Sun, ska & snorkels: An unlikely love letter to the Canary Islands
One advantage of living in Europe is the ease of access to the rest of the continent and beyond.
Even the furthest reaches of mainland Europe are just a few hours flight away. Meaning that family holidays offer a wide range of possibilities for discovering other countries.
Whereas some like to go back to the same place year on year, we like to venture to places new.
I’m the wrong person to ask if I’d go back somewhere. The answer is probably not.
Which is no reflection on the location; simply a case of there always being more to see.
We’ve just ticked off another location: the town of Corralejo on Fuertaventura, part of The Canary Islands.
As we learnt, the Canary bird is named after the islands.
Which in turn is derived from the Latin for dog, ‘canis’ which became ‘Canarias Insulae’ – translating to Islands of The Dogs. To confuse matters the Romans apparently referred to seals as ‘sea dogs,’ so the name could be referring to them.
Fuertaventura lies 60 miles off Morocco in the Atlantic.
Its the second largest of eight populated islands in the Canaries, though it only ranks fourth in terms of population. 124,000 people on an island covering 1,659 square km.
Despite the proximity to Morocco the islands are an autonomous region of Spain.
The reason being the usual story of colonial conquest.
The Spanish arrived in the late 15th Century swiftly usurping the Guanches civilization. The feel of the islands now is very much Spanish.
Their position in the Atlantic makes for a variety of micro-climates across the islands.
The eastern most; Fuerteventura and Lanzarote are protected from the Canary Current giving them a particularly dry climate.
The islands formed as a result of volcanic activity with two of them experiencing eruptions this century. Not Fuerteventura, that hasn’t had any activity for many thousands of years so wasn’t a concern. Despite the imposing sight overlooking Corralejo.
The climate and the geology make for a fascinating landscape on Fuerteventura.
Fascinating to me anyway. Its like an arid and much lumpier version of Iceland. Mountainous with little vegetation.
Its volcanic past is very visible with lava fields of rough black rock spread across the island.
Personally, I found the barren ruggedness absorbing to look at.
There’s very little rainfall and I saw no sign of freshwater reserves. It’s the kind of place that had me wondering what it was that encouraged people to inhabit it in the first place. For the Spanish that can be answered by Empire and strategic military importance, but it can’t have been an easy place to live.
The wonders of modern life, engineering and and technology have made it far more liveable. Tourism came to the islands, taking off in the ’60s.
Despite the arid landscape, the ocean location allows for a refreshing breeze to counter the heat of the sun. Our whole week the weather was pretty much the same.
Waking up to cloud cover that would dissolve during the morning leaving clear blue skies before the clouds moved back in late in the evening.
According to online sources temperatures were the same daily high of 25°C. According to digital readouts outside various shops temperatures were wildly variable. Mid afternoon one day we saw a claimed 18°C which was well short of reality. At the other extreme, on our last day one readout claimed it was 48°C. Had that been correct we’d have melted into a puddle of human goo.
The week we there wasn’t as busy as we had expected.
This made for a more pleasant experience, particularly at the hotel. There is a decades old European stereotype of friction around hotel swimming pools over sunbeds. This sees Germans as the aggressors, getting up early in the morning to lay down towels to claim sunbeds for later.
The reality is that Brits and other nationalities often adopt this tactic now.
Some people take relaxation very seriously. You have to get up early in the morning to reach a state of totally chilled.
We prefer not to take it so seriously. Leave it to chance.
We had a few afternoons where we spent a couple of hours at the pool. Never had a problem getting a sunbed. And without getting up at the crack of dawn to secure them.
Victory to us.
Personally, I don’t see the point in going on holiday to spend all day laying by the pool slowly cooking. Takes all sorts though. I can manage an hour in the sun with a decent book but I’d rather be in the pool. Luckily the pool was mostly empty and daughter J was happy to be in there with me messing about.
Perhaps my reticence towards sunbathing is that I don’t tan, save for the top of my head and back of my neck. I can spend weeks in a hot climate and remain milk bottle white. The three of us are like a graded colour palette. Mrs J tans and daughter J has inherited a mix of of us so she develops a slight shade and I’m at the pale extreme of the colour chart.
There was no sunbathing visiting a water park.
It fell to me, with the childlike sense of adventure, to accompany our 13 year old on the various slides. Holidays are all about creating memories and I made a big tick there.
The Cave is a pitch black enclosed spiral tunnel, requiring a rubber ring to ride it. Daughter went first. She and everyone else we’d seen exited the slide just fine.
Whereas I picked up more speed than anticipated, on one bend my velocity sent me up the tunnel wall til physics took its natural course and the ring overturned.
I hit the slide with a bang, shoulder first. My first thought was a quick mental check of whether I was fully intact. Followed by a quick assessment of whether riding the slide without the ring was likely to result in further injury.
My assessment was that there was nothing I could do about it anyway so no point worrying. My thought lastly turned to the fact that I knew daughter would find this hilarious. Sure enough, I exited the slide head first, on my back with the rubber ring following behind. I plopped into the water in the least graceful manner possible surfacing to find daughter in fits of laughter.
She could barely get the words out to ask what had happened. She continued laughing all the way back to Mrs J to tell her of my misfortune.
I have found the perfect formula for keeping children entertained. Clumsiness plus lack of embarrassment.
Much more relaxed was a tiny spot called The Mojito Beach Bar.
Basically one room with space for around 20 people at a time that opened onto the harbour front.
The decor was shabby chic, worn wood and mismatched chairs. The walls with musical icons painted on them; John Lennon, Bob Marley, Tina Turner and more. As the name suggests they specialised in Mojitos but also had a line in Mocktails, so daughter wasn’t left out.
