Once again, the official weather bods have been tracing around Tenerife's coasts with the yellow highlighter, as a yellow alert is is activated once again, effective from 18:00 on Friday, until 16:00 Saturday. This does not constitute an alert for the general population, but as exciting as the sea is to watch, all forms of water-based activities are off limits, with waves of up to 4 meters. Rain and fog has again caused some delays at Los Rodeos airport, Tenerife north.

Get away from it in a mountain hostel

Looking for somewhere quiet to stay in Tenerife? It may not be 5-Star, but you'll certainly find beauty and tranquility at the  Albergue Montes de Anaga, hostel at El Bailadero (where witches supposedly danced around a bonfire) in the heart of the Parque Rural de Anaga (Anaga Rural Park) in the Anaga Mountains on Tenerife's north eastern "handle". (Photo: Mataparda.)

With stunning views from the terrace, it's a great location to go walking (to the beach) from.

The hostel received a total of 3,877 visitors during 2008, 535 of those in the month of August. Over the year it averages 10.6 people per day, about a quarter of the 40 person capacity (in nine rooms of two, four and six beds.) 7.63% up on the previous year, it could still hardly be called crowded.

Similarly, in north west Tenerife, is the Albergue de Bolico, in the   Teno Mountains (more), in Las Portelas, Buenavista del Norte.

Information and reservations at Tenerife's Mountain Hostels

The dreaded "C-Word" again!

Tourist areas, such as Arona, have been giving visitors to their stand at travel trade show Fitur, in Madrid, free DVDs with photos, videos and screensavers. Multimedia material, we're told, "triumphs as a promotional resource in times of crisis." If it was English the word is also cheap!

The curtain will be coming down on the Teatro Guimerá in Santa Cruz, which is closing in March for maintenance and improvements. The theatre was closed for several years, until it was re-opened in 1991 by Queen Sofía and repairs were done in 2004. Now it's going to be closed again and, as yet, there's no date set for when it will re-open again. According to reports, from sources supposedly at Santa Cruz town hall, "there isn't the money to keep the doors open."

The closure of the Teatro Guimerá comes shortly after the closure of the Cine Víctor (Photo: Mataparda), also in Santa Cruz, back in December.

Cultural events now are centred around the Auditorio de Tenerife, the Tenerife Espacio de las Artes (TEA), La Recova, Los Lavaderos and the Museo Municipal de Bellas Artes (Municipal Museum of Fine Arts) in Tenerife's capital, says the report.

A new disco has opened in the basement of the  Las Cuevas (The Caves) restaurant, next to the football ground in Tacoronte, playing Salsa, Bachata, Merengue and a bit of pop for those who like to dance. Entrance 5 euros, with a drink. Open from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m., Fridays, Saturdays and eves of fiestas.

Want to see U2 in Tenerife?

Apparently, there's a rumour that the promoters of U2's next tour are seriously considering the Canary Islands as one of the 3 locations (presumably, they mean, in Spain) where concerts will be held.

Hoping that "popular demand" will help turn such rumour into reality, Jorge Sánchez Morales has created this Facebook group, join them to add your "vote." Via.

Hear the quality of the Orquesta Sinfónica De Tenerife (OST) - Tenerife Symphony Orchestra - in the comfort of your own home, as the OST, conducted by Victor Pablo Pérez, perform Aida, "Gloria all'egitto" ("Glory to Egypt") from Joe Green's, sorry Giusseppe Verdi's opera, Aida. Download the MP3 from Amazon for a measly 79 pence (at time of writing, subject to change.)

Last chance for those errant Christmas decorations. Apparently, even in Britain in olden days, if you didn't take them down by twelfth night, they can stay up until Candlemas. Since Candelaria means Candlemas (Candelaria is the town where The Virgin of Candelaria patron of the Canary Islands, is kept), Candlemas, February 2nd is celebrated as a holiday, only in Tenerife. 

There is a Programa de Fiestas de la Virgen de Candelaria 2009 taking place between Friday, January 30th and Sunday, February 8th. Of a solemn nature, this year's events also celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the consecration of the Basílica de Candelaria (more) on February 1st, 1959. (Photo: Mataparda.)

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Colin Kirby tells us that the 1980’s are making a comeback in Tenerife (and a fair bit of the 70's too, we reckon), with the news that the immensely successful - and most sampled group of all time - American jazz/R&B/funk/disco group, Kool & the Gang will be playing the Auditorio de Tenerife on April 18th.

Kool And The Gang have been playing more than 40 years, but oh yeah, they've still got it: take a look at this video of Kool & The Gang live on the main square in Zagreb, Croatia in 2007. And for memories, Celebration from 1980.

Estudio 54

And this Friday, January 30th, you have an appointment at Musa Downtown Club, Avenida Anaga, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, so you can relive the wonderful years of the legendary nightclub "Studio 54"!

Here' some more Fiestas Fin De Semana (Parties for the weekend.)

If sport is more to your taste for your weekend entertainment, how about watching some baseball?

Saturday, January 31st, at the Centro Insular de Béisbol (Island Baseball Centre) at El Burgado, Puerto de la Cruz, there are two matches; 11.30 a.m. Dr. Click v Canaritos and at 3 p.m. Canaritos – Motovalle.

More information (in Spanish) from Federación Canaria de Béisbol y Sófbol

The Canary Islands celebrate two decades without leprosy

Most of us probably think of leprosy as being a disease of Medieval or even biblical times, but even in 1995, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that between two and three million people were permanently disabled because of leprosy. Timed to coincide with Día Mundial de la Lepra (World Leprosy Day), which this year was celebrated on Sunday, January 25th, this article states that the Canary Islands celebrate two decades without cases of leprosy.

If the thought of disease still being present on the islands a mere 20 years ago - within so many people's lifetimes - it's perhaps even more surprising that the leprosería (leper colony, leprosarium) in the archipelago, was only closed 10 years ago in 1999. It's now the Hospital Dermatológico (Dermatological Hospital) in Gran Canaria.

Tenerife still in the top 3 destinations for 2009

Online travel agency, On The Beach have published a list of the destinations that are proving most popular with UK punters so far this January and, the good news is that Tenerife has still maintained a place in the Top 3.

On The Beach's most popular destinations in 2009 are:

Interestingly, the crisis and the crappy exchange rate don't really seem to be keeping people entirely out of the euro zone. Of those 10, whilst Egypt and Turkey both have two spots each, the other 6 destinations are all still in the Canary Islands (with three islands listed) and the Spanish mainland.

Another list gives the #6 most popular hotel with their clients this year as Caledonia Park in Playa de Las Americas - Tenerife (All Inclusive).

Founded in 1995 On The Beach (ABTA member) is a leading player in the online travel market carrying over 500,000 passengers every year to Spain, Balearics, Canaries, Egypt, Greece, Turkey & the Caribbean. 

The end of fresh fish

Sadly, it is certainly the end of the traditional fresh fish counter, as the second largest supermarket chain, by number of stores, in Tenerife, Mercadona, where the retailer has substituted their stalls for shelves with produce packaged in trays.

The noisiest areas of Tenerife

The Canary Island Government's Ministry of the Environment this week published noise maps, which show that the urban areas of Santa Cruz and La Laguna and the TF-5 and TF-1 highways are the noisiest parts of the island. Stating the bleeding obvious you might think, but then there are also two airports, resorts stuffed with music bars ... even the maps show that industrial and port traffic have little impact on the population.

Heck, if you live in a village that has a band playing at the annual fiestas until 5 a.m., you might have come to other conclusions! :) (Photo by sergis blog)

Your Ideal Island

Whilst I doubt it will actually suggest Tenerife as an option, this quiz, What's Your Ideal Island Vacation? gives you lots of food for thought.

Just reading through choices for where would you like to stay ...

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With the pound and the euro nearly at a par these days, you might wonder if you need a guide to currency conversions at all, but I guess we can be hopeful that the days when you do need them will come back one day.

And for when that day arrives, take a look at the Yahoo! Currency Converter, which has been smartened up recently to include the ability to print out up-to-the-minute pocket currency guides, such as that shown above.

These guides are extremely handy to take out shopping, to restaurants, etc., with you so that you can see at-a-glance how much you're really paying.

Via: Digital Inspiration

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Lost? "We're alive, but we don't know where." is roughly the message given by the woman travelling in the plane which crashed in the north of Tenerife on Sunday, which she relayed, via her mobile phone, to the emergency control room when she phoned 112 herself to report the accident.

"The only thing we can see is vegetation", continued the message from the stricken plane as local police from La Orotava, Tacoronte, La Victoria, El Rosario, Candelaria, Santa Úrsula and El Sauzal joined the search.

As the three occupants of the plane remain in hospital in intensive care, the story begins to unfold over what may have happened. It's still speculated that the cause was the drastic change in the weather during the flight - when they took off the conditions were optimal - and it's now thought that the plane may have struck the top of a tree, before falling onto a natural terrace.

Monday, Guardia Civil judicial police, who will initiate the investigation into the crash, were still working in the area of the Montaña de Joco where the plane went down, while this video footage from Television Canaria will give you some idea of the especially hostile terrain at the site of the rescue.

Tenerife Weather: The official weather word for the Canary Islands is yet another yellow level pre-alert around the coasts, especially the north of the islands. The situation came into force at 08:00 on Monday and, will remain active until 15:00 on Tuesday in Tenerife. Once more, we'd like to remind you that - spectacular though they are - this is not a time to be "'thrillseekers' walking along the harbour wall to get a closer look at the waves."

Official Tenerife Novelties

As Tenerife prepares to promote it's novelties at Fitur 2009 travel trade fair in Madrid later this week, it's always interesting to read what the island "officially" thinks needs underlining and is important to them for tour operators to promote. This year, they're betting on two luxury hotels, Eco Resort San Blas and the Hotel Gran Meliá Palacio de Isora, as well as theme park, Siam Park and Tenerife Top Training's cutting-edge T3 AthleticSphere Center that opened to the public in October, 2008.

We can't help thinking that Tenerife already had many more natural attractions that we would have promoted first, but then we aren't paying, are we?

Also mentioned in the press report are the annual paragliding festival, Flypa (Los Realejos town hall are backing that up by handing out leaflets promoting the town in general, as well as promoting their annual Firework Battle); the Tenerife Ladies Open, surfing and beach volleyball events, the Festival Aguaviva Canarias and the upcoming Rod Stewart concert in May. 

Animal Crackers

The good folks from Going Native in Tenerife, wandered west yesterday to join the 5,000 people and 1,000 goats, horses, mules and cattle (give or take a naught) to see the antics of the Fiesta de San Antonio Abad in Buenavista del Norte. Obviously, it was "business as (un)usual" (here's my report from 2008), as they begin, "A Yorkie riding a pony; an iguana squaring up to two bulldogs, a donkey wearing a straw bonnet and a mongrel in full traditional Canarian costume … you really don’t need to take mind altering narcotics when you live in Tenerife."

(No, you only need those to survive living elsewhere! :)

Eroticism in times of crisis

If the animal antics aren't weird enough for you, at least there's the Tuppersex parties to look forward to, which, apparently, have become quite usual in Tenerife. No, I'm sure that I don't need to explain that these are parties, Tupperware stylee, where, instead of selling little plastic food boxes, there's all manner of sex toys on offer.

