tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8846274890254185932024-03-19T01:48:31.625-07:00Travel Stories in Tenerife and the Canary IslandsHistorical articles and stories for the interested reader about Tenerife and the Canary Islands, with British travellers to the islands and their experiences over the centuries being the main subject. reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.comBlogger42125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-2155890377027691012023-09-14T02:52:00.001-07:002023-12-05T02:01:28.583-08:00On the way to the cemetery<p><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">When I was a boy, just the other day, life in the Canary Islands
was still comparatively primitive.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;">While Puerto de la Cruz, on the island of Tenerife, was beginning
to take shape as a package holiday resort at the end of the 1950s, there were still two
main classes of inhabitant, the rich and the poor, the landowner and the
peasant. In between, there were the sharecroppers and the fishermen.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsICMNBPc7pAkwpZ4a5J8s0I9NLG6g-HXvmIdNB9dJYk7BTf59XKFAR5ltz2l0EG3ggXkqmnvAPwuBTvAlaYbNIXX_O9sd6fcssRx-07ABCunNXpjKB4bBKrELKfEhToiWKQd84atV2n9lnK71H68gHFVyYPJLiFzLC5DtyhlSS4B5okIiZuGco0uJrUc/s891/1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="497" data-original-width="891" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsICMNBPc7pAkwpZ4a5J8s0I9NLG6g-HXvmIdNB9dJYk7BTf59XKFAR5ltz2l0EG3ggXkqmnvAPwuBTvAlaYbNIXX_O9sd6fcssRx-07ABCunNXpjKB4bBKrELKfEhToiWKQd84atV2n9lnK71H68gHFVyYPJLiFzLC5DtyhlSS4B5okIiZuGco0uJrUc/s320/1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: small; font-weight: bold;">The banana plantations between the old Martiánez Hotel and the beach had been cleared </span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">There was vast private wealth in land, and in many rural areas
inhabitants lived a very simple kind of life, serving the sometimes feudal landowner
and sharing the crops the land produced. They were the poor. </span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt;">This was
until General Franco’s regime began implementing the <span style="color: #212529;">Limited
Rent Housing Law of 1954 and the Urban Leases Law of 1964, a social housing
plan which saw the building of over four million affordable houses for the poorer classes throughout Spain, including the Canary Islands. Most owners managed to
pay them off within ten years.</span> As a result, many of the peasants’ traditional
stone cottages dotted around the landscape were abandoned for the comfortable
state-built housing estates. It also saw many peasants abandon thousands of agricultural
terraces for more prosperous wages in town.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiakZQsoseuh8xWMUBrcuo3lR0HnQm4LrSv8fXch4ZKp6pzQd6asrtMJXN9uedOsY1abdBddjtUVHWzXtBhz5l2hXJedldo1Y_O-X5VTxyT9pfV3RlMir3buLwUtCbHgI3Tpu3jQoiPkHj2tpGjqwpQb2nZMzav4MseAty3udeYG7BIDxsRAed4t6JsauI/s1024/3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiakZQsoseuh8xWMUBrcuo3lR0HnQm4LrSv8fXch4ZKp6pzQd6asrtMJXN9uedOsY1abdBddjtUVHWzXtBhz5l2hXJedldo1Y_O-X5VTxyT9pfV3RlMir3buLwUtCbHgI3Tpu3jQoiPkHj2tpGjqwpQb2nZMzav4MseAty3udeYG7BIDxsRAed4t6JsauI/s320/3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: small; font-weight: 700;">Some of those abandoned terraces, like these in the El Río gorge, are being recovered</span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt;">I
grew up in the 1960s and my father once owned a <i>finca </i>in the hills above
Tacoronte. </span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I still have vivid memories of half-naked children hanging onto
the skirts of bare-footed mothers who peeped out of the wooden doorways of
stone cottages beside the lanes that led to the farm. They would stare and wave
at us as my father drove the Land Rover up the muddy tracks to our farm. The kids learnt to beg
for half a <i>peseta,</i> or to barter in exchange for a handful of
plums, chestnuts or blackberries. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">My father employed mostly women
on the farm, and it was always a joy to hear their singing and laughter as they worked. He built the farm manager a proper house, while he prefered us to sleep in a rather dodgy wooden hut which was erected on a concrete base under the pines and above the plum orchard.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFLITCrphbxhTiLGE19ObOAwqqTJ3Pyt8Iz63TDTPHxvlB1klfitwkSxS7u-WI8YeNbweB4cu7xrHNvdN99EgTRRYp_cm8mGPzuQWVPg5CgCun1wEF51wSN1OOf7UOUbOHBaRpcHKXoT-Yy46FpQYIyYw2kuuF7xnWwHPH7KeIVLJHY-oonmvrWlbo8eQ/s1024/2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="710" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFLITCrphbxhTiLGE19ObOAwqqTJ3Pyt8Iz63TDTPHxvlB1klfitwkSxS7u-WI8YeNbweB4cu7xrHNvdN99EgTRRYp_cm8mGPzuQWVPg5CgCun1wEF51wSN1OOf7UOUbOHBaRpcHKXoT-Yy46FpQYIyYw2kuuF7xnWwHPH7KeIVLJHY-oonmvrWlbo8eQ/s320/2.jpg" width="222" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: small; font-weight: bold;">Grandmothers often came to give good advice or to keep an eye on the children</span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Country folk rarely travelled far, and many were born and died
without ever visiting the nearest town, like one or two centenarians I have met
in remoter hamlets of the Anaga mountains. They were and remain extremely generous and
helpful to each other as communities. The farming chores, like gathering in the
wheat and threshing it on the <i>eras</i>, filling the sacks with grain and
carrying them on their backs or on mule to the Tacoronte market, were happily shared. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><br /></span></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" lang="EN-GB"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 14pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvNgIfTP6I-SGCXfi6qiQit9uuUm5ZTLxvvrYElsLDrmbQdkRSnZAbrAXLz0E05sAuL7br3E2f5PflS-0b35Rzfo1f9-0CGnIh7FvWiZsTI1isTlxO0-NkJLsLrybjehvJviLh2lyAisvGYeaZjwBsj-mOyDuM9OCZZiKU-zJ8pVXV8eXgX74_ugUQ-EQ/s525/2%20(1).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="393" data-original-width="525" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvNgIfTP6I-SGCXfi6qiQit9uuUm5ZTLxvvrYElsLDrmbQdkRSnZAbrAXLz0E05sAuL7br3E2f5PflS-0b35Rzfo1f9-0CGnIh7FvWiZsTI1isTlxO0-NkJLsLrybjehvJviLh2lyAisvGYeaZjwBsj-mOyDuM9OCZZiKU-zJ8pVXV8eXgX74_ugUQ-EQ/s320/2%20(1).jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;"><b>This very old era, or threshing ground, can be found near Teno Alto</b></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt;">When somebody died, however, the world came to a halt. Neighbours would gather
outside the family cottage to pay their respects, and to accompany them during the ritual wake. They would often take food for the
grieving family because </span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt;">a cooking fire was not lit for a day or two
in respect for the departed.</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt;"> Then, when the priest sent a signal, men would sway in solemn procession down
the lanes to the nearest church or cemetery. By law, the dead would need to be
buried within forty eight hours after death.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In Lanzarote there is a little village called Soo. It nestles between
the Colorado Peak, the highest point of one particular volcanic cone, and what was
often referred to as the Soo desert, a grain of sand compared to the
neighbouring Sahara. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG2eH7HKvZimqwlgDQMlbkBAHBp-EpR4kMYAT5tWb0ILQhgJkkjQoHk6qkSe_jWeNCNTJpbXJi456Suwrt0d-UwPwVJeddXuQA-lmz9ULSqUkrV2V9eJoQQb3zMk7FyDAc6nt_eyDbSCFe-4kO5jTppo_DGjh1jblcvlk0y6M3qaGUK7HUeVdlYUyr10c/s450/4.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG2eH7HKvZimqwlgDQMlbkBAHBp-EpR4kMYAT5tWb0ILQhgJkkjQoHk6qkSe_jWeNCNTJpbXJi456Suwrt0d-UwPwVJeddXuQA-lmz9ULSqUkrV2V9eJoQQb3zMk7FyDAc6nt_eyDbSCFe-4kO5jTppo_DGjh1jblcvlk0y6M3qaGUK7HUeVdlYUyr10c/s320/4.webp" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The pretty village of Soo, as it is today</span></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Not so long ago, when a member of the family passed away, grieving
women in Soo would lock themselves into the dead person’s home for eight days. The
custom, which only disappeared in the middle of the 20<sup>th</sup> century,
was so that the neighbours could care for and feed the grieving family during
those days of mourning. The men, I understand, were excused. They would be
required to attend to the animals and the crops. Many years ago, it used to be the custom in all the islands that women never went to funerals. They would only be expected to attend
a memorial mass on the third day after a death. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt;">Unlike today, when visiting doctors are often seen in remote
villages checking up on the elderly, there were still no doctors or caretakers
to cater for peasants </span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt;">well into the 20<sup>th</sup> century</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt;">.
Country folk either never became ill or, if they did, cared for each other with
ancient herbal remedies. If sickness or old age ended in death, men carried
their own dead on their shoulders to the cemetery. They would not be taken in a
coffin but laid on a simple stretcher made with sticks. It actually made sense
because it was a much lighter mode of transportation, and they would often be
required to walk considerable distances to a final resting place in holy
ground.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTIhVNuNBoC-Zq6Fz0-hjKroENMPCwEfHNLbAN5ctffZJrPhNCr0xtuETRtigm1IWmEo7Bha1-N00TU_Z9fUKgaqBLs_lPaa2dATGvhQsfy8SFiwqGemrhA-RRU6CNfPA9Pl8kddmEOTcJI2SSCNXSihI1zesbzS_3NekgoBdkK9QAIOVS1GZ588cOh2E/s1024/5.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="617" data-original-width="1024" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTIhVNuNBoC-Zq6Fz0-hjKroENMPCwEfHNLbAN5ctffZJrPhNCr0xtuETRtigm1IWmEo7Bha1-N00TU_Z9fUKgaqBLs_lPaa2dATGvhQsfy8SFiwqGemrhA-RRU6CNfPA9Pl8kddmEOTcJI2SSCNXSihI1zesbzS_3NekgoBdkK9QAIOVS1GZ588cOh2E/s320/5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: small; font-weight: bold;">A doctor visits elderly people in their Chinamada cave dwellings once a week</span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">More than one story has been handed down from generation to
generation telling of porters suddenly being given the fright of their lives on
their way down from the hills to the cemetery. Pancho, who owned a pottery kiln above
</span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt;">Arico,
a village on the south eastern slopes of Tenerife, </span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">was
a recognised tile maker. He died just before the Spanish Civil War, after
apparently collapsing during an argument at the village inn. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt;">His
body was lovingly bathed and proudly dressed in his best clothes. But, on</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt;"> the way to the cemetery, transported by men in solemn procession, his rigid body suddenly
sat bolt upright on the stretcher and it shouted out, “Hey, what the Devil is going on?”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The stretcher bearers immediately dropped their dead baggage with
a hard bump on the ground. They, and the body's relatives and neighbours, scattered,
terrified in all directions. Well, with no proper doctor at hand to certify a
death, a corpse might at times only have given the impression of being a
corpse. Pancho survived to have another argument at the village inn.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxvBADZhwfyt5bT4OkkZ85UkY1vCgT4szfXCApNVIA6isbHObofKe56TPRBfCDloJd0YZHYj5G_l93fDj6_sb_13BSKcRlaJlYWfQc1BVtZIrdyvEop7hBPXTmZIoZIGwfoEa-rTHz2dEtwo5r_Dty4d9G2RJEA6QBI78Pav5HNe_tauXopP83E5kj2OY/s600/6%20Arico.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="397" data-original-width="600" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxvBADZhwfyt5bT4OkkZ85UkY1vCgT4szfXCApNVIA6isbHObofKe56TPRBfCDloJd0YZHYj5G_l93fDj6_sb_13BSKcRlaJlYWfQc1BVtZIrdyvEop7hBPXTmZIoZIGwfoEa-rTHz2dEtwo5r_Dty4d9G2RJEA6QBI78Pav5HNe_tauXopP83E5kj2OY/s320/6%20Arico.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;"><b>A street in the old town centre of Arico</b></span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">They were definitely more civilized on the island of Lanzarote.
They often used camels to rock the dead to the cemetery. Nevertheless, the road
to the burial site could be long and hot, with hardly a drop of water to be
found. So, if the procession happened to pass close to a village where there
was a fiesta going on, the mourners wouldn't hesitate. They would simply join
in the festivities, refresh themselves with some good wine to accompany a bowl
of goat meat stew and then continue solemnly to the cemetery.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In the village of Teno, </span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt;">situated </span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">in
the mountain range to the extreme west of Tenerife, the small number of inhabitants
who dedicated their lives to sheep, goat and arable farming, were believed to
use a specially prepared stretcher for carrying their dead. In fact, unlike the
disposable stretchers made with sticks, it was a long box, like the crude wooden
ones seen in cowboy films. It had wooden poles attached to each end and was
designed to be transported by just two men. The narrow, rocky path down
the mountainside was too narrow and dangerous for more than a single file of
men to walk down. Then, when the procession reached the Bujame or Negro gorges, the
dead person would be transferred into a proper coffin for the rest of the journey
to the cemetery which was situated at the coastal town of Buenavista. This mode of transport was
still in use as recently as the 1970s because, until then, there was no road to
Teno. Like the village of Masca, the hamlet was pretty well isolated from the rest of
the world. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 14pt;"> </span></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIa41xH9MPCylm_vdam-vG6K4sVy-7S07gwpG1K_st8tTXsup-TnOOzm5G1OWqO_ELdrXn4N-9eaCHezzCFT0fGJ9VMLg8VBiiVGkSLCSiqcIjvcj3paJ2C0sD_a2QpZCuXjWLIDO6DcOhLLiijfsRDvxbUv4SKP9Y_BP4Zbjumtr-7Wp3HeEKlaeYnUU/s686/7%20Bujame.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="386" data-original-width="686" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIa41xH9MPCylm_vdam-vG6K4sVy-7S07gwpG1K_st8tTXsup-TnOOzm5G1OWqO_ELdrXn4N-9eaCHezzCFT0fGJ9VMLg8VBiiVGkSLCSiqcIjvcj3paJ2C0sD_a2QpZCuXjWLIDO6DcOhLLiijfsRDvxbUv4SKP9Y_BP4Zbjumtr-7Wp3HeEKlaeYnUU/s320/7%20Bujame.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: small; font-weight: bold;">Negotiating the mountain tracks into the Bujame gorge could be tricky</span></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">As at almost every funeral, processions on the way to the cemetery attracted
quite a crowd. Every adult male member of a village would take part. Milking
the goats, preparing the terraces or digging the potatoes could wait until
tomorrow. The respect paid to the dead and to the grieving family was sacred.
