Winter sun

I’d never ever thought of going to the Canary Islands – too hot, I reckoned, and probably filled with crowds of people, not for me really!  However, some friends from the Petanque group go out to Tenerife for the winter, and Peter was going out for a couple of months to avoid the cold over here, and to up his petanque game in the warmth of a Tenerifian winter.  We began emailing each other and sometimes talking on Facetime.  It all sounded really good there so when Peter suggested I go out to visit, I was very tempted.  Trouble was, I didn’t have a current passport!  It expired a couple of years ago, and I didn’t think I would need one for a while.  I explained the situation to Peter and said I would pass on a visit, but looking at websites and continuing our conversations, I was really quite keen to go – the weather sounded great, and there were sights to see and tours to go on, games of petanque to play too of course – so I decided to go ahead and fill in an application for the new passport.  If it came in time I would ask Peter if his offer still stood.  He was only going to be out there till the end of February, so there might not be time, but hope springs eternal, as they say, and sure enough, the passport arrived in good time.

Peter seemed pleased that I could go after all, so we fixed on a week, Wednesday to Wednesday, and in a week or so I was off on the plane direct from Edinburgh to Tenerife South.  It’s a four and a half hour flight, and no time change either.  Suddenly we were getting out first view of the island, with the volcanic peak of Teide (rhymes with lady!) looming above the clouds, sporting a bit of a snow cap. on the north facing side.  We skirted round to the south west and flying over the two tourist cities of Las Americas and Los Christianos, we came in to land just past Galletas, and Costa del Silencio.  Tommy and Sandra met me and soon we were on the road back to Silencio.  The views of the mountains were incredible, including Teide at almost 13,000 feet, the highest spot in Spain.

From Peter’s apartment balcony I admired the view of the mountain and the surrounding buildings.  How different for me to see all the houses brightly painted, the sky to be so blue and there to be palm trees!  I was already very taken with the place!   We had a walk around the area later and I began to get my bearings.  The concrete bathers in their raised pool were amusing, heads lifted to the sun.  Later I would see them twirling round and round on the spot.  Such fun! 

Then we took a look in at the petanque pistes.  Still a few players about, in the afternoon sunshine. Peter and I played here  often throughout the coming week.

Continuing our walk we passed this beautiful specimen of bougainvillea growing rampant on the wooden colonnade.  It’s a bit of a sad run down area, that might have been a great recreational parkland once.

Down towards the coast we passed a couple of old fishermen’s houses, almost lost in the crowd of modern blocks, then on to the seashore with its black rocky beach,

 

the harbour with boats of all sizes and style,

and the pier, with its blue painted restaurant at the furthest end

 

 

and more old cottages and fishermen’s stores on the far side.

A lone fisherman was silhouetted against the sun,

 

and although there are modern apartment blocks here now, the sculpture of fishermen mending their nets evoked a memory of the place it had once been.

 

More next time.  Talk again soon.

Winter sun

We have had some lovely sunsets recently, but the night before last really took the biscuit!  I first

noticed that the sky outside my window was rather pink with fluffy little clouds!  

My room is south-facing, so that was a bit of a clue that the sunset was going to be something special, so out with the camera and headed for the front door for a view towards the west.  This was the view from the garden.

  

A bit of a purple sky but the orange colours were more to the left, rather hidden by the buildings.  So, making sure my phone was in my pocket, in case the gasman called to say he was on his way to fix my central heating boiler, i climbed the steps to the High Street, and took a picture of the church with coloured sky behind.

The view from the bridge round the corner would be better, so that was my next destination, only a couple of minutes away.  Yes, the colours were better!

This was a zoomed in shot of a similar view as the one below.

Back at home, i went to put a picture on Facebook, but I'd been pipped at the post.  Several others had got there before me with some fantastic shots.

The first photo was actually taken at Doune in Knoydart on the west coast.  They'd had the sunset too!

The point of land across the water on the right is the southern tip of Sleat on Skye.  Behind that is the Isle of Rum, with its high mountain peaks.  The west coast is renowned for its sunsets, so this doesn't disappoint!  I've taken a few Doune sunset photos over the years, but this is better than any I've done.

Then I found Sandra's picture.......

and Tommy's........

and Teri's.  She actually put up three beautiful shots

Here are the other two.....

Photos kept trickling in to my Facebook page.  Here's one from Edinburgh, about 25 miles north of Peebles!

 And one  taken over the River Forth, by Claire Dalrymple

There were some even from Donegal on the west of Ireland.  We'd all experienced something special!

By the way, if you remembered back at the beginning, i mentioned that i was waiting for the gasman come to fix the central heating boiler.  He was supposed to phone?  Well, he didn't, and he never turned up!

Talk again soon.