Only now it's not just house parties, as two discos in Santa Cruz are about to hold theme parties based around the sale of erotic toys.

The first of these, is at Dreams on Friday, January 30th, jointly promoted by "El Punto G Radio" (G-Spot Radio) and the SexShop Channel and is open to women only. There'll be male strippers to entertain you.

The second is at disco A Saudade on Thursday, February 5th and is open to both men and women. There will be both male and female strippers, as well as chats on subjects such as tantric sex, or the Karma Sutra and the Tuppersex party is to be provided by the Candelaria based sex shop, Lipstick.

Juan Campos wonders if it's pure coincidence that the two entities should decide to promote the same kind of products at this time, citing a study published a few weeks ago by British sociologist Jeffrey Weeks, claiming that the financial hardship makes people more conservative in their sexual habits.

Your other crisis time news in Tenerife ...

The crisis is closing two restaurants a day in the Canaries and a lack of training, planning, quality and professionalism are being implicated in the closures. La Federación Canaria de Ocio (The Canarian Leisure Federation) lament that in the first 22 days of January, no less than 44 restaurant were closed, with a loss of 280 jobs, without counting self-employed bosses and owners. In Tenerife, in the year so far, the closed sign has gone up on 21 restaurants; Adeje with 6 and La Laguna and Puerto de la Cruz with 5 each being the areas most affected.

Carnaval in Tenerife 2009 – Crisis, what crisis? Good question when, in Puerto de la Cruz alone there's "a whopping eight all night parties in nine days." :)

Aids in Spain: It's estimated that between 130,000 and 150,000 people are infected with the HIV virus in Spain, but around 30% of them have no idea, which means that they continue to risk transmitting it to others. Furthermore, the report states that the majority of infections in Spain are from sexual contact (and not from needle sharing among drug users) and, contrary to what many believe, the largest number of infections are between heterosexuals. 

The president of the Tenerife Island Corporation, Ricardo Melchior, has formally received the new British Consul in the Canaries, Matthew Vickers. Vickers, who hails from Glasgow, comes from the private sector in the UK where he has been working in sales, marketing and customer care. He replaces Stephen Jones, who became the British Consul for the Canary Islands in 2007, who has gone on to become Consul in Málaga.  British Consulate in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

Labels: Rod Stewart in Tenerife

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In early February, Icod de los Vinos on the north of Tenerife will offer free 4MB broadband Wi-Fi internet access in the commercial centre of town.

The "Zona Wifi Drago Centro" will be available to the public 24 hrs a day, allowing up to 30 users to connect simultaneously at a speed of roughly 128 kb. It'll be necessary to sign up for a free account in the town hall, which makes it less than friendly to most visiting tourists, but it's an advance.

Web access, POP and SMTP for email, will be available, but P2P protocols and the download of multimedia files will be blocked. Another area where internet access will be available in Icod is in the Plaza Andrés de Lorenzo Cáceres (that's the one by the church, with the nice bandstand cafe.)

However, 77% of hotels in the Canary Islands had internet connections at the end of 2008, around 10 points higher than the national average of 67.3%, according to data collected by the National Statistics Institute.

Downed plane was second from same school

A couple of further pieces of data to come out of the news of yesterday's air accident in Tenerife. One is that the 112 emergency operations room had been able to make contact with the occupants of the plane after it came down, which is what had enabled rescuers to locate them. Also, the pilot was evacuated by helicopter and not by road, as previously reported, although the emergency services helicopters weren't able to put down due to the craggy terrain.

The plane was being used by Aerotec, pilot training school, who share the hangar with the Real Aeroclub de Tenerife. In July 2006, a Cesna 172 from the same school had crashed in El Rosario, killing the pilot and two trainees.

Plane spotters and photographers of all stripes ...

Seriously devoid of trains (just the odd tram), the anorak wearing types in Tenerife needed to find another suitable hobby and with two airports, it's no surprise that plane spotting is pretty popular. Canary Islands Spotting announced late last year that the Asociación de Spotters de Canarias had become a reality, formalizing the groups' relationship, which has the aim of generating them respect.

Apparently, the public in Spain too, see plane spotters as "seres raros" (rare beings - a tad strange.) Had it not been for such very observant spotters, of course, those nasty illegal CIA flights might have been able to remain under the radar, so I think we have to be thankful that someone has the dedication.

Also, I spotted (sic) on their website, something that might be useful information, no matter what you're photographing in Tenerife (or the rest of Spanish territory) ... and there've been odd stories of security guards getting uppity about people taking photos. The query was raised,"Can law enforcement make us erase images from our memory card or destroy the reel of film?"

And the response was, "NO. Under no circumstances." The only person who can order such destruction is a judge (and then only after a formal case has been brought and some jolly good reason has been demonstrated.)

Their Historia de la Aviación en Canarias (History of Aviation in the Canaries), tells us that it used to be the custom to have balloons - originally unmanned - rising above the Plaza de Weyler in Santa Cruz as part of fiestas in the city. It wasn't until 1894 that the first manned balloon ascension (not even a flight) took place over the Plaza de Toros (Bull Ring) in Santa Cruz.

The first airplane flight to take place from Tenerife was on May 10th, 1913.

Other news and links of interest

Port of Granadilla: Spain has to send information to Brussels. Last December 1 the EU executive in Brussels sent the Spanish authorities - Brussels deals with the Member States and not the regions - a letter requesting more data on three issues. Madrid had two months to respond, therefore, still have until early February. Could this mean that work cannot, imminently, start?

Canaries, 2nd place in number of foreign, self-employed workers. The number of foreign self-employed went down by 1.3 percent last year in the Canaries, which, nevertheless, remained the region with the second highest proportion of these workers, 14.5 percent of the total, surpassed only by the Balearic Islands, with 16.2 per cent. (Foreign self-employed, we note, requires a hard hat! :)

Puerto de La Cruz Carnaval

There are no apparent changes to the main events we've already listed here, but for those of you who're super keen on getting your money's worth out of all the (free) carnaval events, here is the full Programa del Carnaval de Puerto de la Cruz 2009.

(Hmmm ... interesting choice of photo that Tinerguia used to illustrate their post. Another one I need to remind that the Creative Commons licence under which my photos are available, Attribution 3.0 License, requires that I'm credited.)

Photos from the festivities of San Sebastián - the culmination of which is taking your horse to the beach for a ducking in the sea - that took place in Adeje on January 20th. (And, if you were visiting and missed it, shame on you, because this took place within strolling distance from the resorts.)

Photos from the pilgrimage of animals from La Laguna to La Matanza

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The image, according to comments, is of the crashed plane in flight.The three occupants of a light plane which disappeared after losing contact with the control tower at Tenerife's north airport this afternoon, have been found semi-conscious, but alive and is being heralded as a miracle.

The plane lost contact with the control tower at Los Rodeos at 13.52 hours. At the time they lost contact there was intense fog over the area.

The plane came down in the area of the Montaña de Joco (1,964 m), an area of dense forest, in the district of La Orotava and not in the area of La Esperanza, as was originally reported.  It is still not known if the pilot attempted to land where he could, or if the plane crashed, but it was found to be much more intact than was expected, on some pines, among the skirts of Mount Teide.

They'd taken off at 12.38 and had filed a flight plan of roughly one hour and, according to that plan, were headed for the south. The plane was flying over Tenerife and had left the Teno area, when it encountered the fog.

One of the three occupants, a woman, was evacuated from the scene by helicopter and taken to the Hospital Universitario de Canarias, while the other two were taken by road, once mountain rescue teams were able to reach them, as weather conditions - dense fog, rain and strong winds - obliged rescue workers to continue the rescue on land. It also appears from this report that a Guardia Civil Jeep turned over while on its way to support the evacuation work.

The pilot (29), who has suffered multiple injuries and the other male occupant (27),  are brothers who hail from the district of El Rosario, Tenerife. The three, two men and one woman, all aged 30 and under, are not in danger, although they all have serious injuries and are in a grave condition.

The plane, a single-engine Piper PA-28 (described as a "Ford Anglia with wings"), call sign EC-DSD (more images), belonged to the Real Aeroclub de Tenerife (Tenerife Royal Flying Club.)

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We have just discovered, only by accident (in other words, we received no notification), that the service - that had been delivering our email newsletters to several hundred people for years - is being put on ice (another victim of the economic crisis). The date they currently give on their website for when access will become unavailable is February 1st, which means we are unable to use this service any longer to provide your weekly and monthly newsletters.

And as you can well imagine, the sudden, unexpected withdrawal of this service will have serious repercussions for Secret Tenerife.

Our own economic crisis means that we cannot afford to switch to any of the paid services that could continue to provide these options, so from now on, the only email delivery of our news is provided by Google's Feedburner service. They dictate the schedule, which is once daily (when something is posted.)

Click here to subscribe to our email delivery service

As well as, or instead of, subscribing by email, you can get Secret Tenerife updates to your mobile; you can subscribe to our Google calendar (rss), follow us on Twitter or add our updates to; My Yahoo! Bloglines Feedster Google Reader More options ...

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San Antonio in the upper reaches of the district of La Matanza de Acentejo in Tenerife also celebrates the fiestas of San Antonio Abad on Sunday with a livestock fair - which, Tenerife Matters tells us is the oldest  cattle fair on Tenerife - that dates back to just after the conquest of Tenerife in 1496.

Thousands of spectators are expected from early morning in the area of the church and Plaza de San Antonio, where several thousand head of goats, sheep, horses and cattle will receive their annual blessing, enlivened by folk groups.

Recuperating a tradition that was discontinued four decades ago, tomorrow's celebrations include a pilgrimage from La Laguna. According to details provided by the local authorities, no less than 40 farmers will be driving their herds and flocks for 12 km along the old trail known as the Camino Real Orotava.

Camino Real (Spanish for The Royal Road or The King's Highway) was the name of a series of pre-automobile highways.)

A new addition was the arrastre de caballos (horse pulling), which took place last Sunday (Jan 18) that links to the traditional arrastre de ganado with oxen (more photos) - that will take place next Sunday, February 1st.

We also read that Pilar Merino, the Canarian Government's councillor for Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food has today inaugurated the XXI Trofeo Gobierno de Canarias de Arrastre de Ganado (the sport's annual trophy), the first trial of which, says the report, took place in the car park of the farmers market in Tacoronte. We wonder, did the oxen have to pull the cars out of the way? :)

In other news today ...

The town hall of Santa Cruz has produced a 240 page manual on good practices for disaster risk management at local level, in three languages; Spanish, English and Italian.

The Canaries need forceful and effective action against certain health problems that put the archipelago at the head of the negative statistics. Childhood obesity, diabetes and unwanted pregnancies are aspects in which the region is the top national positions and, basically, education is what's needed.

Ainhoa Arteta in concert

If you caught the free Christmas Concert in Santa Cruz a couple of years ago, you'll have heard the amazing voice of Spanish soprano, Ainhoa Arteta (breaking glass). So you may also like to know that she will be giving a recital at the Auditorio de Tenerife as on March 21st.