It was, and still is, in the nature of these wonderful islanders, and one can still feel
the strength of unity today in those rural communities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><b>By John Reid Young</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b>Author of:</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b>The Skipping Verger and other Tales (a collection of short stories)</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b>A Shark in the Bath and other Stories (a collection of short stories)</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b>The Journalist (a novel)</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b>For more information, or if you would like to read any of my books, please click on the images to the right of this page.</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b>Please sign up for an occasional newsletter here: </b></span></span><a data-ft="{"tn":"-U"}" data-lynx-mode="async" data-lynx-uri="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fmailchi.mp%2F249fadd56fdd%2Fauthor-john-reid-young%3Ffbclid%3DIwAR1eCvFSN2yh42exr-jvtEXd66EOevS9ErCII-1EIgMpPp727DJSllgAksw&h=AT2J3XjfWivT9MW4aa_V7Ae86pVW28qfAG81KSObyfq0z9v13kivmQ6A_JDAdOT-pWgSMZ3kZLj7x-aoEowmj2KdFmBIDauIoGW7kszf7Muot7aGUnCDGjsCG6jLV4QGIfhzgIFR3uhqa_nMDpKFigGwbBuKrB8PPqOrT8W4cuMTZ3RjQIKhWp18k837aGXJOgmobZoizL-S2RkINB2Ic_AbuCpqCBdy1FMLRKQ-3d4Ms2C7GvEuKMPI8yUWdIskR1wBRy4OCiaBvIyaQTGNC5U28UxNlVS3tnD1XLf3FuLXRzCKaRSqiFwIoa1r4sDAACeMTc38vqviTy0w71-qc9450YLVcZ8hLiE8s02PUCoFBvqry0wYaMo7mVI1RDRTck56H-yBM-AMmumsbT7qKBgTsOmwkVDNUZSsGnn_f9lvyeQxmVgnkmWfhEZY8MXm5oBh4aC_ip-25yii3xcZnK1Yckdf6XUVdc13DA3Q6by6rgrt3zArOhZxhGJ6suSSm95yUFT3U2L7NX_yLymDkxGEMNMW2D3neLCrd1jMmVqJ98YpJixvgnQBVE6TNnC5z7PuOYWvk8WRfFmHiL9P80YSiGr_iTRLf6lMQkRRxe2-9UdVjWIC7Rpg6F-nKeX83vGtsg" href="https://mailchi.mp/249fadd56fdd/author-john-reid-young?fbclid=IwAR1eCvFSN2yh42exr-jvtEXd66EOevS9ErCII-1EIgMpPp727DJSllgAksw" rel="noopener nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #385898; cursor: pointer; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">https://mailchi.mp/249fadd56fdd/author-john-reid-young</a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6667px;">Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theskippingverger</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6667px;">Twitter: @reidten</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6667px;">Instagram: authorjohnreidyoung</b></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p>reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-46824925707067380692022-02-09T03:24:00.001-08:002022-02-09T03:24:50.420-08:00Norwegians, Ripped Mountain and Potatoes on the Canary Island of Tenerife.<p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> If you were to sail in to the
city port of Santa Cruz, in Spain's Canary Island of Tenerife today, you would
undoubtedly find a place packed with cruise ships, tour buses, eager taxis cabs awaiting on
the quay, and inter-island ferries speeding in and out of the harbour. You might also
be lucky enough to spot the <i>La Palma</i>, a floating museum. The beautiful old boat was
built by W. Harkness and Son, Ltd. in Middlesbrough in 1912. It had been ordered by the British firm, Elder Dempster and Co., Ltd., who intended to improve transport between the Canary Islands.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjGwKR-L6KdNURTPfoT-6i2vd4COuqYhBDKHzP9Snin9R_9p43UkRcO9jbI3h_XYYreqk62nYCjat9iCubac_bjNeF92fArPyiVOpsctBezuU6e6zdU0EHUhULc9G44qfxsXkkXWqWFC80JbCktT7xfKTHoO0oYW7wGWtMozrnDqqv-JG5R7XZqWWyT=s4128" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3096" data-original-width="4128" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjGwKR-L6KdNURTPfoT-6i2vd4COuqYhBDKHzP9Snin9R_9p43UkRcO9jbI3h_XYYreqk62nYCjat9iCubac_bjNeF92fArPyiVOpsctBezuU6e6zdU0EHUhULc9G44qfxsXkkXWqWFC80JbCktT7xfKTHoO0oYW7wGWtMozrnDqqv-JG5R7XZqWWyT=s320" width="320" /></a></div><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: small;">The La Palma, a lady with fine old-fashioned lines</b></div></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> If you had sailed into the same
port in 1926, you might be joined on the south mole by one of the Blue Funnel
or Union Castle Line ships from London. You might also have spotted a Norwegian
Navy training ship parked against the south mole.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgNJlixF4LMr0ucrTeI1IqFy6UggImU_Nr2CsMuP2Pts583eBw3nrq0GuLyYjvh2EnwtHo3TT6i9lMPC5MY-1GYs_WyG7YlXn1qWykJehU9Mc_uwR7ejniRZxV8QBvJhq3RWD0Zvu3FCMhVT2OlTt1jXT2x5xNOHylWgIqi_rTAgC5Ck5Ko1KEegat2=s3303" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2471" data-original-width="3303" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgNJlixF4LMr0ucrTeI1IqFy6UggImU_Nr2CsMuP2Pts583eBw3nrq0GuLyYjvh2EnwtHo3TT6i9lMPC5MY-1GYs_WyG7YlXn1qWykJehU9Mc_uwR7ejniRZxV8QBvJhq3RWD0Zvu3FCMhVT2OlTt1jXT2x5xNOHylWgIqi_rTAgC5Ck5Ko1KEegat2=s320" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b>The Union Castle boats stopped regularly in Tenerife</b></div></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> Tenerife was perhaps the furthest
south the Norwegian Navy had ventured since Viking explorers had braved the
waves. Apart from enjoying an interesting training adventure in warmer climes,
the idea was for a group of young cadets to investigate if there was any
connection between the pre-Hispanic Guanche people on the islands and ancient
navigators from Norway. Today historians believe most of the Guanche people may
have been brought to the island from North Africa by Phoenicians or Romans,
perhaps in search of different dyes. Others suggest there were earlier nomadic
people who drifted to the Canary Islands much earlier, possibly on rafts built
with reeds from the Nile.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhLxye4Vg9G8AqJeUTHIAjneQMSaFoWDiXvtVyXXiC9gDZlsv2GO-P1PohtVd5jApGbyxuwFr-9bNrv9taDTW0yZN1T2DNl7CMtY4DfZ_ODBCZHDRn6z3LvtmJr42YpzE9kgCveewpnwv_y1ilqzNM0rcnKNufQtN-hqIY-1Fks415Z4iUu8s106N0_=s1280" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="941" data-original-width="1280" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhLxye4Vg9G8AqJeUTHIAjneQMSaFoWDiXvtVyXXiC9gDZlsv2GO-P1PohtVd5jApGbyxuwFr-9bNrv9taDTW0yZN1T2DNl7CMtY4DfZ_ODBCZHDRn6z3LvtmJr42YpzE9kgCveewpnwv_y1ilqzNM0rcnKNufQtN-hqIY-1Fks415Z4iUu8s106N0_=s320" width="320" /></a></div><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: small;">A Norwegian gunboat of the kind used as a training ship</b></div></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> The Norwegian training ship was to
remain in Santa Cruz for at least ten days before calling in at Casablanca in
Morocco. A young Lieutenant, known for his keen interest in ancient Viking
exploration, six cadets and two ordinary seamen were issued with three tents,
backpacks and rations for five days. Their mission was to look for a cave,
which was supposed to be located in the volcanic landscapes at the base of
Mount Teide, and where local anthropologists had discovered a Guanche burial
chamber. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> It was a beautiful early morning
when they set off on the winding, dusty road towards the colourful town of La
Orotava. From there they took one of the mule tracks which were so often
used by European geologists, astronomers and anthropologists to explore the
great Las Cañadas calderas. They spent their first night under a spring in the
Aguamansa pine forest. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEir45f6_h-kA4_seti3RjHw4wmWVstKPc5kJKZdg26uBQ8tQDCOpyaBwvI2hCglM5r5khZ46HUEZuLNwbH7RN7uaGZ28fxG4ZBCunEZQu91HyitYkPCwy5WSp_29mTAhgxvVi-0icfYZd5dwCq1IEDBTKG170IU1C3iZJeLwb2Dp5w5BUydCrB-lVNx=s4128" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2322" data-original-width="4128" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEir45f6_h-kA4_seti3RjHw4wmWVstKPc5kJKZdg26uBQ8tQDCOpyaBwvI2hCglM5r5khZ46HUEZuLNwbH7RN7uaGZ28fxG4ZBCunEZQu91HyitYkPCwy5WSp_29mTAhgxvVi-0icfYZd5dwCq1IEDBTKG170IU1C3iZJeLwb2Dp5w5BUydCrB-lVNx=s320" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b>One of the tracks in the beautiful Aguamansa forest</b></div></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> After finding their way through the forests and then through a desolate landscape of volcanic rocks and shrubs, they climbed up towards Mount Teide from the base of one of the
sedimentary plains at the edge of the eastern caldera. The young officer and
his companions then set up their camp inside a sunken dip on the pumice plains which
were overlooked by an ugly and dramatic example of eruptive force known as Ripped Mountain, <i>Montaña Rajada</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhB8p2MFdKxAFrHcLkhSpTsWTMO0agzxksNIeDjw-eZt4ulA_JffCuaTQMi9EwnSX5q_uLWbJ5sLYlXye0Mp5Alxlu8P07gkdKaCz5y1-PgJaSYeG6izmoFakPL0gv9R8E8CmMHD7Pwcwo7k14RjHywGrExpWU9j_catH3CayfIpH74NgFCHDkftnSt=s1024" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="614" data-original-width="1024" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhB8p2MFdKxAFrHcLkhSpTsWTMO0agzxksNIeDjw-eZt4ulA_JffCuaTQMi9EwnSX5q_uLWbJ5sLYlXye0Mp5Alxlu8P07gkdKaCz5y1-PgJaSYeG6izmoFakPL0gv9R8E8CmMHD7Pwcwo7k14RjHywGrExpWU9j_catH3CayfIpH74NgFCHDkftnSt=s320" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b>The pumice fields, a Martian landscape under Montaña Rajada</b></div></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> The heat of the midday
sun and the dryness in the air hit them hard to begin with. However, the climate can
be deceptive at the base of Mount Teide. In fact, it wasn’t long before fierce gusts of wind had them scrambling to collect loose volcanic stones to build a barrier around their camp. Sudden chills in the air made them feel quite
unsure of themselves. They had not been warned that weather conditions in the bleak, high altitude, Martian landscapes on the island of
Tenerife, can become treacherous very quickly in winter. Nevertheless, those same gusts
of wind calmed as suddenly as they had appeared and the young men went to sleep
early. They were exhausted after the day’s trek, and looked forward to hunting
for Guanche remains on the following day.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> Then, at the crack of dawn, they
were all shaken awake by a strong gust of wind. Within minutes the young men
were wrapping up in as many layers of clothes as they could find. It was
now icy cold. In fact, it had begun to snow. More than snow, they were in
the midst of a blizzard as blinding as those on Gaustadtoppen, Norway’s highest
mountain. The fierce storm, with the wind making the volcanic rocks produce
anguishing screams, had them huddled in their tents for most of the morning.
When it ceased, allowing them to peep out, timidly pushing drifts of snow away
from their tents, they were engulfed by a dense fog.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEggSlWa2LHO9T-nY-3K_W_0Q6iyYMxOgSgmDa5kSpAPD2nq6l2eD4KfqRfJtqcQFPiwyxD08YSm5JJIRV0jqryWfWRWPvk-RL_re-Mhhjmi2bhfPFIJgN0jwdKT8UhX3FLRejtOcna8zcjTu0jClxiUV5Va_3pHNBgdI2j8NX2G5H_iJkV1JFwoa8Wt=s1024" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEggSlWa2LHO9T-nY-3K_W_0Q6iyYMxOgSgmDa5kSpAPD2nq6l2eD4KfqRfJtqcQFPiwyxD08YSm5JJIRV0jqryWfWRWPvk-RL_re-Mhhjmi2bhfPFIJgN0jwdKT8UhX3FLRejtOcna8zcjTu0jClxiUV5Va_3pHNBgdI2j8NX2G5H_iJkV1JFwoa8Wt=s320" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b> It can snow heavily on Teide volcano and the high mountains of Tenerife </b></div></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> In spite of being hardy Norwegians, accustomed to Arctic conditions, nobody had prepared them for this
kind of weather on an island so close to the western extremes of the Sahara
Desert. The Lieutenant, anxious as he was to pursue their amateur
anthropological investigations, told his companions they would probably abandon
their expedition. He would not have known that, if they could only keep
themselves warm for a day or two, the weather front would pass. Brilliant
sunshine and the warm volcanic soil beneath them would soon melt the snow away.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> For the time being,
however, fearing they would never find their way in the fog, the officer
sensibly decided that they would stick it out for one more night. They would
use their small paraffin lamps to heat up their rations, as well as their tents
if necessary. That decision could have been fatal.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> The inhalation of
paraffin fumes began to sting their eyes and make them nauseous. One of the
seamen began to feel so unwell and drowsy that he rolled over and knocked a
lamp over with his elbow. Paraffin spilled all over his legs and caught fire.
He was screaming in agony and terror as is companions dragged him out of the tent
and into the fog. They managed to put out the flames by rolling him in the
snow, but he was badly burned. Meanwhile, the tent became a roaring bonfire.
