The La Laja restaurant in Costa Adeje Gran Hotel offers fine dining beautifully prepared and presented and at the sort of prices that mean you don’t have to wait for a special occasion to enjoy it.
Perfect for discerning palates.

When it comes to restaurant settings, there’s something unerringly romantic about a waterside location.
Positioned alongside the fabulous rooftop swimming pools of the Costa Adeje Gran Hotel is the cool, stylish La Laja restaurant.
Taking a table in the window, we watched the sun turn the façades of the elegant hotel gold and cast palm silhouettes into the still surface of the pools before it dyed the heavens scarlet and disappeared into the night.

When you enter the a la carte restaurant of a five star hotel in Costa Adeje, you expect that you’re going to be paying a premium, but the menu prices were no higher than the menus of many sea front restaurants.
Taking the advice of restaurant manager Rodriguez, we opted to start with the warm goat’s cheese salad with tomato and pine nut vinaigrette and the foie terrine with caramelized onions and apple purée.
For main course we chose fresh fish baked on its back served with a Bilbaine sauce and duck Magret with onion purée, sweet potato crisps and port coulis.

Freshly baked rolls and a selection of flavoured butters arrived, followed by complimentary hors-d’oeuvres of deliciously smokey salmon in teppanyaki sauce served on a bed of polenta.

As the sun bade goodnight, the first course arrived. Two perfect slices of foie terrine lay on a slate board alongside a fresh salad topped with a flower of caramelized onion, surrounded by ribbons of apple purée and finished with a generous sprinkling of rock salt. The terrine was a perfect texture and melted in the mouth with a fusion of flavours; the onions were sweet and tangy and the purée complemented them both beautifully. The only flaw was the rock salt decoration which had to be carefully worked around so as not to pickle everything.

The warm goat’s cheese lay on a fresh salad, topped with a piquant vinaigrette of pine nuts and tomato and drizzled with honey. The lightly grilled French goat’s cheese was rich, tangy and creamy with a slight saltiness which combined with the honey to send the taste-buds into euphoria.

For main course, the fish was a fresh dorada (bream) which was cut lengthways, grilled and served with a mild onion purée and tasty sauce of tomato and mushrooms. Cooked to perfection, the flesh was moist and flaky with good flavour and texture.
But the culinary masterpiece of the evening was Chef Pablo Aznar’s duck Magret which was succulent,  tender and melted in the mouth. Served with the onion purée and light tangy crisps of sweet potato, this was a gastronomic triumph.

To finish, we chose home made apple pie served with vanilla cream and the chocolate surprise which we were warned would take 10 minutes to prepare.
The time was well spent watching the moonlight dance on the water and the guests of the hotel dance at the Pool Chill Out party while we finished a soft, full bodied Lomo red.

The apple pie was delicious but the chocolate surprise was out of this world. A lightly baked outer sponge concealed a sensuous centre of hot, dark chocolate sauce – this was a sweet that belonged in the grown-ups section of the menu.

Where, when and how:
Restaurant La Laja, Costa Adeje Gran Hotel, Avenida de Bruselas, 16, Costa Adeje; the restaurant has its own entrance on Avenida de Bruselas just along from the hotel. Open evenings only 19.00  – 22.30, closed Weds & Thurs; reservations – (0034) 922 71 94 21

Prices:
Starters average €8; main courses average €9.50; sweets average €4.20
A good selection of Canarian and Spanish wines range from €9 to €40

Open to:
Residents and non-residents. Guests in suites at the hotel dine in La Laja and guests on half or full board can upgrade for a modest supplement.

This is mid-August, peak holiday season, and the 4* Hotel Isabel in the heart of Costa Adeje is filled to capacity.
Advertising itself as a ‘family hotel’, Tenerife Magazine decides to brave the summer heat and the influx of families from the Spanish mainland and Canary Islands to check out what Costa Adeje’s Hotel Isabel has to offer.

The eye-catching mustard tower and traditional Canarian, wooden balconied frontage of the Hotel Isabel belie the cornucopia of amenities and leisure space that lie beyond. It’s like stepping into a wardrobe and finding yourself in Narnia.

