April 1 – La Palma, Canary Islands

We were up before dawn today (a rare occurrence, particularly for Mary).  The payback for this was that we finally got to see a pretty decent sunrise.

Today we have an independent tour of part of the island.  We met a shuttle at the end of the pier and he took us to meet Jose Antonio, our driver for the day.  The Canaries are all relatively new volcanic islands and so are quite rugged and mountainous.  Our drive took us up the side of the mountain for a few photo stops...

including Conception Point

and La Cumbre view point.

We had a brief stop at the Calderade Tuburiente National Park Headquarters before heading into the park to the La Cumbrecita trail head.  The hike gave us great views of the caldera.

We then drove through the pretty little town of El Paso, but there was no time to stop.

The countryside was generally green, relatively lush and very rugged.

Outside of town and down in a steep valley we stopped at a small church, the Ermita de Nuestra Senora de Las Angustias (the Hermitage of Our Lady of Angustias).

We stopped at the coast side town of Puerto de Tazacorte where we enjoyed juice in a plaza and a short walk along the beach. 

Then it was back through the countryside covered with banana plantations (with many fields covered with plastic greenhouses)…

to an exquisite little garden, Plaza de Glorieta.  The walkways and benches were covered with mosaics, a la Gaudi’s Parc Guell in Barcelona.  

The plants were mostly bromeliads, succulents and cacti artfully arranged.  It was a little gem of a garden and something the big bus tours probably won't see (no parking).

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More Photos of Plaza de Glorieta
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We then drove to a lava field, left over from a 1949 volcanic eruption on the island. 

We then stopped at our Lady of the Snow Catholic Church…

for a look inside...

and then wandered around the adjacent plaza....

before heading down into Santa Cruz.

We briefly stopped at the Castillo de la Virgen to enjoy the view of the bay and the cannons...

and a replica of Christopher Colombus' ship the Santa Maria.  It is the entrance to a maritime museum.

We drove along the main waterfront where we saw many shops and restaurants (and the World Cruise Hostess Stacy).

We were back on board by about 3:00 and had a very late lunch.

We spent the rest of the afternoon in the cabin and had a light, late dinner in the Bistro before going to see the evening’s entertainment, Brett Cave, a pianist.