Nothing could be saved. It was a disaster.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgLfhoKKg6v7Uep9eNCSCn-wiFXrakfVZUXAn4trAvFSqK4mhnTOQQ24JfoVCBGVLPjAu8MicgS3uNV4wTu1s7c0EvKw7hm_IIKNeJiFkza1bIkwQrPVH8wlIcalOjwaf1_d9D1qHFV8ORv4_PaubL7Mcg2nuq_55T6me-gOxtKBW2WckMntBuIBi3K=s2850" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1503" data-original-width="2850" height="169" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgLfhoKKg6v7Uep9eNCSCn-wiFXrakfVZUXAn4trAvFSqK4mhnTOQQ24JfoVCBGVLPjAu8MicgS3uNV4wTu1s7c0EvKw7hm_IIKNeJiFkza1bIkwQrPVH8wlIcalOjwaf1_d9D1qHFV8ORv4_PaubL7Mcg2nuq_55T6me-gOxtKBW2WckMntBuIBi3K=s320" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b>A plaque pays tribute to José Bethencourt outside the house he lived in </b></div></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> If only they had hired a
local guide, José Bethencourt, the guide from La Orotava. Without him, unfamiliar to the terrain and the surroundings,
especially at night, the Lieutenant had to make a decision. Should he send two
of his team off into the night in search of help, with only a compass to
guide them?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> He probably made the
correct choice. He was not going to risk losing two men in this strange,
inhospitable landscape in freezing conditions. No, they would all huddle up in
the two remaining tents until daybreak. The injured cadette was not in grave
danger, in spite of the pain. He had nasty burns on his legs, but he would
survive. Evidently they would need to get the young fellow back to their ship
and their expedition would have to be abandoned, but that was just too bad.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> Except for the one
with the horribly burned legs, the young seamen slept on and off. When they
opened the tents to stretch and make coffee in the morning, the fog had
cleared. There was not a breath of wind. It was quite extraordinary. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgENsmHNXDoz-FzXAvRSKgqj8E2Crcxcv1k-gO8As_ZEl2fr-EwHMUvECwspCklFbPVUZ13AxH1ylAcTXo4UzDyJP4u8vcNLmxprDZ9uuvZTFE2j7CxgQztFdPdndsIAMSih5GugHGP96vswp9tAfJrx-dNO4Za6wt_f2FIVy1B13rMPWol0jrcnDhG=s1482" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="470" data-original-width="1482" height="101" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgENsmHNXDoz-FzXAvRSKgqj8E2Crcxcv1k-gO8As_ZEl2fr-EwHMUvECwspCklFbPVUZ13AxH1ylAcTXo4UzDyJP4u8vcNLmxprDZ9uuvZTFE2j7CxgQztFdPdndsIAMSih5GugHGP96vswp9tAfJrx-dNO4Za6wt_f2FIVy1B13rMPWol0jrcnDhG=s320" width="320" /></a></div><b><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;">Shrubs, like Teide broom, and jagged volcanic rocks protrude through the snow</span></b></div></b><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> Not a
cloud in the sky. In fact, the snow and ice very soon began to glisten with the
rising sun which began to toast their faces. It was going to be
a magnificent Tenerife day. How they wished they could continue with their
adventure. After a good breakfast, more coffee and a short stroll to inspect
their snow-covered goat track, they packed their tents away, ensured there was
no rubbish left in their enclosure, and made their way down to the sedimentary
plain again before heading back towards the Orotava Valley.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> It was slow-going. They took it in turns to help the injured cadette down the rocky
tracks. The path was covered with snow to start with, but soon turned muddy as
they descended from their campsite at nearly 7,000ft above sea level into the
dense Canary pine forests. They reached the first stone and thatched cottages
in Aguamansa by late afternoon.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhdCcvmkdTmjR5JCuvhNxVXszM9rRobX1B7nmKqUTuiQ_VQGez5AxNUBJdodYyCmIp2pkXQZYhOHRNXVd395T_c41QrtXfD8Pq35pTBcRDUXUhS5KzQm20BNzOnh7mhtXIMGjkorNKqJXz8JpMBjpEotHJKaoVPVc8Naev_Af-6EOmDSHelIGpzKRP9=s877" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="721" data-original-width="877" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhdCcvmkdTmjR5JCuvhNxVXszM9rRobX1B7nmKqUTuiQ_VQGez5AxNUBJdodYyCmIp2pkXQZYhOHRNXVd395T_c41QrtXfD8Pq35pTBcRDUXUhS5KzQm20BNzOnh7mhtXIMGjkorNKqJXz8JpMBjpEotHJKaoVPVc8Naev_Af-6EOmDSHelIGpzKRP9=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: small;">Traditional thatched cottages adorned the agricultural hillsides</b></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> A group of women filling
brown sacks with pine needles greeted them with waves and amused cackles
before running towards them when they realised the young men needed assistance. The same
women invited the Norwegians to follow them down between neat agricultural
terraces, and then under majestic chestnut trees to what appeared to be a small
hamlet. Plumes of scented smoke filtered through thatches and the aroma of
delicious goatmeat stew made the young seamen’s stomachs ache with hunger.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj3NGX9gbxISB-RG9RCIvaRAeWpfJOe0Pwt0LqIaRUIAgGygizCmSkD_Xi-_SBEMQ3MGlOyw1dZLB5gJX76iPP6i0vRDju7rNJX0dGxyC1DNl-zvzWGL4-6C0X-IQ1rt8zf9cJIiH0ROrHP4OoCKV5xmg8S_TVUogmi4uAcVXF31lpBHu1v5oBrYAkm=s667" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="348" data-original-width="667" height="167" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj3NGX9gbxISB-RG9RCIvaRAeWpfJOe0Pwt0LqIaRUIAgGygizCmSkD_Xi-_SBEMQ3MGlOyw1dZLB5gJX76iPP6i0vRDju7rNJX0dGxyC1DNl-zvzWGL4-6C0X-IQ1rt8zf9cJIiH0ROrHP4OoCKV5xmg8S_TVUogmi4uAcVXF31lpBHu1v5oBrYAkm=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: small;">One of the favourite meals in Tenerife is succulent goatmeat stew</b></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> The young adventurers
were never going to make it to the comforts of La Orotava before dark so these
village people offered them all they had in the way of shelter, food, water and
wine. It was the year 1926, and most islanders lived from the land. There was
no such thing as money in these upper hillside regions, which are known locally as <i>las
medianías</i>. However, the inhabitants were blessed with happiness, with the routine of
existing, and with the kindest hearts and warmest humour to be found anywhere
on Earth. And, for just one night, these country folk belonged to the young,
intrepid foreigners, especially to the one with the nasty burns on his legs.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> A rather plump lady with
glorious, reddened cheeks and hands like a man's was summoned to take a look at
the burned legs. Her name was Feliciana. She was the <i>curandera</i>, a
kind of herbal doctor so often used by mountain folk. She was not a trained
doctor, of course, but her cheery attitude and beaming smiles persuaded the
young Lieutenant to allow her to help the unfortunate cadette. Once again, he
was correct in his decision.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> Nobody had any black
olives, whose juice she swore would soothe the burns. But there were plenty of
recently dug-up potatoes which Feliciana proceeded to peel with a gigantic
knife, dropping the peel in a heap onto the hard-trodden earth floor of the
cottage they were sheltering in. She then used the same knife to cut the
potatoes into fine slices. These she placed, very gently and neatly, onto the
cadette’s burns, attaching them to his legs with slithers of green plant
shoots. Feliciana then covered these with a warm, moistened cloth. The
seventeen year old lad had already felt some relief by just watching the woman
and by listening to her humming, but he felt the throbbing pain of his burns
ease away when the potato dressing on his legs began to take effect. Apparently, the juice from potatoes had been used for generations as a natural
reliever of pain and healer of certain kinds of wounds.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgL8PxN_W28r-LeihQ8ltaBUB-WWLn4pdgGlKqwNOX0SW_bZ6R5cUl03aOMDkuKiAYwUEwDslSNu6InW_c2Y6IqjjPrXw1ng8DHS9IWB9KQ4c80wdNpHAaXhZmFrf6c_ciJsW4smv521LFCtcR_SrnQ2isbiGX22028kSWaoi45m2C-CbUDDYvkVr6y=s1569" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="842" data-original-width="1569" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgL8PxN_W28r-LeihQ8ltaBUB-WWLn4pdgGlKqwNOX0SW_bZ6R5cUl03aOMDkuKiAYwUEwDslSNu6InW_c2Y6IqjjPrXw1ng8DHS9IWB9KQ4c80wdNpHAaXhZmFrf6c_ciJsW4smv521LFCtcR_SrnQ2isbiGX22028kSWaoi45m2C-CbUDDYvkVr6y=s320" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Men digging up potatoes like those used to soothe those burns</b></div></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> On the following
morning, just before the expedition retreated from the hills, with help from the
Civil Guard in La Orotava, Feliciana came to bid them farewell. She also
brought a small earthenware vessel containing an oily ointment which she
had prepared. It was a mix of what looked and smelled like lard, crushed thyme and rosemary. After carefully removing the potato
slices, which were now dry, she very gently used two large fingers
to spread the home-made cream over the burned legs. She also gave
instructions to the Lieutenant to make sure the cadette used the ointment every
day until the sores were better. And so he did. In fact, the Norwegian ship's
Medical Officer was so impressed by the effect of Feliciana's ointment on the
cadette's skin that he tried, in vain, to produce a similar kind of paste before opting for the more conventional methods of modern medicine. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"><br /></span></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"><b>BY JOHN REID YOUNG</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">Author of:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"><b>The Journalist</b></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"> (a novel) </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe;">The Skipping Verger and Other Tales</span></b><span style="color: #666666;"> ( a collecgion of short stories)</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><b>A Shark in the Bath and other Stories</b></span><span style="color: #666666;"> (</span></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">a collecgion of short stories</span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">) </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;"><b>El hombre de La Guancha y otras historias</b></span><span style="color: #666666;"> (a collection of short stories in Spanish) </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">(For more information, please click on the images to the right of this page).</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: #a9c054; color: #38761d; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.524px;"><b>If you would like to receive news about my next publications please sign up for my newsletter here: </b></span><a data-ft="{"tn":"-U"}" data-lynx-mode="async" data-lynx-uri="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fmailchi.mp%2F249fadd56fdd%2Fauthor-john-reid-young%3Ffbclid%3DIwAR1eCvFSN2yh42exr-jvtEXd66EOevS9ErCII-1EIgMpPp727DJSllgAksw&h=AT2J3XjfWivT9MW4aa_V7Ae86pVW28qfAG81KSObyfq0z9v13kivmQ6A_JDAdOT-pWgSMZ3kZLj7x-aoEowmj2KdFmBIDauIoGW7kszf7Muot7aGUnCDGjsCG6jLV4QGIfhzgIFR3uhqa_nMDpKFigGwbBuKrB8PPqOrT8W4cuMTZ3RjQIKhWp18k837aGXJOgmobZoizL-S2RkINB2Ic_AbuCpqCBdy1FMLRKQ-3d4Ms2C7GvEuKMPI8yUWdIskR1wBRy4OCiaBvIyaQTGNC5U28UxNlVS3tnD1XLf3FuLXRzCKaRSqiFwIoa1r4sDAACeMTc38vqviTy0w71-qc9450YLVcZ8hLiE8s02PUCoFBvqry0wYaMo7mVI1RDRTck56H-yBM-AMmumsbT7qKBgTsOmwkVDNUZSsGnn_f9lvyeQxmVgnkmWfhEZY8MXm5oBh4aC_ip-25yii3xcZnK1Yckdf6XUVdc13DA3Q6by6rgrt3zArOhZxhGJ6suSSm95yUFT3U2L7NX_yLymDkxGEMNMW2D3neLCrd1jMmVqJ98YpJixvgnQBVE6TNnC5z7PuOYWvk8WRfFmHiL9P80YSiGr_iTRLf6lMQkRRxe2-9UdVjWIC7Rpg6F-nKeX83vGtsg" href="https://mailchi.mp/249fadd56fdd/author-john-reid-young?fbclid=IwAR1eCvFSN2yh42exr-jvtEXd66EOevS9ErCII-1EIgMpPp727DJSllgAksw" rel="noopener nofollow" style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">https://mailchi.mp/249fadd56fdd/author-john-reid-young</a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">Facebook https://www.facebook.com/theskippingverger</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;">Twitter: <span face="TwitterChirp, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #536471; font-size: 15px; white-space: nowrap;">@reidten</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span face="TwitterChirp, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="color: #536471; font-size: 15px; white-space: nowrap;">Instagram: authorjohnreidyoung</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"><b><span style="color: #6fa8dc;">John Reid is also owner at TENERIFE PRIVATE TOURS</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"><b><span style="color: #6fa8dc;"> </span></b></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><b>http://tenerifeprivatetours.com/</b></span></span></p><div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: #a9c054; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.524px; margin-left: 36pt;"><span face="calibri, sans-serif" lang="EN-GB"></span></div><div class="MsoBodyText" style="background-color: #a9c054; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.524px;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" lang="EN-GB"></span></div>reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-1043266765913338722021-12-06T14:34:00.000-08:002021-12-06T14:34:30.664-08:00A little "naivety" Christmas tale from the Canary Island of Tenerife<p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">When
Peter was a little boy, growing up in Spain’s Canary Island of Tenerife in the
1960s, Father Christmas, or Santa Claus, only had to climb down a dozen or so chimneys.
There were very few European children living on the island and local kids knew
only of the magic of the three Wise Kings of Orient. Father Christmas was just
a quaint old fellow they had begun to refer to as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Papa Noel</i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">,</span> and he was
definitely looked upon as very inferior indeed.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh5TAPDjNj9A6V-dPG8saBK5aGayJqqOwyOMxsGB9G3xOVj0rGTkcTGaJqO5eN6woFdz0NBLdDkl2Tjm483C0rPWY3acAwAvI3L9MAt-PwvIDiDpOLy2qEEN6OtpybyuaGYxqPcAfTedZi7nLph4UXJmgou2sZU_hyY3knSBy65lDxUlna1uCD3t0Jl=s610" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="358" data-original-width="610" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh5TAPDjNj9A6V-dPG8saBK5aGayJqqOwyOMxsGB9G3xOVj0rGTkcTGaJqO5eN6woFdz0NBLdDkl2Tjm483C0rPWY3acAwAvI3L9MAt-PwvIDiDpOLy2qEEN6OtpybyuaGYxqPcAfTedZi7nLph4UXJmgou2sZU_hyY3knSBy65lDxUlna1uCD3t0Jl=s320" width="320" /></a></b></div><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;">Papa Noel was still quite a novelty to Spanish children in the 1960s</span></b></div></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Little
Peter, the foreign child from Great Britain, and his best Spanish friend,
Manolito, each worshipped their own provider of Christmas gifts. Each had been
taught, from a very early age, that his own particular belief, or joyful
tradition, was better by far than the other’s.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Anyway,
way back in 1965, Santa Claus came down the chimney at Peter’s house, as usual
on the night of 24<sup>th</sup> December, with stockings full of brilliant toys.
On the following morning, Peter was in a state of great excitement. He opened
his presents and played and played and played. His best Spanish friend,
Manolito, was green with envy, as Peter innocently showed off his new lorry,
train and cowboy pistol. In fact, he refused to talk to Peter, his neighbour on
the edge of the banana plantation, for days.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">A
couple of weeks later, the Wise Kings of Orient trotted up on their camels to
Manolito’s grand house in the middle of a banana plantation. When Manolito
opened his presents on 6<sup>th</sup> January it was his turn to leap about in
a state of great excitement. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">His father
was a very important man and seemed to get preferential treatment from the Wise
Kings.</i></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" lang="EN-GB"></span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 18pt; text-align: center;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEifwtVKx3RA7ijQmimsGvo3Sa3rcNqyAbfid9Ijc8ToYcq7Eq0nZc7TjuFtZvnVjBR_1w7QlJ5Ajtj95SbUaBH7I3ou2vKJ7xLkcgIbtZX-Pn1lGX4ZoKZ5cmS8CCHnjfoeoGYSMRmwZacZhw81q3TJCmJX6E74JYpOu1PE80BnwSgaEOL2xAZg1rQ6=s2048" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1421" data-original-width="2048" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEifwtVKx3RA7ijQmimsGvo3Sa3rcNqyAbfid9Ijc8ToYcq7Eq0nZc7TjuFtZvnVjBR_1w7QlJ5Ajtj95SbUaBH7I3ou2vKJ7xLkcgIbtZX-Pn1lGX4ZoKZ5cmS8CCHnjfoeoGYSMRmwZacZhw81q3TJCmJX6E74JYpOu1PE80BnwSgaEOL2xAZg1rQ6=s320" width="320" /></a></b></div><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span lang="EN-GB"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;">The three Wise Kings, Melchior, Gaspar and Baltazar crossing the deserts.</span></span></b></div></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Pillowcases,
not stockings, were packed with extravagant and superb toys. They appeared far
better than Peter’s and were spread over a Persian carpet for all to admire. Yes,
Manolito had received many more and grander presents than Peter. He even got a
belt with two golden cowboy pistols. What’s more, by the time Manolito began to
play with his lorry and train, Peter’s were all very worn indeed. Wheels had fallen
off and they were now only fit for the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">poor</i>
boy who lived in a hovel down the lane. The pistol no longer even made a bang. It
was Peter now who was green with envy, and he too refused to talk to Manolito
for days and days.</span></b><b><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">News
of this envious behaviour between two little boys reached King Melchior, the
senior of the three Wise Kings. He summoned King Baltazar.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Ah!
Good morning, Baltazar. Listen, I’ve received some rather extraordinary reports.
