he has written a book, called "Bye, bye! Vivencias de un tinerfeño en Inglaterra (1974-2004)" (Bye, bye! Experiences of a Tinerfeño in England.)
The book brings together Salgado's personal recollections, as well as looking at the relations between the culture of adoption and the many young Canarians who travelled to the United Kingdom to study and learn English during that period. In a pleasant and affectionate manner, says the report, the writer exposes customs of the British families that he observed over time and, it says, which gives an idea of the social evolution of the hosts in the last few decades.
Antonio Salgado da a conocer hoy el libro sobre sus estancias en Inglaterra
Pirates and Corsairs in the Canary Islands
BienMeSabe report that the Juan Ismael Art Center in Fuerteventura currently has an exhibition entitled Piratas y Corsarios en Canarias (Pirates and Corsairs in the Canary Islands) that runs until November 22nd.
The exhibition which is organized into ten thematic displays, covers the history of Berber, Dutch, English and French pirates, as well as information about the islands' defences against these attacks.
There are also various nautical exhibits, including a recreation of a stateroom and a model of the Fortaleza del Castillo Negro (Black Castle Fortress). The show is completed with an audiovisual exhibit showing a short film over Nelson's attack on Santa Cruz in Tenerife.
El Centro de Arte Juan Ismael acoge una exposición sobre ?Piratas y Corsarios en Canarias'
Works on Ring Road Commence in December
Also during the last few weeks, proceedings have been speeded up in some of the other sections that run between Los Realejos and Adeje. The section from Icod to El Tanque will soon be going out to tender for 180 million euros and a period of execution of more than 30 months and, it is estimated that works on this section could commence in April 2007.
Meanwhile, the project for the part that will unite El Tanque and Santiago de Teide has been drafted and will become public information shortly. This section includes an almost five kilometer tunnel, which will become the longest in the Canary Islands.
The final sections between Los Realejos and San Juan de la Rambla are still under study, while that between San Juan de la Rambla and Icod is a little more advanced. Works on the whole of the ring road will take more than five years to complete.
El cierre del anillo insular comenzará a ejecutarse el próximo mes en Adeje
Canaries Study Plan for Windmills in the Sea
El Gobierno canario estudia implantar parques de energía eólica en el mar
School Books to be free within three years
The Canarian Government's Councillor for Education, Culture and Sports, Isaac Godoy, announced yesterday in Parliament that within three years, all school children in the Canary Islands will be able to obtain their text books free of charge. This comes at the same time as the Socialist Party had asked for a package of measures to fight failure rates in schools. Further measures are promised with particular emphasis on integration, foreign languages and to compensate for inequalities.
Los alumnos canarios dispondrán de libros gratis en tres años
Santa Cruz Taxis Take Plastic
Diario de Avisos today report that taxi users can now pay with plastic - both credit and debit cards - in 55 of the taxis in Tenerife's capital, Santa Cruz. The vehicles which accept this form of payment can be identified by a sticker in the window or the interior. The taxi union confirmed that some taxis have already been trying this out for several months. On Tuesday, the 56th taxi will be added to the scheme and they say that very soon, many more will accept cards as payment.
As well as offering more choice and convenience to passengers, electronic payments offer more security for taxi drivers, rather than carrying a lot of cash and, this is not the only technological advance in the sector. Tenerife's taxis are also being turned into "intelligent fleets" with GPS localization.
Another addition is that users can pay for their journey with mobipay, a system of secure transactions via mobile phone. This type of phone can also be used to order a taxi via SMS and find out how long it will take for the taxi to arrive.
Cincuenta y cinco taxis de Santa Cruz ya admiten el pago con tarjeta bancaria
Oregon Brings Jazz rhythms to La Laguna
Legendary North American band, Oregon, play tonight on the second day of the International Jazz Festival in La Laguna, Tenerife, which began last night with a performance from Charlie Parker Legacy Band. Tonight's concert is at 21:00 in the Aulario de Guajara at the University of La Laguna and entrance is free.
