Babymoon Part 3: Canary Island Cruise - Lanzarote/Gran Canaria/Tenerife [Canary Islands] and Funchal [Portugal]

After our second at sea day, we arrived at Lanzarote [Day 5].  Here we joined an excursion through NCL, aptly named Best of Lanzarote.  I loved our guide Chris' enthusiasm for the island and I think is why this was my favorite stop.  The island itself was beautiful with a lunar landscape vibe and I really liked how it was not built up for the tourist machine like the other islands.

Lanzarote is the driest of the Canaries and a series of eruptions spanning about 6 years in the 1700s led to the creation of many new volcanoes.  Miraculously no one died because these were slow flowing volcanoes like the Hawaiian Islands rather than a Mount St. Helens exploding kind.  I found the landscape so fascinating.  Lichen seems to be the first colonizer of the new lava rock.  We are quite early in the geologic time frame for good soil to form.

We visited Timanfaya National Park had a lovely drive through the park.

There were several demonstrations at the El Diablo restaurant.  When under construction, they had to divert some insanely hot air from emerging under diners feet, so instead pipes direct the hot air to an "oven" which is more like a grill.  The air is so hot coming out they are able to cook things like chicken and potatoes!  One lady lost her sunglasses down the hole when she peaked over the edge.  Those were definitely goners.

Next stop was the visitors center and then we paused at a winery.  The grape vines are placed in holes the growers dig to protect the grapes from the elements.  Reminded me of what we saw on Santorini.  We then had a buffet lunch on our way to the Mirador del Rio viewpoint.  What a view!

The last stop of the tour was at a lava tunnel called Jameos del Agua.  You walk down some stairs and into a grotto like space where the tunnel caved in at some point.  There is a pool in the tunnel that has tiny blind lobsters.  The architect Cesar Manrique even had an auditorium built into the tunnel!

The following morning [Day 6 and S's bday] we arrived at the bustling port of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.  We decided to see the city via the hop on-hop off bus since my foot was really acting up.  We learned the Canary Islands were named for dogs, not the bird species.

Visited a beautiful church roof for a view of the city and then tracked down the place called Bull that used the longhorn logo in their logo.  I doubt that was sanctioned by UT!

We walked along the promenade looking at the ocean until it was time to scurry back to the boat to leave. I think we were the last people back on that stop!

The day wrapped up with dinner with a couple from the Bellingham, WA area.

On Day 7 we awoke in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.  We canceled our shore excursion because we had learned it was snowing and would probably cancel the excursion anyway.  The tallest point in Spain is on Tenerife.  We'll have to come back when snow is not a factor!

This island, like Gran Canaria, was much more green compared to Lanzarote and filled with way more people.  Instead of a bus, we got to ride a cute train/tram through the city to see the sights.  We wrapped up our time eating delicious tapas before heading back to the boat.

The last island stop was Funchal on the Portuguese island of Madeira for Day 8.  The famous soccer/fútbol player Cristiano Ronaldo hales from this small island.  When we arrived, a marathon was underway so the bus routes were a bit messed up.  This is also a new country for us, Portugal!

We rode the cable car up the mountain for a fabulous view of the city and harbor for a bite to eat.  There were some really neat birds of prey flying around.  Wish I could have seen them better to ID them later.

Before heading back down, we stopped at a cute church in Monte.  On our way, we saw the toboggans used to slide tourists about 2km for a fun ride.  Maybe we'll try it another time.

As we left port, we were blessed with a mesmerizing rainbow over the city.