Newly arrived for the weekend, I wander down leafy avenidas between neat rows of Canarian-style villas; around a tree lined Plaza de las Palmeras in whose centre a stone fountain plays and across wooden walkways above enclosed courtyards surrounded by red tiled roofs.

I could be in the old quarter of La Laguna or La Orotava if it wasn’t for the perfectly manicured landscaping and the endless array of boredom-bashing activities that beckon.
In the lobby a group of boys are half way through a World Cup qualifier match on the big screen video game while alongside, a teenager’s surfing the net in the Cybercafé and in the bar area his dad’s taking advantage of the free WiFi to check his emails.  All around the expansive rooms and grounds, tots to teens are lining up cues on pool tables, clearing the net on table tennis, scoring goals on table football and climbing frames in playgrounds. Centre stage in the courtyard, I inadvertently wander through rehearsals for Harry Potter where the animation team are coaching wide eyed starlets in spell casting skills.

Tiptoeing around Voldemort, I wander past the massage and beauty parlour; the tattooist and the gymnasium to discover the gaily painted windows of the Mini Club from which tiny voices are singing. Next door, a diving school waits to take me on underwater voyages of discovery.
Just when I was wondering how many activities you could possibly fit into one hotel, I find myself in the sports area where tennis, basketball and football courts flank a volleyball sand court, an outdoor gym and a kiddies’ adventure playground with a mini climbing wall.

Feeling exhausted just from the thought of all that energy expenditure, I retrace my steps to the busy swimming pools and sunbathing terraces bedecked with glistening, prone bodies.  Sitting in the irresistible shade of the laid back pool bar terrace with the Adeje Mountains shimmering in the heat haze above the bougainvillea lined gardens of the villas, I give my biceps a work out with a long, cool drink and wonder if I should have booked a week.

Hotel A. Isabel, Family Hotel, Costa Adeje – The Essentials

Location: Alongside commercial centres and restaurants in the heart of Costa Adeje, a 10 minute stroll from Fañabe Beach and 20 minutes from Puerto Colon.

Rooms: Accommodation is in apartments in low-rise blocks or Canarian style bungalows and villas laid out like a village along landscaped streets. Plenty of space to spread out with good kitchen facilities, living room, bedroom, en suite bathroom and large terrace or private garden. Apartments are clean, bright and nicely decorated but lacking any wow factor.

Service: Everyone we dealt with was friendly and professional from the cleaning staff to the animation team. Check-in was quick and efficient with multi-lingual staff and no queues. Dining room staff were fast and efficient so, despite the hotel being at capacity, tables were cleared and re-set with minimum of fuss.

Food: Meals were buffet style in the large dining rooms and if you preferred,  breakfast could be taken on the outside terrace. Pasta and pizza corner, a grilled meats section and a fresh fruit table joined an already overwhelming selection of meat, fish and salad dishes to keep everyone from the fussiest toddler to the family veggie happy. Despite the hotel being full, food was hot, fresh and constantly topped up and there was no waiting for tables.

Entertainment: With the hotel’s family high season in full swing, entertainment was naturally geared towards the younger ones and the animation team had their work cut out keeping kids of all ages and mixed nationalities entertained from breakfast to bedtime. Rising valiantly to the challenge, music, singing and dancing kept Plaza Canaria buzzing until the midnight hour. For those of us who were occupying a child-free zone, Costa Adeje’s nightlife was just a stroll away.

Overall: An excellent family hotel in a central Costa Adeje location offering good value for money and non-stop fun and entertainment to keep kids happy while Mum and Dad relax.

Hotel A Isabel; 4 Star; Avenida de Bruselas 4-6, Costa Adeje; ; (0034) 922 74 70 00; email for reservations

They say “it’s an ill wind that blows nobody any good” and while much of Tenerife broiled in the excessive calima heat and high winds that covered their world in a fine layer of Saharan sand and sent them running for the sanctuary of their air conditioning, the wind catchers of El Médano pumped up their kites and took to their boards.

It was a shaky start to the PKRA Kiteboarding World Tour when Sod’s Law reared its head dictating that the Tenerife venue whose default setting is breezy-to-windy, dawned on the first day of competition with a cloudless sky… and dead calm.
The world’s top kiteboarders who had travelled from all corners of the globe to compete, kicked their heels in the sand and took up the mantle of honorary vacationers for the day.

