Our Beautiful World

Lanzarote again..... this is our 10th visit!  


Yes, we have been here 9 times before on Lanzarote, and it is our 17th visit to the Canary Islands in 24 years time.
Why we are back again, many years since last time? May be because we have grown older - or just
because we would like to remember a place we loved.

Do you know where to find the Canary Islands?



We are not looking for adventures this time.
https://www.vulkaner.no/t/fuerte/nfuerte1.html

We are solely down here to save us from a cold winter at home.

What we wish to tell about, is how well we are here, living in a hotel by the beach,
and because we are so satisfied with it all, we wish to tell you a little about the hotel, too,
which, first of all shows up as a very friendly family-hotel.

But first of all - where on Lanzarote do you find this hotel?


As you may well see, it is not far away from the airport. But that doesn't mean there is an overwhelming noicelevel
all day long. We do not hear any airplanes before 7 in the morning, and only one or two after 9 in the evening.

Yes, we can hear them when they are coming in, mostly over the sea south of the hotel.
We may also hear them take off, but we do not see them so often then, as they leave in the opposite direction.

The hotel itself is a large complex area, but compared to the many other big tourist attractions, this is no more than 4 levels
And that is what you will see here on the island. No building higher that 4 levels, and mainlyh white painted houses all over.
One exception in the capital, Arrecife, where they many years ago built a 10 levels high hotel
but nobody liked it, and it was never opened as such. But it's still there....

The hotel consists of 343 rooms, of which 222 are fully equippped apartements with a livingroom and kitchen,
and a bedroom, and not to forget a terrace or balcony. The rest of the rooms lacks kitchen, and are there also smaller.
Notice on the photo above how short a distance it is to the long beach, and also note the cycle lane,
split for two directions. The rest of the beach esplanade (Avenida de las Playas) are for pedestrians only.
Cars are not allowed here along the beach. The government has also made a fantastic job making the
whole esplanade to a very beautiful and attractive place, with plants, flowers, benches for rest,
including playgrounds not only for children, but even for adults too!

This is the apartment we live in this time (which also is the third time we stay at this hotel).
A large bathroom with douche and a bath tub is at this end of the picture.
We felt it extremely wonderfult with the view from the bed to the sun in the morning,
and at the same time be able to look down on the beach and see how the sea appreared.
Not all apartments or rooms have a seaview, instead they may look to palms and mountains (old volcanoes).
Of course we have WiFi in the room (internet), and that works very well.
We also have a TV with about 40 channels, but we have not used it yet.....

Both the two larege swimmingpools outside are about 15 m wide (50 feet), and one about 1m50cm (5 feet) deep,
the other from 1m70cm to 2m40cm deep.
You are, of course, not allowed to dive into the pools, you'll have to walk across the esplanade to
the greater swimmingpool called the Atlantic Ocean.
https:/www.vulkaner.no/t/lanza/beach.html

The sea, oh yes, a short little story about that.

Of cours there are risks on the beach, too. But only if you wish to try out the
forces of nature. From time to time there are rather high waves rumbling into the
beach. They can be as high as 2 meters (7 feet), and once, being assaulted by such
when not keeping my eyes that way, I was thrown around - lost my spectacles -
and was rather confused when I got my head above again. That was by high-water,
and the next morning, 40 meters further out on the now dry beach, guess what was
lying in the sand? Sometimes you are more lucky than you deserve.

https://www.vulkaner.no/t/lanza/hotel.html


Nighttime is time for entertainment. It normally begins around 8 o'clock with something for the children, i.e.
minidisco. (the children are from 4 years and up). - (early to teach them to go to discotecs, in our opinion, but that doesn't
count here...). Most other days it t begins with a nice 'uncle' singing with the kids, and teaching them different
ways to imitate what they are singing about, and it really hits the kids.



Then it's time for a half an hour show, with reptiles, eagles, parrots and
other animals participating. At last, more entertainment, acrobatics etc till it ends about 10 o'clock.

