On the street of Nava y Grimón, you'll find not one, but two historic convents, both of which are still active. For centuries, the nuns of Santa Catalina de Siena have maintained a bitter, violent rivalry with those of Santa Clara de Asis.
On the second half of a long hike that began with an ascent up the Barranco de Ruiz, we passed through the charming village of San Juan de la Rambla, before continuing along the coastline back to our car. Along the way, we stopped for lunch at an amazing local spot.
Although they're long gone, assimilated completely into the genetic lineage of their Spanish conquerers, the aboriginal inhabitants of the Canary Islands have a strong presence in Canarian culture. Before submitting to the Europeans, the Guanches lived on the islands for around two thousand years, and have left a large footprint.
We had enjoyed our initial hours of exploring Candelaria, but we really fell for the town during the second half of our day. After a coffee in the immense Plaza Patrona de Canarias, we walked up into the town's elevated historic quarter, saw some artisans craft clay pots, and discovered what might be our favorite restaurant on Tenerife.
We weren't expecting much from Candelaria, whose main claim to fame is a large Basilica. But the day we spent here was really nice. We learned about the Guanche kings, checked out an ancient cave chapel, and visited the incredible Basilica… and that was just within the first couple hours.
La Montaña Negra erupted, and as the lava flowed downhill to the ocean, the town was almost completely destroyed. And right now, you might be thinking, Mike and Jürgen should know better than to hike around a volcano with such an ominous name… but we did anyway. Would we survive?! Find out the thrilling conclusion later in this post!
The natural symbol of Tenerife is its unmistakable Dragon Tree… or "Drago", if you're Spanish… or "Dracaena draco", if you're some kind of horticulture geek. These trees are native to the Canary Islands, and known for the red "dragon's blood" they ooze when cut. The largest example of their species can be found in Icod de los Vinos, though they're easily spotted just about everywhere on the island.
Garachico is trapped between a mountain and the Atlantic, but makes the most of its a narrow slice of land. We parked near the old harbor, where a set of natural pools welcome visitors in the summer, and went directly to the tourist office.
I don't think it's unfair to point out that the general populace of Tenerife is a little more… solidly built than on the Spanish mainland. And now that we're getting familiar with the cuisine here, we understand why. Theirs is nourishing food, served in construction-worker portions. And if you're not out in the fields all day, or regularly exercising, all that protein has just one place to go.
Is there any group of people more neglected in the touristic sphere than palm tree fanatics? I mean, we all know a few, right? These "palm nuts" who just can't get enough of their favorite tree, and travel the world on "palm-spotting" adventures? Actually, I'm not sure this is an obsession which anyone has, but if so… they'll find their Disney World in the Palmetum, a botanic garden dedicated entirely to the world of palm trees.