Oregon despliega sus ritmos jazzísticos en La Laguna
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Passengers rise despite air alert
More than 20 million passengers passed through Scotland's busiest airports during the past year, according to latest figures. Undeterred by long queues and travel restrictions amid heightened security, in October alone, 1.96 million passengers used Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen airports, with Alicante, Tenerife and Palma among the favourite destinations in October, report the BBC.
Passengers rise despite air alert
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
Granadilla Port Gets Go-Ahead, with conditions.
(It is still difficult to imagine what public this interests, when such a large number have clearly said they don't want the port to be built, mind you.)
Nevertheless, despite allowing the construction, Brussels admit, at the same time, that there are repercussions in various areas and protected species and are obliging the Spanish authorities to present annual reports on the project and to apply compensatory measures of protection of the flora and fauna in the area.
El puerto de Granadilla, ?sí? con condiciones
La Comisión Europea autoriza la construcción del puerto de Granadilla
Bruselas da vía libre a la construcción del puerto industrial de Granadilla
Labels: Puerto de Granadilla
Fifty-Percent More Sand for Las Teresitas
La nueva playa pretende garantizar el uso público y la conservación natural
Children of Foreign Parents in Spain
Secretary of State for Immigration says that 17.56% of all children born in Spain in 2005 have at least one foreign parent, a percentage that is four times higher than a decade previously. In 1996, the lowest number of babies were born in Spain during the whole of the 20th Century - 362,626 - 4.54% of which had a mother and/or father of foreign origin. The number has been rising progressively, until 2005, when 465,616 babies were born, close 81,000 of whom had at least one foreign parent.
Between 1996 and 2005, 4,061,930 babies were born in Spain, on average, 10% of whom have a foreign mother and/or father and, 43% of these have just one foreign parent. Those with both parents of the same foreign nationality were, in the majority, from Morocco, Equador, Romania, Columbia and China. Unsurprisingly, the communities were there are the most immigrants; Madrid, the east coast of the Spanish mainland, the Balearic Islands and the Canary islands, are also where the highest number of children with at least one foreign parent are born.
The object of a new book which collated this data, Nacionalidad de los hijos de extranjeros nacidos en España (Nationality of children of foreigners born in Spain), is to analyse Spanish legislation and its legal interpretation in respect to the attribution, or not, of Spanish nationality to children born in Spain to foreign citizens.
The author of the book, Aurelia Alvarez, exposed cases where the children of foreign parents had acquired Spanish nationality, an attribution which is based not only in Spanish justice, but also on Article 7 of the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child. In general (though there are many exceptions), the criteria is to attribute Spanish nationality if one of the parents is Spanish, if the parents are naturalized foreigners, if the parents are stateless (for example Palestinians or Saharauis), or if they are from countries that do not attribute nationality to children born outside their borders - always independent of whether the parents reside legally or not in Spain.
Los hijos de padres extranjeros son el 17,56% de los nacidos en España en 2005
Gas Station Strike in the Canary Islands
Los sindicatos convocan dos días de paro en las gasolineras
Buenavista del Norte to restore Ancient Laundry
In olden times, the women of Buenavista de Norte would come to this area to do the weekly wash, get the water to supply their homes and for their livestock to drink. Actually, many of us still use these installation to do the last two of those things.
Buenavista del Norte rehabilitará los Antiguos Lavaderos del Barranco de Triana
Plenty of places to sleep ...
You can be pretty sure that if you want to spend Christmas in the Canary Islands (or any other time, for that matter) that you will never hear the response that there is "No room at the Inn" as ABC report that between 2006 and 2007 another 8,000 tourist beds were added to the market in the Canary Islands.
These, in turn, can be added to the more than 40,000 extra that the moratorium was unable to stop being added between 2001 and 2005, as those places had been authorized prior to the implantation of the moratorium in 2001. Parliament has twice postponed the debate over the maintenance of the moratorium for the next period 2007 - 2009 and lack a date for the analysis of the results from 2003 to 2006.
Más de 8.000 nuevas camas turísticas para antes de 2008
Monday, November 06, 2006
Agatha Christie and Tenerife
While disillusioned with her husband?s infidelity, Christie and her daughter, Rosalind, stayed at the Sitio Litre in Puerto de la Cruz, as guests of the Smith family.
