Swimming around La Palma

There is one thing about an island you can guarantee – there's always plenty of water around! And whilst La Palma is often known as a walking destination, it would be a real shame if it was overlooked as a beach destination as well.

Los Cancajos beach

If you are in the area of Los Cancajos near the capital, the beaches there would certainly get our vote. Here you will find three lovely inter-linking beaches with easy access in and out of the sea, the water is clear and the fish are usually in abundance which also makes it perfect for snorkeling.

Another nearby beach is just 1km south of the capital, the Playa Bajamar. And further up the coast is the Playa Espindola near San Andres - all good, sandy beaches with easy entry.
And of course let's not forget the main beach at Santa Cruz itself, right across the road from the historic mansions. It's not open to the public yet, but hopefully the grand opening is not too far away!

Santa Cruz beach

Over on the west side, a popular beach is at Tazacorte at what you might call Tazacorte village where there is also a great range of apartments and restaurants. It almost never gets crowed although in August it's pretty busy. Tazacorte is often cited as having the most sunshine hours year round in the whole of Europe!

Tazacorte beach, 31 December

Tazacorte beach - August

Not too far down the coast is Puerto Naos, also a popular place for its beach and apartments. Plus it's got a great new promenade now, very swish!

Beach at Puerto Naos

However, another favourite place to swim is La Fajana de Barlovento which is in the North West. It is not too far off the main road, parking is easy and the water is nearby. There is no actual beach but plenty of terraced areas to get laid out in the sun and the facilities are among the best on the island with free, scrupulously clean toilets and showers too.

La Fajana de Barlovento

 In summer, the sea is fantastic for swimming and great for snorkeling. But the sea pools are also surprisingly good. The three pools have something for everyone from small children to keen snorkelers as the main pool is quite large and just over 2 meters deep. The water is again crystal clear and they are all absolutely teeming with fish. And - it is quite an experience to swim in the calm water of the pool.

Sandy cove below Puntagorda

But there are many hidden coves around the island too and if you're a bit of an explorer, then get your map out and - discover! Take a look around Los Canarios in the far south, Puntagorda in the north west, Puntallana in the east, they all have little coves where you can lay on the beach and enjoy a swim in the clear waters of La Palma. Enjoy!

Bus stops

A few years back, when we had family staying with us, a certain member of said family (mention no names) was rather taken with the bus stops on La Palma.  And ever since I have been receiving emails from said family member asking when on earth they can become a subject for a blog post. Patience is eventually rewarded - just like waiting for buses - and so, eventually, some three years later, here it is!
The area of Garafia, where our holiday accommodation is located, and Barlovento is lucky enough to have some lovely bus stops, generally painted in pastel colours and with the logo of the area.

However, all around the island they are of a similar building design, being of a solid construction with three walls, a built-in bench, a lovely layered wooden ceiling and a tile roof.  In fact, a miniature house!
Puntagorda though, in the north west of La Palma, I have to admit easily takes the prize for the best decorated bus stops with the most amazing interior murals.

They are of local scenes such as a market stall packed with fresh fruit and vegetables, ladies preparing the almonds or the church, complete with little balcony.  

Have a look for yourself - and I think you too will wonder why it has taken so long to dedicate a blog post to the bus stops of La Palma.

Oh and by the way, you will find that buses on la Palma generally run on time so better make sure you arrive early enough to enjoy being at the bus stop.

Keeping your hat on

La Fajana (pronounced Fahana) is rather a popular name here on La Palma and if you study the map you will doubtless notice several La Fajanas laid about.  In fact, we have two near us – La Fajana de Garafia which is the little port village and beach just below the finca in Franceses and La Fajana de Barlovento which is located by the sea between the towns of Los Sauces and Barlovento. 

So whilst they might share the same name, they are certainly different places with La Fajana de Garafia being our favourite spot for beach-combing, picnics, a walk and a swim or snorkel when the sea is calm and La Fajana de Barlovento our favourite for swimming, snorkeling or even just stopping off for a coffee or light lunch. 

