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The International Writers Magazine: Spanish Islands
• Aleksandar Mijailovic
Canary Islands, of which Tenerife is the largest, are located in the Atlantic Ocean, near the Moroccan coast. Tenerife is one of the worlds twenty most visited destinations.
The mild climate, temperatures in the summer months do not go above 30 degrees, low pollution, proximity to Europe, excellent golf courses and beaches for surfing each year attract more than five million tourists, most of wich are Scandinavians, Englishmans, Germans, Frenchmans, and in recent years, wealthy Russians. Many choose to during the cold winter months, spend time in sunny Tenerife and icy days, in their countries, replace with warm cozy nights and mornings.
The island is of volcanic origin and nature made an effort to provide it with divine beauty, so that more than 40% of the area is protected by law, due to the volcano, reserve, endemic species or unusual landscapes.
The capital, Santa Cruz, which is named after the cross that the Spaniards put in the soil after the conquest of the island, is the inevitable tourist attraction because of its beautiful churches, museums, the distinctive auditorium and the Spanish Square, where every year is held one of the world's most famous carnival.
Near the town is the Teresitas beach, known for its yellow sand, brought from the Sahara, which is different from all the others on the island where the sand and gravel is in color from dark gray to navy black.
On the west coast, in Puerto de la Cruz, where the winds are slightly more frequent and temperatures are slightly lower, mostly stay elderly British tourists. Charming streets and squares make this beautiful town, and the necessary dose of luxury gives Logo Martinez, a complex with an artificial lake, fountains and unavoidable casino.You should not forget the Loro Park with the largest flock of parrots in the world.
Until the end of the 20th century, Puerto de la Cruz was the main tourist center, when on the south of the island, close to the old fishing village of Los Cristianos, was built the hotel complex on the beautiful beach of Las Americas. In addition to sandy beaches and waves, which are the magnet for surfers, the place has the best nightlife on the island.
Trademark of the Island is a "dragon tree", so-called Dracaena Draco which is there for more than three thousand years. Otherwise, apart from the Canaries, the tree manages in Micronesia also, and it’s interesting that this species survived many epochs and stood to the present day. It’s, as they say, the only tree in the world with herbal juice in red color, and given that grows slowly, it takes a lot of years to grow from small stalk to stately plant. Also worth of mentioning is that Guanches used it for embalming.
Tourism is the main industry and more newcomers are choosing to spend their lives in this charming island, so it’s quite normal that in the Irish pub waiters know English only. Tenerife has two airports, places are well connected to the highway, there's a university, there is no value added tax (VAT), rain rarely falls, so it's not hard to imagine a home on this, as it’s called "Island of Happiness".
What to visit on the island?
On the Island dominates mountain Teide with a peak of 3,718 m, the highest peak of Spain, and the sleeping volcano, the third largest in the world, which was last time active in 1909. Peak is practically all year under the snow, and it’s a trademark of the island, so it's no surprise that Tenerife means "white mountain".
For those who love extreme sports and deal with paragliding, this is the perfect place. A special treat for the eyes is the look to the sunny beaches as waves wash over them, and then the scene when from the gray mountain clouds emerge parachutes with rainbow colors.
Not far from the city of Santa Cruz is the site with pyramids that resemble the shape like those in Egypt, Peru, Mexico and Guatemala. Like all the others, and these are precisely defined in relation to astronomical bodies and phenomena.
About their origin there are various theories. According to one opinion, it's just a pile of rocks made??by the farmers to clear the way and cultivated ground. Others associate them with the Masonic structures from the 19th century, as does Norwegian ethnographer, Dr. Heyerdahl who was sure that it’s a work of civilization that was in that region long before the Spanish conquistadors.
Affordable prices for every pocket
Except bananas and tomatoes, of the Canary products make sure to try the sweet potatoes, which are cooked unpeeled until the water evaporates, topped with mojo sauce, red peppers, goat cheese and Malvasia wine.
While the Spanish islands belong to the European Union, duty-free zone and low taxes make the products and services not too expensive. Petrol is 70 cents a litre, coffee around 1 euro, pint of beer from 1 to 3 euros, cocktails are not more than 5 euros, and for example, a two-hour boat trip in search of whales is only 10 euros. Outlet stores are what definitely should not miss - branded products with incredibly reasonable prices and friendly staff. Who is lucky enough to be here when the seasonal sales are on, may well pass hours in many shopping malls as well.
About the author: Aleksandar Mijailovic is a blogger, traveler and marketing manager on Explore Corner site.
© Aleksandar Mijailovic December
amijailovic@explorecorner.com