Sitio Litre is the oldest garden in Tenerife, founded in the grounds of a mansion dating from 1730. The English merchant Archibald Little bought the house in 1774 and built The Orchid Garden that is now open to the public. The prominent writer was so inspired by the gardens that she based the plot of her collection of stories The Mysterious Mr. Quin (UK Readers) in Puerto de la Cruz.
The Little family sold the house to Charles Smith in 1856 and the Smith family owned the house until the year 1996. The villa is still privately owned. Sitio Litre is famous for long gone garden parties held there with celebrities like William Wilde and his son Oscar Wilde, painter Marianne North and explorer and botanist Alexander Humboldt.
Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories (Paperback) by Agatha Christie
UK ReadersSitio Litre has a collection of 350 different types of orchids and an exhibition of several paintings on loan from the Royal Kew Gardens, with whom they collaborate on many occasions.
Another of Agatha Christie's works, "The Companion", is described as a short story about two English ladies who go on a holiday in Tenerife, but only one returns home alive. It is included in Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories (Paperback) (UK Readers). In actual fact, if you read the story (the complete text is online, in Spanish, as "La señorita de compañía"), you'll find that it takes place in Gran Canaria, not Tenerife. However, readers will recognize the typical English ladies of the time, assisted by their Baedeker guides and blind to everything else. They visit the English library and the Anglican Church, wherever they travel!
Visitors to the grand old resort of Puerto de la Cruz would find neither of those "English essentials" lacking. There is indeed an Anglican Church, as well as The English Library in the Parque de Taoro (next to the British Yeoward School).
Maybe we're not so famous for garden parties and afternoon teas now, however it is no mystery that we still long for English breakfasts, Fish & Chips and Sunday Roasts abroad, that it seems the British traveller has changed little over the years!
Agatha Christie and Tenerife
Sunday, November 05, 2006
Canary Islands' natural, man-made worlds
Tourists from all over the world have discovered the Canary Islands, but the residents wonder how foreign money and construction are impacting the islands' ecology.
The tension between tourism and the environment is a common theme in the work of seven contemporary Canary Islands photographers in "A Ojo de Canario," an exhibit on view through Nov. 30 at the San Antonio International Center (San Antonio, Texas). San Antonio's earliest Old World settlers came from the Canary Islands in 1731. All of the photographers live on Tenerife.
Canary Islands' natural, man-made worlds
Brussels to approve Granadilla Port Tomorrow
According to sources at ACN Press, reported here by ArchipielagoNoticias, the European Commission will give the green light to the construction of the industrial port at Granadilla in the south of Tenerife tomorrow, November 6th. "On Monday, at 11 a.m. the written procedure will be concluded", via which Brussels will finally adopt a decision in favour of the construction of the contentious port.
The thousands of petitions and complaints against the port, brought by the Tenerife Association of the Friends of Nature, The Citizens' Platform against the Industrial Port of Granadilla, Ecologists in Action, SEO/Birdlife, Adena/World Wildlife Fund et al, it seems, in a nutshell, have largely been filed and ignored.
Bruselas aprueba el lunes la construcción del puerto de Granadilla
Labels: Puerto de Granadilla
Spectacular Gala to Elect Carnaval Queen 2007
Sources at Santa Cruz town hall have confirmed that they have contracted flameco dancer and correographer, Rafael Amargo (IMDB | Photo) to direct the Gala for the Election of the Carnaval Queen in 2007. With plenty of experience already in creating a directing shows, both in Spain and New York, Amargo's involvement in the, already grand, Tenerife gala promises to make it one of the most spectacular ever.
Rafael Amargo dirigirá la Gala de la elección de la Reina del Carnaval de Tenerife 2007
Labels: Carnaval 2007
Saturday, November 04, 2006
Buenavista del Norte Becomes a Film Star
Barcelona TV producer Ovideo TV, in a co-production with Catalan station TV3 and German TV channel, SWR, are rolling their cameras around Buenavista del Norte at the moment, making a film, "Sueños de felicidad" (Dreams of Happiness), which will promote the tourist attractions of the locality to an international audience.