Wednesday came with a warning from the Cabildo (Island government) of expected searing temperatures in the wake of yet another calima, and a forecast change of wind direction and speed.
Shortly after 2pm the forecast kicked in; the wind shifted position and sent the weather vanes spinning from 10 to 20 knots in the space of 30 minutes.
Abandoning their lunch plates to a Marie Celeste fate, the kiteboarders rushed to the shoreline of Playa Machado to pump up their sails and launch their kites.

Switching tack from coy wallflower to rampant lover; the wind battered riders, spectators and organisers on Thursday and Friday, racing across the sands at speeds that averaged 37 knots and peaked at 52 knots. Anyone who stood still for more than five minutes joined the impromptu sand sculptures of sails that littered the beach.
The conditions pumped up the adrenalin levels for the competition, producing first class waves and testing competitors to their limits.

For those who adopted the go hard or go home attitude which was flying round the camp, new records were there for the taking and Frenchman Sebastien Garat broke his own previous record jump height by almost five feet to set a new world record of 52 feet for the greatest height recorded on the Shadow Box* on a PKRA World Tour Competition.

On the final day of the competition the wind settled into a beefy average 20 to 25 knots and I sacrificed my hair condition to join the ranks of wind-swept and interesting people who had gathered to watch the finals of the freestyle and wave eliminations.
In the morning the men’s freestylers Youri Zoon and Andy Yates wowed spectators with some breathtaking tricks while the petite Spanish Gisela Pulido pulled off some neat moves and spectacular crashes as the conditions continued to bring out the best and worst in the Playa Machado waves.

Retiring to the iconic surf dude Flashpoint bar restaurant (shame about the website) for lunch and a respite from the mad wind, we talked to local windsurfer Richard who described the wind as “Like a Swiss cheese – full of holes, but it’s creating some amazing waves!” If only the same could be said for the effect it was having on my hair.

Shortly after 2 pm the wave event reached its final stages at El Cabezo where the testing conditions took no prisoners and produced some incredible style and power from Brazil’s Guilly Brandao who sailed into first place.

As the last of the air was released from sails and boards were zipped into bags, the wind catchers wandered off into the El Médano sunset to meet again in Argentina at the beginning of November 2010.

*A Shadow Box is a neat little GPS gizmo which is attached to the board and records everything from speed and acceleration to jump height and degree of rotation.

PKRA Kiteboarding World Tour 2010 Results

Freestyle double elmination results
Men
1. Youri Zoon (Slingshot, NED)
2. Andy Yates (Slingshot, AUS)
3. Sebastien Garat (RRD, FRA)
4. Ariel Corniel (Ozone, DOM)

Women
1. Gisela Pulido (Airush, ESP)
2. Ania Grzelinska (North, POL)
3. Kristin Boese (Best, GER)
4. Kari Schibevaag (Ozone, NOR)

Wave results
Men
1. Guilly Brandao (Mormaii, BRA)
2. Sky Solbach (North, USA)
3. Bruno Bordorsky (RRD, BRA)
4. Tom Hebert (Airush, NCL)

Women
1. Gisela Pulido (Airush, ESP)
2. Ainhoa Garcia (Airush, ESP)
3. Kari Schibevaag (Ozone, NOR)
4. Ania Grzelinska (North, POL)

It’s 9 o’clock Sunday morning, the sky is liquid sapphire and already the air temperature is 30°C. The grey horse in the paddock below my window is pulling up white tufts of dry grass from the baked ground; a hen stutters nervously into the vegetable garden and the bells of San Fernando Rey call worshippers to mass.
It could be a scene from a village in the Cotswolds, but instead I’m in the heart of rural Tenerife in a hamlet that, were there to be such a competition, would surely be a prize winner in the Island’s most picturesque village – Santiago del Teide.

Nestling in a fertile valley in the South West hills, flanked by the little hamlet of Valle de Arriba and backed by Montaña Bilma, the Chinyero lava fields and Mount Teide; Santiago del Teide is the place where day trippers turn off to climb the serpentine ascent into Masca. But to pass through this paradise without stopping is to miss one of the most charming rural settlements Tenerife has to offer.
The doors of the picturesque Iglesia San Fernando Rey are always open and opposite, the little kiosk café is the perfect spot to crack a cool Dorada at the picnic zone beneath the shade of eucalyptus trees. And with the opening of the Casa del Patio at the end of 2009, there’s even more to Santiago than just the prettiest of faces.

