Las Palmas, Canary Islands

Last summer Jose and I did a bit of traveling even though we didn't leave Spain. July and August are unbearably hot in Seville and it is miserable to have to stay locally so we decided to get away for a while. I never actually wrote a blog post about the trip we took to Las Palmas in the Canary Islands for a week in August of 2015, so here it goes. 

 Las Palmas is the capital city on an island called Gran Canaria in this Spanish archipelago. After a two hour flight from Seville we landed in paradise where we stayed in a hotel right on the Canteras Beach which is famous for tourists. It was actually a lot less busy than I expected it to be which was nice. Our hotel wasn't anything fancy but it was separated from the ocean only by the long promenade or boardwalk which ran the length the beach and which we enjoyed strolling down in the evening. There were tons of restaurants and bars around us within walking distance.
View from our hotel
One thing we always enjoy doing when we travel is trying the local cuisine. The Canary Islands are famous for their papas arrugadas which are the potatoes with a spicy sauce called mojo pictured below. To be honest, I wasn't too impressed with this popular dish but the cherne fish they served them with was amazing. Jose also makes sure to taste all of the beer that is made wherever we are visiting. I had just found out I was pregnant right before we left on this trip so I did not drink any alcohol but I was definitely jealous.

Cherne fish and papas arrugadas
The Canary Islands are well known for having an almost perfect climate year-round. While we were visiting it rained almost every day unfortunately. It was quite out of the ordinary but we didn't let that get us down. Jose and I tried to relax on the beach as much as possible, weather permitting. Then we rented a car and drove around the entire island one day and on the days that it rained we visited the touristy attractions in the city, walked around the local mall and actually went to the movies which we never do.

On one of the rainy days we took a bus from the beach where we were staying into Las Palmas city center where we visited the cathedral and the Columbus house. The Canary Islands were one of the stopping points for ships that were headed to the Americas and the Columbus house serves as a museum which documents this contact and the relationship between the islands and the newly discovered continents. It is known as the Columbus house because he stayed there on his first trip in 1492. I thought this was an interesting and worthwhile place to visit, especially when you compare it to the Museo Canario or Canary Museum where we also stopped. This was basically a poorly organized archeological museum in need of a revamp of its exhibitions. I was not impressed.
Columbus House entrance
When we rented a car to explore the island our first stop was Arucas which is a village famous for its rum factory (which we didn't visit due to my pregnancy). We wanted to visit the city's cathedral but we had arrived on the only day during the week which it was closed. Instead we walked around the picturesque streets filled with houses with their famous balconies, an iconic architectural detail in the Canary Islands.
Street in Arucas with cathedral in the background
Next we headed to a few more villages like Teror before stopping for lunch in the mountains located in the center of the island. Our route first took us north and then we turned south to traverse the entire island. There are several famous monoliths in the middle of the mountains, Roque Nublo and Roque Bentayga. We had an awesome view of both while in Tejeda, another village where we ate lunch.
Panoramic view of Roque Nublo and Roque Bentayga (monoliths)
We ended our roadtrip by visiting the beach at the southern end of the island before returning to Las Palmas. I was impressed by how many different climates there were in what was a relatively small area. The northern part of the island was lush and tropical while we drove through other sections which were quite dry and almost desert-like. 
Cathedral in Las Palmas
Overall it was a relaxing getaway for us. We were able to escape the heat of the south of Spain for a while which was worth having to endure a few rainy days. I would definitely go back to the Canary Islands in the future; they are so close and really offer that tropical beachy type vacation, plus everyone we met was incredibly kind and helpful. I would like to visit another island next time we go back.

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