The area around the central Plaza de los Remedios and nearby streets, the Playa de Las Arenas and various points within the Teno Rural Park have been chosen for most of the scenes. The film will also contain images captured during the recent fiestas of Los Remedios to give a busy, festive atmosphere. Dozens of people from the area have also participated as extras in some of the sequences of the film.
The film tells the story of Moritz, a German vulcanologist, who travels to Tenerife to study a volcano. The scientist has recently lost his 15 year old son and thinks that flying to the island will help him overcome his loss and save his marriage to Eva.
Buenavista del Norte acoge el rodaje de un filme hispano-germano
Canary Island Govt. Wants to Raise Taxes
According to the Confederación de Empresarios de Tenerife (CEOE) (Tenerife Federation of Industrialists), the Canary Islands Government is threatening to go back on their promise not to raise taxes in 2007. Their intention was discovered by the federation, on noticing that the department of Economy and Tax have budgeted for an increase in two principal indirect taxes applied in the islands; IGIC (the equivalent of VAT) and import taxes. CEOE explained that the budgeted rise is around 3%.
CEOE believes that this would have a negative impact on the evolution of prices in the islands and I am sure I don't need to underline that rises in these taxes would affect the shopping basket and pockets, not just of Canary Islands residents, but also visitors at the time of making purchases in the Canary Islands, whilst on holiday.
El Gobierno de Canarias quiere subir los impuestos indirectos en 2007
Road Between Masca and Santiago Reopens
The Tenerife Island Council reopened the road between Masca and Santiago del Teide - a road well-travelled by visitors to the picturesque Tenerife village - in the early morning of yesterday, Friday, November 3rd, after it had been blocked by landslides and rock falls during the night. The great quantity of material required the use of heavy machinery. The falls were caused by the torrential rains over the previous days. During the time that the road was closed, all communication with Masca had to be made via Buenavista del Norte.
Cabildo despeja la carretera de Masca en Buenavista del Norte
Friday, November 03, 2006
Marc Anthony y Jlo (Arona, Tenerife)
Carnaval fashion 2007 in Santa Cruz
Diario de Avisos report that Carnaval 2007 in Santa Cruz, Tenerife, is to be dedicated to the world of fashion and, will be promoted with the slogan of "Carnaval fashion" - yes, curiously, that is fashion in English, not the word moda in Spanish.
Along with a parade of models in carnival costumes (video), councillor responsible for the fiesta, Bruno Piqué, made the announcement and was interviewed on TV cuatro's Supermodelo 2006 program on Wednesday night to a national audience of 1.2 million viewers. Participants in Supermodelo 2006 - among them, two girls from Tenerife, candidates to be the Spanish representative in an international fashion contest - will also be appearing in the carnaval's main parade in Santa Cruz in February 2007.
El Carnaval de 2007 estará dedicado al mundo de la moda
Labels: Carnaval 2007
Tickling the clouds to capture horizontal rain
Fog also is often reported on the north side of Tenerife, but again, this is seldom really fog, but clouds that have dropped to ground level. Indeed, such "fog" (really ground level cloud) played an important part in the events which led up to the collision between KLM and PanAm Boeing 747's at Los Rodeos airport back in 1977.
These mists are also what make the laurisilva - laurel cloud or rain forest - what it is. They covered almost the whole of Europe in the Tertiary period and small portions of which remain here in the north of Tenerife and on the island of La Gomera.
In this valley, it is a constant phenomenon, so I can certainly understand that one might as well harness it and make use if it, which is exactly what is intended.
The water from these brumas (mists), says the article, could help to solve multiple problems of water shortages on the islands; from water to consume in homes in rural and isolated areas, for agriculture, for reforestation, or in prevention of fires.
The idea, apparently, is simple. This water precipitates whenever it comes into contact with any object. Trees do this naturally, capturing and drawing the water into the ground. The system that translates this technologically has already been in use for eight years and has sparked interest in France and the Dominican Republic.
The Canary Island Government's vice councillor for the Environment, Milagros Luis Brito, calls the technology "tickling the clouds" and says that it is capturing up to 1,700 liters of water per day, is more ecological and uses few resources.