Beautifully restored by the Cabildo (Island Government), the 17th century former home of the feudal lord of the manor provides sustenance and entertainment in equal measure with riding stables; a tasca; art gallery, craft shop; bodega and Chinyero museum.

Restaurants in Santiago del Teide

The Señorío del Valle visitor centre which includes Casa del Patio, has added a real touch of class to the traditional fare which forms the staple diet of los campesinos (country folk) prevalent on menus in the village. A charismatic tasca with bijou bar, beautiful courtyard and dining room with hand drawn murals of traditional rustic scenes provide the setting for a typical Canarian menu with a good selection of tapas, meat and fish dishes.
The food is all freshly prepared, flavoured with fresh herbs from the kitchen garden and cooked to perfection.

There are a few eateries in the village, all serving variations on the staple Canarian menu alongside the occasional arepa or burger.
The Chinyero restaurant is landmarked by a life sized model of a horse and trap and its spacious courtyard attracts many of the day trippers en route to and from Masca.
Portions are generous and the terrace is a pleasant place to sit and watch the world go by. Just a small, raised outside terrace means that the El Patio restaurant in the village gets fewer visitors but it has ample space inside its traditional dining room and the food is a cut above Chinyero’s.

Rural Accommodation in Santiago del Teide
Standing proud alongside its visitor centre, the brand new Rural Hotel Señorío del Valle in Santiago del Teide opened its doors in March 2010 and exudes rustic charm and tranquility.

The grounds ramble lazily from the vegetable garden and paddock to the courtyard with traditional wine presses and the stables, all populated by the resident horses, hens and ducks. When the caged parrots join in with the morning chorus it’s a regular Granja de Viejo McDonald affair.
Vines are just beginning to creep their way along the stone walls of the hotel, softening the façade with their presence while inside, the decor is an elegant combination of contemporary and traditional.
Mudejar ceilings and polished wood offer a cool retreat from the heat of August but the sight of a large wood burning stove in the lounge area promises cosy winter nights in front of a log fire.

Bedrooms are in a quadrangle surrounding a sun-saturated courtyard with an ornamental  pond and fountain. Each room is individually decorated and named after a local flower. I’m in ‘ajinajo’ with views over the paddock, gardens, picnic zone and a landscape that elicits an instantaneous long sigh of relaxation.
Testing the king-sized bed for comfort it’s difficult to pull myself away from this rural luxury but the view beyond the window is beckoning, so it’s on with the factor 25 and the rucksack.

Walking Routes

Beyond the neighbouring hamlet of Valle de Arriba and over the crest of the ridge lie the stunning Erjos Pools, a wildlife haven and natural beauty spot. After exploring the pools  on a dragonfly and duck spotting quest, I climb up to the ridge and make my way into the cool shade of the forest to finally emerge with unbelievable views over the Santiago Valley, before dropping back down to the pools.
After an excellent lunch of carne de cabra (goat) at the hotel, I brave the afternoon heat on the little Camino de la Virgen de Lourdes path which climbs the hillside in the centre of the village to a small shrine and fountain.
From my vantage point amidst the heady perfume of honeysuckle and roses I look down on sleepy Santiago del Teide and wish the weekend would last for ever.

Whilst it’s fair to say that the beaches on the Canary Islands get better the further east you go, Tenerife has invested a great deal of time and money in the importing, sifting and general manicuring of sand to create beaches which, whilst they may not be the best in the world, are exceedingly pleasant places to be.