How to spend your time in daytime??
We had our personal programme - a trip to the beach and a morningdip and or swimmingtour before breakfast.
Yes, a morningtrip - the sun shows up about 8 o'clock now in January, and we are down at the beach not so long after.
There we meet one, or perhaps two, other people on the 500 meter long beach off the hotel - and yes - may be also
a person out in the sea. It is about 10 o'clock till people start coming down.


Swimmingpools at the hotel, and a bit of the beach.
Picture is taken from http://www.ebookers.ie/hotels/Spain/Puerto_del_Carmen/Sol_Lanzarote.h23808/

Where are all the others during the early morning? On the esplanade where they are walking, or cycling at a horrible
speed wearing their sportsuits and helms, or they are jogging, jogging and jogging. Someone are also up by the pools,
where they have placed their towels at the sun lounger, intending to return when they have had their breakfast
(or really have wakened up).

Some times we feel ourselves a bit extraordinary. Have the world really changed to much
that people today do not know the feeling of walking along the seaside, feeling the water around their feet?


Nothing wrong with a swimmingpool whatsoever, at least not when the waves out in the sea are too big or heavy.
But we still have the right to be a bit different. Somebody likes it so, and other like that.
Photo from http://www.melia.com/en/hotels/spain/lanzarote/sol-lanzarote/gallery.html


Waves can at times be extremely high, and when the differense between high- and low-water (tide)
is as much as 2m50cm (8 feet) we often see people running with their clothes etc further up the beach
when larger waves find their way up higher and higher.


It's nothing else but a wonderful sight....
More waves: see https://www.vulkaner.no/t/gomera2/ewaves.html
and even more waves from our stay here on this page: https://www.vulkaner.no/t/lanza/waves.html


When spring comes, the flowers show up.
When the big waves come rolling in, the surfers show up.
See more pictures here

In early afternoon we have another trip into the sea (or the pool - see above). Then a long walk, normally along
the wateredge, and here there are two and a half kilometer (some 2,750 yeards) sandy beach to walk along,
before we arrive the buildings of Puerto del Carmen, and the busy business districts.


Here the 500m long beach outside the hotel. The airport is behind the picture. At this end there are just a few
volcano rocks, and then the beach continues for another 2,000 meter.


Here we are no longer in the Matagorda-area, which you can see to the right. This is the last part of the
2.500m long beach from Hotel Sol and to the city of Puerto del Carmen. On the map on top of the page,
you will find this bit below the Rancho Texas Park.

Picture is taken from a video on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfT_kuPa0eo


If you wish to go into the sea, to have a dip or a swim, it often depends on the temperature.
Since we came at the beginning of January, daily temperatures have been between 19 and 21 degrees C,
one day up to 25 degrees last week, but yesterday and today, half way out in February, the temperature
was down at 16 and 18. Not many felt for swimming in the sea, but some young boys (and a girl)
tried it out, even as the waves were huge these last few days.
But never mind, it was just worse on Gran Canaria yesterday, as we could see from
the newspaper Canarias7:


So who cares if the temperature goes down 1 or 2 degrees from 20 degrees C here on Lanzarote?

After lunch, another trip into the sea, if weather permits, and then finally an evening walk along the espanade.
It is closed for cars, and have a properly marked line for bicycles.

A ride for the family - with the family (all of them....). To the right a motorized twowheel-thing.
Here a family can hire such a yellow cycle(car) for only 6 Euros for 1-2 hours.
Picture is from http://www.flistonsbike.com/


This is how it may look when we come down in the morning. You don't have to be afraid disturbing anyone.
Picture taken from http://www.tripomatic.com/Spain/Lanzarote/Arrecife/Matagorda-Beach/

What we appreciate much is to see that there are 'some' families down at the beach, parents and children together.
It must be an exciting experience for the children to be able to run about, not having to throw sand
on others lying in the sun, running as much as they wish by the water edge, and to play
in the waves. How someone prefer to keep their children up by the swimming pools all day long,
is something we do not understand. Why not let them feel the seawaves on their bodies.
(That was also a private comment.)