La captación de agua de bruma podría abastecer caseríos y zonas repobladas
Project to Control Erosion in Teno Alto
It was the photo that they both use to illustrate the story, as I am doing here (I gave myself permission), that made me smile. The original photo, you can find here and here. It would have been nice if they had credited me for it! :)
El Cabildo realiza un proyecto en Teno Alto para el control de la erosión
Gran Telescopio Canarias Preview in Florida
The University of Florida Department of Astronomy is offering the community a preview of the world’s largest telescope set to open in early 2007 in the Canary Islands through a free event, “Voyage with the Gran Telescopio Canarias,” from 5 to 9 p.m. Nov. 9 at the Florida Museum of Natural History.
UF astronomers offer first look at world’s largest telescope
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Baggage Restrictions From Next Monday
No bottles with over 100 milliliters of liquids will be allowed, not even water.
"Liquids - including drinks, soups, syrups, creams, oils, perfumes, gels, shaving foam, deodorants, toothpaste, mascara and lip salve - must be sealed in individual containers up to a maximum capacity of 100 millilitres each. The containers must then be placed in one transparent, re-sealable plastic bag (up to one litre capacity per passenger)."
You can take liquids onto the plane that have been bought in the duty free area of the airport, but any cheap booze you buy on the island will have to go into your hold suitcase (provided, of course, that the baggage handlers don't break it), but, as everyone knows, prices in the shops here are cheaper than the duty free.
Also overcoats, jackets, portable computers and other electronic equipment will have to be inspected separately. The restrictions apply to all airports in the Canary Islands, Spain and European Union and to all flights, including inter-island flights.
La prohibición de llevar líquidos en el equipaje de mano en los aviones se implanta el próximo lunes
Canaries Charging to visit Protected Areas
El CES recomienda que en Canarias se cobre por entrar en parajes protegidos
Severe rain storm hits Tenerife
Road turns to river in El PalmarHeavy rains and thunder storms left Tenerife in chaos in the early afternoon yesterday, causing flash flooding, landslides and power outages.
Four health centers on the island had to be closed because of flooding and lightening hit a electrical sub-station in Tacoronte, in the north of the island, leaving the population there without power, while in other areas, cuts were intermittent. There was flooding in many roads and streets that were converted into fast-flowing, impassable, rivers; houses and even the runway and terminal at Tenerife South's Reina Sofia airport. Five flights had to be diverted to Gran Canaria.
In the south of Tenerife, fire services in San Miguel had to rescue a woman who had become trapped in her car in the Aldea Blanca tunnel, due to rising water.
Authorities were reported to be maintaining the alert until midnight tonight, however, it was lifted at 05:00 this morning. Schools have been reopened today throughout the archipelago, while everyone tries to clean up and get back to normal.
Photos and video: Tenerife se recupera de una fuerte tromba de agua
La fuerte lluvia deja en Tenerife un caos de desprendimientos, inundaciones y cortes de luz
Una tromba de agua provoca en Tenerife cortes de luz, desprendimientos e inundaciones
Severe rain storm hits Tenerife
Day of All Flowers
El día de todas las flores
Five New Helicopters for the Canary Islands
Cinco helicópteros nuevos atenderán desde mañana las emergencias del Archipiélago
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Tenerife Fiestas in November
November 1st is celebrated as the Día de Todos los Santos (All Saints Day) and the following day is Día de los Fieles Difuntos (Day of the Dead), occasions on which it is customary to visit the tombs of one's departed, clean up a bit and replace the flowers.
Otherwise, November is a quiet month on the fiesta front, though, I am certain that people will be beavering away at the preparations for all the next items on the calendar. November 22nd is the anniversary of King Juan Carlos' accession to the throne. In 2005, he chose to celebrate that date in Tenerife, though this is hardly likely to be repeated. Another unusual and maybe not annual event celebrated in November 2005 also was the First Buenavista del Norte Tuning Car Meeting.
