the dragon tree icod de los vinos tenerife
just how old is this extraordinary tree? the age of the thousand year old dragon tree is often exaggerated to two or even three thousand years in reality, this majestic specimen, the oldest known, probably dates back about 600 years. more remarkable perhaps is that the species itself dracaena draco, closely related to the yucca has barely evolved since the age of the dinosaurs. it has long been an object of fascination, not just among modern botanists and naturalists,...
pico del teide tenerife
pico del teide was aflame as christopher columbus passed this way. the sailors took it for an ill omen, columbus for a good one. before the spanish conquest, the guanche people of tenerife and the other islands too revered this conical mountain crested with snow and fire. it could erupt again at any time, though for a century or so at a stretch the volcano remains dormant, its occasional murmurings no more threatening than the purring of a sleeping lion. the most recent eruption was a small one in 1898, and the volcano has been quiet since; it has made some noises of late and scientists are monitoring any risk....
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los gigantes tenerife
one of tenerife's most breathtaking sights is best seen from a boat: properly known as acantilados de los gigantes, the soaring dark rock face rising 600m from the atlantic marks the abrupt edge of north-western tenerife's teno massif. there's nothing more to the site but its sheer grandeur, but that's enough to attract almost all visitors to tenerife....
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santa cruz market santa cruz
the generosity of the canaries and their surrounding ocean, and their ready access to all the abundance of the rest of spain, are daily apparent in the wonderful displays in this lively and atmospheric enclosed market. flowers fill the eye, alongside the colors of myriad fruits and vegetables, and other stalls are laden with fish and meat....
santa cruz de tenerife
santa cruz, the island's capital, still has the authentic feel and look of colonial spain. it's not a holiday resort, but a vibrant latin city where many tinerfeños live and work. the name means holy cross of tenerife, and comes from the crucifix planted boldly at this spot by the ruthless spanish conqueror alonso fernandez de lugo, when he strode ashore in 1493 with 1,000 men to take possession of the guanches' island home....
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plaza de espana tenerife
a large square near the waterfront, this spacious plaza is the heart of the city. the whole square was formerly the site of the principal santa cruz fortification, castillo san cristobal, demolished in 1929. here now stands the grimly imposing francoera palacio, insular, seat of the cabildo or island council, built in what was known as rationalist style....
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plaza de la candelaria tenerife
this pleasant traffic-free square has good bars and shops, including an artesania (craft shop). centuries ago, it was the entrance to the vanished castillo san cristobal, once one of the two main defences of the town (the other was castillo san juan) and here the island's troops would parade and be inspected....
bajamar tenerife
one of the oldest resorts on tenerife, bajamar is a sharp contrast with the glitzier newcomers on the sunny south coast and has a loyal following. here on the extreme northern shores of the island, constant breezes and turbulent currents stir up the waves onto the black beach. for that reason bathers rarely venture into the sea. instead,...
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elsauzal tenerife
this community has pretty terraced gardens and attractive homes, as well as an unusual domed church in moorish style, the iglesia de san pedro. its greatest attractions are its wine museum (casa del vino) and the exceptional no coastal view, especially from the mirador de la garanona, which gazes along the sheer cliffs dropping into the sea. a little further along the road, tacoronte is the heart of it. tenerife's wine-making area, noted for its malvasia (malmsey) vineyards and its two handsome churches....
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guimar tenerife
on the border between gthe reen north and the dry south, guimar lacks charm but is an authentic tenerife community with few tourists. up the slope behind the town stand six curious large mounds, the enigmatic tenerife step pyramids. ancient guimar was a place of importance to the guanches; it's certain that the chieftain at guimar had high status, for that was still true when spanish colonists first began to settle here....
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