Long needed improvement works on the pedestrian stretch of coastline between  Puerto Colon and Pueblo Canario, in Adeje are about to be carried out. As a result of poor maintenance, the 380 meter stretch currently has pavement in a very deteriorated state, poor lighting and terrible accessibility due to a large number of stairs. The budget is 1,357,893 euros for the improvements and the deadline for the completion of the project is eight months.

Tenerife hoteliers are confident that TUI and Thomas Cook will increase the promotion of the Canaries. (Confident or just hopeful, we wonder?)

Canarian Federation of Baseball and Softball. We didn't know there was one or that baseball is played on the island, but we should be getting regular news about the sport in future. And yes, they have those proper US style baseball shirts!

Tenerife is not an obvious choice for a city break, but its capital has stunning modern architecture, fantastic no-frills restaurants and mountains on its doorstep, says Philip Smith in the Guardian.

A new side of Tenerife: Invited to "live moments of magic", Paul Whyatt heads to Tenerife and discovers a new side to the island.

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This weekend, Güímar also celebrates the fiestas of San Antonio Abad to bless the animals, starting Friday night with a dance. On Saturday, January 24th, from 4.30 pm in the Barranco de Guaza there's  traditional horse racing and, on Sunday, January 25th, from early morning, you can visit an exhibition of livestock, pets and animals in general around the streets of the centre of the town, while in the Plaza de San Pedro there will be a crafts fair and farmers market.

With just 7 days before the start of the Santa Cruz Carnaval 2009 (at least the start of the contests), the presentation of the candidates for Carnaval Queens in Santa Cruz de Tenerife 2009, will take place at the Círculo de Bellas Artes theatre on Friday, January 30th. Of 51 aspiring candidates in all, 18 will participate in the Gala for the Selection of the adult Carnaval Queen, 27 are chasing the junior crown and just 6 compete for the "Queen of the Third Age" as they politely call the glamorous granny end of the proceedings.

For those interested, here's a full list of all the candate's names, ages, titles of their costumes, designers and who they represent (i.e. who's paying).

Free dancing lessons every Thursday night from 10.30 p.m. in the disco, A Saudade, Calle Fernando Arozena Quintero, nº 3, Barrio Buenos Aires, 38009 Santa Cruz de Tenerife - 922 237 830‎. Each week a different style including; Cuban Salsa, Cha Cha Cha, Tango, Funky, HipHop, BreakDance, Samba, Danza Oriental, Sevillanas, Merengue, Bachata ... Entrance FREE.

Canary Islands cut a New promotional Deal with Thomas Cook

The Canary Islands government outlines a new promotional agreement with Thomas Cook, principal British tour operator in the archipelago, says the headline. In the same speech last Tuesday, counsellor Rita Martín was also supposedly outlining the similar agreement with TUI (the two companies account for 50 percent of tour packages from the British Isles).

But, if counsellor Martín filled in any details, they didn't make it to the report in the press and, a clue can, I think, be picked up from the mention in the article of "oscillations with the devaluation of the pound." As a consequence, it seems, all parties are being non-committal on the marketing plan for the time being.

The main aims of their meetings, Los Gigantes.com inform us, "are to discuss the demands from tour operators pressurising hotels to lower their prices and the “what ifs” of a repercussion of a charter airline collapse."

Meanwhile, Arona's new internet portal for tourism (currently points to the old one) is to be available in 5 languages (Spanish, English, German, Swedish and Finnish) and will be presented at the travel trade show, FITUR, in Madrid.

Unemployment and a lack of doctors

The Canary Islands is the region of Spain where unemployment grew most in the last year, by 98%. 79,500 jobs were destroyed during 2008, closing the last quarter of 2008 with 223,600 unemployed, making the percentage of unemployed on the islands, 21.8%.

However, the Canary Islands also suffer from a lack of doctors, with these vacancies the most difficult to fill in the archipelago, according to public employment officials. All islands require general practitioners, while in La Gomera they are also looking for pediatricians and in Lanzaorote; pharmacists and specialists in radiodiagnosis, pediatricians, oncology, haematology, endocrinology and anaesthetists.

(If you're a canine hairdresser (dog groomer), however, the population of the Asturias region in northern Spain is just begging for your services.)

BBC newsreader Huw Edwards, appears, like most tourists, not to explore very far outside of the resort areas, but at least his impression of Tenerife is positive and he and his family are repeat visitors to the island, as you can discover in this article in The Telegraph Huw Edwards's heaven on earth, where he talks about the "guaranteed sunshine and rugged beauty of Costa Adeje, Tenerife."

The Independent urge you to find solace, sun and inspiring architecture in northern Tenerife.

Ben Magec-Ecologistas en Acción (Ecologists in Action in Tenerife) are bringing new complaints about irregularities surrounding the Granadilla Port project to the courts.

Nothing will ever be the same ...

Whilst not actually appearing to clarify whether he terms this good news or bad, the president of the Canary Islands Government, Paulino Rivero, assures us in a note to the press today that "nothing is going to be the same in the archipelago after the global economic crisis" and that it's vital to "progress in implementing structural measures to strengthen the new model" (whatever that means.) He also says the executive will be betting on "dynamization and diversification."

The number of pensions being paid in the Canary Islands in Jauary rose to 243,730, 2.6% more than in the previous year, while the average pension in the Canaries is 702.29 euros, 4.8% higher than in January 2008.

Finally, 84% of the taxis in La Laguna now have GPS positioning, but if that doesn't turn you on, you can always try another kind of electric tourism around the historic town, as these German cruise ship passengers did this (rather damp) afternoon, starting from the Plaza del Adelantado, on Segways.

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Canary Art PrintAlthough earlier expected to remain in place until Friday, the weather alert in the Canary Islands was downgraded lunchtime Thursday from an orange alert to level (Canary) yellow pre-alert.

That situation too was ended at 8 p.m., with all of the western Canary Islands currently returned to green level (no meteorological risks.)

Winning Canary Sandwich

A Mexican chef, who has lived in the Canary Islands for several years, Armando Saldaña of Restaurante Amaranto in El Sauzal, Tenerife, has won the Concurso de Bocadillos de Autor (snacks contest) at the international gastronomical event, Madrid Fusión 2009 in Madrid, with his sandwich entitled, Red Hot Tuna Peppers. (Photo)

Saldaña's sandwich, made on soft bread, contains Canarian goat cheese, caramelised piquillo peppers, tuna tataki with a dressing of toronjil oil.

And let this be a very clear lesson in why you must never, ever trust those entertaining automated translations ... 

Seeing a couple of new terms, I ran the description through Google Language Tools. Of course, I instantly knew it wasn't going to have much luck translating a Japanese word from Spanish to English, but what I wasn't expecting was the giant cock-up it made of ones I already knew: queso de cabra canario (Canarian goats cheese), which it turned into, "goat cheese with a canary". :-)

No doubt, such delicacy is being served on a menu somewhere on the island! 

NB: Toronjil, Agastache mexicana or Mexican Giant Hyssop, is a herb of the mint family, with with lemon scented foliage. Canaries - info and games - everything you ever wanted to know about the Canary (Serinus canaria) sometimes called the Island Canary, Wild Canary or Atlantic Canary.

Horror Classics in Carnaval Prelude

The town hall in Santa Cruz are going to be showing a number of classic horror films (since that is the theme of this year's carnaval) leading up to the event to create atmosphere. You can see the Mark of the Vampire (1935) on Monday, January 26th, and similar classics throughout the week, up to and including Saturday, January 31st. (Via)

All featuring easily recognizable names like Dracula and Frankenstein, these six British classics from Hammer will, no doubt, be either dubbed into Spanish, or if you're lucky with the older ones, have only Spanish sub-titles. If you like horror films and are learning Spanish, this could be a fun learning opportunity.

Entrance is FREE, however, because of space limitations, you do need to collect an invitation first (just ask) from the Carnaval organizers, Radio Club Tenerife or Rider Producciones. Shows start at 8.30 p.m. in the Círculo de Bellas Artes, located in the central shopping area of Calle Castillo, Santa Cruz. (See map.)

Market traders from the Rastro de Santa Cruz de Tenerife - the regular Sunday Market in the streets around the Nuestra Señora de África want to open on the Sundays during carnaval, on February 22nd and March 1st.

Fed up with the drop in sales because of the economic crisis, the street traders have asked the town hall to let them set up their stalls on those days. Two years ago, the town hall banned the market during Carnaval for reasons of security.

And in other news in Tenerife today ...

Miss España, Patricia Rodríguez, will promote her town of birth, Granadilla (Tenerife) at the International Tourism Trade Fair, FITUR (28 January-1 February) in Madrid.

The Canary Islands were, once again, the preferred region of Spain for foreign tourists in December with 51% of all visitors (no surprise, as it's the only region warm enough for most tastes), although overall in Spain, there was a reduction of 6.2% in the numbers compared to December 2007. Hotels in Tenerife in December 2008 reached 61.2% occupation. Overall during 2008 in the Canary Islands 49,485,189 nights' stays were provided to 7.4 million tourists.

Refinery gets green gong

Make of this what you will:  The refinery in Santa Cruz and the gas turbines at Los Vallitos in Adeje, now have Autorización Ambiental Integrada (Integrated Environmental Authorization.)

I'm just translating what's in the news item, but the gongs have been handed out by the Ministry for the Environment of the Canary Islands Government, "upon the request of the companies, Cepsa and Unelco, respectively."

(Photo showing the smog belching refinery: Foro contra la Incineración.)

The Canarian authorities' approach to environmental issues can probably be summed up by this, I swear to you, true story, when a few years back I was driving up a mountain road behind a knackered old slow moving Land Rover that was belching enough black smoke that it almost choked me. On the side of the offending Land Rover were painted the words, "Medio Ambiente" (Environment.) That is to say, it was a Land Rover, owned by the Cabildo (Tenerife Island Corporation)'s own Environmental Department.

"Intolerable conditions of detention", in terms of hygiene, overcrowding, and insufficient legal, sanitary and psychological assistance, says a report from Brussels over European detention centres, among them the Centro de Internamiento para Extranjeros (CIE) in Las Raíces (Tenerife).

More jobs for the unemployed: In a bid to create more jobs for the unemployed and to boost the economy in this time of crisis three major projects, which have been on hold for various reasons, are being kicked back into action.

Jet2.com launched (21-Jan-09) a sale on Tenerife and Lanzarote services for Winter 09/10. Fares will start from GBP 68.99 (one way inc. taxes). Passengers can travel to Tenerife from Blackpool, Manchester, Leeds and Newcastle.

Meanwhile, six airlines that operate in the Canary Islands are not applying the European rules over prices. The six are: Binter Canarias, Easyjet, Air Lingus, Air Berlín, Cóndor and Transavia. Ryanair applies the rules in a confusing manner and breaks the regulations on the front page of their website, says the report.

• Die bunte Pflanzen- und Blumenwelt Teneriffas - pretty pictures of plants and flowers in Tenerife, even if you don't understand German.
• "Sir Old Golfer’s" Blog looks to be an internet destination of choice for all of you who like to spoil your walks by thwacking a small ball around.
• Spain Expat's quick guide to everyday Spanish slang and informal vocabulary you may or may not find in your dictionary.