On November 29th, the eve of St. Andrew's Day, the Fiestas of San Andres are celebrated in Icod de los Vinos, with an event unique to the Canary Islands, called the Tablas de San Andrés - kinda kamikazi sledding down near vertical streets on boards. While in Puerto de la Cruz, it's popularly known as the Fiesta of Pots or Chestnuts. Kids drag strings of tin cans and throw scrap metal around the streets of the town to make as much noise as possible. The "Castañada" (chestnut feast) is held in the square itself, with the chance to try many typical products of the island.
Click here to find out what's on in Tenerife throughout the year
Buenavista to control coastal accesses
In other news, plans are also afoot to control access to the area of Punta Teno, which is reached via Buenavista del Norte, with it's pretty lighthouse and spectacular views back to the Masca bay and Los Gigantes cliffs. Currently, there are signs up that say the road is closed, but, as we have discovered on more than one occasion, nobody takes the least bit of notice of them. Future plans are to prohibit access to private cars, other than those of workers, and to provide adequate, safe parking in the town of Buenavista itself with a public bus service to take visitors to the point.
El Ayuntamiento de Buenavista del Norte pretende regular el Uso del Embarcadero de Masca
Puerto de la Cruz Could Receive Passenger Ships
Such modification depends upon lots of other departments - not to mention public opinion. From a tourist perspective, especially given the penchant for shopkeepers in the capital, Santa Cruz, where most of the big ships currently call, to remain closed, Puerto de la Cruz would be a much better point to disembark to find shopping facilities, hotels, restaurants and other tourist attractions nearby.
Castro negocia para que Puerto de la Cruz pueda recibir barcos de pasajeros
Pedestrianizing Icod de los Vinos
Works, which will take 10 months to complete, include pedestrianizing an area of 2,200 square meters, widening pavements, providing new urban furniture (park benches, flower pots, etc.) and the creation of loading and unloading bays along with planting of trees. Facades of emblematic buildings are to get special illumination.
El Cabildo adjudica la mejora de la calle San Agustín, en Icod de los Vinos
Demonstration was just a symptom
Canary Islands' government's Councillor for the Economy and Tax, José Carlos Mauricio, says that the population of the Canaries cannot continue to grow by 60,000 people as it has in the last 12 months and considers that the demonstration held in Santa Cruz last Sunday is just a symptom of the fact, although he opines that a Residence Law of the Canary Islands is impossible. Amongst other effects, the population explosion means that unemployment on the islands remains high, hospital waiting lists cannot reduce and there are not enough places in schools.
Mauricio dice que la manifestación sobre la Ley de Residencia es un síntoma
Weather Alert Continues in Tenerife
The situation of alert, because of forecast strong winds and heavy rains, declared on Monday in the province of Tenerife is to continue and is to be extended to the whole of the Canary Islands archipelago. Winds of between 80 and 100 kmph are expected, above all in the area of Mount Teide and rains could fall in the quantity of 60 to 100 liters per square meter, per hour. Yesterday afternoon, school classes were suspended in some areas and a limited number of inter-island flights were cancelled, whilst an accident and the heavy rains caused massive tailbacks on the TF-1.
As well as telling people not to go outside, unless it is absolutely necessary while the alert is on, the government advises people to have a torch and a battery operated radio to hand, stay calm and, in case of emergency, call 112.
Labels: Tenerife Weather
Online Postcards of Tenerife Service Improved
Want to send an online postcard of Tenerife to your friends and relatives?
Now you can, even more easily, as we've just updated our postcard service to be easier to use. You'll currently find all 25 designs, using our own exclusive photos, that we also offer as free Windows Wallpaper; a dozen of which we also offer as real paper postcards.
Send a Free Online Postcard from Tenerife here »
Five Star Hotel for Buenavista Golf
Apparently, the hotel will have around 240 beds and will employ 100 people, all of whom are to be selected from the local area. They didn't say when this was likely to be started or finished, but it will be an important addition for the area.
El Palmar Cheese & Wine Center
The intention is that it become the hub for all the agricultural activities in the area, with the next door farmers market being the place that locals can sell their produce, these installations will house the bodega for the production and distribution of the region's wine and a plant for the commercial production of the local cheese.
The complex will also serve as a visitor center for people visiting the Teno Rural Park, particularly to the areas within the El Palmar valley and Teno Alto.