1. Las Teresitas, Santa Cruz – Archetypal golden tropical beach backed by palm trees and the Anaga Mountains. Great parking facilities; kiosks on the beach have good tapas and cold Doradas; water is gently shelving and perfect for swimming/snorkling and there’s always great people watching.
Downside; if it’s breezy you need a sunbed to escape the fine sandstorm at surface level.
2. Playa Del Duque, Costa Adeje – Tucked into a sheltered bay with views of the over developed coast screened off by cliffs. Immaculately clean, soft white sand; elegant changing booths; stylish Hawaiian-style parasols; quality sunbeds and good restaurants in easy flop flop reach.
Downside; quality doesn’t come cheap and your wallet will get burned.
3. El Camisón, Playa de Las Américas – Small, sheltered bay located right at the heart of the resort but without that mass tourism feel. Gently shelving golden sand; stylish backdrop provided by the fabulous Sir Anthony Hotel; nice beach bar with shady terrace and grassy knoll for sand-phobes.
Downside; location means it gets very busy in high season.
4. El Puertito, Playa Paraíso – Greek-style bay tucked away in a sheltered cove where a sprinkling of white buildings creep down to the shore. Tiny, golden sand beach shelving into crystal, turquoise water where fishing boats gently bob.
Downside; in summer the bay is a magnet  for illegal campers and all solitude is lost.

5. Playa Bollullo, La Orotava – Idyllic, natural, black sand beach hidden away at the foot of the cliffs and frequented mainly by locals. Way off the radar of most visitors with only a handful of sunbeds for hire, a simple beach café with terrace on the cliffside and plenty of space to stretch out.
Downside; on most days the Atlantic rollers turn paddling into an extreme sport.
6. Las Vistas, Los Cristianos – Probably many people’s number one choice; a vast, golden sand beach bridging the join between Los Cristianos and Playa de Las Américas. Easy access from hotels; backed by shops, bars and restaurants; good range of water activities; disabled access and enough space to swing several very large cats.
Downside; regimented rows of sunbeds hog the shore-line leaving a hot gauntlet of Sahara Desert-sized sand to negotiate to the promenade.
7. Playa Jardín, Puerto de la Cruz – Long, black sand beach backed by César Manrique-designed gardens, at the foot of the La Orotava Valley. Stunning setting with Mount Teide in the background; good mix of locals and visitors; well served by bars, restaurants and facilities and great people-watching.
Downside; A lack of breakwater means swimming is only for the brave and the stupid and black sand gets blisteringly hot in summer.
8. La Tejita, El Médano – Natural, Robinson Crusoe-style, endless white sand beach lapped by azure waters and favoured by those who have an aversion to white bits. Accessible by car and big enough to take every resident of  El Médano and still have that away-from-it-all feeling.
Downside; It’s a long walk from El Médano and on windy days (of which there are many) sun bathing is out and sand blasting is in.
9. Playa El Médano, El Médano – Natural, golden sand beach right in the centre of the town and the pulsating heart of the community. Buzzing with activity on all but the rarest of bad weather days, El Médano’s town beach is just a deck chair’s width away from a plethora of excellent places to eat, drink and shop.
Downside; Small and busy, space is a premium and then there’s that wind…
10. Playa La Arena, Playa de la Arena – A sheltered, black sand beach with a permanent European Blue Flag flying and stunning sunsets. Family-friendly beach in the centre of the resort; super clean facilities; great tapas restaurant with shady terrace right on the beach and a stroll away from shops, bars and restaurants.
Downside; Gets crowded in high season and other than sun bathing, there’s little to do or see.

Apologies to all those beaches that didn’t make my cut – you’ll no doubt feature on someone else’s list

A survey of 1,375 consumers conducted this year by TotalMedia, a UK-based media agency, found that almost 70% of consumers use the internet to book their holidays, compared to 23% by phone and just 8% who chose travel agents.

Consumers aged 35-44 were found to be most likely (74%) to book online. The survey went on to reveal that holidaymakers are now booking trips based on online travel reviews rather than glossy publications.

Wasted Opportunity
We all know that the Internet has revolutionised consumer habits and nowhere is that more true than in the travel and tourism sector.
Where once glossy magazine pages lured consumers into high street travel agents to book their holidays, today it’s search engines that act as the PR men. From holiday watchdog forums to blogs, consumers can research and book every aspect of their holiday from the flights, hotel and car hire to which restaurant they’re going to eat in on their last night, all long before they leave home.
Any business involved in the travel, tourism and property markets on Tenerife is only too aware that their primary consumer market lies beyond these shores.
Yet many still waste money paying for expensive advertising in printed magazines and newspapers which are only seen by those who are already here.
It’s time Tenerife businesses woke up to the fact that online marketing is the only way to get in front of consumers before they make their buying decisions.