My falcon tells me you’ve been having furtive meetings with that old snowy fool
they call Santa and, in fact, that you appear to get on quite well with him. Is
this so?”</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Well,
I don’t really know him well, your Majesty, but the one some people call Father
Christmas is quite a pleasant old chap, actually. We meet every year and share
a glass or two of port on the roof of All Saints, the British Anglican church
in Puerto de la Cruz. But I spy on him, of course! Um, if you remember, you <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">did </i>send me to spy on him a few years
ago in order to find out where he got <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">his</i>
children’s toys from!”</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Did
I? My goodness, gracious me! Very well then. I mean, good. Well done, indeed!” stuttered King Melchior,
rather caught off guard.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi1g5DL6jI_J_nuB7EOQHIfRKCSOKtA0yDS-MGWL-YpYK0R1VaKo7l75ua353IqvE1pOkuGzQ5uor0orWURCmytev3ODssTBBGowMvigVMc_KcwxWsPFJS76tZ9gXNZPTTbcvZD1NNvvc8a6xz9Rb1egSTHjNBU8hFSwH37JFiuCV082ov0hQPxsvVW=s400" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="303" data-original-width="400" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi1g5DL6jI_J_nuB7EOQHIfRKCSOKtA0yDS-MGWL-YpYK0R1VaKo7l75ua353IqvE1pOkuGzQ5uor0orWURCmytev3ODssTBBGowMvigVMc_KcwxWsPFJS76tZ9gXNZPTTbcvZD1NNvvc8a6xz9Rb1egSTHjNBU8hFSwH37JFiuCV082ov0hQPxsvVW=s320" width="320" /></a></b></div><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;">All Saints Church, in Puerto de la Cruz, built upon rock and tradition.</span></b></div></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Well,
I would like you to negotiate a truce with him. All this competing for the finest
toys and between our religions and beliefs is very confusing. It is stirring up
trouble amongst ordinary human beings. We cannot have little children, like
Peter and Manolito, falling for adult tricks and jealousies, and about beliefs
and religions being better than the other, don't you think?”</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">So,
the very next year, when King Baltazar and Father Christmas had their annual
meeting on the roof of All Saints Church in the town of Puerto de la Cruz, it
went on for much longer than usual, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">a bit
like that Brexit business</i>. Negotiations were quite tough and each needed to
consult advisors around the continents. But a treaty was signed under which
children should not be affected by adult interests, predilections or political
and religious nonsense.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh5GoV-5ybueGbqhodnCaVmxNx_m_LFrMURhK-S-g24hh0F64wV4Fcxot0s8wrrDTzW5qWBPhj3dOeI-fCZAKMme7UYbs3i4SqsVkL3LS4J5WZA_RR-1FSeS_07AtZwU0JcXFKMJsbebbjERFQHvfDoXpC5euscwh5-1_84zwyofOqt4K12xP0bCdBq=s2048" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1122" data-original-width="2048" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh5GoV-5ybueGbqhodnCaVmxNx_m_LFrMURhK-S-g24hh0F64wV4Fcxot0s8wrrDTzW5qWBPhj3dOeI-fCZAKMme7UYbs3i4SqsVkL3LS4J5WZA_RR-1FSeS_07AtZwU0JcXFKMJsbebbjERFQHvfDoXpC5euscwh5-1_84zwyofOqt4K12xP0bCdBq=s320" width="320" /></a></b></div><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;">It is after the sun has set over the great Mount Teide volcano that the three Wise Kings and Father Christmas make their way to the Canary Islands.</span></b></div></span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The
process would take a few years, of course, and is still in its early days, but King
Melchior’s idea was for the Three Wise Kings and Father Christmas not only to use the same shopping centres and toy manufacturers, but also to share the
duty and pleasures of bringing joy to children around the World.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And
so it began to happen. In fact, Spain’s Canary Island of Tenerife had the great
honour of becoming the headquarters of this new Association of Shared and Differing Beliefs
and Religions. Today, children on this and other islands under Spanish dominion
are blessed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact they are very lucky
indeed. That very sensible and uniting agreement signed by King Baltazar on
behalf of the Wise Kings and Father Christmas on the English slate roof of All
Saints Church in the Taoro Park, enables them to receive gifts from both Father
Christmas <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">and</i> the Three Wise
Kings.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgZT4fdKYHPqg62BqNHyHhc3amn3vapWdJycpq9rA4PsP8m0dOvp4yHKG4mXcfu1WyZ4z0HW4AgmSI_-TVuJriNVFaMVFU6dBU-7O4k2OlZqKJlAfRka7olE1aR1Nsqke5ChnAOLVumSlBQmKmGSjRIeRdjZjgjrlxnbsmMuITwiuPFqe982gTi9N9A=s2048" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgZT4fdKYHPqg62BqNHyHhc3amn3vapWdJycpq9rA4PsP8m0dOvp4yHKG4mXcfu1WyZ4z0HW4AgmSI_-TVuJriNVFaMVFU6dBU-7O4k2OlZqKJlAfRka7olE1aR1Nsqke5ChnAOLVumSlBQmKmGSjRIeRdjZjgjrlxnbsmMuITwiuPFqe982gTi9N9A=s320" width="320" /></a></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-small;">This nativity scene can be found at the Bodegón El Monasterio.</span></b></b></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In
other words, children of all nationalities enjoy visits from Santa Claus on
Christmas Eve, celebrating the birth of Jesus, but can also expect equally
wonderful gifts from the Wise Kings in January when they come to present baby
Jesus with gold, frankincense and myrrh.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Actually,
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">between you and I</i>, the adults keep most
of the gold and things, and Father Christmas has taken to climbing over
balconies because of the lack of chimneys on the island. Well, homes don’t often
require heating in the sunny Canaries.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But
the whole point is that the idea works. As a result of that meeting on the roof
of All Saints Church, both Peter’s and Manolito’s grandchildren have learnt to love both
Father Christmas AND the Three Wise Kings of Orient.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Sharing
and being tolerant of each other’s beliefs, especially at Christmas, is a
wonderful thing, you know. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 18pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">All the best to you all, wherever you may be, and do be kind and understanding.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><b>By John Reid Young</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><b>Author of books. For more information, click on the images to the right of this page or on the following text:</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><b> <a href="http://reidten.blogspot.com/">Travel Stories in Tenerife and the Canary Islands</a></b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: 24px;">Owner of Tenerife Private Tours www.tenerifeprivatetours.com</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: 24px;">If you would like to receive news about my next publications please sign up for my newsletter here: </span></span><a data-ft="{"tn":"-U"}" data-lynx-mode="async" data-lynx-uri="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fmailchi.mp%2F249fadd56fdd%2Fauthor-john-reid-young%3Ffbclid%3DIwAR1eCvFSN2yh42exr-jvtEXd66EOevS9ErCII-1EIgMpPp727DJSllgAksw&h=AT2J3XjfWivT9MW4aa_V7Ae86pVW28qfAG81KSObyfq0z9v13kivmQ6A_JDAdOT-pWgSMZ3kZLj7x-aoEowmj2KdFmBIDauIoGW7kszf7Muot7aGUnCDGjsCG6jLV4QGIfhzgIFR3uhqa_nMDpKFigGwbBuKrB8PPqOrT8W4cuMTZ3RjQIKhWp18k837aGXJOgmobZoizL-S2RkINB2Ic_AbuCpqCBdy1FMLRKQ-3d4Ms2C7GvEuKMPI8yUWdIskR1wBRy4OCiaBvIyaQTGNC5U28UxNlVS3tnD1XLf3FuLXRzCKaRSqiFwIoa1r4sDAACeMTc38vqviTy0w71-qc9450YLVcZ8hLiE8s02PUCoFBvqry0wYaMo7mVI1RDRTck56H-yBM-AMmumsbT7qKBgTsOmwkVDNUZSsGnn_f9lvyeQxmVgnkmWfhEZY8MXm5oBh4aC_ip-25yii3xcZnK1Yckdf6XUVdc13DA3Q6by6rgrt3zArOhZxhGJ6suSSm95yUFT3U2L7NX_yLymDkxGEMNMW2D3neLCrd1jMmVqJ98YpJixvgnQBVE6TNnC5z7PuOYWvk8WRfFmHiL9P80YSiGr_iTRLf6lMQkRRxe2-9UdVjWIC7Rpg6F-nKeX83vGtsg" href="https://mailchi.mp/249fadd56fdd/author-john-reid-young?fbclid=IwAR1eCvFSN2yh42exr-jvtEXd66EOevS9ErCII-1EIgMpPp727DJSllgAksw" rel="noopener nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #385898; cursor: pointer; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">https://mailchi.mp/249fadd56fdd/author-john-reid-young</a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white; color: #536471; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: nowrap;">Twitter: @reidten</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background-color: white; color: #536471; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: nowrap;">Instagram: authorjohnreidyoung</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="color: #6aa84f;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: #a9c054; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.524px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br /></p><br /><p></p>reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-41446692899031862021-11-19T03:32:00.002-08:002021-11-21T08:57:52.326-08:00When Tourists saddled up to the call of a volcano in Tenerife.<p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> In recent weeks, since the eruption from the La Cumbre Vieja mountain range began </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 16px;">on 19th September,</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> on Spain's Canary Island
of La Palma, scientists have been learning and exchanging more information
about Strombolian eruptions than ever before. However, even they understand that against the forces of nature, especially those deep in the Earth's bowels, mankind has not got a chance.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKAQm0G-EEKKw8F5bCVZP5JWmvc6lYMUd2Ojd5vAoC9tA_ll-hS3w9UcQGwTBOKW7cEZFBJtfkIbb4ZdKygN0aBx9vNsT08fI7OVsTEut6OwwwBj11ahGilfQVf1sJpmOUqCyygOIDEws/s2048/2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1222" data-original-width="2048" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKAQm0G-EEKKw8F5bCVZP5JWmvc6lYMUd2Ojd5vAoC9tA_ll-hS3w9UcQGwTBOKW7cEZFBJtfkIbb4ZdKygN0aBx9vNsT08fI7OVsTEut6OwwwBj11ahGilfQVf1sJpmOUqCyygOIDEws/s320/2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b>A beautiful sunset, with Mt Teide above the clouds. To the right, a dramatic plume speaks of La Palma's eruption. </b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>(Photo taken during a picnic on 21.09.2021). </b></div></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> What began as a sparkling and
exciting event, with magma and gases creeping through volcanic tubes and pushing their way to the surface, like a kettle coming to the boil, soon turned into a nightmare, and devastation for inhabitants of La Palma. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Hundreds of homes have been buried under rivers of lava, swallowing up the memories of generations and turning some of the finest banana plantations into petrified, fuming rock, whilst treasured black-sand beaches have been smothered by smoldering lava. Inhabitants are also suffering
the consequences of the fallout, in the form of ash particles weighing down roofs and blanketing everything with something resembling powdered, black snow. Sulphur dioxide has poluted the air they breathe. COVID pandemic rules imply the compulsory wearing of
masks. Now people wear masks to protect their health, not from a man-spread
virus, but from the dangerous levels of volcanic debris and chemicals in the
air. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibMZc2QUH9jIjv9UbFz_x5dN-Ap9vncMcekkjYCp9Ew3aeIQQi5uOpvxSs_dZ4_XcbXl0o8XckIk5xDV8yMoVrg-3Spm35pBQR0SwOXWcKEBgoBT7SF52rZViinCHMmYl_I7aUu3v2PoU/s480/reu_20210924_193416372+%25282%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="480" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibMZc2QUH9jIjv9UbFz_x5dN-Ap9vncMcekkjYCp9Ew3aeIQQi5uOpvxSs_dZ4_XcbXl0o8XckIk5xDV8yMoVrg-3Spm35pBQR0SwOXWcKEBgoBT7SF52rZViinCHMmYl_I7aUu3v2PoU/s320/reu_20210924_193416372+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: x-small;"><b>Like a snake, a river of magma finds its way in La Palma</b></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> The island of La Palma, <i>la isla
bonita</i>, is over 50 miles away but we, on
the island of Tenerife, have memories of our own volcanoes, of course. One only has to
visit the great Las Cañadas caldera to realise that Mount Teide Volcano is just
a small hillock compared to what may have been there long before. We also have
written memories of the last eruption on the island, a little over 100 years
ago. Not only memories, but a feeling, not so deep down, that anything might happen one day. After all, as La Palma has come to remind us, the Canary Islands are still volcanically active.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> On rare occasions we have felt the
minor Earth tremors that have been keeping people awake on La Palma. Some of us
remember, only a few years ago, before the under-sea eruption off the
island of El Hierro in 2011, that there were whispers about an imminent eruption on Tenerife. A series of earth
tremors, centred between the towns of Santiago del Teide and Icod, got people all het up. Even a few English newspapers told their readers that Teide was about to blow its top! A maximum register of 3.2 on
the Richter Scale was not much to worry about, but the coincidence of a number of
similar shakes over a period of weeks persuaded the authorities and scientists
to come clean about the fact that something might have been about to happen. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Although nothing actually did occur at the time, local gossip also led to similar conclusions. Tomás, the
lovely old gentleman from La Guancha who used to come with his lorry on
Saturdays to sell us home-grown fruit and vegetables, told us there was a cave
to the south of Icod from which nasty smelling gases had begun to appear. Mind
you he was also convinced that the unusually hot weather we had been having at the time was also
due to volcanic activity!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> The
authorities tried to persuade public opinion that if anything did happen, it
would not be on a catastrophic scale. Indeed they believed, if it happened
at all, that it would be “a gentle, Strombolian eruption” which might perhaps start a
few forest fires and burn a house or two, but no more. Scientists supported
that belief. However, as La Palma has evidenced now, nobody can predict nor control
the damage an eruption might cause, or where exactly a volcano might decide to appear
in its explosive beginnings. Having said that, scientists, using modern equipment and satellite images, were almost exact in pinpointing where the Earth would give this time.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrX8ErxsOFwSOY3UNc7oEeiG5UKC2fdWyEEVDZm_sZDo1dLi8i7RxUAMkOMZn5vhiWlNPA_wA69K3vIkUoZSRKOpu2Tz_Nc4OJTjfTdsUnp2ol4RJHjembHUt007GX2iiwEt40ZyqrvUs/s960/13423742_1728314067443501_5261022869648355777_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="614" data-original-width="960" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrX8ErxsOFwSOY3UNc7oEeiG5UKC2fdWyEEVDZm_sZDo1dLi8i7RxUAMkOMZn5vhiWlNPA_wA69K3vIkUoZSRKOpu2Tz_Nc4OJTjfTdsUnp2ol4RJHjembHUt007GX2iiwEt40ZyqrvUs/s320/13423742_1728314067443501_5261022869648355777_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: small;">The "gentle eruption" of Chinyero (Tenerife, 1909)</b></div></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Perhaps memories of the last
eruption on the island of Tenerife, in 1909, had persuaded people that any eruption would be "gentle", until this new La Palma volcano. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 7.5pt;"><span style="background-color: #d9ead3;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Nevertheless, when Chinyero erupted, the municipality of the
Valley of Santiago was practically cut off from the rest of the world.
