Day 102: Arrecife, Lanzarote (Island of the Canary Island chain)

 Today we are visiting the first of two of the Canary Islands

Lanzarote is the Eastern most of the seven main islands and the Canary Islands are actually named after dogs, not birds!!

"The name Islas Canarias is likely derived from the Latin name Canariae Insulae, meaning "Islands of the Dogs", a name that was evidently generalized from the ancient name of one of these islands, Canaria – presumably Gran Canaria. According to the historian Pliny the Elder, the island Canaria contained "vast multitudes of dogs of very large size".^[23]

Other theories speculate that the name comes from the Nukkari Berber tribe living in the Moroccan Atlas, named in Roman sources as Canarii, though Pliny again mentions the relation of this term with dogs.^[24] The connection to dogs is retained in their depiction on the islands' coat-of-arms. It is thought that the aborigines of Gran Canaria called themselves "Canarios".^[25] It is possible that after being conquered, this name was used in plural in Spanish, i.e., as to refer to all of the islands as the Canarii-as.^[25]

The name of the islands is not derived from the canary bird; rather, the birds are named after the islands."

 [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canary_Islands]

The daily sunrises and sunsets will missed

While off the African Coast, the Canary Islands are part of Spain

On the bus heading to the National Park

As we near the National Park, the terrain is changing

Camel statues in a traffic circle

Vineyard with windbreaks made of volcanic rocks

First stop, Camel ride

This was a picture of our group from the group behind us

Back on the bus to go further in and higher up in the National Parl

They dug up some of the small rocks from about 6 inches in the ground and handed them to us.  Had to pass from hand to hand until they cooled

They put some of their local tumbleweed like plants on a shelf in the hole. With in seconds of the heat from the lava vent caught it on fire.

And here he threw a small amount of water and it created a small geyser

Then he threw the rest of the bucket in the hole and there was a huge geyser

The final example of the heat from these volcano vents was where they were cooking chicken to serve in the visitor center

The glow of the lava through one of the cracks

Monitoring the activity of the volcanos

While the tour guide joked that this was really where Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin planted the flag, it seemed more like what I would think Mars looks like

Winery

They dig holes into the hard lava rock, fill with lava dust and plant, and build a lava rock wall that is a wind break.

Back to the port and a walk around the area

Sangria, a local beer and some Tapas (appetizers)

Headed back onboard

And then there was one. Tomorrow, our last port before heading home.