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Romería de Buenavista. The annual San Antonio Abad fiestas (and livestock fair) in Buenavista del Norte, which this year, take place on Sunday, January 25th also incorporates a Romería (ox carts, food, wine, traditional costumes) and a knees up to the Malibú Band.

Tenerife Carnaval 2009 - Official Program

Those of you who can read Spanish, can now consult the lengthy Tenerife Carnaval 2009 - Official Program. Although, clearly, there's a lot more detail, there doesn't appear to be any change to the core of important events that - based on my highly subjective opinion - are those that are likely to be of most interest to visitors and even most busy residents and already listed here.

Televisión Canaria are to transmit 21 events of the Carnaval in Santa Cruz, Tenerife - in the exterior via their international satellite channels.

Mildly amusing: as you can see from the photo, a press conference was called requiring the Santa Cruz mayor, Miguel Zerolo, his deputy dawg, Ángel Llanos and the councillor for fiestas, Maribel Oñate, along with the director of the public TV station - Guillermo García - just to announce that! (When he was a "simple" TV presenter, of course, the latter was the more familiar, Willy García. :-)

Twin towns La Laguna and San Antonio?

The University of La Laguna (ULL), in La Laguna, Tenerife, is to increase it's collaboration with the University of San Antonio, Texas (UTSA), city which was founded by Canary Island settlers in the early 18th Century. (Many descendants of these first settlers still reside in San Antonio. Probably the most famous contribution the Canary Islanders made was building the San Antonio de Valero Mission, later known as the Alamo. More links of interest.) Photo courtesy PDPhoto.org

Returning the favour ... American rock band, Wilco is to open their Spanish tour with a concert at the Auditorio de Tenerife, on May 23rd.

Hannah posts about Hitch hiking in Ibiza and I just thought I'd mention that in rural areas of Tenerife this is still normal too. Having lived in a valley where there were at most a half dozen (each way) buses on most days, it was never seen as anything unusual and was something I resorted to occasionally when there was no alternative. Locals also told me that if one was to go to a fiesta and you couldn't get home (because there wasn't any public transport at night), then you can ask the municipal police for a lift. No, I never tried that! You'd absolutely never get that advice in the UK, would you? Nor in the brochures. :-)

Canary Island population growth slows

Mortality is on the increase, while the birth rate in the islands is on the descent, as it is in the rest of Spain. And according to data from the Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE) (National Statistics Institute) the Canaries will lose "vegetative population" - the difference between the number of births and the number of deaths - to be left with a third of current levels within 8 years.

In other words, natural population growth in the last year amounted to 7,180 people, which is three times the number projected for the year 2017.

By extension, therefore, if they wish to ensure economic expansion, the Canaries will probably have to RELY ON immigration to make up the numbers, or start reproducing more. Rather contrary to what some politicians suggest.

The same statistics institution project that the Canary Islands will receive no less than 239,737 immigrants in the next decade, with 56,968 emigrating, making a net migratory increase in the archipelago's population of 182.769.

Furthermore ...

600,000 people in the Canary Islands (a very significant proportion of a 2 million population) are at risk of heart attack, the major reason for this being that 40% of the population are overweight and 20% are obese.

Business leaders (Confederación Provincial de Empresarios de Santa Cruz de Tenerife) say that the Canaries have entered into recession.

The Tourism department of the Canary Islands executive initiates contacts with TUI Travel in London to encourage the influx of tourists to the archipelago. The Canary Islands received 3,356,935 tourists last year from the United Kingdom. Almost 50% of the sales of package tours went to Thomas Cook and, Tui Travel whose brands include Thomson and First Choice.

Spanish Euro MP David Hammerstein (Los Verdes / The Greens), reports that "unfortunately, the work on the port of Granadilla is going to commence", although, he says "we can still ask the EU not to finance the project."

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As the shading around the coasts of the Canary Islands on the official weather warning map is upgraded from yellow (risk) to orange (important risk), what I didn't know until today is that an orange alert also turns the landscape a sorta orangey- sepia colour, but look at Jack Montgomery's images showing the wild waves in Puerto de la Cruz. :)

All joking aside, heed what he says that, "Incredibly there were plenty of ‘thrillseekers’ walking along the harbour wall to get a closer look at the waves. Most looked liked visitors, clearly unaware that the Atlantic likes the odd sacrifice every now and again and it’s not uncommon for people to be occasionally swept off the wall when the sea is throwing a wobbly."

Like I said yesterday with the yellow alert, you'd be advised to keep away from seafront walls, rocky promontories, etc. This, of course, should be common sense, but then I guess holiday makers don't habitually pack a lot of that! 

And the fact that otherwise, the "extreme winter weather" in the Canary Islands is only equivalent to "a day at the end of summer, beginning of autumn in England", tends to lull people into a false sense of security, I guess.

Labels: Tenerife Weather

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CD Tenerife trounced Girona 4-1 and put themselves in the promotion zone. Colin Kirby says it's, "Probably the best performance I have seen in 8 seasons of watching CD Tenerife, that was the first half of yesterdays [Sunday's] 4-1 home win over Girona, that put CDT in third spot in the Spanish Second Division."

Meanwhile, in other soccer news, Brazilian ace Robinho (pictured) has reportedly walked out of the Manchester City's training camp in Tenerife. There's speculation that he may be going home to Brazil. (Presumably, Robinho doesn't know that Tenerife has a Carnaval to rival the one in his native country!)

As Going Native in Tenerife point out on their blog about Fiestas on Tenerife, "Many of these wonderful fiestas take place completely off the radar screen of the average tourist." What hope does Robinho have? You have no excuses ... 

Upcoming in Puerto de la Cruz

Mojo Canario list the Provisional program for Puerto's Carnaval 2009, the theme for which is África, tierra de tribus (Africa, land of tribes):

07/02/2009 - Opening ceremonies and presentation of the candidates for the adult and junior Carnaval Queens.
15/02/2009 - Gala for the election of the Junior Carnaval Queen.
19/02/2009 - Gala for the election of the Adult Carnaval Queen.
21/02/2009 - Announcing Parade.
22/02/2009 - Costume Contest.
25/02/2009 - Burial of the Sardine.
27/02/2009 - High Heels Marathon.
28/02/2009 - Main Carnaval Parade.

Various restaurants in Puerto de la Cruz are promoting the wines of the region with a campaign entitled, "30 días de los Vinos del Valle de La Orotava" (30 Days of Wines of the Orotava Valley.) Doesn't mention any freebies or special prices, but it's worth looking for the posters just in case, or just for the chance of trying something new.

Also upcoming in Puerto de la Cruz are: Santa Girl Surf Weekend, a surf weekend for girls only, on January 31st - February 1st.

And, looking way ahead, in March (27th, 28th & 29th) there's the Festival Mueca 2009 and in May (16th - 23rd) - such advance notice is nearly unheard of previously - the town will play host to the Festival Internacional de Cine Ecológico y de la Naturaleza (International Festival of Ecological and Nature Film.)

Ladies' Night

All sing along to that 1979 Kool and the Gang song, as there's going to be a Fiesta de la Mujer (Ladies' Night) on Friday, 23rd January, at the Lounge Café "1600 y pico" Candelaria Nº 8 , in the La Noria area of Santa Cruz (View Map). Free bar for women from 00.30 to 01.30 (in the wee hours of Saturday.) More details on Facebook.

For all of you Sesame Street fans (and probably a few kids too), 29th January 2009 and 1st February 2009, Sesame Street Live comes to La Laguna.

The island gets a mention in a new Guinness World Record for the Largest Single Edition of a Magazine. One of the articles was about Siam Park, the biggest water park in Europe that opened last year in the south of Tenerife.

Recycling Granny's Wardrobe

Emergency services have declared a situation of alert from 00:00 hours Wednesday around the coasts of the Canary Islands, where 4 to 5.5 meter waves are expected.

Dense fog yesterday morning caused 10 flights to be diverted from Tenerife's north airport to the south.

There's been so much rain, Tenerife's reservoirs are now 75% full.

High seas caused the closure of the seafront road in Garachico, which is by no means the first time - as this photo demonstrates, when a rock washed up onto the front at Garachico by the castle a few years ago.

The alert is only yellow (some risk) level and mostly affects fishing, but you'd still be advised to keep away from seafront walls, rocky promontories, etc.

Recipe (in Spanish) for the yummy traditional Canarian watercress soup (that should keep you warm in the winter weather, wherever you are.)

Other items in the news in Tenerife ...

• Social Security in the Canaries closed 2008 with 90,664 foreigners registered, 7.87% less than there were a year earlier.
• Rents rose in the Canary Islands by 3.7% in 2008, two points higher than the rate of inflation.
• The convent in La Laguna is seeking novices. Apparently, not many women sign up these days: so few that the convent may be forced to close.
• Finally, it's reported that a delegation from the state of Texas is to visit Tenerife to seek agreements on commercial interests. (Be VERY worried: remember one of that state's village idiots is out of work as of today!)

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Training ship of the Spanish Navy, the Juan Sebastián Elcano, arrived in Tenerife on Thursday and the tall ship - at 113 metres (370 feet) long, she is the third-largest Tall Ship in the world - is to remain in port in Santa Cruz until Monday, January 19th, for all those who wish to go and see her, says this report.

The almost 82 year old schooner - which was launched on March 5th, 1927 - was named in honour of Basque navigator, Juan Sebastián Elcano, who took over command after Magellan's death and became the first man to complete the circumnavigation of the world.

A regular visitor to Tenerife, Santa Cruz is the port that the the Juan Sebastián Elcano has visited most times - on 54 occasions - during her more than  eight decades of service.

The sweetly named Captain Javier Romero Caramelo has a crew of 222 under his command, among them officers, NCO's and seamen, as well as five civilians; two cooks, one a master carpenter and a hairdresser. They all face a journey that will last six months. After this stop in Tenerife they travel to Port of Spain (Trinidad and Tobago); San Juan, Puerto Rico (Puerto Rico); Galveston (USA); Cartagena de Indias ( Colombia); Havana (Cuba); Veracruz (Mexico); Pensacola (USA); Hamilton (Bermuda), ending up, on July 13, in the Spanish port of Marín. She sails on Monday at 5 p.m.

Photos: by Daquella manera

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For once, unusually, I'll attempt to stay out of the politics of this, but I must say that I'd suffered the same strange puzzlement over the last few days, while I was researching information for posts on the upcoming Carnaval in Santa Cruz, only to find that the Carnaval website - that I've been used to visiting for years (there must be loads of links to it in blog posts here) - just ain't there any more.

Instead, the domains carnavaltenerife.es and .com now both redirect to the city's Development Society's website, santacruzmas.com. It advertises itself as the "Tourism and leisure portal of Santa Cruz", but, presumably, counts on only ever attracting Spanish speaking tourists to the city (no English version.)

Visiting that site today, Carnaval items have gained the spotlight, but a couple of days ago Carnaval was (and more worryingly, will be again later) not much more than an afterthought. Even now there's only a bit about the scenery (which we covered eons ago) and a PDF of an incomplete, provisional program of events.