So what can you expect to find there?  Well, the main attraction is the sea pools.  There are various sets of well-made steps that lead down from the car park to the pools and from there you have your choice – a shallow pool complete with handrails which is great for children and those not keen on getting out of their depth, a second pool which is a little deeper and at the side has an intermittent waterfall you can walk under and a third, large pool which is around 3.5m deep in places and also has an intermittent waterfall you can swim under and get a back massage at the same time.  All three pools are beautifully clear and teeming, yes teeming, with multi-coloured fish and whilst we have been SCUBA diving in the pools, you can enjoy seeing the fish by snorkeling too.

The facilities are excellent too and arguably the best on the island.  The toilet and changing block is completely free and every time we have visited, and that is often, they have been impeccably clean.  Outside there are a couple of showers which operate with a 50c coin. 

There is also a very small swimming pool for the disabled or elderly with a seat lift, although I can’t promise that the seat always functions (or there is water in the pool).  And as yet, there is no wheelchair access down to the pools.

But once down the steps to the pools, there are lots of flat spaces where you can lay out in the sun. Picnics are not allowed at all but a little further along from the swimming and sunbathing terraces, there are two bar/restaurants.  

Confident swimmers might also like to take the opportunity to swim in the sea during the summer months when a ladder is provided for access.  Always use careful judgement though as the sea can be rough at times and be aware that there is no life guard.   If you do decide to go in the sea, it’s a different experience altogether and the underwater topography is absolutely outstanding - and beautiful!

Conditions permitting then, there is  no excuse not to strip off and leap in - although of course you can always keep your hat on.  

El Bernegal

Any business person will tell you that the key to a successful restaurant is location, location, location. In that case, El Bernegal in Santo Domingo has thrown away the rule book.

Located on a semi-industrial looking road leading out of sleepy Santo Domingo, a town divorced from the main road by many kilometres and already out on a limb in the north west corner of La Palma, El Bernegal sits cosily between the fire station and health centre.  It’s hardly a promising start.

But the first glimpse of the restaurant will give you hope, not just by the number of cars parked on the piece of rough ground opposite, but by the façade of the building which looks temptingly interesting.  And you’d be right for just inside the main door, you will already see the central courtyard eating area with its bright blue Moroccan wall tiles, enormous ferns hanging from the high ceiling above and three small restaurant rooms and bar leading off. 

Apart from the current lovely décor, it is easy to see that El Bernegal is a historic house of some note, beautifully restored to the highest standard.  The menu is not however set in the past because, whilst it might look relatively simple, the presented dish really is about as cosmopolitan and carefully crafted as you will find on the island. 

 Starters include such dishes as grilled goats’ cheese with traditional mojo sauce, avocado with shrimp, chef’s own fish pate and mushroom with garlic and range in price from 3.00 euros to 7.50 euros.

The salads which, no matter how theoretically simple, the chef manages to turn into  exciting and beautiful platters, include tropical salad, roman salad, salad niçoise and tagliatelle with pine kernel and goats’ cheese and range in price from 5 to 7 euros. 

There are three types of omelettes to choose from – including banana omelette - and soups including courgette soup and a wholesome and filling Canarian soup.

If you manage to reject the famous ‘Bamy’ (tagliatelle with vegetables and shrimp at 7.00 euros – I think I’ve had it three times now and it’s delicious) then maybe fish is your fancy.

You can choose from fried squid, fresh tuna, perch with caper sauce (another favourite of mine) and grouper priced between 6.50 and 9.50 euros.

For the meat eaters, this is probably the main event and dishes include tournedo chasseur or béarnaise, half chicken, peppered steak, fresh pork chops or pork loin with chestnut cream - and once you’ve tasted pork from La Palma, you’ll know how tasty and moist it is compared to factory reared pork.   Prices range between 6.00 and 13.00 euros.

And then of course the desserts – home made peach sorbet, nougat glacé, crepe with chocolate sauce … If you don’t have room for any more at this point, share a dessert with some else – anyone else - or run around the block until you do!  Prices are 3.00 to 3.75 euros.

 Every single dish is presented with an artistic eye to detail and, with such a tempting menu and delicious food at a price which is more than fair on the pocket, be warned – it’s popular.  In fact, it’s so popular that they don’t even open in the evening and at weekends, reservations are highly recommended. 