Messenger pigeons became the essential means of communication during the
eruption. The information carried by the birds took no more than 5 minutes to
reach Garachico from Santiago del Teide. From there, the news was then urgently transmitted to the authorities by telegram. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 7.5pt;"><span style="background-color: #d9ead3;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;">
The eruption of Chinyero, however minor, produced a whole range of reactions. Fearful
inhabitants took their religious images up to the lava flows and legend suggests the
lava came to a halt where they stood. Victorian tourism found ways to
take advantage of the situation and a number of excursions were organised to
visit the volcano. Moreover, the Chinyero is famous for having been the
first volcano to have been mentioned in the press, and to have been filmed and
photographed. It is also the first to have been studied by contemporary
scientists and about which extensive, scientific reports were made.</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="background-color: #d9ead3;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: ES;">Chinyero began to erupt just after two o'clock in the
afternoon of 18th November, 1909. Its activity lasted for 10 days, unlike the
new La Palma eruption which, as I write, is two months old and still going
strong. The eruption was preceded by a series of earth tremors and underground
noises which alerted the inhabitants in Santiago del Teide and neighbouring
regions. The eruptive process began when a 600 metre long crevice opened up and this was accompanied by loud explosions, heard as far away as La Laguna
and Santa Cruz. The eruptive column towered sky high. As one local resident
described,</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 7.5pt;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background-color: #d9ead3; color: #222222; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i>“It gave a great
thundering sound and the plants and trees flew into the air with the smoke and earth. The
shrubs went up, turning over and over and were covered
in black and red earth. Huge stones were also flung out, everything spreading
out when it reached high up, and bits of gravel came down on us, so hot that we
could not hold them in our hands.”</i></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> There are also memorable tales about folk in the Orotava Valley. Some were brave enough to take a close look
at the eruption. I remember being told by Noel Reid that he witnessed the
eruption at close range. He was a lad of seventeen at the time and remembered
that there had been a series of earth tremors for a couple of months before the
eruption. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> The first sign that the earth was
attempting to breathe was when news arrived that gases had appeared from a
cavity on the side of Mount Teide. Everyone thought the peak itself would erupt
and foreign residents hastily began to pack their bags. Many British residents took boxes and cases for safe-keeping at <i>Casa Reid </i>in Puerto de la Cruz or at <i>El Nido</i>, the Vice Consul, Tom Reid’s home, itself built in 1894 on the top of a volcanic rock. Some residents were invited to stay, resting wherever they could find space, indoors or
on the verandas. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHcZReWU5B904lWzsmRJ5GW6nOPcO6JD9ioECXtRk0UT2k-Mk2bMGY3RXm0M7IUfJpyJWnp32gvD_-2csKG7wjQ_RQPfeYV5uexdVYbZ4QgSX9cKzHfxiH0NoxYGFqdPcCEOx_4lK1PLM/s1235/2021+EL+NIDO+%25282%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="737" data-original-width="1235" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHcZReWU5B904lWzsmRJ5GW6nOPcO6JD9ioECXtRk0UT2k-Mk2bMGY3RXm0M7IUfJpyJWnp32gvD_-2csKG7wjQ_RQPfeYV5uexdVYbZ4QgSX9cKzHfxiH0NoxYGFqdPcCEOx_4lK1PLM/s320/2021+EL+NIDO+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b>El Nido, the British Vice-Consul's house in the Orotava Valley.</b></div></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> From other parts of the island,
the noise of the explosions from the eruption could be heard like distant thunder, and the amazing red glow of lava
shooting into the sky were very spectacular. Local people were frightened. The
Bishop of La Laguna ordered everyone to pray. But the rumblings and the glow
seemed to go on for days without apparently causing great harm. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWO4vrN7CppJX80hz2eIumiq68GjEtQOAesrAcY4liZh2gxnnDWMLVTmUkbmCI8_SQXm0YZO8HQD50wU9fCRyA4h9cDqRQSDoeNKkDreHOQ2dMkos8UknNULyDe2WWzJVXOzTQlBFZaM0/s874/58+%25282%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="567" data-original-width="874" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWO4vrN7CppJX80hz2eIumiq68GjEtQOAesrAcY4liZh2gxnnDWMLVTmUkbmCI8_SQXm0YZO8HQD50wU9fCRyA4h9cDqRQSDoeNKkDreHOQ2dMkos8UknNULyDe2WWzJVXOzTQlBFZaM0/s320/58+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Tourists from around the island got a close look at the volcanic eruption (1909)</b></div></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Therefore, like a number of
others, Noel Reid and a group of mostly Spanish friends, including Anita Perez,
a beautiful local girl who lived at a house called Los Frailes, could no longer
resist the temptation. They decided to get a closer look and rode their horses
as far as Icod de los Vinos, and up into the hills along the old carriage
track.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 12pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG1ZeTsx0GfYZNBUxhc-E5JzWobno9NP-JOoAssMMPJNAJADkHx0xSyCnCMMZ3q3CZOSKcNk_mjr8-feF79bEfXAvUe88XvBpNieH2TqWV6QwE2DE8uqqgtDqPmY-axufBc2MXRRCQMfM/s700/12239921_984859844920431_1594690606864700223_n.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="440" data-original-width="700" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG1ZeTsx0GfYZNBUxhc-E5JzWobno9NP-JOoAssMMPJNAJADkHx0xSyCnCMMZ3q3CZOSKcNk_mjr8-feF79bEfXAvUe88XvBpNieH2TqWV6QwE2DE8uqqgtDqPmY-axufBc2MXRRCQMfM/s320/12239921_984859844920431_1594690606864700223_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b>They rode into the hills from Icod de los Vinos</b></div></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> They left their horses at a certain distance, for fear the animals would
become nervous as they neared the constant explosions, and walked higher into
the hills where they set up camp close to the inhospitable black, old lava flow
produced by another volcano, the Trevejos, which destroyed part of the original trading port of Garachico in 1706. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8NSjofz8Nf6z3WeoXXsjqzuKsu0WftIl6ViOyAZiUoIotYLSK71BaTC_nHZr4Vrcxs8ka6E-EU7d4dX8isBIEL_ymbqeiThRlp0otWkFWZedF0w3t-F_D0huRgd2KRb7e53COiVmoAfM/s300/grabado-de-ubaldo-bordanova-donde-se-representa-la-erupcic3b3n-de-garachico.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="175" data-original-width="300" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8NSjofz8Nf6z3WeoXXsjqzuKsu0WftIl6ViOyAZiUoIotYLSK71BaTC_nHZr4Vrcxs8ka6E-EU7d4dX8isBIEL_ymbqeiThRlp0otWkFWZedF0w3t-F_D0huRgd2KRb7e53COiVmoAfM/s0/grabado-de-ubaldo-bordanova-donde-se-representa-la-erupcic3b3n-de-garachico.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b>The Trevejos Volcano erupting and destroying part of Garachico, as depicted by artist Ubaldo Bordanova</b></div></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> The following day, the intrepid group of adventures
then proceeded on foot to within half a mile of Chinyero, to see the earth flinging
rocks high in the air and spewing lava. Noel Reid, who just seven years later
was much closer to hell, earning the DSO for bravery at Ypres in the First World War, and his party of youngsters, were not the only ones to get a close
look at Chinyero. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizIabcTwSgRJzb6mptPThQIfbfyeRauPEY7tWLIrzm-Q4a4VvTXYKgJExzIR3O8Bnsxuly7k8ogMfdwzmUZbKbO7iIjUbiqmyp-Np17FVOuQEammAvMRKVDKoFX3qHNYXKvPXS0SUl7yw/s1837/Capt+Noel+S+Reid+DSO+MC+20002.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1837" data-original-width="864" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizIabcTwSgRJzb6mptPThQIfbfyeRauPEY7tWLIrzm-Q4a4VvTXYKgJExzIR3O8Bnsxuly7k8ogMfdwzmUZbKbO7iIjUbiqmyp-Np17FVOuQEammAvMRKVDKoFX3qHNYXKvPXS0SUl7yw/s320/Capt+Noel+S+Reid+DSO+MC+20002.jpg" width="151" /></a></div><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Captain Noel Spence Reid DSO, MC (born in Tenerife in 1892)</b></div></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Another member of the distinguished British
community, Austin Baillon, often recalled his own father, Alex Baillon’s
memories. According to him, <i>the thunderous explosions could be heard from as far as the island of
Gran Canaria. People in nearby villages, like Guía de Isora, spent the best
part of a week in the streets. Seven craters opened up on a plain. Liquid stone
was blasted 600 feet into the sky and glowing lava gushed into the night in
four huge, slow-moving rivers, like immense burning snakes</i>. Alex Baillon said
it was a splendid sight to see the frightful force of nature. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> There is a tale about the priest of Tamaimo holding continuous prayers in the little chapel, begging for the lava
not to reach them. It stopped just before the village. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Until the current
eruption of La Palma, it was hoped, and almost believed, that any future
eruption would be as safe and as obedient to Christian prayer as Chinyero, or
perhaps no worse than Chahorra, the fissure eruption that appeared on the side
of Pico Viejo, alongside Mount Teide in 1798. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> One can only pray, in fact,
judging by what we have witnessed these days on La Palma. Prayer, even for the
non-believer, is all we have when nature decides the pressure has become too
much. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"><b>BY JOHN REID YOUNG</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">Author of books:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">THE SKIPPING VERGER AND OTHER TALES, </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">A SHARK IN THE BATH AND OTHER STORIES, </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">EL HOMBRE DE LA GUANCHA Y OTRAS HISTORIAS, </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">collections of short stories set in the Canary Islands,</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;">THE JOURNALIST, a novel. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 18px;"><b>(For more information, please click on the images to the right of this page).</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; 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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><br />reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-26108842499940546202020-04-24T05:08:00.001-07:002020-04-24T05:08:18.458-07:00A Very British Kind of Place on the Canary Island of Tenerife<br />
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> They were very different times. The number of inhabitants in Puerto de la Cruz on the island of Tenerife may not have been much more than five thousand. A fair number of those were British and Irish. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Early forms of tourism were just beginning and town houses were being converted into pensions and boarding houses to cater for the growing number of travellers, scientists and artists. So quaint, if we compare it to the five star luxury hotels in today's modern resorts, the beautiful old Martianez Hotel offered improved sanitary arrangements installed
by an English plumber. One could stay at the Marquesa for seven pesetas a day. </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">There were no roads but dusty tracks and </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">caminos reales</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">, stone highways connecting the old port with the towns of La Orotava, Los Realejos and beyond</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">. A carriage from the port to La Orotava cost
as much as ten pesetas. Visitors could hire a landau for 600 pesetas a month or
a donkey for two and a half pesetas for a morning. There was the beginnings of an electricity supply, generated by
water flowing from a water gallery at a point near Aguamansa and supplied to only a few wealthy properties. There was no television. There was no rush.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBT8_Zh_SfxlZ8WCyCrVuUftbtZ-FKumk5bOdy-dElqXbsHptFbOYywI8AoDu1Xq0oo58oIrNUE9dPiyHJbPtKe5O-BCF286ZoCJ7uKhZYm6U3hhf0B6b7R9nmO82cnpro3p4R8y_bHPY/s1600/10676355_935398366488597_7927764826831982324_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="394" data-original-width="600" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBT8_Zh_SfxlZ8WCyCrVuUftbtZ-FKumk5bOdy-dElqXbsHptFbOYywI8AoDu1Xq0oo58oIrNUE9dPiyHJbPtKe5O-BCF286ZoCJ7uKhZYm6U3hhf0B6b7R9nmO82cnpro3p4R8y_bHPY/s320/10676355_935398366488597_7927764826831982324_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The Martianez Hotel in Puerto de la Cruz</b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p><br /></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> The small and distinguished community from the British Isles and the growing number of winter visitors were regarded with respect and affection and went about their
business with gentility. Nevertheless, although they were a </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">very cultured lot and therefore needed little in the way of entertainment, because they made their own,</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> they lacked a very important ingredient. There was nowhere, outside the privacy of their own home or boarding house, at which to enjoy a </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">decent game of one kind or another.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> So one should not
surprised to hear that in 1896 a small group of those intrepid pioneers hired rooms above a chemist owned by a gentleman by the name of Ramón Gómez, in<i> Calle Santo Domingo</i>, a street just above the fishing harbour. It was there that they founded a games club called <i>The
Guanche English Club</i>. They had a billiards table and a cardroom, and drinks were served. To them it might
have seemed like the beginnings of their very own version of the Travellers or Caledonian clubs in London, to which gentlemen could slip away to escape a female plot. But that wasn't the case at all. Ladies, as in so many British colonies, were very much a
part of the act and the club was a regular host to the <i>Orotava English Musical
and Dramatic Society</i>, an early equivalent to today's English Speaking Theatrical Association in Tenerife, better known as E.S.T.A.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw4LIlED8JFGYyqWr6Pqh8D-NcTqp9JqrjX6frO7qB05yuw5QvtJpqcWcqsNEVx3i9fU9prH9gSWYuMFJfJ1Ib133TGGDOaORwW0VoZuyMvHmqelvbCHvk3rLYNcSPOrHRIee1SSzMDdU/s1600/11062114_1081713415190424_710178272386482819_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="531" data-original-width="800" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw4LIlED8JFGYyqWr6Pqh8D-NcTqp9JqrjX6frO7qB05yuw5QvtJpqcWcqsNEVx3i9fU9prH9gSWYuMFJfJ1Ib133TGGDOaORwW0VoZuyMvHmqelvbCHvk3rLYNcSPOrHRIee1SSzMDdU/s320/11062114_1081713415190424_710178272386482819_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Puerto de la Cruz with ships at anchor</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> What they really yearned for was some outdoor activity, a <i>bit of sport, old bean! </i>Therefore, in
October 1902, at about the same time Kitchener was putting an end to the
Boer War, the beginnings of an outdoor games club began to blossom in the Orotava Valley, although there had already been attempts to get a golf links going outside the valley, at La Quinta in Santa Úrsula. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> Captain Hamilton Boyle, Reverend Humphreys, Doctor Lisham and Messrs Woolley
and Osbert Ward, author of <i>The Vale of Orotava</i>, a guide-book published in 1903, decided it was time. They met for an afternoon of outdoor activities at San Antonio, where Walter Long Boreham, one of the main benefactors of All Saints church had lived, because there was what they called a <i>cement lawn-tennis court</i> as well as a small
croquet lawn. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> The same group agreed to meet again, this time with Vice-Consul Tom Reid
and Mr Gregory at El Robado, Colonel Owen Peel Wethered’s magnificent mansion at the heart of what today we know as San Fernando. El Robado's gardens, which were described as spacious and where croquet and the ancient game of
bowls could be carried on in a most scientific manner during picnics and tea
parties, would be an ideal venue.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBd1tCuQKPOFwP-ZGJx-cHgWIo8CMkhOTqqDA8lqxQNcKajBID4S95JxXjOM7_aYvnVVBO7Mo-xbu9sWK7rli2SL3OD8xhx1JRBQ7PgKFzMIW6aMVXM3Aj0DOLty_weLRnbcJQhG-4duI/s1600/Tea+party+at+El+Robado.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="322" data-original-width="800" height="128" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBd1tCuQKPOFwP-ZGJx-cHgWIo8CMkhOTqqDA8lqxQNcKajBID4S95JxXjOM7_aYvnVVBO7Mo-xbu9sWK7rli2SL3OD8xhx1JRBQ7PgKFzMIW6aMVXM3Aj0DOLty_weLRnbcJQhG-4duI/s320/Tea+party+at+El+Robado.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>A tea party at El Robado</b></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> Four years later the popularity of
these games parties at private houses, and the growing number of visitors to Puerto de la
Cruz persuaded these fun-loving British residents to rent the grounds adjacent to San Antonio from <i>doña</i> Celia Zamora in order to establish a permanent club. A huge sum of seven hundred and fifty pesetas a year was the agreed rent. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> The new club, the <i>Orotava Bowling and Recreation Club</i> was declared open on 15<sup>th</sup>
November, 1906. Subscriptions were set at thirty pesetas a year,
