El agujero + Gofio mill. Gran Canaria 16.11.15

Today we woke up and decided to go for a walk to explore Galdar again. This time we headed towards the sea, which led us to a rocky beach called "El agujero". The walk took around 45 minutes, including the time we spent wondering whether we would get anywhere walking that way (even though Yvonne lived in Galdar 20 years she had never been to that beach before).

The way we walked to get there was quiet, there was nearly no one around only banana plantations and small farm houses along a narrow road. After walking a long time under a 35ºC sun, we could finally see the way to the beach, we followed the signs and ended up inside some banana plantations where a worker helped us out to his amusement.

Finally at the beach, we sat down and relaxed for a few minutes to the sound of the waves hitting the rocks and watching the surfers. The small avenue doesn´t have any shops, it all consists on houses very close to the shore and at the beach, there is a cute little sea water pool where you can bathe. The water looks so clean even we had to try it, so we sat down in one of the sides of the pool and left our feet in the water, watching small fish swimming around them.

When it was time to head back we found a sign, and the sign showed us an old aborigine settlement and a graveyard. It is not open to the public since it is very fragile and in its original shape.

We also found a little shop where we got refreshments and again, another archeological site welcomed us to see the remains of an old coastal home. Galdar is full of history!

On our way back we stopped at the gofio* mill in Becerril, where the owner told us everything about the history of the mill: that it is the oldest working mill in the island, that it has 3 metre wide walls because the water "pipes" used to go on top of the mill and how the system has changed from water to fire and now the mill works with electricity. The worker allowed me to go in the mill to take a picture of it and I bought half a kilo of corn gofio which I thoroughly enjoyed.

*Gofio is a powder made of toasted grain (mainly corn or wheat) and it is used in coffee, as a single drink with milk, in biscuits, stews and you can also make a delicious dish with it.

79 year-old birthday party + San Felipe. Gran Canaria 15.11.15

We attended Yvonne's grandmother's 79th bitrthday party, hosted by Uncle Sergio and Auntie Esther who prepared plenty of food and drink for the many guests.

Yvonne's Grandmother (Agueda) is mother to 7, of which most were at the party, I also got to see four generations in one room, including three new additions since last time we visited in the New Year. This big family just keeps getting bigger!

The venue lasted 5 hours, including the cake, me singing Guantanamera with Agueda and a long time to get updated with everyone's life in the past few months or years. In a house that is only a five minute walk to Las Canteras beach, there was no better location for this party.

On the way back from the party, we stopped at San Felipe, a village famous for surfing. Most houses in this village have an amazing sea view and you can bathe in the sea water pools that have been created for the inhabitants of this place. This village is small and easy to miss, just after the Pepe Chiringo and the BP in the highway to Galdar from Las Palmas. Check it out!

Gáldar. Gran Canaria 14.11.2015

 


Gáldar (Yvonne's hometown) is a town in the north west of Gran Canaria. It is the old capital of the island, before the Spanish arrived. This town has a lot of cultural and historical interest. Galdar hosts the "Painted Cave", an archeological site that contains paintings and remains of houses of a pre-hispanic settlement.

To get to Galdar, you only have to take a bus from the main bus station. Number 103 or 105, and it costs 3'10 euros a single and takes around 40 minutes on a very scenic coastal road.

We walked into Galdar from Yvonne's house in the early evening and there was a great atmosphere around the main church with people sitting outside bars, restaraunts and cafes with live traditional music being played that everyone seemed to enjoy. We went to one cafe where we had ice cream and a cup of tea (Ollie's words: "You can take me out of England but you can't take England out of me"). Close to this area there is a museum, the already mentioned "painted cave", that has been uncovered in recent years and you get a great feeling of how they lived before the Spanish arrived. Entry costs €6 per person and it takes around 45 minutes to an hour to see the entire museum counting in the informative clips about the life of aborigenes, how the entry of Spain affected them and what happened to them then.

In the past couple of years, 7 more caves have been found in Galdar, along with cookery items and graves. The paintings found in the caves and items used by aborigenes can also be found in t-shirts, earrings and necklaces.

In the centre of the town there is also a square with a fountain overlooked by a church built initially in 1496, and reconstructed in 1778-1826 over the place where "Guanartemes" (a group of aborigenes) had their palace. It is now considered the centre of the town.

Do not hesitate to visit Galdar and get immersed in the history of the pre-hispanic societies.

Maspalomas. Gran Canaria. 12.11.2015

This time we headed to the more touristic side of the island. Maspalomas is where you would stay if you come to Gran Canaria. It´s specifically designed for tourists and you can find just about anything you want from your country of origin.

We first stopped by the Varadero shopping centre. It looks more like a market and you can find cheap clothes and beach items. It is surrounded by British, German and Scandinavian places (restaurants, bars and even hospitals). This is also the area where you find the best hotels and the best nightlife of the island, if that is what you´re looking for.

At the back of this shopping centre you will see an avenue next to the sea that will lead you to the lighthouse. Even though the lighthouse is closed to the public and you can not go in it, it is a pretty place for pictures and to chill. At this walk we found an archeological site that has remains of pre-hispanic buildings signed with all the history of the discovery of this site.

After having a walk to the lighthouse and taking way too many pictures, we headed to the dunes. You can walk to them but we took the car just to go up to the top of the dunes. However, we were late to arrive and it was already dark. The only picture I have is the one down here. Sorry!

You can walk the dunes but you need to allow a few hours and be interested on sports and trekking. It can be quite a tough walk, especially during the summer. The advantage: it´s completely free.