Day 104 - Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain

 

Date:  April 22

 

Location:  Day 104 –  Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain

 

Next Port:  Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, USA, April 30

 

Report:  Tenerife is the largest of the Canary Islands. Santa Cruz de Tenerife, its capital, is the maritime gateway to the island and one of Spain’s busiest ports. However, Santa Cruz is mostly a business and administrative center. As it was a Sunday, most of its stores were closed. Therefore, Regent provided a shuttle bus service over the foothills of the Mount Teide volcano to the seaside resort of Puerto de la Cruz.

 

The drive between the sharp, folded, green Anaga Mountains to the northeast of the city and the gentle, volcanic slopes of Mt. Tiede (12,200 ft.) to the southwest was beautiful. The view as we dropped into Puerto de la Cruz, with the white waves crashing on its craggy black volcanic coastline, was spectacular. The resort was much larger than we expected and bustling with tourists – we thought mostly Germans.

 

Once again we enjoyed a leisurely walk along the rock bulkheads, around the old fort walls, along the promenade and down close to the waves and rocks. Right in the center of the town’s shoreline were a series of stylish pools and restaurants – called “a lido” – encircled by low volcanic rock walls, much of which were painted white.  It was another artistic project of the late Cesar Manrique.

 

We had lunch at an outside restaurant enjoying the sun and cool breezes before returning to the ship by shuttle bus. (The “special chicken” lunch Karen ordered turned out to be a fried egg sandwich…something may have been lost in translation!) We passed by a white building that looked very familiar. And it should have. It was a performance auditorium designed by Santiago Calatrava (remember the buildings in our Valencia report?).

 

It was a very relaxing last day ashore. As we pulled away from the port at 3:00 p.m., and Tenerife faded into the distance, reality hit home. Our grand adventure truly is drawing to a close. The next land we spot will be the condos lining the harbor of Ft. Lauderdale – 3,458 nautical miles away. 

 

We are having many mixed feelings.  While we are sorry to see our journey winding down, we are also excited about seeing our friends and families back home. This has been a wonderful adventure.

 

Karen and Larry

 

Photos of our cruise are available at the following web site:

 

picasaweb.google.com/larryworldcruise

 

Pictures of our day on Tenerife have been added.