twelve and a half for three months and five pesetas for just one week. <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Steamers, like the Avocet or the Ardeola which belonged to the Yeoward Brother’s Line and could be seen at anchor off Puerto de la Cruz while they loaded bananas, were bringing a constant flow of winter visitors to the club. </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">It was becoming a tremendous success and i</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">n 1908 the club was registered for the first time under Spanish law as an association. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQMnwiClLt5hGcwcdWYEsDOEIUvlobNh7R-2mqCyUbwMI8F3FF2loclB_C6_rxx4_V9hpqO-j9K3P23HOdAhooGPcOqxcwQrbXEPd6Q0YF243sL7HMSrnp74ujHt6uVwgqST6UV-RqmMg/s1600/Casa+Tolosa+behinf+club-s+bowling+green.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="390" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQMnwiClLt5hGcwcdWYEsDOEIUvlobNh7R-2mqCyUbwMI8F3FF2loclB_C6_rxx4_V9hpqO-j9K3P23HOdAhooGPcOqxcwQrbXEPd6Q0YF243sL7HMSrnp74ujHt6uVwgqST6UV-RqmMg/s320/Casa+Tolosa+behinf+club-s+bowling+green.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxEbBamj_brqfP2j9o3evnfAF4q7DMFXi2q7FlapOAhrFLEWpObiiApDm6smHt-kcziKVs-b5NnpmzExLLfJssCgFgluaY37WwO_JkGbly_2HcpBwj-AN3RysS208oFfPTxZmwR1VP5_M/s1600/Bowls+green+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="477" data-original-width="737" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxEbBamj_brqfP2j9o3evnfAF4q7DMFXi2q7FlapOAhrFLEWpObiiApDm6smHt-kcziKVs-b5NnpmzExLLfJssCgFgluaY37WwO_JkGbly_2HcpBwj-AN3RysS208oFfPTxZmwR1VP5_M/s320/Bowls+green+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The original bowling green at the club</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> Those who preferred bowls were indignant in 1907 when upstarts asked if they might play tennis on their tender bowling green. The request concentrated minds on the fact that proper tennis courts would have to be on the agenda. Alas, they would have to wait because war got in the way. Indeed</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">, suddenly, it all changed. The rumblings of the Great War began to affect the arrival of merchant and passenger shipping to the Canary Islands as German U-Boats took their toll. Few new visitors made the journey and younger club members volunteered to fight for King and country. Life and membership at the games club was badly affected. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> It wasn't until 1924 that new tennis courts were laid just where they are today, albeit overgrown with weeds since the British Club was asked to leave the premises. </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Tennis almost became the main event and matches began to be organised against rival clubs such as the </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Hesperides Club</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> of La Laguna and </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">The British Club</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> of Santa Cruz. Faces grew younger in between the wars and as the 1920s swung in so did the demand for a bit of harmless fun, and dances and other activities were organised in style.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwNRt8pq-JnorH_m8_q4QGoGCgMYNWyO8DmQY4aqmLhoLlpLDdW6OksNTyLKt6ilHX6zxEXWeSe2aHsqFB_YhCZsBWFmwHeVPj8gIQ-rwAtR_6xAvt9aBjwGw1B0UkI20LjqYUz_r-7N8/s1600/Tennis0001+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="339" data-original-width="557" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwNRt8pq-JnorH_m8_q4QGoGCgMYNWyO8DmQY4aqmLhoLlpLDdW6OksNTyLKt6ilHX6zxEXWeSe2aHsqFB_YhCZsBWFmwHeVPj8gIQ-rwAtR_6xAvt9aBjwGw1B0UkI20LjqYUz_r-7N8/s320/Tennis0001+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdwX2GLLiMkBGSBqFk0ON395d-anXhPO2jKXz0lU4gZMFvG2rxc3lUka_eW_d0YO-Wwi0WaGTdttVhzOr4QabG44H8zMAHKx7Te7P1H0fbhPPCIfJBcvTb13s02uKDilWCrUCA_OI5Mwo/s1600/Tennis+upper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="692" data-original-width="1085" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdwX2GLLiMkBGSBqFk0ON395d-anXhPO2jKXz0lU4gZMFvG2rxc3lUka_eW_d0YO-Wwi0WaGTdttVhzOr4QabG44H8zMAHKx7Te7P1H0fbhPPCIfJBcvTb13s02uKDilWCrUCA_OI5Mwo/s320/Tennis+upper.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The tennis courts at the British Club (note the long whites)</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> The club also </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">survived the Spanish Civil War and, immediately afterwards, WW2. It kept going thanks to </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">that old, solid British spirit, <i>keep calm and and carry on</i>. It was also thanks to its
Spanish members like the Marquesa de Villafuerte, the Llarenas and the Salazars
that the club actually carried on playing games.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2RG2ts_gnlPxGidHwc_CEbXEeJnpegFEhRR6Ls-9NctWPJ5o9-L8ofzu9E3ZgotjI3iDy1itVFxJpIRFVcK-uu4N4bZYZlKPe575mJg3-7Ulr_EkU7SxuVLp9CVdd53XbTPZuYFPqLAk/s1600/British+Orotava+Outdoor+Games+Club+rules+in+Spanish.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1328" data-original-width="919" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2RG2ts_gnlPxGidHwc_CEbXEeJnpegFEhRR6Ls-9NctWPJ5o9-L8ofzu9E3ZgotjI3iDy1itVFxJpIRFVcK-uu4N4bZYZlKPe575mJg3-7Ulr_EkU7SxuVLp9CVdd53XbTPZuYFPqLAk/s320/British+Orotava+Outdoor+Games+Club+rules+in+Spanish.jpg" width="221" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The Club rules were even translated into Spanish</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> Indeed, the club bonded great and lasting
friendships between families like the Machados and British residents. How
they loved their croquet, especially when the game was played on the large
green beside the clubho</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">use. Bowls always seemed just a bit too English for
them, with all that bending down on one's knee and those memories of Sir Francis Drake and
the Armada. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNWWrL10Zt5bWUg5pkr6ScuWWrwTAIp17P48RgFlthkfEmGLsp4wE-9XuXLzUs-E9mnILiRifoeEv_6EvbzQMsVkafg0Oa7-qnSVwQe8QkrPowfjfPKlLye3393fZdfO5MIlrwCnRCmJs/s1600/TM+Reid+and+Noel+S+Reid+first+junior+member.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="668" data-original-width="1059" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNWWrL10Zt5bWUg5pkr6ScuWWrwTAIp17P48RgFlthkfEmGLsp4wE-9XuXLzUs-E9mnILiRifoeEv_6EvbzQMsVkafg0Oa7-qnSVwQe8QkrPowfjfPKlLye3393fZdfO5MIlrwCnRCmJs/s320/TM+Reid+and+Noel+S+Reid+first+junior+member.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Tom Reid (British Vice-Consul) and Noel Reid (First Junior Member, aged 16) pictured on the croquet lawn in 1908</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSVZyPUWWNuC3Go1Daj9A3A_Oj61jV-TTnQwwuXsWVbTjvixK50OSjzL-uK0CSx6stXW7qvkgP6g2UolcFseUrAwOMg48jcv5mbz9NH-Ariai03_X2BcDN8ZEhOhezXpN2gCldCGULmY0/s1600/13310.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="491" data-original-width="800" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSVZyPUWWNuC3Go1Daj9A3A_Oj61jV-TTnQwwuXsWVbTjvixK50OSjzL-uK0CSx6stXW7qvkgP6g2UolcFseUrAwOMg48jcv5mbz9NH-Ariai03_X2BcDN8ZEhOhezXpN2gCldCGULmY0/s320/13310.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>How they loved their croquet!</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> Especially after WW2, the club boasted some
of the best young tennis players in Tenerife, like Alfonso and Antonio Cologan, of Irish ancestry, and their brother Leopoldo, Marqués de la Candia. They were good years when members like Felipe Machado, who purchased Risco de Oro from George Marriott, was Vice-President and Leopoldo Cólogan
were on the committee under Noel Reid who had carried on with the work of his
brother Rio.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> In between and after the wars the
club had prospered. It became an open and friendly place, and consequently more and more
cosmopolitan, with a number of very distinguished and able European members and
quite a few American and Canadian representatives always willing to lend a
hand. Nevertheless it retained a very British feel about it. </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Her Majesty´s birthday was celebrated as loyally as in old British dominions and colonies. Officers
from visiting Royal Navy ships were graciously entertained by the club for many
years and their ship's crests were proudly on display around the bar. A smoky, ruthless game of bridge could be fought </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">in a quiet corner of what was the <i>Dick Peto room, </i>named after a member who donated a thousand pounds, a huge sum in those days, after WW2.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqhBvk_ItT56jdVJ9td-Rwgit65pV5De-87oZYnqIxJfvCY0aFhilXwbh_CyN-dHQ6X37p8PzQ_WmPiUx91UHmz0mmNnObSOQSDeBXG2WhIuNpR-8gbckQBTjDlYdPgBxQ8sY7qmmP7YA/s1600/Armitice+Day%252C+19290001+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1138" data-original-width="1600" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqhBvk_ItT56jdVJ9td-Rwgit65pV5De-87oZYnqIxJfvCY0aFhilXwbh_CyN-dHQ6X37p8PzQ_WmPiUx91UHmz0mmNnObSOQSDeBXG2WhIuNpR-8gbckQBTjDlYdPgBxQ8sY7qmmP7YA/s320/Armitice+Day%252C+19290001+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Some club members celebrating Armistice Day in 1929</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Antonio, the gardener, is on the left</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>If anyone would like to know who the others were, I'd be happy to tell you.</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> A splendid, strategic and sometimes uproarious bowls competition would entertain
a critical audience, before and after a gin and tonic. A serious game of
tennis could be had any day, provided one fetched one's own stray ball from
the banana plantation. In the latter years of the 20th century bandits fought against angels in thrilling and
hilarious Sunday tournaments. A gentle tea and biscuits, served by <i>Rosa</i> and duty lady members, were available to ease one out of an afternoon siesta. Charitable dinners, competitions and seasonal dances were arranged and held in grand and traditional style. The bar was a regular
meeting place for many a resident who simply wanted to relax, chat and enjoy a drink at a very reasonable price and in very pleasant surroundings.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvkpDYPljz1RvHmx3GALcyJw9wjqUyAsXQine0wgKbtkYGM4HQQLzaxS4xKAhyphenhyphenET-Z27DRCl9ontsG2nHDjyx3cWdjadsj9-roQfOQ-6LRhajFvOCG6UJ70plfGNDqRHxoYNDljx3Hj-s/s1600/unnamed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="526" data-original-width="407" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvkpDYPljz1RvHmx3GALcyJw9wjqUyAsXQine0wgKbtkYGM4HQQLzaxS4xKAhyphenhyphenET-Z27DRCl9ontsG2nHDjyx3cWdjadsj9-roQfOQ-6LRhajFvOCG6UJ70plfGNDqRHxoYNDljx3Hj-s/s320/unnamed.jpg" width="247" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The original entrance to the British Games Club.</b></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> It would need a book to fully account for the history and traditions of what is still today known as the British Games
Club. Even though the club was forced to move, and did so in style and with that same <i>keep calm and carry on </i>attitude, to <i>Club de Tenis Puerto de la Cruz</i>, sometimes better know as <i>Alvaro's Club</i>, a careful study of many of its members, past and present, would
certainly reveal a wealth of talent, culture and experience. The club, just as the other pillars of the British community, the <i>English Library</i> and <i>All Saints Church</i>, reflect a unique British volunteering spirit. S</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">ilently, behind the scenes, there will always be those prepared to work tirelessly in the interests of their British community.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPuxFPn1PRhqFaGUIQFGzeA_RkmFgc2sTYGIkXuICeQIFMihV8K-OJmsLCnr9klH1p4d-nMZugphtOjMlH4WxYBDkvSr2KX2DEGuPHOvjYYHeu3uKhmBrjgp25zyE9HAYxCxAv7FKCgp4/s1600/Alvaro%2527s+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="447" data-original-width="1012" height="141" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPuxFPn1PRhqFaGUIQFGzeA_RkmFgc2sTYGIkXuICeQIFMihV8K-OJmsLCnr9klH1p4d-nMZugphtOjMlH4WxYBDkvSr2KX2DEGuPHOvjYYHeu3uKhmBrjgp25zyE9HAYxCxAv7FKCgp4/s320/Alvaro%2527s+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Alvaro's Club</b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> When the current crisis is over, the COVID-19 storm, anyone joining the club will
realise at once that present members maintain the old club’s high
standards. Newcomers will soon feel glad to be a part of its delightful character, especially with all its lively
activities. There have been changes, of course. Apparently, in 1955, when new, young and radical members suggested that cold drinks, including
beer, might be served after games, many of the senior members got into a flap. Hip flasks would be permitted, of course, what, what!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><b>By John Reid Young</b></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><b><br /></b></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i>(This is an adaptation of a previous article of mine, published fifteen years ago in island newspapers, and certain images may have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>Author of books "A SHARK IN THE BATH AND OTHER STORIES" and "THE SKIPPING VERGER AND OTHER TALES", collections of short stories set in Tenerife and the Canary Islands". (For more information click on the images to the right of this page).</b></span></span></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b><br /></b></span></span></i></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>Owner of Tenerife Private Tours....</b></span></span></i></span><a href="http://tenerifeprivatetours.com/">http://tenerifeprivatetours.com/</a><br />
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<br />reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com36tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-30132424375645246762020-03-25T04:14:00.000-07:002020-03-25T04:14:28.826-07:00A British Submariner took the helm in Tenerife<br />
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Ever since 1892, when the
Reverend Thomas Gifford Nash took the first service at the newly built All Saints </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Church in Puerto de la Cruz, on the island of Tenerife,</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> it has been a source of comfort and strength to thousands
of residents and visitors. The beautiful church is o</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">ne of the pillars of the British community in the Canary Islands and </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">has been proudly served by a flock of faithful members of the congregation, always willing to give of themselves to
maintain a strong sense of community.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixkcnHdbOUCiVk1SH0rjWLBtmmYWaUZlHi0OwhviB16hsPT38zbeeV2rOnf-S3EStDPMTgDAkRhSZRs1fZRyT0WQcXhLY0X6K88wrB5NbAqDMzwdDX2Nw3iaLSH1vFT8polqjNT5ifq5I/s1600/church.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="303" data-original-width="400" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixkcnHdbOUCiVk1SH0rjWLBtmmYWaUZlHi0OwhviB16hsPT38zbeeV2rOnf-S3EStDPMTgDAkRhSZRs1fZRyT0WQcXhLY0X6K88wrB5NbAqDMzwdDX2Nw3iaLSH1vFT8polqjNT5ifq5I/s320/church.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b style="color: blue; font-size: small;">All Saints Church, Tenerife (courtesy All Saints Church, Puerto de la Cruz)</b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But All
Saints, to survive all these years in a foreign land, through crisis, two world
wars, a civil war, and dwindling worshipers in modern times has also required
the patient leadership of a good many dedicated chaplains, some of whom have
stood the test better than others. Almost every one of them made a valuable
contribution to the spiritual life of the British community. Nevertheless, as
in the case of so many quiet-living British residents who have come and gone, some of
them also had untold, brilliant and sometimes remarkable careers before
arriving on the island. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Canon George
Seaver, for example, who was chaplain at All Saints for a short time in the
1960s, was an Irish bachelor who had served for many years in the Colonial Office.
During his posting to <st1:place w:st="on">Northern Rhodesia, now Zambia,</st1:place> as
District Commissioner he became interested in missionary work and began to
investigate the life of Dr David Livingstone. In fact he wrote a remarkable biography of
the Scottish missionary. Whilst serving at All Saints in Puerto de <st1:personname productid="la Cruz" w:st="on">la Cruz</st1:personname> he was amazed to come
across descendants of Livingstone’s great friend and his family's benefactor, James Young of Durris, <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:country-region w:st="on">Scotland</st1:country-region></st1:place>.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9SDoAUZ6fnzrrTJ167hNhvOsqD9bY-syfwEwcr_SPvfwKRyKVRyQ1MorlVQtMgA40_ODtXl9eVrLmyoacmcs2rAUBd1jp-ha8PEDkh-DwmGwK17VKnppLuUvPETY0BxOpYZ89LgfhBDg/s1600/James+Young+cut.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1071" data-original-width="870" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9SDoAUZ6fnzrrTJ167hNhvOsqD9bY-syfwEwcr_SPvfwKRyKVRyQ1MorlVQtMgA40_ODtXl9eVrLmyoacmcs2rAUBd1jp-ha8PEDkh-DwmGwK17VKnppLuUvPETY0BxOpYZ89LgfhBDg/s320/James+Young+cut.jpg" width="259" /></a></div>
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<b style="color: blue; font-size: small;">James Young (from "Parrafin Young and Friends", by Mary Muir Leitch)</b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">As a personal
anecdote, George Seaver came to see me in 1968 when I was a schoolboy in
England and presented me with a book “The Adventures of Bam” which he had written
for his niece, Rosemary. It is about a little African boy in what is now Zambia. In an envelope tucked inside the book was an accompanying letter in which he told me to let my mother read
the book once I returned home to Tenerife. You see, he knew that my mother had grown up in Rhodesia and that she would probably appreciate it more than I. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQAxpLOrD2NU09BGAtwIoX5LwzJoROWoO_gQQsYTgQQES0CnuLymN5ncf1nvNfHcCs0mTMSB3sGhNEglioTdSYzYMLUcjmiDGKNtMhRhTP7F6rimqbdRDsd3Qaj1g8T7rdHlah-I1rj4k/s1600/BAM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQAxpLOrD2NU09BGAtwIoX5LwzJoROWoO_gQQsYTgQQES0CnuLymN5ncf1nvNfHcCs0mTMSB3sGhNEglioTdSYzYMLUcjmiDGKNtMhRhTP7F6rimqbdRDsd3Qaj1g8T7rdHlah-I1rj4k/s320/BAM.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<b style="color: blue; font-size: small;">The Adventures of Bam (from my private collection)</b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Another
example was the Reverend Canon Rupert Philip Lonsdale. He was born in Dublin in
1905 and educated at St. Cyprian’s School, Eastbourne. He joined the Royal Navy
straight from Royal Naval College, Osborne on the Isle of Wight in 1919. His
career was meteoric, from entering the submarine branch of the RN in 1927 to
being promoted Lt. Commander in 1936. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-Nc86D79QliQYgiirLGndRQutXZCd32eO-3F0xrQh_rklDec9ru8v4K547BhGeEPNBzEQygZezAEdPtwevSVJGw-i-rPr4URF4eGu4-Fw2pgMdXm5Cs2Q5iTOkqYTOy6hhoFbeGyBYB8/s1600/lonsdale+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="158" data-original-width="147" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-Nc86D79QliQYgiirLGndRQutXZCd32eO-3F0xrQh_rklDec9ru8v4K547BhGeEPNBzEQygZezAEdPtwevSVJGw-i-rPr4URF4eGu4-Fw2pgMdXm5Cs2Q5iTOkqYTOy6hhoFbeGyBYB8/s1600/lonsdale+%25282%2529.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b style="color: blue; font-size: small;">Lt. Commander Rupert Philip Lonsdale (photograph courtesy of the Daily Telegraph)</b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">After gaining valuable experience as a submarine captain in three different and ageing vessels, Lt.
Commander Lonsdale was given command of a new mine-laying submarine, HMS Seal.
It was a Porpoise Class submarine, built at the Chatham Dockyards and launched
in 1938. The submarine was commissioned in January 1939 and in August Lonsdale received orders to sail to the China Sea. He was to join the 4th Submarine Flotilla which was based there. On the way, whilst taking on supplies at Aden, war against Germany was declared. Two days later, on 5th September, HMS Seal began her first series of wartime patrols off the southern entrance to the Red Sea. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In <i>Will Not
We Fear</i>, Warren and Benson refer to Seal’s company as <i>“one of the biggest
collection of scallywags that the Submarine Service could put together”</i> and that
Lonsdale was considered <i>“too much of a gentleman to be a good submarine captain”</i>.