Choosing the Right Shop Window
There’s only one consideration when it comes to deciding which Tenerife online publication to display your business with: it’s simple. Content is King.
Today’s online consumers are savvy shoppers. They know what they’re looking for and they want to get straight to it. Fluffy, vague content cobbled together from other sources is simply not good enough.

New  so-called ‘Tenerife’ sites pop up on an almost weekly basis; very few of them are even based on the island. They’re easy to spot. The content is superficial, rarely experiential, usually wildly inaccurate and very thin on the ground. In fact, the only thing that many of these sites have that is even vaguely Tenerife is the domain name.

At Tenerife Magazine content is written by professional travel writers who all live and work on Tenerife and whose business it is to know the island inside out.
Our content is timely, accurate, experiential, compelling and exactly what consumers are looking for.

With the island still reeling from the effects of global downturn and the fall out from Iceland’s volcanic eruptions, those who are serious about doing business in Tenerife shouldn’t waste precious marketing budgets on printed publications that fail to reach their intended market and will be lining the cat’s litter tray within a week.
At Tenerife Magazine we have almost 10,000 consumers a month, every month, looking for information on Tenerife. Would you like them to see you?

Charleston Charm

The heat’s rising on Tenerife’s beaches and the sales are in full swing; it’s the perfect time to bag a bargain summer outfit and dress it up with some of Bijou Brigitte’s eye-catching new jewellery collection.

Ooh-La-La!

If you haven’t already discovered Bijou Brigitte, you’re in for a treat. With branches all over Tenerife, this little treasure trove of trinkets is packed with enticing earrings, bracelets, necklaces, pendants, brooches, hair bands and more – all colour co-ordinated to make it easy to find exactly the shade you’re looking for.
It’s a great little shop in which to buy gifts for the jewellery lovers in your life too with prices ranging from piggy-bank friendly to lavish gesture. It’s always an early stop for me on the Christmas shopping trip.

The new Autumn/Winter 2010/2011 collection evokes memories of foreign travel and secret romance in vintage retro mode. Think Casablanca and Brief Encounter – cassis, champagne and smoky crystal shades in 1920’s style.
Paris provides the inspiration for the new season’s fun accessories in bright, primary colours; an Eiffel Tower pendant, charm watches, pretty polka-dot bows and hooped earrings.

The Jet Set

Or fast forward to the 21st Century and team up satin and chiffon with polished jet and rhinestone chandelier earrings and lace gloves to show off the summer tan on El Faro’s rooftop bar.

This is fashion jewellery at its best for me – great value for money; a huge selection of styles and colour co-ordinated displays so you simply find the shade you want and settle in to enjoy the spoilt-for-choice experience.

When I think of fishing and fishermen, I think idyllic streams in the Scottish Highlands where the gentle rushing of water over stones, the hum of bees and the swish of a lone fly fisher’s line blend imperceptibly into the silence; or a quaint Greek harbour where a bearded Adonis sits silently mending his nets to a background soundtrack of cicadas and the tide slapping the boards of lazily bobbing fishing boats.

Cut to Tenerife where these images are shattered by the audible battles of dance music blasting from the speakers of beer stalls and the open air rave; the screams of girls being cannoned by high powered water pistols or thrown from the harbour wall into the chaotic water below; the deafening cacophony of splashing as a thousand hands churn up the harbour waters and the horns of dozens of small fishing boats as the Virgen Del Carmen ( Our Lady of Mount Carmel) takes to the waters for her annual jaunt around the bay.
Welcome to the wild, wet, fishermen’s Fiestas Del Carmen in Puerto de la Cruz.

Puerto de la Cruz may be a thriving tourist centre and one-time premier resort of Tenerife but it has never lost its fishing village roots.  Arguably the prettiest natural harbour on Tenerife, Puerto is home to a strong community of fishermen and mariners. Annually they treat the Virgen Del Carmen and San Telmo (Saint Elmo), to whom they feel indebted for their livelihoods, to a trip around the bay in order to ensure safe voyages and full nets for the coming year.