I suggest you arrive no later than 5pm and don’t forget to leave room for that dessert.

Land of the Landy

If you are a lover of good old-fashioned 4 x 4 vehicles, you're going to feel right at home on La Palma.  And if you are driving around the rural north, it seems that almost every car apart from hire cars are 4 x 4's! 

In the old days, mules were used to transport goods but then the farmer's friend and trusty steed became the Santana Land Rover.  Still chugging along the roads after 20 plus years of faithful service, the Santana is probably about as stuburn as a mule - and possibly about as comfortable.  But of course, you can cram a lot more on, in and around them than a mule. 

Then there are the baby pick-up's.  There are still a few of those about - they remind me of Matchbox cars that you really could 'pick up' and put in your pocket!  

And then the modern day Land Rover, still built from the same design and about as aerodynamic as a brick.  But it really is some workhorse!

A Day to Remember

If you live on La Palma, one thing you might want to arm yourself with - apart from sun cream - is a calendar of public holidays and fiestas.   With this useful aid, you will have some idea when the shops are likely to be closed, apart from weekends and siesta time.  Although, I have to admit, no list is definitive as you might find what I call 'flying fiestas' (local ones) which are not on any list or calendar.  

Whilst many of them are obvious, such as  Christmas Day, New Year's Day and Easter, some are less so although the 1st and 30th of May (pleasingly called 'Day of Work' and 'Canary Day') are still a good reason to down tools, as in the UK.  

There are also a few less well-known ones thrown in such as Constitution Day on 6th December and Epiphany on 6th January.  Some pass almost un-noticed to us here in the country, whilst others such as Epiphany are celebrated in style, as in Los Sauces where the Three Wise Men arrive on camels.  Real camels, that is.

However, whilst they are all important for different reasons, one that I particularly like to mark is All Saints' Day on the 1st November.  Way back when (835 AD), the Roman Catholic Church declared the 1st November a Church holiday to honour all the saints, known and unknown.  On this day it is also customary to pray for the all those who have passed away, although not necessarily with sorrow.  On La Palma, as in many other places, we say it with flowers.  

Whilst the rest of the shops on La Palma remain closed, the flower shops are a hive of activity, trying to provide flowers for what amounts to every single and solitary headstone or grave on the whole island.  And the lovely thing about it is that no-one is forgotten or left out - that is after all the whole point.  So, no matter that Don whoever's family moved away years ago and there is nobody left to lay flowers on his grave or to place them tenderly in the little flower holders on the headstone.  All are remembered.  

La Mata

La Mata is home to one of our great little local restaurants, a twenty-minute drive from the finca here in Franceses.  It lies just off the main road between Roque Faro and La Zarza.

When we first came here, it was a mouldy old building with an interesting green/blue mottling effect of damp creeping up the walls.  Nobody seemed to mind - or notice.  Then it closed for a while, re-opened under new management and eventually was transformed into what it is today - a jolly nice place!
One of its special attractions is the fact that meat is cooked over wood, just like it was in the old days.  If you have tried to bbq food using wood rather than charcoal, then you will realise that it is quite an art, especially in a restaurant where they don't know if and when orders will come in. But in fact, you will find that quite a few restaurants on La Palma cook in this traditional way, especially in the north, and this is still the way our farming neighbours cook their meals as routine.
The other thing about the restaurant at La Mata is that it also has a stunning view, although I have to admit that an amazing view surrounds you almost everywhere along this stretch of road.

From the outside, La Mata may not inspire you to delve inside in search of a good meal but appearances can be deceptive.  Walking through the narrow bar, past the usual selection of wine drinking, cigar smoking farmers, you will arrive at the small inner restaurant.  A door will take you through into the outer restaurant where, given some luck, you can dine in dappled sunlight.

For those that wish, there is also the garden outside where you can enjoy a drink or a meal.  And there are some nice touches here and there.

For those who would like to explore and take a small stroll past the restaurant of La Mata, you may spot something you didn't quite expect.  Surprises, I have come to learn, are the norm in La Palma so would it be a pig farm, or chickens maybe in this most simple and rural of areas.  No - ostriches! Well, why not, nobody said there weren't ostriches on La Palma!