When you are amongst the first ones in the morning, you may be lucky to find what have come in
with the waves during the night. We were in for a big surprise the other morning:


A real large mussel or seashell. No name found yet.
Probably a pen-shell, Atrina- or Pinna- rigida
Click here to see more pictures of this surprise.


A few hundred meters from the hotel you will find a large shoppingcenter (at least compared to local circumstances)
with two groceries, one of them SPAR which we know from home. They have all we need or require.
Of course you can have all your meals at the hotel, it is called 'all inclusive' and save you from kitchenwork.

Just outside the main-entrance, we found the following beautiful flowers on the path to the shopping-center:

   


They ARE really beautiful.

But inside the area, there are also a lot of interesting vegetation, that makes the whole area special:

   
      



These pictures do not allow any more comments....

   

The palm you see above,
spreading out, is a strange

fellow. All leaves are as flat
as they can be, so on the
picture to the right, you can
hardly see it at all, when
you look at it from its right
or left side.


In the shopping area you will also find several restaurants, both indian, japaneese, spanish, italian and chinese.
We only know the chinese (Hong Kong Island) so far, where we from time to time collects delicious 'Take away food'
to have some changes to our own menu.


The staff here are very friendly, and willing to speak (and learn) a very little in all languages
And the place has a cosy ambience.
Picture is from http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g662290-d1867301-Reviews-Hong_Kong_Island-Puerto_Del_Carmen_Lanzarote_Canary_Islands.html

Something else what have impressed us, are the cleanliness at the hotel. Every morning they clean around the pools
and chairs. The rest of the area is also nice and well planned. Also, the whole area has a lot of child-friendly areas.


See how they make it pleasant also for the children?

And they even have their own swimming pool (1m10cm deep) and in addition a very tiny
pool for the smalles ones, (4m x 4m - 40cm deep). Both children-pools have heated water.
May be it's not strange to see so many grown ups there also, in January/February,
even if they really should keep away, and just watch their children while they are out in the pools.
Else they might swim in the two larger pools, even if they are not heated,
but how else can they cool down after hours streching out on the sunbeds in the hot sunshine?




In addition the area is well equipped for handicapped people. Apartments at ground level are easy to
enter, and if you live higher up, there are lifts to take.

The path out to the esplanade does not give any problems, either. There you have the possibility to
roll along as far as you wish....even down to the beach. And there is also a possibility to go into the pools.


As you see here, you can roll with your wheelchair, right into the pool. Depth about 1.50 meter.

Birdlife here is also exciting - several sparrows - will take another picture later and have them identified when we get home.

  
Two of the sparrows visiting us daily.

 

A large flock of starlings flying from palm to palm. Here you can see only three, the others
are sitting in tops of the other palms around here.

Doves that are very hungry and would like to eat our breakfast if we are not careful.



And last an little extraordinary guest, from which we often hear a strange noice. (It doesn't sing well....)
and is some time rather hard to get sight of:


    
Beautiful colours it has, and it was sitting right outside our terrace one day, in the palm on the picture to the left.

Few days later there were 4 parrots in the same tree, but missed taking a picture.

One day we had another exciting experience. Way out at sea, we first sighted something which looked like
a huge wave, but then it softened, and two black spots showed up. After a while some more spots,
and then something jumping up of the water. After a while, we were in no doubt that those were
dolphins playing. Even if it was far away, we enjoyed it.

   
When later one of the bodyguards on the beach told us that it was divers hunting for squids
shooting them with their harpunes, it did not sound so funny, but we have hard to believe it was not dolphins....



The picture was found at http://www.asiarooms.com/en/spain/puerto_del_carmen_lanzarote/100770-sol_lanzarote.html




More about Lanzarote, click here

La Graciosa
Waves NEW!
Surfing NEW!



Anyone wishing to correct my fluently english, are welcome to do so:
write to post at vulkaner.no

All pictures where nothing else is mentioned, are © www.vulkaner.no



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