It’s a tradition which takes place in many of the coastal resorts of Tenerife in and around the 16th July; Virgen Del Carmen’s Feast Day.
A feature of each of them is the central role played by the fishermen who carry the statue of their Saint on their shoulders to her embarkation point, sail her around the headland and then return her safely to her permanent church home amidst fireworks and celebration.
The difference with the fiesta in Puerto de la Cruz is that somewhere in the region of 35,000 – 40,000 people descend on the town for the day turning it into one of Tenerife’s biggest festivals.

I have a sneaky feeling that the weather God is a fisherman at heart because in all the years I have been attending Puerto’s Fiestas Del Carmen, it has always, without exception, been a red hot, cloudless day; regardless of how many days before or after have fallen prey to the cloud that trade winds bring to the north coast in early summer.
And yesterday was no exception.

With Tenerife at the tail end of a heatwave, the harbour saw temperatures tipping 34ºC as the sun beat mercilessly down on the thousands of revellers who took to the harbour waters in their droves to stay cool. Those who preferred to stay on dry land had running battles with high powered water pistols turning Plaza Charco, Calle Perdomo and the Muelle into an arena of water cannon cross-fire where escaping without a soaking was not an option.

With everyone heat exhausted and soaked to the skin (voluntarily or otherwise), the Virgen and San Telmo finally arrived at the harbour where they were given an emotional rendition of Ave Maria before being carried to their waiting boats. A few squeaky bum moments later they were both safely ensconced on board their vessels and heading off towards the horizon. While the party continued to rage, some of us trod our weary way homeward, safe in the knowledge that there would be fresh dorado (bream), cherne (grouper) and chiperones (small squid) for the coming year.

Fact File:
Fiestas Del Carmen take place in Los Cristianos, Bajamar and El Médano.
Some of the larger celebrations are in Santa Cruz and Las Galletas.

Santa Cruz – Friday 16th July 2010 – a full programme of music and concerts takes place in the city centre. Mass is held at 6pm in Iglesia de la Concepcion followed by a parade of the statue of the Virgen del Carmen through the city (Plaza de España, Marina, Avenida Marítima) to the harbour at Muella Ribera (near the junction with La Rambla) for embarkation and a trip around the harbour. Fishermen lay a wreath on the water in commemoration of fallen colleagues.
On the Virgen’s return, she’s paraded back through the city and is greeted in Plaza del España by the traditional firework display.
Another day of celebrations, concerts and festivities follows on Saturday 17th July 2010.

Las Galletas – Sunday 16th July 2010
Amidst a whole week of events which includes parties with live bands from 11pm on the nights of Friday 16th, Saturday17th and Sunday 18th July 2010, the Virgen is taken to sea on Sunday 18th July amidst a noisy flotilla of small fishing boats. On her return at 9.30pm there’s a large fireworks display followed at 11pm by the final party.

There’s a commotion in the road. The roller-skating girl just let her dog run in front of a pizza delivery boy on a bike almost garrotting him with the lead and sending him and his pizzas hurtling into the road. The girl looks on unmoved by the chaos she’s caused and the dog makes off with the spoils.
It’s an accident that’s destined to play out continuously in the Groundhog Day streets of Pueblo Chico.

I’ve heard it said that there’s no such thing as ‘fun for all the family’, and whilst I truly appreciate the sentiment in that statement, I have to disagree and cite Pueblo Chico as my evidence.

Hidden away on a quiet back road in La Orotava, the miniature world of Pueblo Chico is set in 20,000 square metres of beautifully landscaped grounds overlooking Puerto de la Cruz. Laid out amongst the greenery in a series of terraced zones, Tenerife in miniature doesn’t just have the island’s historic centres, iconic architecture and natural beauty spots all reproduced in perfect detail, it also has the sights and sounds of the life that occupies them.

To a soundtrack of bleeting goats in the Guanche zone a group of elderly men occupy benches beneath the shade of a tree, verbally putting the world to rights. If it wasn’t for the animal skins they’re wearing and the lack of a nearby bar, it could be a scene from any town plaza today.
In front of the La Orotava Ayuntamiento, this year’s sand mosaic is already in place; in La Laguna a school playground echoes with the shouts of its charges; on neighbouring Lanzarote a church bell chimes to call worshippers to prayer and back on Tenerife the local lad is about to win his Lucha Canario bout as he hurls his opponent to the floor.

