October 10 Arrecife, Lanzarote, Canary Islands, Spain

The sunrise was just before 8 a.m., the temperature was 21°C and it was sunny. The captain announced the wind was 15 knots (about 25 km/hr). There was land about two kilometres away as the ship approached Puerto de Arrecife, Lanzarote, Canary Islands, Spain, ahead of the scheduled noon arrival. Our geographic location is 28°57.89 N and 13°32.02 W. By 10 a.m. the gangways were down, there were a dozen taxis lined up and a shuttle bus in place. It was about a 20 minute walk to land along a designated walkway following the road out of the port then another ten minutes to the old town. Today was Thanksgiving Day in Canada.

After breakfast in Two70° café on Deck 5 we walked on the outside promenade to the front of the ship for cappuccinos in the Diamond Club on Deck 4 then climbed the stairs to Deck 15 for a six km walk along the walking track, dodging people standing and talking on the two meter wide track or excusing ourselves as we passed couples strolling and oblivious to faster walkers while other people were quite aware that other people were walking at a faster pace and walked in single file. It was noticeable that 10 a.m. is a much busier time than 9 a.m. most days. Close to the marina was the Castillo de Can José which is now a museum for Contemporary Art. When we finished our walk, we took a circular staircase down to Deck 14 to the back of the Windjammer Buffet. It was almost 11 a.m., the place was packed with over 800 people and, at the main elevator lobby entrance, there was a line of several dozen people! We had over 7,500 steps logged by the end of our walk.

On BBC News there were reports of more intense Russian missile attacks of major Ukrainian cities. MSNBC reported that CDC was predicting the flu season to be significant and a rise in COVID cases during the fall and winter.

Busses were in place already before noon for the afternoon shore excursions. By 1 p.m. the temperature was 24°C, it was windy, perhaps 30 km/hour and sunny. The COVID policy in Spain is that people must wear face masks on public transportation. Several announcements were made in the theatre advising people to please wear a mask on the bus. There were two groups of 46 people assigned to busses for the three hour Lanzarote at a Glance tour. There are some obese people on this cruise. On this tour one man, one of the last to get on the bus, took up the whole space of the aisle to get to an empty seat at the back of the bus. People had to lean toward the window so that he could pass. That is so sad. Our guide, Stefan from Venice, Italy, told us that there are seven chief towns on Lanzarote Island, Arrecife being the capital and largest which is a little smaller than Funchal. The guide asked people to please wear a mask and use the seatbelts. Not everyone complied. Lanzarote is an arid volcanic island but there is an agricultural industry including wine making. There are 104 extinct volcanoes on the island, many were one time only eruptions. Scientists call mounds formed by volcanic action a volcano if it is taller than 80 meters. The French rediscovered Lanzarote in 1402. Sometime in the next 500 years the Canary Islands became Spanish.

The first hotel was completed in 1963. Water is obtained from the desalination plant and by collecting rain water in special areas which are an average of about half the size of a football field. The houses are all whitewashed with door and window trim either green, dark brown or black. The first stop was Tinajo National Park which is a UNESCO World Heritage site. On the journey there we passed many villages averaging 1,500 residents and farmland. The volcanic soil is rich in nutrients, but the trade winds are strong and over centuries have eroded the old volcanoes into a concave shape on windward side.

Most of the island residents are Christians and worship the Virgin Mary. We passed the Virgin of the Volcanoes Church on the way to Timajo National Park and its lava landscape. There are many short walls of lava rock. The traffic roundabout for the turn to our first stop was nicely landscaped with Cacti and other plants. There was a 25 minute stop had viewpoints that overlooked the coast. There was a lake surrounded by lava which was green from algae. The lake was near the shoreline which was formed when the flowing lava contacted the ocean. There were small boats on the black sand beach, some were on trailers.

For the next stop the road cut through expanses of lava rock. Some old volcanoes were always in view. The lava rocks became lava sand. Small pits could be seen with one meter high, semicircular lava rock walls curving around them and some green plants in them. We were seeing vineyards! The pits and walls protect the grapes vines from the wind. It is labour intensive work to tend to the vines. The final stop on the tour was a family winery – Bodega Familia Antonio Suarez. People could sample (50 ml) either a dry white wine or a sweet red wine. There was a gift shop to browse during the 30 minute visit.

The tour ended back at the ship about 3 p.m. There was time for anyone to walk to the old town. All aboard time today was 7:30 p.m. since tomorrow we dock at another Canary Island, Gran Canaria. We were ready in time to go to the Music Hall for 20 minutes of dancing to prerecorded ballroom music before leaving to go to dinner.

We had dinner at our usual table in the American Icon dining room with Sue and John. Their evening plans, like ours, included the 7 p.m. Virtual Sympathy concert by the American Philharmonic at Two70° theatre on the giant multiscreen curtain the spread across 105 feet. Followed an hour later at the same venue with Spectra’s Cabaret. It was an “electric multi-dimensional cabaret” that “blends live performance wand experimental cinematography together with music from worldwide culture.” It was high energy, but even though the theatre is partly tiered and the stage rises at times, you needed to be in the balcony to fully appreciate the spectacle.

Total steps 17,012