With just three weeks to go to the start of this major event - second only to the hugely famous Carnaval in Rio, declared to be of international tourist interest and (naturally) a big draw and earner for the island of Tenerife and, that's it?

It's a bit much to rely solely on Carnaval 2009 info from Secret Tenerife, but all joking aside, what we have here, probably is the most information you'll find about the Tenerife Carnaval in one place online, in any language! :)

Labels: Carnaval 2009

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The Weather Warning Continues For Tenerife as temperatures of MINUS 4 degrees centigrade are registered in Las Cañadas del Teide. To be fair that below freezing level was only up the mountains: at sea level it was still a very respectable 68°F / 20°C during the mid afternoon, demonstrating one of the most fascinating things about Tenerife - the immense contrasts.

Nevertheless, access roads to Mount Teide via La Esperanza and La Orotava were once again closed due to sheets of ice on the surface. (The Tenerife Corporation later re-opened access to Teide via La Orotava, after clearing the ice.)

Good news though: The rains over the last few weeks have filled the islands' reservoirs, so that the water supply is guaranteed, at least for this year's harvest. ... and the bad:

Tomato growing and flower farming could be under risk of disappearing in the Canary Islands, as a consequence of the financial crisis and delay in the receipt of aid from central government.

Japanese Tea Ceremony?

Japanese life design magazine, Casa Brutus, is to publish a report on the Tenerife Espacio de las Artes  (TEA), the new museum of contemporary art, a work by Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron in Santa Cruz, in it's March edition. [Photo: Jose Mesa.]

Fiestas de San Antonio Abad in Arona 2009

Tenerife Matters have kindly translated the program for this weekend's Fiestas de San Antonio Abad in Arona 2009 and we wholeheartedly agree with their opinion that "now’s a great time to make the short trip to see what goes on in Tenerife outside of the resorts." The picturesque village of Arona is so close to the southern resorts that it would truly be sinful to travel approx 2,000 miles to Tenerife and not make the effort to travel a mere 10 kms (6 miles) up from Los Cristianos to see something typical of the island whilst you're there.

To make it even easier for you ...

Bus number 480 will take you from Los Cristianos to Arona and back. The big event is, of course, the romería (procession), slated to begin around midday on the Sunday. Sunday bus services are reduced, however, there's one bus leaving Los Cristianos at 10 a.m., which would get you to Arona in around half an hour, which might be a bit early. The next bus doesn't leave Los Cristianos until 1.05 in the afternoon. It's your call, but since almost nothing is ever that punctual in Tenerife, that bus would, I feel, be perfectly serviceable for the task. Do get to the bus stop early though, because there might be a lot of people who agree with me! Buses back to Los Cristianos leave Arona at 4.30, 7.30 and 8.30 p.m., which actually, leaves you plenty of time to get back to the karaoke bar!

(No, I've no idea why you'd want to either, but as an ex-karaoke compere ... :)

From Christmas to Candlemas

Andrea also comments "... barely the last Christmas decoration taken down (actually some of them are still strung up)". This used to puzzle me. I'd got over the idea that decorations should be taken down by Twelfth Night, 'coz if they did that in Spain, they'd be taken down before the  celebrations proper for Los Reyes (The Three Kings), but I had though that decorations remaining long after that date were just another demonstration of the typical, laid back (to the point of horizontality) mañana syndrome.

This was, until I was recently reminded, that even in British culture, "The eve of Candlemas was the day on which Christmas decorations of greenery were removed from people's homes and churches." 

So, it's probably just that folk in Tenerife are being very traditional (and not just very lazy) in leaving Christmas decorations up until February 2nd - that date is also a holiday in Tenerife as Candelaria means Candlemas and Candelaria in Tenerife is the seat of the Patroness of the islands.

other news this weekend in Tenerife ...

• Bill Clinton spends 42 minutes on Tenerife. Gee whiz, the ex President of the United States had a short technical stop over in his private jet.
• The Spanish airports' authority (AENA) are to make a viability study with a view to enlarging la Gomera's airport. (The end of La Gomera as we know it.)
• Enrique Bunbury and Paul McCartney (who was slated to be coming last year) are the artists that Tenerife residents most want to see perform live.
• The Festival of Ecological and Nature Cinema comes back to the Canary Islands, after a 14 year absence. Takes place in Puerto de la Cruz in May.
• The Canaries closed December with the arrival of 806,457 foreign tourists.
• Foreign tourism was down in Tenerife in 2008, but increased in La Palma.
• Tourism resisted the crisis and closed its fiscal year with a decline of 1.2%.
• Income from tourism fell last year by 5.7%.
• Tenerife gets eighty new National Police officers.
• A bus educating people against macho violence began touring Tenerife Friday.
• The number of road deaths in the Canary Islands descended 39% in 2008.
• Organ donations depend on immigrants and old folk.
• Talented custom work in Tenerife.

Finally ...

If traffic jams get your goat, you should see Traffic Jams in the Real Tenerife.

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Jack and Andrea Montgomery's new book, Going Native in Tenerife, apparently (my copy is currently en route from Amazon in the UK) has something missing, as they admit in this post entitled What, no room for postres? (Ah ha, so there's still a market for my book, "Cake shops of Tenerife, Tied and Tested" then? :-)

Yeah, I get accused of being "a fan of school dinner type puds from the 60s and 70s". OK, guilty as charged, but truly, I believe that my liking for these delicacies - actually, they are never as sickly sweet as British alternatives - merely demonstrates how Cananarian / Spanish my habits have become.

As Lisa Sierra says, "The Spanish love desserts. If you've ever visited Spain, you know this because of the number of pastry shops you pass! Every block seems to have several pastelerias displaying mouth-watering cakes, pastries and sweet breads."

Yup, my frequent patronage of the Pasteleria El Aderno would confirm that!

Jack and Andrea did leave one milky pudding off their list though, which actually, started off in Latin America, but has been gaining popularity in Tenerife recently. If such things don't ring your bell either, then you might think it's disgusting. If your tastes are like mine, you might agree that the flavour is only marginally less exciting than sex. :) It's called Tres Leches.

A Tres leches cake, or Pastel de Tres leches (Spanish, "Three milk cake"), is a sponge cake, - in some recipes, a butter cake - soaked in three kinds of milk: evaporated milk, condensed milk, and either whole milk or cream.

(The example above, I devoured at the Asadero Los Pedregales in the El Palmar valley above Buenavista del Norte. It's on the 355 and 366 bus routes.)

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The largest of the Canary Islands, Tenerife offers visitors an all-round Spanish holiday outing where one will not only find plenty of sun, sand and surf, but a variety of cities and towns of great cultural wealth as well. This rich history is reflected in the ancient castles, churches and monuments one will find throughout the island along with centuries old annual festivals and religious ceremonies.

For those wondering just what city or town to visit, here are a few of the destinations one can head to and their respective attractions that will help to enhance ones cultural experience in Tenerife.

Located along the Eastern part of the island, Tenerife's vibrant capital Santa Cruz is rich in culture and has a wide array of historical sites. Palacio de Carta (18th century) which has been declared a national monument and Palacio Marti Dehesa can be found here, while the island's religious heritage is represented in such attractions as the Baroque style Iglesia de la Concepcion (16th century), Iglesia de San Francisco and the Ermita de San Telmo (15th century).

Those wanting to get a better feel of the island's history and traditions can visit the Museum of Nature and Man, the Municipal Museum of Fine Arts, Teatro Guimera and the Auditorio de Tenerife which holds various cultural events. Santa Cruz de Tenerife also plays host to the local Carnival (usually at the end of February) and the Virgen de los Remedios Festivities. Since accommodation at hotels and apartments in Tenerife can be hard to find during the festival season, booking ahead is always safer.

Home to a historical quarter that has been granted World Heritage status by UNESCO, the former Tenerife capital of La Laguna is a must visit for those interested in the island's culture. Boasting over 1,000 Mudejar buildings, this ancient city is where one will find such religious sites as the Neoclassical style Ntra. Sra. de los Remedios Cathedral, the Church of Our Lady of Conception and the Ermita de San Miguel (16th century).

The Nava Palace, Lercaro Palace, Casa del Corregidor and Casa Ossuna also give one a chance to appreciate the local architecture. The Folk and Roots Festival, the Romeria of San Benito Abad and the Festival of the Christ are annual events in the city where one can experience traditional music and dancing as well as enjoy some local cuisine.

Situated on the Northern part of the island, Puerto de la Cruz is a lively tourist resort that has a variety of Tenerife hotels and apartments that one can use as a base to explore this culturally rich city. Historical attractions include the 17th century San Felipe Castle, Iglesia de Ntra. Sra. de la Pena de Francia, Ermita de San Amaro (16th century) and the Customs House. Depending on the time of year one can also experience Fiesta de San Juan and its beach bonfires, the Holy Week processions and the Virgin of the Carmen Festival which is celebrated by local fishermen.

La Orotava is another part of Tenerife that gives visitors a chance to soak up some local culture. The village of La Villa de la Orotava and its historical quarter is worth a visit as are such area attractions as the Church of the Conception (a National Monument), the San Augustin Church (17th century), Villa de los Molina (16th century) and the House of the Balconies where one can get a look at local architecture which includes typical wooden balconies. Not to be missed is the Romeria de San Andres and the Corpus Christi Festival where flower petals cover the road used in a local procession.

These are by no means the only cultural cities on the island. Depending on where ones hotel or apartment in Tenerife is situated, visitors can also head to such culturally rich areas as Garachico, Los Realejos and Costa Adeje. Observing a local way of life in its own environs is a unique holiday experience and Tenerife has plenty to offer by way of culture and traditions which will keep one coming back year after year.

Larry Austin is a freelance journalist and who writes on topics related to travel, hotels and destination reviews. He is currently working for RoomsNet.com. Tenerife is one of the most popular holiday destinations in Spain and RoomsNet.com is a specialist for Hotels in Tenerife. You may view Tenerife Hotels here classified under many themes.

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Santa Cruz town hall may have announced that it was trimming down the budget for the 2009 Carnaval, but that certainly hasn't stopped organizers from innovating, or from attracting world-class acts to perform in the city.

On the night of Carnaval Monday, February 23rd, 2009 - traditionally one of the biggest party nights, as it's the eve of the Shrove Tuesday main parade (and a holiday in the city) - there is to be an open-air electronic music fiesta.

Among DJs are; Puerto de la Cruz born, Dutch resident, forerunner of the eclectic sound, Real el Canario (pictured), along with four iconic US acts; DJ Craze, Ron Carroll, Armand Van Helden and the legendary (at least in Ibiza) Roger Sánchez.

Taking place in the central Plaza de La Candelaria in Tenerife's capital city, the town hall are hopeful that this fiesta will be as successful as last year's hugely popular Carnaval de Día (Daytime Carnaval) held on the Domingo de Piñata (Piñata Sunday), when the Orishas, Edwin Rivera and Billos Caracas Boys, among others, performed in five locations around the city.