Carrying on just a little from here, apart from a long low house which looks abandoned but isn't and a building project you will come to another slight surprise in the form of a road sign.  Now why on earth would there be an official looking sign on a dirt track?  Well, that's because this used to be the main road, the 'Carretera General.'

Sometimes we bring guests in the Land Rover along this section of  'road' just to demonstrate what it used to be like.  (Don't try this in a hire car, they are not insured for off-road driving).  Pre-1960's, there were no asphalt roads up here, just tracks and donkey paths so this makes us feel very grateful for the excellent, and improving, roads we now have.
But of course tracks like the old Carretera General are our favourites - providing there is not rush  ...

Dancing Dwarves

At last – my first dwarf!!! I am thrilled. Yes, eight years on La Palma and still not a single dwarf spotted, except as a fridge magnet or cuddly toy ... up until last night.

You see, we are now in the 'semana grande,' the big week, of the huge fiesta where one of the many highlights is the dancing dwarves. Apparently, according to a friend, they live in the mountains except for this one night when they come down into town, disguised as bishops. And this only happens once every five years so you can imagine the excitement with thousands of people coming to see the spectacle not just from La Palma but from all over the Canary Islands. After their appearance on stage solemnly singing, they file into a castle-like tent and reappear ... as dancing dwarves.

I agree that it is one of the stranger happenings on La Palma but it is made all the more crazy by the dotty little dance, giant sized hats and face masks which hide their true identity (although you could probably guess that if you saw a dwarf in his civvies they would be of the special La Palma dancing variety.)  The dwarves perform six times during the evening, 7 pm, 8pm, 10pm, 11pm, 12pm and 1am and then, by way of a marathon encore, dance their way right along the length of the main street.

When we arrived at 7 pm, courtesy of one of the many coaches laid on from all points of the island, the queues to see the spectacle were enormous – and these people already had tickets which are a sell-out way in advance - they were just eager to get a 'good' seat. 

We were further amazed to see people already lining the main street where they had installed themselves either by sitting on the pavement reading a book, playing cards or chatting. Or better still, on little stools, cool box at the ready.  These people – incredibly - were waiting for the dwarves who would not appear on the street until some point after 1am.  A six hour wait is well beyond my comprehension but it is a reflection of the passion felt for the event.

So, being ticketless, we took up our place at one of the many vantage points and even being pretty far away, you still got the happy feeling that dancing dwarves give you.  

Of course, other than the dwarves, there was plenty else to see and do. Belly dancers were performing in the road. A fun fair in the car park. Shops open where you can buy, amongst other things, dwarf memorabilia. Impromptu guitar playing in bars. Eating, drinking and people watching from the pavement restaurants. An open-air nightclub overlooking the sea. And a band with huge stage for the middle of the night when the dwarves have disappeared back up to the mountains.

At 12.30 am we jumped into a coach to head for the hills ourselves. We were pretty much dwarf-ed out by then but not so other people who were waiting at the bus stop in Los Sauces at 1am for the bus that would take them down to the capital.  But for the next time – in five years – we are going to be there for the long haul. 

Gosh, I'm excited already.  

It's all Yellow

Yesterday, we were at the top of La Palma taking a couple of guests up there who wanted to walk back down to the house.
As chance would have it there was a hive of activity - not quite watering the mountain as it appears in the photo, but watering the new plants that have been put in recently. It's all part of a programme to re-establish endemic plants up there.
If you have time to visit 'the top,' it's a wonderful time to go with the broom absolutely beautiful.

Looking good

I am in awe of people who can take a 'proper' photograph. And La Palma is certainly chocablock full of opportunities for the keen photographer.
But since I am firmly encamped in the 'point, shoot and hope for the best' brigade, I can hardly complain if the results are not quite as awesome as this photo.