All Tenerife life is here in miniature, from the house leeks growing amongst the Arabic tiles of roofs in the old quarter of Santa Cruz to paragliders launching themselves off the cliffs above southern beaches and the Fred Olsen Ferry dwarfing small boats alongside the Auditorio.
But it isn’t just about admiring the incredible detail in the models and smiling at the wonderful moving parts, it’s about discovering the little touches; the ubiquitous double parking; the teenage lad spying on his neighbour as she sunbathes topless on her roof; the workmen enjoying their second breakfast – or is it their third?

With gardens brimming with endemic and exotic plants; a very tasty restaurant and snack bar with a sunny outside terrace, kid’s menu and gift shop; and the whole of Tenerife at your feet, I defy anyone of any age not to enjoy it.
Pueblo Chico – fun for all the family.  I rest my case.

Pueblo Chico Fact File:
Camino Cruz de Los Martillos, 62; La Orotava, off Exit 35 of the TF5. Tel: (0034) 922 33 40 60
Open every day from 9am to 6pm
Adults €12.50, children (aged 4yrs to 11 yrs) €6.50
Residents €8.50, children €5
Restaurant available for functions.

Why do they call it Midsummer’s day?

Rapidly approaching, the night of June 23rd is the longest day and shortest night in nature’s annual cycle and as such, it has been a significant time of change since ancients all over the world lived their lives, planted their crops and tended their livestock in time to the rhythms of nature.
The point at which the sun reaches its zenith and appears to stand still for three days before switching direction on its solar journey, Midsummer’s Eve is the time to cast out the old and welcome in the new; a time of re-birth and a time of heightened magic.

Fire and water are two of the four ancient elements, the building blocks of existence itself and powerful symbols of  life and purification; all over the northern hemisphere bonfires will burn on the night of San Juan (Saint John) aka Midsummer’s Eve.
A tradition since the days of the Guanche, for many coastal towns in Tenerife that entails bonfires on the beach in which everything from old furniture to last year’s flip-flops are cast into the flames to make way for the new.
Any time of magic and tradition is also a time of celebration and San Juan is the perfect excuse to pack a hamper and head to the beach for some summer night partying.

By far the biggest beach party on the island takes place in Puerto de la Cruz where thousands of people descend onto Playa Jardín and Punta Brava late afternoon, armed to the sunglasses with food, booze and candles. While a huge bonfire burns on the beach, each family or group of friends creates their own ritual fire by placing candles in a shallow basin in the sand. Decorated with flowers and scented with incense, the candles turn the beach into a magical scene where you wouldn’t be too surprised to see Hobbits drinking tankards of ale and dancing around the flames.

A Health and Safety Officer’s nightmare, in San Juan de la Rambla, Icod and Garachico large balls are fashioned from straw stuffed into sacks, then doused with petrol, set on fire and rolled down the mountainsides trailing a fiery path of sparks that must surely goad the God of volcanic eruptions.
You’d think Garachico of all places would know better.

After the fire comes the water, and tradition dictates that bathing in the midnight waters on Noche de San Juan will cleanse ailments from the past and bring good health and fertility for the forthcoming year – talk about the good news and the bad.
That may be a mixed blessing for many humans but when it comes to livestock, fertility is paramount which is why the Guanche bathed their animals in the healing waters of San Juan. In various parts of the island horses are ridden into the sea on the morning of the 24th June to bless the animals and ensure their health and fertility.

Once again, Puerto de la Cruz gets the prize for the biggest celebrations where, on the morning of 24th June, goats driven down from surrounding towns and villages throughout the La Orotava Valley are dragged, kicking and screaming into the harbour waters. Joined by several caballeros on their magnificent steeds, the spectacle leaves visitors open-mouthed and the harbour beach pretty much assured of never achieving Blue Flag status.

So, with a time that so clearly denotes seasonal changeover and the official start of the summer, why, oh why is it called midsummer?

Fact file
Noche de San Juan 2010, Puerto de la Cruz

• 23rd June 2010 Beach Party from late afternoon  on Playa Jardín and Punta Brava. Fireworks display and entertainment provided by folk groups El Chirato and Portuense, and live bands Vocal 7, Jóvenes Cantadores, The Hits and Señor Natilla.

• 24th June 2010 Bathing of the goats in the town harbour from 8am to midday (ish)