I tried the Honey Mojito and the Orange & Ginger Mojito. Both were excellent, a refreshing way to wind down at the end of the day.
Another great find was the Single Fin Burger Bar.
Hidden down a side street, I only spotted it the night before we went home.
Even tinier than the Mojito bar; a couple of tables inside and five on the street front.
The other clientele were all locals which was a good sign. Several with dogs, one of whom was very keen to make friends with us. Or more likely with daughter’s burger, it edged as close as its lead would allow and stared longingly as she ate. If you’re thinking that a burger isn’t traditional Spanish fare, you would be correct.
But these were handmade with a range of local and international flavours and ingredients.
As burgers go, they were right up there.
For something more local, it doesn’t get better than Churros for breakfast. Nothing says holiday like all you can eat hotel buffet and the opportunity to be as unhealthy as possible. There were squeals of delight as young guests discovered the unlimited Spanish donut variation available for breakfast.
One other big tick for Single Fin was the soundtrack.
The perfect burgers were accompanied by a sun kissed selection of 60s / 70s Ska and Reggae. This was contrasted with the bus transfer back to the airport later that day. The radio was tuned to a local station with a line in golden oldies that kept you guessing as to what might pop up next.
A five song run provided:
- Glenn Frey – “The Heat Is On”
- Roxette – “Joyride”
- The Police – “Message In A Bottle”
- “Stars On 45”
Rounding it off with a Spanish language song.
One another day sat in a café the sound of “We Are The World” came floating over the airwaves. It took me a moment of wondering if my ears deceived me before I accepted what I was hearing.
We did also hear up-to-date modern music so the islands aren’t stuck in a time warp but the golden oldie stations really like to pick out the unexpected.
One last food / music crossover surprise was The Rock Cafe.
In no way a poor quality rip off of The Hard Rock Cafe.
We didn’t eat there but the menu featured a random selection of dishes named after musicians, none that had any relevance and not even any attempt at punning names.
A very poor effort. The worst example being the famously vegetarian Paul McCartney getting a steak named after him. Just a hunch that they haven’t sought his endorsement.
Being on an island the obvious leisure activity is to take a boat trip. We took two.
Firstly a glass bottomed boat to Isla De Lobos (which we found difficult not to refer to as Los Lobos), 2km off Corralejo.
Due to its ecological diversity it has National Park status.
We were there for the fish, the boat moored close to the island and we took advantage of the snorkels provided to jump into the crystal clear water to get up close with the fishes.
These included various type of bream, Salema Porgy, Pompano and Parrotfish. Unfortunately no sign of the dolphins or Hammerhead Sharks that frequent the area.
Our other trip was a half hour ferry ride to neighbouring island Lanzarote.
Again no sign of large aquatic wildlife but there was a constant flurry of flying fish.
Exiting the bow wave like missiles and skimming across the water to get away from the boat.
There was more new and interesting aquatic life on Lanzarote.
At first we didn’t notice anything on the black volcanic rocks. Until something moved and looking closer they were covered in black crabs, some with red flashes on their bodies. So abundant are they that the crab is a symbol of the island.
Whereas on Fuerteventura it’s the goat, the only animal of size able to cope with the lack of water and vegetation.
The only place to see an abundance of animal life is the island’s Zoo:
Which amongst its residents had more camels, crocodiles and tortoises than I’ve ever seen.
Plus giraffe that you can come face to face with.
Then there was the cacti. These are a feature of the residential areas on the island, along with Aloe. Providing a bit of greenery missing elsewhere. The zoo has the largest Cactus garden in Europe. All shapes, sizes and varying degrees of prickliness.
Prickliness not being a feature of the locals, who were uniformly friendly.
The Friday was Canary Islands Day, a public holiday across the island with the main street in Corralejo given over to displays of traditional food, music, dancing,
And people trying to hit each other with sticks.
This was Juego del Palo, a kind of martial art rather than an outpouring of anger.
Would I go back?
I refer you to my earlier answer, probably not. But I can still recommend it.
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This sounds like a great time! I suspect my water ride experience would have ended up like yours. And that playlist is wild … I don’t know whether I would have been more shocked by USA for Africa or Stars on 45. Thanks for sharing this with us, JJ.
Some pictorial accompaniments to the trip. This is the imposing backdrop to Corralejo.
The perfect Mojito – cheers!
A whole lot of cacti
Face to face
Isla De Lobos (definitely not Los Lobos)
The Canary Islands aren’t on my bucket list, but now I might have to reconsider. Any idea how they compare to the Azores?
The lack of thought behind the naming of the McCartney steak makes me wonder how much thought goes into its preparation. I think I’ll pass.
Say hello to Mrs. and daughter J for me!
I haven’t been to the Azores. Big difference is that they’re Portuguese rather than Spanish so it’s Olá not Hola. As they’re much further out into the Atlantic the temperatures are generally a few degrees cooler and there’s more rainfall. These things are relative though, given that Fuertaventura has an average of no rainfall at all in June / July.
I have been to Madeira, which is between the two sets of islands. That’s very hilly as befitting its volcanic origins and the beaches have black sand. Big difference to Fuertaventura is that there’s a lot of lush vegetation. Really enjoyed it there. Landing by plane is an experience; short runway, built out into the sea and with cliffs alongside. Oh and given its place out in the Atlantic it does get windy!
I haven’t been to any of the other Canary Islands but as I alluded to, the other islands have their own microclimates with more vegetation than Fuertaventura and Lanzarote.
Mrs and daughter J say hi back!