You are looking here at one of the seating areas on the finca - and the view of course. We call it the mirador, meaning lookout point, since it was called this by a walking guide who stayed here. The mirador itself faces due west but the whole of the north coast can be seen from the finca, right from Juan Adalid in the north west and the Mirador de Molino of Barlovento in the north east. Apart from overlooking the sea, it also overlooks the next village of El Tablado and, if the conditions are right, you can even hear people talking in the village despite the fact that it is around 1.4 km away as the crow flies. And of course you can see the goats and hear the tinkling of their bells as they gamble down the sig-zag path from El Tablado, part of the GR130, to the caves where they live in the barranco.
To the south, the ridge of the Caldera can also be seen high above us. It looks like a rather understated onlooker, peering over the shoulders of the green-covered ridges in front of it. On clear days it is backed by an intense blue sky and in winter has the occasional covering of snow.

It's probably a good thing that I'm not SLR competent otherwise the camera would hardly ever be out of my hand.

Fresh and delicious

Luckily, we seem to be doing rather well with the vegetables at the moment. Maybe it is the law of averages - I mean, if you keep trying, plant a lot, weed a bit, water furiously and then not at all, you are bound to have some vegetables appear despite the sketchy care.
But right at the moment we have got a good steady supply of carrots, plenty of potatoes, an embarrasing amount of onions (well, I did rather go crazy by planting around 100), a few tomatoes (but plenty more on the way), quite a few bright yellow pumpkins fattening up nicely, lots of leeks busy going to seed, corn on the cob which should be ready in the next few weeks and are delicious on the bbq, some quite large sweet potato (destined for our neighbour who loves them even more than me), oh and an unseemly amount of beetroot. Plus one cabbage which I am guarding closely.
Yes, I think I can declare moderate success - hence it being blog-worthy.

A shanty village

This is my (other) dream house, the little wooden shack above the sea. Can you imagine it - getting up in the morning, stretch your arms up to the sun, swimming costume on and jump into the water! Wow, I'd love it!
Well ... whilst we won't be living there anytime soon, we can still visit and swim in the bay and open sea. Even if you don't swim, it's still an interesting place to visit as it is part of a small shanty-type village. It's called La Bajita and is located just slightly south of the airport.
It's also a good place for SCUBA diving. Nanneke and Joost of www.casadebuceo.nl are good friends of ours and have a dive school here on La Palma so you can contact them anytime you fancy seeing the underwater world of La Palma. We really enjoyed our dive when we last went there, but it's also a great place for snorkelling or just swimming.
Mm ... perhaps I would miss the view of my lovely green mountains and growing vegetables in the garden ... I won't pack just yet.

We were asked the other day if we had started to take the beauty of the island for granted. Luckily, I cannot imagine this ever happening particularly with sights like this just a 50 minute drive from home.
It's a pretty impressive drive too, rising up from 500 metres above sea level where we live to 2426 metres, the top of the island, driving through sun-dappled pine forests to burst through into a moon-like landscape dotted with state of the art observatories. The contrast is nothing short of crazy.



The photo here shows the Caldera, the largest erosion crater in the world. It measures a fairly unmissable 10km in diameter and is 2000 metres deep.

In the far distance, you can see the southern spine of the island which forms the famous volcano route, the last section of the GR 131. We walked this route in February last year having camped overnight at El Pilar, the start of the final part of the walk. It's pretty amazing looking at it from an entirely different perspective and thinking, 'We were there!'

Arepas

I just love signs like this – emblematic of yesteryear.

What this is advertising is a brand of cornflour, El Jable, which is used in making a dish called Arepas, popular in South America and now here in the Canaries. They are along the lines and size of a toasted sandwich, the bread part being made of a mix of cornflour and water which is flattened and cooked on a griddle or in a frying pan. Then you make them into a pocket and fill it with whatever you choose.
This sign is in Los Llanos and you can get the aprepas in many bars there but also right around the island. The good part is that they are also very cheap, often around a Euro or just over for an arepa – you might want two though!
In fact, our first cookery lesson here in La Palma was on making arepas. Our dear, late neighbour, Pedro happened to mention that he was having them for lunch and I commented that I didn't know how to cook them. He immediately said that we must learn and invited us – for the first time – into his home.
Pedro's home was what used to be a pajero, a single roomed stone construction used for storing straw for the animals. It was simple and beyond. No water, no electricity, just his bed, a few items of clothing hanging from nails on the wall and a two ring camping gas balanced on an old wooden barrel. His few tools for digging the land hung about in the corners as did his old boots. It was in this inauspicious place that we would learn to make arepas.
And Pedro was well qualified to teach us, having gone to Venezuela as a young man to find work in the tobacco plantations (the legacy of which caused him to address David as 'Mr. David') and only returned some forty years later.
Pedro's arepas were the best I have ever tasted. If you are in the capital, you can get them at various places – I suggest you try El Encuentro bar in the Plaza de Almendras which is where the boat is, at the far end from the harbour. Enjoy!

