Feb 1, 2025 – We’ve had a few weeks of actual winter in Virginia, with real snow and freezing temperatures. It’s time to travel someplace a bit warmer, don’t you think?

We’re off to Tenerife, the largest of the Canary Islands that sit off the coast of Morocco and the Western Sahara Desert. The islands belong to Spain, so they are part of the EU.

What do we know about the Canary Islands? The name means Islands of the Dogs (think canine), as sailors back in Roman times noted the abundance of monk seals, called sea dogs, that lived there. The yellow canary bird was named for the islands.

There are eight islands in the Canaries, of which Tenerife is the largest and most populated. It is a popular holiday destination for Europeans and Brits. Winter weather is not tropical, but a very pleasant 70F on most days. Mt. Teide on Tenerife is the third largest volcano in the world and the highest elevation in Spain (12,188 feet).

That’s all I know so far!

Feb 2 – Son Peter dropped us at the airport Sunday, where we boarded our flight on time, but sat on the runway for a long time before takeoff. No worries, United – we want you to look both ways rather than running into anything midair!

When we got to Newark, it had started to snow, which wasn’t good. We grabbed a bite, then boarded on time just to sit for a reeeally long time – we watched an entire movie before the plane was de-iced and queued up on one of the only working runways. Once in the air, things were fine, and we arrived in Tenerife in 7 hours; a bit sleep deprived, but no worse for wear.

Feb 3 – Customs was a breeze, we found an ATM right outside the airport, then tried to find the right place to stand for the #10 bus to get us into town. We stood under a big sign that said “#10”, but after two #10s flew past us without stopping, we figured we needed a better plan. We figured it out eventually, and two buses later, we are here in El Médano.