This year's lineup will be historic: in that the five have never performed together before and, is aimed at 18 to 38 year olds (or those who just act / feel like it), bringing a mixture of mostly hip-hop, house and progressive house styles to Carnaval. I reckon it should help ensure Santa Cruz stays on the map.

And the best part about this immense, more than seven hour long open-air disco spectacular, boys and girls, is that whole thing is free.

Labels: Carnaval 2009

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There's bearly a month to go until Carnaval 2009 kicks off in Santa Cruz, so we thought we'd better list a few dates for your social diary.

These are provisional and based on the regular annual schedule; thus are subject to last minute change, the whims of the weather, etc.

Wednesday, 18th February: Gala for the Election of the Carnival Queen 2009. Usually televised too, often internationally, if you have satellite.

Friday, 20th February: Proclamatory Parade in the evening.

Tuesday, 24th February: The main parade or "Coso Apotheosis" of Carnival (more photos) (starts around 4 pm).

Wednesday, 25th February: Attend the blasphemous and pornographic family entertainment night (really), known as the Burial of the Sardine.

Sunday, 1st March: Piñata Sunday, when a parade of beautiful vintage cars starts from the Calle La Noria, in the old part of Santa Cruz.

Puerto de la Cruz Carnaval

The main parade of Carnaval in Puerto de la Cruz should be taking place on Saturday, February 28th.

For more information on what goes on for Carnaval in Puerto, including their annual High Heels Marathon (for blokes, naturally), see Andrea Montgomery's article here.

Carnaval Elsewhere in Tenerife

There are usually Carnival events of varying size in lots of towns and villages on the island, including; Candelaria, Garachico, Güimar, Tacoronte, Guía de Isora, La Guancha and San Miguel de Abona, but the two largest that you are most likely to run into if you're visiting the island are probably:

Los Gigantes 5th – 9th Mar 2009
Los Cristianos 7th – 16th Mar 2009

Thanks to Los Gigantes.com for the additional dates.

Labels: Carnaval 2009

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A reader wrote, asking for a recommendation for a reasonably priced, small family hotel in Tenerife's capital, Santa Cruz or nearby La Laguna.

Hotel Pelinor:  The only hotel in Tenerife that I've personally stayed in, is the 2-Star Hotel Pelinor in the Calle Bethencourt Alfonso, 8, in Santa Cruz and I was perfectly satisfied with it. Very convenient, close to the Plaza de España, the Hotel Pelinor has since been refurbished (in 2003) and contacts who have stayed there since were also very pleased with it.

Plaza Hotel: One more star and in the parallel Plaza de la Candelaria, 10 (right off the gorgeous, new look seafront, Plaza de España), is the Plaza Hotel.

Hotel Taburiente: Pictured is the  minimalist decor in the lobby of the Hotel Taburiente in Santa Cruz, which dlisbona says has good Wifi. The Hotel Taburiente, which is on the Calle Doctor Guigou 25, is conveniently situated right in the heart of Tenerife's capital city, one street to the east of the Parque García Sanabria. Hard to believe this is only 3-Star too.

Other hotels you might consider, still in the reasonably-priced 3-Star range, but also centrally situated in the city for sight-seeing, transport, etc., are:

1. Hotel Contemporaneo on the recently renamed Rambla de Santa Cruz (formerly, Rambla General Franco, 116) 
2. Hotel Colon Rambla, Calle Viera y Clavijo, 49
3. Hotel Principe Paz, Calle Valentín Sanz 33-35

The only ones I left off the list are ones in less convenient or in possibly less salubrious locations in the city. There are, of course, 4 and 5-star rated hotels in the city, if you should want to spoil yourselves. Don't forget that Carnaval is coming up (February 15th - March 1st), so book early to avoid the rush.

Click on individual hotel names for booking and availability.

There are two hotels listed here in the nearby city of La Laguna.

Click here for a larger selection of hotels in Santa Cruz.

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Murga group in Uruguay. Murga groups are also a very popular part of the Carnaval in Tenerife.With Carnaval just around the corner, what better than a bit of controversy to get the publicity machine started?

This time, to the surprise of many (who, of course, say that their only intention is to make the public laugh), the Frente de Liberación Gay y Lesbianas (Gay and Lesbian Liberation Front) in Tenerife, have brought a complaint to the European Court of Human Rights, saying that the lyrics of the murga groups' songs are homophobic.

To be fair, their complaints have been made against both the Santa Cruz town hall and the town hall of Las Palmas in Gran Canaria.  (Well, the perceived noise problem that helped publicise carnaval in the last few years silenced itself!) 

Gallery owners Given 3 months to bring protection up to legal standards

Almost 2 years after the tragedy in February 2007, which claimed the lives of 6 excursionists in the Piedra de Los Cochinos water galley in Los Silos, Tenerife, new security rules came into force on Jan 4th to regulate safety in this type of installation. 

The new rules require the owners of the galleries to install clear warning signs by March 4th, in order to prevent similar tragedies from happening again.

The walkers had mistaken the (open) entrance to the fatal, gas-filled gallery with that of the (gated) tunnel to the next valley that they should have taken. The Asociación Tinerfeña de Amigos de la Naturaleza (The Tenerife Association of the Friends of Nature) (ATAN), survivors and victims' families had been campaigning ever since to get such legislation put in place.

Abandoned animals to get the snip

The Tenerife Corporation and the Canarian Federation of Animal Protection Associations have reached an agreement to sterilize abandoned cats and dogs on the island, with the intention of improving their sanitary conditions and to reduce the risks of them transmitting illnesses. It may only be a six month agreement, but  it's progress. How many years millennia has it taken to get to this point?

More news from Tenerife

The law on mobile phones in Spain, which applies to Tenerife, says that if you own a pay as you go SIM card in your mobile phone then you have to register your name and address with your network provider or lose your number.

Driving without insurance in Tenerife: It's no longer necessary to carry the original of your vehicle insurance documents while driving.

Tax Rebates for Renters: From 1st January 2008, you can deduct 10.05% of the rent paid if renting your main home in Tenerife, provided your taxable income is less than €24,020 per year. You will need to provide evidence of a rental contract and proof of payments.

Patrimonio Tax Abolished? Nope, but its rate has been set at zero.

Moving to Tenerife in a Recession "I’d prefer to be warm and broke in Tenerife than cold and broke in the UK," is a typical response amongst many.

Property prices in the Canary Islands fell 9%, more than the national average drop of 8.8%.

Tenerife has only half the number of doctors as Gran Canaria.

Low fares airline Monarch is increasing its scheduled flying programme to the Canary and Balearic Islands for Summer 2009 in response to strong demand from customers taking advantage of early flight booking offers.

The winter weather continues with heavy rains predicted for Thursday, accompanied by storms and high winds in the Canary Islands.

Labels: Carnaval 2009

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Tenerife Gets Tilt-Shifted

With all the real model nativity villages to see over Christmas, it's probably not necessary to make photos of Tenerife look like "fake" models, but they're still fun.

Here's another Tenerife tilt shift image and a couple of La Gomera. (For more on Tilt-shift photography, Tilt-shift miniature faking, Let’s get small. I made the "model" of Santa Cruz above with TiltShiftMaker.com Via: Boing Boing.)

Weather alert (actually, I think it's only a yellow "pre-alert", i.e. don't panic, yet ...) for rains that could become heavy in isolated parts and snow on the mountains above 2,500 meters, but that includes pretty much all of the Teide National Park, so expect access to be restricted. Rains with the risk of snow this Friday in the Canary Islands. Temperatures of between 15 and 19C are expected.

The access to Teide via La Esperanza had only just been reopened the other day, after it had been closed due to ice on the road from last time. In Tenerife, 15-19 C is "extremely cold",  although we have to mention again that it's hardly the arctic snap / mini ice-age / global cooling that's currently gripping UK viewers.

The Tenerife Symphony Orchestra kick off the concerts for the 25th Canarian Music Festival in the Tenerife Auditorium in Santa Cruz tonight, Jan 9th.

Almond Flower Route

Make a date in your diary, as the 12th Edition of the "Almond Flower Route" walk in Santiago de Teide is to be celebrated on February 7th.

The walk starts at 9 a.m. that day, but you need to pre-book, by calling 922 863 127, exts 234 y 235. Other than that, the details are pretty much the same as in previous years. Get a taster, complete with birdsong, in this short video.

Another Side to Tenerife

You know, the one we've been telling you about for years ... but what did I say the other day, that this year might be the year when this news reaches the mainstream. Well, the campaign itself is obviously interesting enough to have got the attention of leading magazine, Marketing Week. Keep pluggin'

Rain of Hope for the Three Kings

There was a "rain of hope" to receive the Three Kings in Santa Cruz (it rained), although I don't quite know why as, apparently, even Wise Men are being hit by the credit crunch these days: with news that "the kings didn’t arrive by helicopter but were driven into the CD Tenerife football stadium by the local fire men."

There was a slight change to routine in Los Cristianos, where the kings arrived at the ferry port and made their way in a large procession of dancers and musicians to the church plaza this year, rather than outside the cultural centre. The Three Kings parade in La Laguna had to be suspended because of the rain, but the Three Kings "delayed" their return to the Orient and visited Tenerife hospitals.

And ... an expert proposes eliminating the fiesta of Los Reyes to shorten the school holidays. What the hell is s/he an expert in, "playing Scrooge"? 

Know Your Mushrooms

Three people have been poisoned after consuming wild mushrooms in Tenerife. Two  received treatment for gastrointestinal problems after collecting an unknown species of mushroom in La Esperanza. The other case  involved, Amanita phalloides, commonly known as the death cap that had been picked in the area of La Conejera in Santa Úrsula. The patent had to undergo a liver transplant.

Gran Canaria and Tenerife are among the areas of Spain with the highest number of species of plants in danger of extinction.

"Canarian politicians remain committed to demonstrating their stupidity." More on Canarian Parliament President, Antonio Castro's idiotic pronouncements on banning breeding and immigration and, why his arguments don't stand up. For instance, new building can hardly be said to be the needed solution when, it's reported that 117,627 homes were vacant in the Canaries in 2007.

Retro glamour will meet Canary Islands chic with the refurbishment of the Hotel Sir Anthony at the deluxe Mare Nostrum Resort in Tenerife this spring.

The Auditorium in Los Cristianos is to be tarted up out of the state coffers.

Tenerife ports close the books on a bad economic year in 2008.

The fiestas are over, back to real life. Long live Carnival!

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We know that Christmas is only just finished, the sales have only just begun and the Carnaval is only just round the corner, but we're sure you can find a spare couple of seconds in between to go to one of the annual San Antonio Abad fiestas that are coming up this month in Tenerife.

The actual Saint's day for San Antonio Abad (Saint Anthony Abbot, a.k.a. Anthony the Great) is on January 17th, but based on past experience and last year's dates, this fiesta should be taking place in Los Silos on Sunday, January 18th, 2009 and in Buenavista del Norte on Sunday, January 25th, 2009.

We also know it colloquially as the Festival of Animal Poo, because the good saint looks after animals and this means that everyone brings their cattle, horses, flocks of goats and sheep, dogs ... (as well as rabbits, birds, snakes and all manner of exotic things), to town to be blessed. And the sheer numbers of them, means that the animals "bless" the town streets with rather a lot of "fertilizer." Last year there were 1,500 cattle trudging around the streets in Buenavista, so you can imagine how much. In Los Silos, they also have a crafts fair in the plaza.

