October 12 Santa Cruz, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain

Sunrise this morning was 8:03 a.m. and Anthem of the Seas had been docked for over an hour at Muelle Sur dock, after a short jaunt overnight from Gran Canaria. The geographical location for Santa Cruz, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain is 28°28.56’N & 16°14.32’W. The temperature was 21°C under a cloudy sky but with sunny breaks, however, just as we left to go to breakfast in the Solarium. There was a brief shower that ended by the time we had climbed the five flights of stairs to Deck 14. Total distance cruised so far, as indicated on the navigation channel, was 2,014 nautical miles.

Today is a national holiday – Columbus Day in all of Spain. The tour group met on the pier for a walking tour of the old part of Santa Cruz de la Palma. The island of Tenerife has one of the largest volcanoes in the world, Mount Teide which is Spain’s highest peak. The city’s official name is Santa Cruz de Santiago de Tenerife.

All passengers without walkers, wheelchairs or scooters had a choice to walk 1.15 km to the main street following the blue line on the walkway or buy $5 round-trip shuttle ticket. The photographers were out on the pier with their nautical props, like a life saving ring with Anthem of the Seas on it or an old ship’s wooden wheel. We stopped for a photo which we will see later on the digital screen in the Photo Gallery. One of the Diamond Club benefits is a complimentary photo each.

The excursion this morning was Walk & Tapas Tour. There were 18 people meeting on the pier to accompany the guide, Anna. Just as we started another burst of light rain occurred for most of the 650 meter walk to the terminal. Half of the group had brought umbrellas. Earlier from our balcony we noticed the dark clouds hanging over the nearby mountains and blowing toward the harbour. Tenerife was the last of the Canary Islands to be conquered by the Spanish in 1496. Tenerife is like Gran Canaria in that the north of the island gets rain because of the predominately northerly winds coming over the mountains, allowing for prosperous farms, but the south is dry because all of the moisture was dropped in the north. Back in 1495, the Spanish convinced the poorer southern Tenerife inhabitants to fight with the Spanish against the north. The islands have been inhabited since Roman times, when rebels from Africa were exiled to the islands. The capital city, before the Spaniards arrived, was La Lacuna which was inland and a safer place from pirates and bandits sailing the coastal regions. Santa Cruz is the capital now. The island’s total population is just under one million. Close to the terminal where we waited out the rain shower, was a 1912 passenger ship built in Manchester, England, for residents to move around the Canary Islands. Today ferries or air travel is the norm. Only the island residents can fly to the other islands and Spain for less than €5 ($7 CAD). Visitors pay the regular air fares.

Christopher Columbus supplied his ships in Tenerife before leaving for America.

On the way to Plaza de España, there is a large map that celebrated the 500^th anniversary of the round the world voyage of Spanish explorer, Magellanes-Elcano, who left Santa Cruz with five fully equipped ship in 1519, but only 23 men returned on one ship in 1522. This was the first time that that feat had been accomplished.

There are 18^th and 19^th century buildings along Avenida Maritima which once lined the waterfront, but now there are modern roads and some parks with fountains on the infill area. There was Cabildo Insular, the old post office and another government building. Castle San Cristóbal, built in 1577, stood where now there is a pond. It was demolished in the 1960s. Some of castle foundation was preserved when the renewal project started. If you go down a staircase you can see the ruins and the cannon, “Cañón Tigre”. It is the legendary 18^th century canon that helped defeat the British Navy on July 25, 1797. It blew off British Admiral Horatio Nelson’s arm. In the battle there were 600 British casualties and only 23 deaths for Santa Cruz.

For most of the tour there were periods of light drizzle being blown from rain in the nearby mountains. Our umbrellas were nice to have. The high temperature for today was 26°C. There is a monument to the Residents who fought in the Spanish Civil War from 1936 to 1939. Almost 60,000 residents left to fight on Franco’s side.

In Plaza de La Candelaria there is a marble monument in honour of the patron saint of Tenerife, the Virgin Candelaria. Under repair in the square is Palacio de Carta which is the oldest building in the city faced with volcanic stone, which only the very rich could afford for their houses.

There was a time, several hundred years ago, when the Spanish government decided to confiscate church property, if there were fewer than 12 monks in a convent (not monastery for some reason). San Francisco church, constructed in Baroque style, had one of these convents attached to it.. Around the corner was the 19^th century Circulo de Amistab XII de Enero building. We proceeded to the former convent gardens off Plaza Príncipe Asturias with English Laurel trees that came from Cuba in 1866. There was a cute 19^th century snack kiosk. Further down the street was the pink Market of Nuestra Señora de Africa entrance, it is the local market for fresh food.

Next, we walked to the Teatro Guimerá, named after a local playwright. It was inaugurated in 1851 as the Theater of Isabella II. The final sightseeing stop, Plaza de la Iglesia, is located in the oldest part of Santa Cruz. This is where the first parish church was built. It was replaced by the current Iglesia de la Concepción that started construction in the 16^th century and finished in the 18^th century. It has a tower as part of the building separating the church from the convent. Inside it boasts Mudéjar designed wooden coffered ceilings, which shows the Muslim influence from the hundreds of years that Spain was ruled by Muslims.

Our tapas and wine were consumed at el Lagau de a Noria’s outside café. We sat with Alan and Kelly from Virginia. The café was covered so the brief drizzle did not bother the group. The group dispersed after the meal, with some people opting to look around more. It was about a 20 minute walk back to the cruise terminal. Most followed Anna back to near the terminal.

Once back, we climbed up to Johnny Rockets on Deck 14 for complimentary milkshakes that count as a drink on the daily Diamond four drinks benefit. We just relaxed in the afternoon after the 5.4 km walking tour. The ship left Santa Cruz on schedule at 4 p.m., but during dinner, the captain announced that some routine maintenance needed to be done so the ship would stop and be adrift for over two hours. There was also an announcement that the 7:15 show, In Concert, with ship’s orchestra, singers and dancers would be postponed to 8:30 due to audio issues discovered during the afternoon that needed to be fixed. Returning to our stateroom there was a towel elephant sitting on the bed. At 9 p.m. there was an audience participation “The Weakest Link” in the Music Hall.

Total steps 16,143 = 9.8 km