Nevertheless, it soon became very clear that, in his quiet and fair manner, he had
turned the crew into a very gallant and professional team and that every man
held their commanding officer in very high esteem. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbsucou6zjcHXC6WykJzrIlCH8cD2Cwh7APQMhmgMt5GHyPAyn4Gw3CD-V_fRh5RK6OXaDypv1nftmvkyfIS9oKaXHwgx718TaRz2ONguvA9l-WtzuDEJgWsDQYFOPrm93nDlN3MNQTd0/s1600/HMS_Seal+Courtesy+-+Navy+Photos+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="401" data-original-width="760" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbsucou6zjcHXC6WykJzrIlCH8cD2Cwh7APQMhmgMt5GHyPAyn4Gw3CD-V_fRh5RK6OXaDypv1nftmvkyfIS9oKaXHwgx718TaRz2ONguvA9l-WtzuDEJgWsDQYFOPrm93nDlN3MNQTd0/s320/HMS_Seal+Courtesy+-+Navy+Photos+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: small;">HMS Seal (courtesy - Royal Navy Photos)</b></div>
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<b style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></b></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Lonsdale was ordered to take Seal back to Portsmouth at the end of September. Just four days after docking he received orders to begin the first of many successful patrols carried out during the following six months, in the North Sea and in the Atlantic escorting convoys. On 30th April, 1940 he set sail from Immingham in the Humber estuary where he had been equipped with a complete outfit of mines. It was to be Seal's 11th war mission and Lonsdale's new orders were to begin laying a mine barrier south of the Swedish <st1:placetype w:st="on">island</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">Vinga</st1:placename> in the Skagettak channel. The plan was to disrupt German iron ore ships on their transport route to <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:country-region w:st="on">Norway</st1:country-region></st1:place>. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In spite of HMS Seal being too large to operate in such waters, and continuously
needing to dodge German anti-submarine trawlers and machine-gunning spotter-planes, Lonsdale persisted until the early hours of
4<sup>th</sup> May, 1940 when his submarine was attacked by a German HE 115 aircraft from
Aalborg.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Damage was
only slight and Lonsdale completed laying his last 50 mines in the required
location. But the incident with the aircraft marked the beginning of the end for the submarine because the aircraft had alerted German surface
ships and the hunt was on. Evasive action forced Rupert Lonsdale to take Seal into
an uncharted minefield and that same afternoon the submarine’s
hydroplanes caught on a German mine-mooring wire. The subsequent explosion sent
the Seal to the seabed with damage to the stern and severe flooding. There was
no option. They would have to lay low on the seabed </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">and try to carry out urgent damage control </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">until it was after dark before attempting
to surface.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Unfortunately
the submarine appeared to have also become entangled in nets and cables. Three attempts
to release his ship failed and the situation became desperate. The lights began to dim as a result of failing batteries, electrical short-circuits were fouling
the little air available and the carbon dioxide was slowing everyone down. Even
so, Lonsdale continued ordering that various emergency measures be taken. Although these
had no effect, the crew were highly impressed by their Captain’s quiet
resolution and faith. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">In fact, it
may have been his deep faith that saved his crew from certain death. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Lt.
Commander Lonsdale summoned as many members of the crew who could climb the
steeply sloping submarine to prayers in the control room. In a firm and steady voice he recited the Lord’s Prayer and a prayer of his own
whilst one last attempt was made to move the stranded submarine by blowing
tanks and using the motors again. Whether it was Lonsdale’s prayers, the weight
of most of the crew in the control room shifting the balance, the final
technical attempts or a combination of all, HMS Seal suddenly became un-stuck and began
to rise to the surface. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Once on the surface it was clear the steering gear was damaged.
Even so, Lonsdale attempted to take the submarine into Swedish waters by putting
the engines in reverse. It was impossibly slow progress and an hour after surfacing
HMS Seal was spotted by a German AR 196 seaplane. Oberleutnant Mehrens, the
pilot, attacked HMS Seal with two bombs and machine gun fire. A few minutes
later a second seaplane flown by Oberleutnant Schmidt joined in and several of
Seal’s crew members were injured. The British submarine put up a good fight with its Lewis gun until this jammed. Lt. Commander Rupert Lonsdale
made various attempts to scuttle his submarine and he assumed it would end up sinking, but she remained afloat, albeit listing heavily. In the
end he placed the survival of his crew first, waved a white wardroom table
cloth in capitulation and swam across to one of the seaplanes, surrendering HMS
Seal to Oberleutnant Schmidt. </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Indeed it
was the two seaplane pilots that actually carried out the formalities of
capturing the British submarine before German surface craft arrived on the
scene and towed the submarine to the German base at Keel.</span></div>
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<b style="color: blue; font-size: small;">The stricken and surrendered HMS Seal being towed towards Keel </b></div>
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<b style="color: blue; font-size: small;">(Note what may have been the wardroom tablecloth on the number one periscope)</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">HMS Seal was the only British ship to have surrendered during the war and Rupert Lonsdale is thought to have never forgiven himself although he and
his crew had managed to destroy most of any sensitive documents. The Germans
made a great deal of propaganda over the capture, of course. They repaired the
submarine and used her for training exercises. They also used the Seal’s
torpedo technology to improve their own design.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Lonsdale and
his crew spent the rest of the war as prisoners of war, during which time he
found increasing comfort in Christianity. Upon release in 1945 he was mentioned in
dispatches for his services as a POW and promoted to Commander. But he also faced
a court martial, the usual consequence for losing a ship. The Court, having heard all the evidence and how the crew supported their
captain, acquitted Lonsdale with honour after just half an hour and he was greeted by cheering fellow officers and crew members outside.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Lonsdale
commanded a minesweeper until he retired in 1947 to join the church. He became vicar
of Morden and Almer in Dorset in 1951 but then decided to take on the chaplaincy
of the Oasin Gishu district of Kenya from 1952 until 1958. After a short spell
as rector of Bentworth and Shalden in the Winchester diocese he returned to
Kenya and became Canon of Maseno in 1964. He was vicar of Thomham with Titchwell
in Norfolk from 1965 until his retirement in 1970. It was then that he spent
three very happy years as chaplain at All Saints in Puerto de la Cruz.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><b>By John Reid Young</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>Author of books "A SHARK IN THE BATH AND OTHER STORIES" and "THE SKIPPING VERGER AND OTHER TALES", collections of short stories set in Tenerife and the Canary Islands". (For more information click on the images to the right of this page).</b></span></span></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b><br /></b></span></span></i></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>Owner of Tenerife Private Tours....</b></span></span></i></span><a href="http://tenerifeprivatetours.com/">http://tenerifeprivatetours.com/</a><br />
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<br />reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-332300706845411822020-01-17T12:53:00.000-08:002020-03-24T12:29:41.223-07:00Olivia Stone meets her guide in Tenerife.<br />
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It was mid-day on the 9<sup>th</sup> September, 1883 when Olivia Stone and
her husband John arrived at the Turnbull Hotel in the Orotava Valley. There was a heavy cloud hanging in the valley, as it so often does, and it was
hot and sticky in the old town of Puerto de la Cruz.</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Although the couple were tired and glad to step down from the carriage that
had brought them from La Laguna for twenty five pesetas plus another ten for
their luggage, Olivia Stone, never one to wait until tomorrow, was
eager to make arrangements. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">She was determined to explore every corner of the island in order to
begin writing her second travel book as soon as possible. Her first, <i>Norway in June, </i>had been a resounding success, with <i>The Spectator</i> having refered to her writing as <i>"fresh, and charming, comprehensive and instructive"</i>. </span><br />
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Olivia Stone, an elegant, cultured and organised lady</b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Olivia was a cultured
and organised lady. Before departing from <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">England</st1:place></st1:country-region> she had made certain of
bringing letters of reference to present to important members of the community, like the <i>Marquesa de
Sauzal</i>. The Stones also had letters of introduction for useful European residents like Peter Spence Reid, the Honorary Vice Consul, Charles Smith of <i>Sitio Litre</i>, Louis
Renshaw and Germán Wildpret, amongst others. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">As soon as John and Olivia Stone had refreshed themselves after their dusty carriage ride they
were served lunch. After a brief siesta, as Olivia Stone later described, she explained
to the the hotel proprietors, John and ElizabethTurnbull and to Mr Reid, who had kindly come round to welcome them, that they wished to begin exploring the
island, and especially to climb Mount Teide, without delay. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">“In that case we must send for Lorenzo!” exclaimed Mr Reid. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Lorenzo was an institution in the valley. He became a well-known guide in the late
19<sup>th</sup> century for any of those adventurous Britons and other Europeans who had the
very misunderstood urge to climb Teide and was therefore the person
to consult about when and how to climb, depending on the weather conditions. As
it happened he lived close by and arrived in a matter of minutes. Besides, it
was none other than Mr Reid who had sent for him, and the port was still a
small town of not more than 5,000 inhabitants. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjptViCJUMzzT1tnEQM_72YrvyjW0E6khnXX6N058TSbHCypgTIal0bMR97HphZAt7xweKYzmCa8VFGu91CNPlmOU-pNa4u5aN43dPqT-z6CD2ow1AbwrxrdF5BgUy6WtskYIxG4SL0Hw4/s1600/Peter+S.+Reid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1192" data-original-width="869" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjptViCJUMzzT1tnEQM_72YrvyjW0E6khnXX6N058TSbHCypgTIal0bMR97HphZAt7xweKYzmCa8VFGu91CNPlmOU-pNa4u5aN43dPqT-z6CD2ow1AbwrxrdF5BgUy6WtskYIxG4SL0Hw4/s320/Peter+S.+Reid.jpg" width="233" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Peter S Reid in his latter years at his home "El Nido"</b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Olivia Stone took
note that “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">don Pedro el inglés</i>”, as
he was affectionately known by the locals, was a young looking 53 year old. Peter Reid had been born in <st1:city w:st="on">Melrose</st1:city>, <st1:country-region w:st="on">Scotland</st1:country-region>, in 1830 and had arrived on the island of Gran Canaria to work with his cousins at Casa Miller, (Swanston, Miller and Co.). Given the interest the Orotava Valley in Tenerife had earned amongst Victorian
travellers the firm sent young Peter Reid there to establish a subsidiary in Puerto de la Cruz in 1863. </span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Peter Reid decided very soon afterwards to cut
his ties with his cousin and formed his own company in 1865. It became
one of the most flourishing firms in the </span><st1:place style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Orotava</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Valley</st1:placetype></st1:place><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">.
At first he imported wood from the Baltic and soon brought in porcelain and
foodstuffs from </span><st1:country-region style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" w:st="on">England</st1:country-region><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> and
even goods from as far away as </span><st1:country-region style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">. H</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">e is still hailed as having been the pioneer in the export of Canary bananas to the United Kingdom but was probably best known for his export of Canary onion seed to the </span><st1:country-region style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">USA</st1:place></st1:country-region><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">. Peter Reid also imported excellent fabrics from </span><st1:country-region style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Ireland</st1:place></st1:country-region><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">
destined for a </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">calado</i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> linen work
industry he helped to establish and which still flourishes today.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhajb1pJH1txs2XxPTi7nOfopg361s1FKBBVzK_qbwLEZst5lq76ViQo2HgFEiUYiXj-2wMcHb6dPDJJwGQF8Mqd5htjnbID1oexARkyZMCOShYkupHJHs8ISOTNFIGc4k6kNNHtbNXTQQ/s1600/calado+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1311" data-original-width="857" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhajb1pJH1txs2XxPTi7nOfopg361s1FKBBVzK_qbwLEZst5lq76ViQo2HgFEiUYiXj-2wMcHb6dPDJJwGQF8Mqd5htjnbID1oexARkyZMCOShYkupHJHs8ISOTNFIGc4k6kNNHtbNXTQQ/s320/calado+1.jpg" width="209" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>A simple advertisement in Osbert Ward's guide book, <i>The Vale of Orotava</i>, (1903)</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">It was clear Olivia Stone was very taken by this very kind hearted and able man with the gentle Scottish accent. But she also</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> observed, <i>“Mr Reid, our Vice Consul here, holds
religious services on Sundays in his house. Being a Scot and a Presbyterian, he
sometimes gives a rather long sermon based upon Scottish religious works”</i>.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Some Spanish historians have been quite blunt about Olivia Stone. They considered her to be rather too Victorian for their liking. In other words, she gave
the impression of believing herself terribly superior, possibly because she pointed out failings as well as virtues. She
was very observant but evidently might not have realised how much some of her honest
opinions could upset proud feelings, especially in Gran Canaria, the other principal Canary Island. Just the title of her travel book, <i><st1:place w:st="on">Tenerife</st1:place>
and its six satellites</i> could have caused a civil war. In Gran Canaria the administrative classes considered their island to be the equal if not
superior to <st1:place w:st="on">Tenerife</st1:place>. Of course, Olivia had evidently taken into account the larger physical size and height of Tenerife for her title and nothing else.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJcSnXqCxHHsN9uyA2niTcD-2-7pYixqet3Gej83fR1QBbdxnLagWJQBQfRcnZWQ8SgGiYrbsulb8achA6yU7ejjU1CvVd77Hj4vBRt27kWfXboJX3Zo2hmjoDubBC90aB7aqXI8oxFE0/s1600/Olivia+Stone+Teneife+and+its+satellites.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="274" data-original-width="163" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJcSnXqCxHHsN9uyA2niTcD-2-7pYixqet3Gej83fR1QBbdxnLagWJQBQfRcnZWQ8SgGiYrbsulb8achA6yU7ejjU1CvVd77Hj4vBRt27kWfXboJX3Zo2hmjoDubBC90aB7aqXI8oxFE0/s1600/Olivia+Stone+Teneife+and+its+satellites.png" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Olivia Stone's illustrated guide to the Canary Islands</b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Olivia also made it clear that she became very fond of <st1:place w:st="on">Tenerife.</st1:place> She was happiest when sitting outside her tent, somewhere in the vineyards or pine forests of the upper-valleys, sipping a cup of wine and basking in the unique scenery. This is reflected in one of her
poems.......<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><i>Have I not turned to thee and thine,<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><i>Oh Sun-land of the palm and pine;<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><i>And sung thy scenes, surpassing skies<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><i>Till <st1:place w:st="on">Europe</st1:place> lifted up her face<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><i>And marvelled at thy matchless grace<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><i>With eager and inquiring eyes?<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><i>To pitch my tent, some tree and vine<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><i>Where I may sit above the sea, <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><i>And drink the sun as drinking wine,<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><i>And dream, or sing some songs of thee…</i><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Lorenzo García López, the Mount Teide Guide</b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">She liked Lorenzo, the guide. He seemed to be quite cultured. In fact his
fame was even advertised a few years later in George W. Strettell’s guidebook, <i>Tenerife, personal experiences of the Island as a Health Resort,</i> in which
Lorenzo was described as an authorised guide to Mount Teide, with 22 years experience
and good references. There is no doubt that Olivia Stone played her part in
creating his well-deserved fame after describing Lorenzo as <i>a thin, energetic looking man with
black hair, dark eyes, a black moustache, well tanned skin and very handsome.</i> Having at first assumed that the man was in his mid twenties Mrs Stone later
wrote that she discovered he was in fact 35.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Lorenzo agreed to supply the
English couple with three horses for a ride around the island, beginning the
very next morning. The horses cost five shillings a day plus food for them and
the men. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">“<i>I think that is a fair price</i>”, wrote Olivia Stone, “<i>especially as the
normal daily price is six shillings</i>.”</span><br />
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Hiking up Mount Teide was not as common or easy as it is today</b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Lorenzo charged them an extra four shillings for
climbing the great volcano. Curiously enough it has generally been <i>superior</i> visitors like
Olivia Stone who have done most to paint <st1:place w:st="on">Tenerife</st1:place>
at its best and to express their admiration and gratitude for the hard work of
those early day guides like Lorenzo.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">As a matter of interest local people knew the guide as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Lorenzo el Morisco</i> (Lorenzo the Moor), possibly, as some historians suggest, because one of his ancestors had bought a house in Puerto de la
Cruz which had belonged to a Moroccan family.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">In her accounts Olivia Stone seemed to describe what she saw on a
particular day, and not perhaps as things were in reality. Nevertheless,
despite what may evidently have been a misinterpreted superior nature, she did
manage to express the gentle manner of the islanders with unique honesty,
especially when referring to local custom. For example, when walking down an
apparently deserted street in the midday heat, tiny <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">postigos</i> would suddenly open in beautifully carved, wooden shutters and a curious, often very
beautiful face would look out just to see what was going on in the world.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCPbLPXrqFw-Klg6-9jEt_2KS8Ebd_ix5ZiaBYamfMb_1Kw5rJ2gEpHN7U3LAP6ZfPn7K2_w-xA6yV3ua7seb4PDeBd0pY6jzTV0oIC859jdgiZn9PE5Ptd_Wk9Ur8kw6L-Lu4izvCEmg/s1600/Postigo+in+Frances+Latimer%2527s+The+English+in+Canary+Islands+being+a+journal+in+Tenerife+and+Gran+Canaria.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1254" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCPbLPXrqFw-Klg6-9jEt_2KS8Ebd_ix5ZiaBYamfMb_1Kw5rJ2gEpHN7U3LAP6ZfPn7K2_w-xA6yV3ua7seb4PDeBd0pY6jzTV0oIC859jdgiZn9PE5Ptd_Wk9Ur8kw6L-Lu4izvCEmg/s320/Postigo+in+Frances+Latimer%2527s+The+English+in+Canary+Islands+being+a+journal+in+Tenerife+and+Gran+Canaria.jpg" width="250" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Permited courting through a postigo as illustrated in Frances Latimer's <i>The English in Canary Isles.</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Olivia Stone also referred to young mothers carrying carafes of wine or pots upon their
heads with their hands carrying even heavier loads whilst children hung on to their mother's dresses and aprons. </span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Unlike most of her comtemporaries from the British Isles, she also showed a healthy admiration for Canary Island cuisine. If she were to explore the more rural communities, away from the grand tourist resorts of today, she would find to her delight that the customary dish has changed as little as the islanders' generous and welcoming nature.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><b>By John Reid Young</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>Author of books "A SHARK IN THE BATH AND OTHER STORIES" and "THE SKIPPING VERGER AND OTHER TALES", collections of short stories set in Tenerife and the Canary Islands".</b></span></span></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b><br /></b></span></span></i></span>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>Owner of Tenerife Private Tours....</b></span></span></i></span><a href="http://tenerifeprivatetours.com/">http://tenerifeprivatetours.com/</a><br />
<br />
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reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-29238357282060316812019-06-11T12:14:00.001-07:002020-06-23T03:23:51.413-07:00Fiesta in Tenerife - from a Story in "The Skipping Verger and Other Tales"<br />
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b>It was the early 1970s when a
middle-aged English couple wandered across from the new San Antonio Hotel to
savour a touch of old colonialism at the British Games Club in Puerto de la
Cruz. They ordered gin and tonics, to which they were not especially
accustomed, and walked up the steps to the tennis courts from where they heard
very enthusiastic applause. Acknowledging whispered greetings, the visitors sat
down on immaculately painted, green benches to watch an entertaining game of
mixed doubles alongside a number of club members. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang=""><b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;">Needless to say, one wore whites to play tennis at the British Games Club</span></b></span></div>
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<span lang=""><b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b> After a few minutes they began to
hear what sounded like heavy gunfire in the distance. It was their first time
in Tenerife and the couple looked at each other in a rather startled manner
whilst the other spectators continued to enjoy the tennis and to applaud as if
the thunder of exploding shells were quite normal. At the end of a game and
whilst the players were changing ends, the visiting gentleman couldn’t bear it
anymore and decided to enquire.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Excuse me, what are all those
explosions about?” he asked the man wearing whites and a matching Panama hat
who was sitting beside him on the bench.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Oh, nothing to worry about old
chap…..just the natives attacking again!” replied the club member casually, in
his best colonial accent, before promptly standing up and wandering off down the
steps to the bar, leaving the visitor and his wife open mouthed and
confused.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The colonial, who apparently always
liked to watch some tennis after his game of bowls, returned a few minutes
later. He wore a broad smile and the twinkle in his eye betrayed a mischievous
sense of humour. He was followed by Manuel, the barman, carrying a tray with
two more gin and tonics for the innocent English couple. He thought it had been
long enough for them to digest the thought of the attacking natives and whether
or not they should speak to their Thompson’s representative about shortening
the holiday. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He explained that it was not gunfire
at all but fireworks high on the ridge at La Guancha. The low cloud hanging in
the valley did indeed make them thud like distant, exploding shells. He had been
in the war, don’t you know. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;"><span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b> “Fireworks...in the middle of the
day?” asked the tourist in disbelief.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“It’s a fiesta, old chap. They set off
fireworks at all hours here, especially during a fiesta. They do it to make
noise. They love noise. I’m afraid they can’t live without making noise. My
wife loves a good fiesta. Personally, I hate them.”<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sitting on the next bench, and unable to ignore
the conversation, was the wife of another old resident and she began to chuckle.