Photos: San Antonio Abad 2008 - Los Silos | San Antonio Abad - Buenavista 

Romería of San Antonio Abad

San Antonio Abad is also venerated / celebrated in the town of Arona, where he's the town patron too and they hold the first Romería * of the year, which this year will be held on Sunday, January 18th, 2009.

It's only a short bus or car ride from the southern resorts. Tenerife Tourism Corporation say, "This procession and fiesta is the second oldest in the district and takes places on the second or third Sunday of January. Wagons pulled by oxen and decorated carts, together with folk music groups maintain the atmosphere of this important local tradition in this southern town."

On the Saturday, there's a Gala to choose the fiesta queen and a large open air party with live music. Arona also holds a crafts fair on the Sunday.

Fiestas de San Antonio Abad - Arona, Tenerife

(* The Wikipedia explanation that "A Romería in Spanish or "Romaria" in Portuguese is a religious pilgrimage", doesn't quite cut it. They're right that the celebrations often last all day, or while there's enough food and booze. :)

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Roscón de Reyes (Crown of Kings) from Pasteleria El Aderno (they really are the best) that is the traditional desert for January 6th. Roscón recipe here.

"So, what's so special about the roscon? Well, there are usually surprises inside the roscon. Traditionally, the baker wraps a porcelain figure of a baby in aluminum foil and a haba or dry bean and places them in the dough just before baking. Whoever finds the baby in their piece will have good luck and be the king of the party, while whoever finds the haba must pay for the roscon. In Spanish, the saying is: “Si es el haba lo encontrado, el Roscon pagaras; mas si ello es la figura, coronado y Rey seras…”, Lisa Sierra explains.

In fact, in all the roscones I'd had from the Pasteleria El Aderno, in Tenerife, you'd find a whole set of three porcelain figures, of the Three Kings.

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This headline from the Canarian Police website, reports a case of "Robbery with biting".  This happened (could only happen?) in Tenerife, in a pet shop in Cabo Blanco, Arona. The report continues, "Years spent working with animals and, in the end, who bit the shop assistant, wasn't one of the pets, it was a robber."

Civil Guard officers from Playa de Las Américas detained a 36 year old man who stole 80 euros from the pet shop's cash register and bit the arm of the shop assistant, when she attempted to stop him from taking the money.

[Photo: of a perfectly innocent Presa Canario dog by untipografico]

Christmas may be long gone where you are, but the main events in Tenerife are yet to come tonight and if you can't manage (or can't be bothered) to go out to one of the many Three Kings Parades all over the island, the parade in the streets of Santa Cruz is being televised by Televisión Canaria. But hurry, the program started at 7.15 p.m.

It's possible to watch it from outside the Canary Islands via the internet here.

Coinciding, here we have final, unequivocal, confirmation that Tenerife did, indeed, have a White Christmas with snow on Mount Teide.

And here's proof that Teide had snow at the year end too - which is held to herald a good harvest to come. With the way that the island gets water, through a network of underground galleries in the mountains, it only stands to reason that a goodly quantity of snow to melt to refill them, will mean water for crops ...

The State run Lotteries and Betting say there'll be 42.9 million euros in tickets in the islands for the second-biggest annual lottery, El Niño, on January 6th.

While Andrea Montgomery will tell you about The Changing Face of Santa Cruz, husband Jack shows us the grub in an equally developing Playa San Juan.

Meanwhile, Tenerife Matters went off in search of the best nativity displays on the island over the season. In Santa Cruz they discovered a " ... somewhat of a curious affair with Jesus being born in a cave set in the middle of a seriously overpopulated Canarian town where crowds of tiny residents go about their daily business dressed in traditional costume." A realistic one then.

While, "The historic and picturesque town of La Orotava must win the award for the biggest belén on the island."

Colin Kirby shows us a pretty picture of the Christmas lights in the plaza in Los Cristianos, but tells us, for New Year, "The La Noria bar area in Santa Cruz made an ominous move, introducing a 20 euro ticket to get into this popular zone," and continues that he hopes it's "not the start of the ticket only do’s that ruined much of the New Years Eve fun for revelers in the UK years ago."

The better news that Colin had for us was that CD Tenerife won their first game of 2009, to go joint second (4th on goal difference) in the Spanish Second Division, just two points behind leaders Salamanca. Things could get even better next weekend when Tenerife are away to 3rd place Xerez on Sunday morning.

Joe Cawley, the award-winning travel writer, copywriter and author, has his 5 minutes of fame (well, 1-and-a-half at least), being interviewed about Tenerife in a short film. And here's the excellent film, Another side to Tenerife. It gives me hope.

Could 2009 be the year when, FINALLY, the knowledge that Tenerife is a LOT more than a downmarket package holiday resort, reaches its tipping point and becomes known to a mainstream, English-speaking audience?

The Mirror carries a story, Tenerife has year round appeal, which is mostly about Siam Park, but does follow with information about other, more natural attractions, particularly Teide, Garachico, Teno and, of course, Masca.

Tenerife born DJ, Real El Canario, releases solo disk

Puerto de la Cruz native, Real el Canario (MySpace), who many of us remember from Braham's & Listz, Vampi's and Soul Train in the 90s and 07's Dancefloorkiller, Love Will Save The Day, featuring Daughters Of Soul singer,  Jasmin Tusjadia, has launched his first album, Llegaron los olvidados  (GOFIO LTD). Buy it via eMusic.

"The absolute driving force of the Eclectic Sound," 34 year old, Ezequiel Val Real, who's lived in Amsterdam for almost a decade, is probably better known in Germany, France, Greece or Turkey, than he is on his on his own island, although he travels to his city of birth frequently, where he has a recording studio.

The album is a mix of hip-hop, funk, electronic and latin rhythms. Real's lyrics speak the uncomfortable truth about life in the barrios (poor districts) of the island, about the gastronomy; potatoes and gofio and Canarian customs.

Which leads us nicely onto the food section ...

It is the New Year, making me think of new things, new foods and specifically new potatoes. Which leads me nicely to my newest new potato experience, namely Canarian Wrinkled Potatoes or - much more poetically - Papas Arrugadas.

Supposed to be an economic crisis; people are supposed to be buying less, but Christmas still manages to cause gridlock in Santa Cruz. Yet, the sale of cars in the Canary Islands sank more than 50% (which, given the enormous number - 69 per 100 inhabitants at the last count in the Canaries - sounds like good news to me. I guess owners of car dealerships probably disagree.)

The price of petrol in the Canary Islands dropped 7.7% in December, that of diesel fell by 10%, but the police website highlights news that price of petrol in the Canary Islands can vary by as much as 21.08%, depending on which petrol station you go to. They also say that Tráfico are going to get still tougher with controls in 2009 and that some of Tráfico's price rises are as much as 257%.

Illustrated, pointedly with a facsimile copy of one of those scraps of paper with a picture of a dead president on it, 20Minutos tell us the Canary Islands specialize as a transit destination for foreign investment. That sounds terribly like the money doesn't stay, but just gets "laundered" or something in the archipelago, but I doubt any newspaper would print anything so potentially truthful!

Finally ... Not only do the The Daily Mail want to scare you back within the confines of your hotel on holiday, now they want to keep you off the golf course too, whether at home or abroad, according to this report from Anorak, which says scientists claim that golfers who use titanium clubs risk damaging their hearing. This is not terribly good news for Tenerife, which as everyone knows, as golf courses became the fashionable way to attract "quality tourists" (euphemism for the ones with a pot to piss in), has created the propensity to stick 'em everywhere, converting the island into a huge golf course with a big hilly bunker in the middle.

Image: by Mataparda. A Bird's Eye View of the Golf Club, from an absolutely fascinating 1934-1936, state produced tourism leaflet on Tenerife.

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The commentary on this short video made in Garachico  in 2008, tells you (in Spanish) that the town's Three Kings Parade is the oldest known one celebrated on the island. It's also recognized as the most spectacular and colourful in Tenerife, lasting more than 3 hours, as the procession stops to perform small works of street theatre all along the route to reenact the familiar story.

The Three Kings from the West ...

Starting from the Quinta Roja manor house (built by the Marquis in the early 1600s),  set among banana plantations the Three Kings travel through the village of San Pedro de Daute and down into Garachico from the west - the opposite direction from the traditional one - making this something of a novelty too. 

Accompanying the Three Kings  mounted on camels are; pages, Roman soldiers, torch bearers, Roman guards on horseback and standard bearers ...

As they approach the San Miguel castle, which has been converted into Herod's residence for the day, they're spotted by the vigilant guards on the battlements who sound their trumpets.

The Three Kings then dismount and ready themselves to meet with Herod.

Once on their way again, the Three Kings make their procession along the Calle Esteban de Ponte and other streets of the town, to eventually return to the plaza Glorieta de San Francisco, where the live nativity has been set up in front of the Los Angeles church, the town hall has been dressed up as a palace for the kings, with a fancy facade, canopies and three thrones. Even the frontage of the former San Francisco convent has had faux battlements added to it for the day.

These well-rehearsed events follow a similar format every year, with a live reenactment of the entire Christmas story that usually employs a varying number of real live animals (that don't always do what's expected of them) and a cast of, well, several dozen.

The whole show is brought to a climax with a huge firework display, after which the three kings START their job of dishing out gifts to hundreds of kids, as pages call out their names.

As we detailed before, the Three Kings start their journey at around 7 p.m., reaching the main town for the meeting with Herod at around 9 p.m. The rest of the procession and show takes at least another couple of hours, so it's a real value for money - especially since it's free - night out for all the family.

Do get there early if you're going by car and want to park anywhere near the town. Another thing Garachico lacks are restaurants that open in the evening where you could while away your time whilst you're waiting for the procession, but the best vantage point is the Cafetería y Dulcería Avenida, opposite the castle anyway.

Apart from serving you a drink or a coffee  (as well as sandwiches, snacks and cakes), you'll be within sniffing distance of the camels once the Three Kings arrive, as they dismount on that side of the tree-lined island in the road!

This is the other great advantage to the event in Garachico, it's big enough to be spectacular, is done to a professionally high standard and draws a relatively large crowd, but it's still small enough to be intimate, so you feel part of it.

There aren't many other places, in Tenerife or elsewhere, where the kings still arrive authentically on camels (in many places it's on floats); not everywhere has the perfect selection of old architecture for the various locations either, which, along with being the oldest, combines to make Garachico's Three Kings Parade the best on the island, if not in the whole of Spain, in my humble opinion.

Images from Los Reyes in Garachico 2007, about which there is more here.

If you don't make it to the parade for this year, why not book ahead for next? The date of this celebration doesn't change - it is always held on the eve of Epiphany; the night of January 5th. If you stay at the Hotel La Quinta Roja, ask for a room at the front of the hotel, overlooking the plaza Glorieta de San Francisco and you'll have "ringside seat" to watch the entire event from your own room.