The GR 130, El Roque to Tijarafe

So! Onward with our quest to walk some more of the GR 130. (Apologies to those who are not remotely interested, but you might have to bear with me for a while).

Yesterday, we decided to walk from a little place called El Roque which is near Puntagorda in the west and sits rather conveniently at an intersection of the GR 130 where it crosses the main road. Not only was it convenient to park (unlike Las Tricias which was our first port of call but rejected on the basis of being heaving with cars and enthusiastic-looking walkers, like us), but it also has a beautiful bus stop!
El Roque sits behind the main road, so we could almost be forgiven for not having noticed it in the past, but we were immediately impressed with its facilities – nothing less than a telecentro with internet connection. But that is not of course what we were there for. It seemed that music classes were also in progress as the lilting notes of a clarinet floated out onto the streets. And nice people nodded and smiled -what a good start!
We followed the little lane along – in fact we guessed that this had probably been the main road at one time – and congratulated ourselves on our good luck. The sun was shining, the lane quickly turned into a miniature cobbled streets lined by interesting looking houses and we had all day to do the walk.
Within five minutes we were lost. And five minutes later were were lost again. This was not such a good start and we made many mutterings about the lack of a sign just where we needed it. Well, we would just have to guess that the route took us over a pile of sand which formed the building site of somebody's restoration project and sure enough – just where there was no fork in the path, there was the trusty red and white stripe confirming that we were in fact still en route.
Now the route seemed more obvious and we could follow wooden railings. Oh no, this wasn't it – this was up the famous dragon tree, we should have followed the unmarked track without railings.
In spite of a less than auspicious first half hour, it was a day for enjoying ourselves and the route provided an ever changing set of landscapes for us to walk in.
At one point, we were up in the pine forest walking high above the road, then we were down in the bottom of a barranco, clambering over rocks and next walking along a sunny flower-lined path. It was all glorious.







Then there were places with an accumulation or even just a scattering of houses. David and I are of course fascinated by all things building and since the GR 130 is lined in parts by houses, there was plenty for us to admire. And otherwise. There are the old stone dwellings, some of them sadly giving way to collapse, flat roofed houses with many extensions of various sorts, grand Canarian houses in the middle of nowhere and all styles in between.
It wasn't until we had been on the route for around three hours and enjoyed a leisurely picnic lunch that we realised we had in fact been dawdling and if we didn't get a move on, we would miss our bus in Tijarafe, the idea being that we would catch the bus back to our start point of El Roque. And being a Saturday, buses are fairly few and far between.
Luckily, the route was now much easier and what could be called almost flat – well, to someone who has lived on La Palma for a while anyway! Now we contented ourselves to comment and admire on the move - a sweet kitten, an intricately carved door, potatoes growing in super-neat lines, a tree in an orchard dripping with a hundred lemons, an industrial tank with Koi carp in it, huge (and I mean huge) dandelion clocks growing at the side of the path, terraces filled with lush-looking avocado trees and how the GR 130 signs were now rapidly revealing that we only had 6.3 km, 4.8 km, 2.4 km, 1.1 km to walk to Tijarafe.

At this rate we would even have time for a cold beer before the bus came!
Well, in actual fact, there was just time to get lost again. Our suspicions that we were now 'off route' were confirmed when we passed two more junctions in the track with no indication of where to go. But by now we could see Tijarafe very close by and we just followed our noses, practically leaping up a rough old path, half covered in long grass, incentive firing our boots into action.
Ah, time for a beer after all and be ready for the bus whose expected arrival we noted was 'approximate.' Happily, we were there waiting when it arrived almost ten minutes early.