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On Monday, January 5th, there'll be Three Kings Parades in every major town (and a few minor ones too) on the island. For the kids it may be, but there's not a child under 99 who isn't currently excited at the prospect of the imminent arrival of Los Reyes and, secretly hoping that they'll bring them something. So it isn't a case of whether you go to see a Three Kings Parade, it's to which one.

As Andrea Montgomery says, "It might seem strange to those of us who are used to handing over gifts on the 25th December, but if you think about it, it makes more sense to hand over gifts on the same day as the three wise men bestowed their gifts on the baby Jesus."

Whilst the big spectacle in the football ground in the capital, Santa Cruz, will undoubtedly be the biggest, there's bound to be a parade close enough to wherever you are and you may prefer to choose from any of these listed:

Adeje: Starts at 7.30 p.m in the Calle Grande (main street) up in the town. The parade will have floats, Disney characters and lots of other surprises, as well as the arrival of the Three Kings from the Orient themselves.

Candelaria: Starts 7 p.m. from the Plaza de La Hornilla to Plaza de la Patrona de Canarias (where the Basílica de Candelaria is.)

Garachico: Victor in Garachico says that an ambassador from the court of the Three Kings visited Garachico about a week ago (to pick up letters / wish lists) and that the Cavalcade of the Kings is not far off, so we know it's planned to take place as in previous years. It's usually advertised as starting at around 7 p.m., but that's the time the "caravan" starts off in the outlying village of San Pedro. They Three Kings generally arrive down to the castle on Garachico's seafront to meet Herod at around 9 p.m., they then parade around the town, ending up in the plaza in front of the town hall for a live nativity, with fireworks to follow.

Granadilla: Their Majesties leave from the church at the top of the town at 6 p.m. , in procession around the main streets of the town centre and later receive the children and dish out gifts in the municipal sports centre.

Guía de Isora: 7 p.m. in procession around the main streets of the town, accompanied by the local town bands, floats, Disney characters ...

Güimar: From the Plaza de Fátima at 6 p.m., together with the Herald Angel and their respective pages, they take the route of; Avenida Venezuela, Calle Beltrán de Lis and the Avenida de Santa Cruz, to end up in the Plaza de San Pedro.

Icod de los Vinos: Starts 7.30 p.m. from the Plaza del Calvario, around the streets of Icod, accompanied by their court. The Herald Angel makes the announcement in the Plaza del Calvario; the kings meet Herod in the Plaza Luis de León Huerta and terminate by adoring the baby Jesus in the live nativity in the Plaza Andrés de Lorenzo Cáceres (by the church, next to the Drago.)

La Guancha: 7.00 p.m. Traditional procession of the Three Kings around the streets of the district to arrive at the church square, where there will be a reenactment of the nativity, after which their Majesties receive the kids.

La Laguna:  For the 7th consecutive year, The Three Kings will arrive at the North Tenerife airport of Los Rodeos, on board an Islas Airways flight. Their ETA is 16:30 hours and, it is hoped that, as in previous years, there will be thousands of kids there to greet them. There is car parking at the old terminal if you wish to go, where, from 4 p.m. onwards, you'll be taken by free bus to meet the kings and be brought back to the terminal again afterwards. Later, at 6.30 p.m. The Three Kings will commence their traditional cavalcade around the historic centre of the city - from the Plaza del Cristo, Nava y Grimón, Consistorio, Herradores, Calle Carrera, on camels, accompanied by floats, marching bands, etc.

La Orotava: the Three Kings parade on 5th January, will be leaving from the municipal stadium towards the Plaza del Ayuntamiento at 8 p.m.

La Victoria de Acentejo: Starts at 8 p.m. in the Calle Pérez Díaz.

Los Cristianos (Arona): The procession starts from the esplanade in the port of Los Cristianos at 7.15 p.m. and goes along the Avenida Suecia, to end up in the Plaza de Los Cristianos.

Puerto de la Cruz: As we mentioned before, The Three Kings had asked to be allowed to arrive from the Orient by sea to Puerto de la Cruz this year, so their procession, will start from the old fishing port at around 7 p.m. and, from there, proceed around the Plaza del Charco, Calle La Marina, Calle Santo Domingo to the Plaza de Europa. This year there will be a live reenactment of the Christmas story along the route and they're even installing giant screens at various strategic points so that people can watch the events. (Photos of the parades in Puerto 1999 - 2008, visit Reyesmagosweb and click on Cabalgatas.)

San Miguel de Abona: At 6 p.m. The Three Kings make their offerings to the baby Jesus in the church, after which they tour the main streets of the town, accompanied by bands, Disney characters and more to the cultural centre.

Tegueste:  The Kings' cavalcade starts at 8 p.m., followed by sacramental order of worship by the Holy Magi on the porch and balcony of  the town hall.

Vilaflor: 5.30 p.m., starting from the Church of San Roque to St. Peter's Square where the Adoration of the Magi will take place and, from there to the Recreation Centre where children will deliver their letters to Their Majesties.

As they did for New Year, buses and trams will run all night of the 5th / 6th.

All of these events (with the exception of the one inside the stadium in Santa Cruz, which has a nominal charge made in aid of charity) are FREE.

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It's almost time for every kid (between the ages of 0 and 99) to get excited about the annual visit of Los Reyes (The Three Kings), who bring the gifts on the eve of the epiphany.

Tickets go on sale on Friday to see the Three Kings arrive - by helicopter - to the Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez López in Santa Cruz on Monday, January 5th. With 22,486 seats, it'll be the biggest night of the year. Entry costs just one euro (you can donate more if you wish as the money goes to 7 local charities in the city), with a maximum of 6 tickets per person. 

Following the usual program, an hour long show should start at around 5 p.m., the Three Kings arriving in the stadium at 6 p.m. and their cavalcade around Santa Cruz streets beginning from there at 7 p.m., ending up in the Plaza de Candelaria, for Adoration at the nativity at around 8.30 p.m.

It costs nothing to watch the procession through the streets and plazas, of course, which takes the route from the Heliodoro Rodríguez López stadium, through the following streets; San Sebastián, Plaza República Dominicana, Avenida de las Asuncionistas, Ramón y Cajal, Plaza Pedro Schwartz, Galcerán, Méndez Númez, Pilar, Villalba Hervás, La Mariana to the Plaza de España.

The procession of Kings Melchor, Gaspar and Baltasar, includes marching bands, Romans, Jews, pastors, carts full of sweets, horses and flocks of sheep and goats, says this report (as well as probably every Disney & Sesame Street character.)

Events are rounded off with a fireworks display.

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Seemingly, that wish was granted and, we have  it on authority that the latest forecasts indicate that the rain intends to stay away for at least the next week.

Airports across the Tenerife province were all operating normally yesterday after many flights had been cancelled or delayed and, access to Mount Teide via El Portillo on the TF-21 road has been reopened after it had been closed on Tuesday, due to rockfalls caused by  the last few days' rains.

Canary Islands' First babies of 2009

Were, first a little girl, born at 2 minutes past midnight in the Hospital Universitario Materno Infantil in Gran Canaria. Lucía Kresic weighed in at 3.93 kilos and measured 53 centimetres. Her mum is Slovenian and her dad is Croatian and a cousin of Sergio Kresic, the former trainer of UD Las Palmas football team.

The second birth in the archipelago, took place at 1.30 a.m. in the Hospital Universitario de Canarias (HUC), in Tenerife. A boy, to be named Samuel, who was born to a German mother and Spanish father. Ironic that both new babies also had foreign parents, given the following item ...

Institutional Racism raises its ugly head again

Antonio Castro, President of the Canary Islands Parliament, is reported to have opined that if they don't wish to consume more land on the islands, then other measures will need to be implemented, such as "prohibiting immigration or controlling the birth rate" (via Miguel at Canarias Bruta, who entitled his post "Happy 2009 with condom to hand.")

How exactly, Sr. Castro thinks he might control the natural urges of the entire population of the Canary Islands, I've no idea, but the message that words like prohibiting immigration sends out to the public is an appalling one.

My opinion, based on experience, is that this statement will be like a red rag to a bull in inciting more fear and loathing and increasing the perceived "threat" of the islands being overrun by outsiders. And, whilst I know that we European citizens are no longer "officially" foreign, if you think that makes any difference to the attitude of some ignorant individuals, then you're being very naive.

We're relieved the year's first [foreign] babies weren't born on incoming flights.

Direct flights to Miami will commence in the Spring, LosGigantes.com report that the Air Europa direct flights between Tenerife and Miami are to start at the end of April or the beginning of May, not at the beginning of the year as was first planned and, the weekly flight will operate from the North Airport, not from the South. (Photo: Ken DeJarlais)

La Orotava points the way

The town centre shopping streets in  La Orotava are to get improvements, thanks to government grants, for street furniture and signage.

And you don't get much for 100K these days as the money is for the installation of 5 posts (on which there'll be tourist information signs, we must assume), pointing out to the visitor where to find things like the town hall, the municipal library, small hotels, gardens, plazas, cultural centres, artistic monuments, museums and other places of interest.

New Year Price rises in detail

Price increases in basic services, effective today, are, it's reported, above the inflation target of 2 per cent, except in the case of butane and natural gas (not that there's any of the latter in Tenerife yet, other than in Siam Park), where tariffs are being reduced, by 1.88% and 3.6% respectively.

However, electricity prices are rising by 3.5% and postal services by 3.22%.

Ordinary letters (up to 20 grams) within Spain rise to 32 cents, while those to Europe (and your postcards to the UK) will cost 62 cents. To other international destinations, the price has been frozen at 1.66 euros. Parcels sent nationally will cost 3.31% more, whilst the cost of sending them abroad is rising by 2.84%.

Elsewhere, it's reported that a 4% rise in water prices approved by the council in La Laguna has been criticized as being disproportionate. At least it wasn't the 5.3% rise they'd initially announced, but I suppose this means residents can expect rises in the price of water passed by other town councils [sic].

And the worst news comes for drivers with news that the infamous Tráfico is increasing its tariffs from January 1st, between 20 and 68% in most cases.

And in my first whine of the year at the British press' totally divorced from reality treatment of Tenerife (it's no wonder "the UK is the least trusting of information in its newspapers"), The Telegraph yesterday published an interview with Darren Gough (who apparently is a former England cricketer and Strictly Come Dancing champion), who says of his worst holiday:

"One place that I wasn't too keen on, if I'm going to be honest, was Tenerife. If you go on a lads trip there it's not so bad but, unless you're going to spend thousands and thousands of pounds, it's not private enough for a family holiday. There's lots of younger people there drinking and it's not really for me. When I go abroad I like to try the local cuisine but the restaurants in Tenerife seemed to only offer British food. It wasn't my cup of tea and I'm not in a rush to go back there."

What is patently obvious from what he says, is that like the vast majority of package holiday Brits, the eminent Mr Gough, clearly didn't break his balls to go tripping the light fandango around any part of the island outside his resort, where he would have seen that it is not at all as he describes.

For 9 years of my stay in Tenerife, I almost never came across an English speaker, much less British food, but that aside, there's a plethora of rural houses  that don't cost thousands and would certainly be private enough for a family holiday. Gough is clearly bowling the island a googly and it's just not cricket!

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