She remembered her first experience of a local fiesta twenty years earlier when
they arrived in Tenerife after one of the coldest Dartmoor winters on record.
One of the first things they decided to do was to go to the San Isidro fiesta
in La Orotava on a very hot June day. They packed themselves, their daughter,
the obedient black Labrador and provisions into the car before driving up into
the old town centre. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just outside the upper part of the
town anxious shepherds, goatherds and cowmen had begun to gather their oxen,
goats, mules and donkeys on a country lane. The animals wore beautifully
coloured rugs on their backs and whole families stood about dressed gaily in
traditional Canary garments, mingling with all the livestock. Panniers full of
fruit were being strapped to the donkeys whilst bullocks, thrashing their tails
against stinging flies, were being harnessed to magnificently adorned carts.
They were being made ready for the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">romería</i>,
a colourful procession through the streets representing agricultural and other
scenes from island life. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The family from Devon, who had made
certain of learning an adequate amount of Spanish before settling on the island
and Jan, their patient and understanding dog, found a good position from which
to view the procession. In fact a very kind and proud lady let them share the
raised position of her front door steps. They had already been invited by
welcoming townsfolk to share wine, chick peas, cheese<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>and balls of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">gofio</i> when
the proceedings began.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang=""><b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;">The Romería of San Isidro Labrador in La Orotava</span></b></span></div>
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<span lang=""><b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The swaying procession flowed down
the cobbled streets like an undulating sea of colour and sound. Most of the men
wore black fedora hats, white shirts, woollen breeches and scarlet cummerbunds.
The girls also bloomed in rich scarlet waistcoats over their gypsy blouses, and
their striped woven dresses covered exquisite petticoats.</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The girls, in their traditional "Maga" dress, were so pretty</b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b> They were so pretty
and they knew it and flaunted their beauty with a natural pride that is so much
a part of the Canary Islander’s nature. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang=""><b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;">Massive bullocks lead the way</span></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was much singing and even more
laughter. Ripples of admiration greeted the beautifully adorned carts and
strong men led their massive bullocks, leaning against their necks whenever
they needed to stop or to slow them down. The lovely girls offered even more
wine, fruit and delicious morsels of grilled meat prepared at the rear of carts
which made their jerky way down the cobbles. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The English family were feeling so
much at ease, loving every second and totally absorbed by the charms of a real
Spanish fiesta. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQrQcInIIaaUSN3SqyvVAE42158AR9GNe6zFaWQaxzAIwE_5FmIBtKD4kSaY-i8bzIrQqq3v7B_5mRr6l4i9bb-L8G4OKdqKpGGMLPDH0xoEZsixKqtTauBOtazsekXzndOcphsGLJ7Mg/s1600/02.06.16+Corpus+3+Carramel-coated+almonds+in+La+Orotava.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="614" data-original-width="1024" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQrQcInIIaaUSN3SqyvVAE42158AR9GNe6zFaWQaxzAIwE_5FmIBtKD4kSaY-i8bzIrQqq3v7B_5mRr6l4i9bb-L8G4OKdqKpGGMLPDH0xoEZsixKqtTauBOtazsekXzndOcphsGLJ7Mg/s320/02.06.16+Corpus+3+Carramel-coated+almonds+in+La+Orotava.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Canary Island charms at every corner</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As the wine flowed and morsels of food were
shared out and exchanged for smiles, so the generosity of these people
blossomed to even greater heights amongst themselves and towards total
strangers.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even Jan, the Labrador, seemed to be
enjoying the occasion. The scent of the huge, grilled chops filling the air and
the pieces of meat being handed here and there on wooden spikes was just too
exciting. There had never been anything so perfectly tempting. It was such
tremendous fun.</b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;">The first giant firework exploded</span></b><b style="font-size: 12pt;"> </b></div>
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<b style="font-size: 12pt;"> </b></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But suddenly it happened. The first giant firework
shot skywards and offered a deafening explosion immediately above their heads.
They should have known better. Although he was well accustomed to the sound of
shotguns during pheasant shoots on the moors, Jan objected, bolted across the
merry procession and disappeared.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Jan, Jan, Jan” called the English
lady cutting through the same colourful procession in hot pursuit after the
dog. She was followed in the same direction, but much more discretely, by her
husband and daughter.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I’ll bet he’s waiting for us at the
car”, she shouted back, trying to be reassuring while shoving her way through
the masses in what, to any onlooker, appeared to be a state of panic. People
shrugged their shoulders and remarked, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Son
ingléses”</i> to explain the strange behaviour. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The foreign lady was almost right.
Like any well trained hunting dog, the black Labrador had gone straight to
where they had parked the car. Unfortunately it was someone else’s car it had
got into. It was a big, black saloon and all its doors were locked. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How on earth did Jan get into it?
Somebody said the car belonged to a man called Paco and that he was bound to be
at the bar on the square. The Englishman and his daughter strode off in that
direction, leaving the wife to talk nicely at her dog through a rear window. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A short time later two smiling local
gentlemen ambled up. They stared at the car for a moment with slightly
bloodshot eyes and then gazed endlessly at the lady who was talking to the dog
that was inside the car. She could feel how desperately they were trying to
concentrate. After all it was an unusual situation for two drunks to deal with,
but she was foolish enough to try to explain her predicament without being
asked to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Never mind,<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> señora</i>, we will help you. You wait here. We will come back”, one
of them offered just before another huge firework exploded.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The English lady was just
congratulating herself for their departure when they returned, one of them
carrying a ghastly little brown dog with protruding teeth in his arms.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Here you are, we have found your
dog”, he said, holding it out towards her. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I have not lost my dog. That is my
dog in the car. I have lost the owner of the car and the car is locked with my
dog inside it. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Adios</i>. Please, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">adios</i>!” she begged, and looked around at
the gathering crowd of amused spectators. A firework went off. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Why don’t you want this dog? We
found it for you!” one of the two <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">amigos</i>
said accusingly. They stood there swaying, for a minute or two thinking, and
then one of them repeated, “You wait here. We will return. We know where to
find you another dog!” They looked around them at the spectators with widening
grins on their faces. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I don’t want a dog. My husband is
finding the man who owns this car. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Adios</i>”,
the English <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">señora</i> insisted very
loudly. Bang went another firework and the two men wandered off to the bar
again.</b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYe204mI2kVZvTGh-CW8KFnmvzEZ-IK8YMHooErbJXS1e7Q6R9tA9lO9i3QgDGOyf_LUq0xMmrmPxfFjDSKankSz4ZXxKycAUVTI_nhX85jVNU3L2x6kjx7tkrQxn0lQ9fj8SzEjZnlnc/s1600/IMG_0047.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="418" data-original-width="327" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYe204mI2kVZvTGh-CW8KFnmvzEZ-IK8YMHooErbJXS1e7Q6R9tA9lO9i3QgDGOyf_LUq0xMmrmPxfFjDSKankSz4ZXxKycAUVTI_nhX85jVNU3L2x6kjx7tkrQxn0lQ9fj8SzEjZnlnc/s320/IMG_0047.jpg" width="250" /></a></div>
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<span lang=""><b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;">A policeman joined in the fun</span></b></span></div>
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<span lang=""><b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At that point a Guardia Civil
policeman approached and enquired “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Que
pasa?</i>” <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She told him. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Ahhhhh!” he exclaimed. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“That is Don Angel’s car. He has just
been to the plaza with his wife, but how did your dog get into his car if it
was locked?” he asked with a definite hint of suspicion in his eye.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The English lady thought their
troubles were over at last simply because a policeman had taken an interest,
but she waited and waited. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Half an hour later her husband and
daughter returned. They both looked tired and very irritable, particularly the
husband. They had been to the house of Paco but he was out. In any case Paco’s
car was green. This one was black. She explained that the policeman had said it
belonged to Don Angel, so her husband grunted and went off to look for Don
Angel. Unfortunately Don Angel was also out and his servants said he might be <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">anywhere</i>. He was that kind of angel. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A man in the crowd offered to smash
the car window. Another said he would get a wire. Someone said he knew a man
who was good with hinges. Another firework shook the proceedings just when the
two <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">amigos </i>ambled up to the car
again.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Does it wear a collar, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">señora</i>?” the braver of the two asked
kindly.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I have not lost my dog!” she
retaliated, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. “I have found my dog. I am
waiting for my husband!” A very loud firework ended her sentence. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I told you,” said the other drunk, “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">La pobre mujer</i> has lost her husband, not
her dog. You wait <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">señora</i>!” <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They wandered off, determinedly this time,
and were back before long. On this occasion they were accompanied by an
extremely tall, blond man with a very red face.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Señora</i>.
He is here. We have found your husband for you!”<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Bonjour,
madame</i>”, said the foreign stranger very courteously indeed. “These two men
told me you are looking for me”. In fact the poor man, a Swiss resident, had
merely been having a beer or two at a corner bar when the two local gentlemen
stepped in. They had assumed by his foreign appearance that he must without a
doubt have been the missing husband, and dragged him along.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another loud firework exploded as the
English husband came around the corner. He took surprisingly little interest in
the two drunks and in the foreigner his wife was talking to in a very animated
manner and suggested he take his family home and return later to look for Don
Angel. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, at that moment another man
parked his car alongside the black saloon. Hearing about the predicament he
invited the lady to sit in it, where the dog could see her, while her husband
resumed the search for Don Angel. This gesture, which was accepted gratefully,
and the sincere assistance offered by the two drunks, was typical of the
kindness of Canary Islanders. Meanwhile, as the English husband continued
looking for Don Angel and everyone waited for the tale to end happily, all
sorts of rumours were being whispered about what the almost certainly innocent
Don Angel was doing, where and with whom. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The drunks became drunker and brought
more dogs and one or two husbands for the English lady to inspect. The
policeman came by again and shrugged his shoulders, and a number of fireworks
made people jump every now and then.</b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang=""><b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;">Jan, the labrador, had given up hope</span></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang=""><b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jan the Labrador had given up hope
and curled himself up on the rear seat of Don Angel’s car. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was late evening when the English
husband returned. His wife was about to accept the sensible alternative, which
was to be driven home whilst he waited by the car. But a tall, thin looking man
with a delightful face strolled up and surprised them in perfect English. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“You are looking for me. My name is
Angel López. I understand you think I have a dog for sale!”<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify;">
<span lang="" style="font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Before the English couple could
reply, a volley of fireworks thundered in the sky marking a triumphant end to
the fiesta. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<b>By John Reid Young</b></div>
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<b><br /></b></div>
<b><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">This publication happens to coincide with this year's very special fiesta and 100th anniversary of the famous Corpus Christi "Sand Carpets" in La Orotava.</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>Author of books "<i>A SHARK IN THE BATH AND OTHER STORIES"</i></b></span></span><b style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: inherit; font-size: 13.52px;"> </b><b style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: inherit; font-size: 13.52px;">and "<i>THE SKIPPING VERGER AND OTHER TALES</i>", collections of his short stories set in Tenerife and the Canary Islands.</b></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">KINDLE VERSION OF THIS BOOK FREE UNTIL 12TH JUNE </span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.52px;"><b>John Reid is also owner of Tenerife Private Tours</b></span></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.52px;"><a href="http://tenerifeprivatetours.com/" style="color: #888888; text-decoration-line: none;">http://tenerifeprivatetours.com/</a></span></span></div>
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<br />reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-63498211957402880532019-05-24T12:00:00.000-07:002019-05-24T12:00:28.773-07:00Darwin's Spanish Connection<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">When
the name Charles Darwin is mentioned, wherever you are in the world, it is
invariably in the context of nature and </span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">especially </span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">on the evolution of the species. In his work, <i>On the Origin of
Species by Means of Natural Selection</i>, he was perhaps the first big-name
scientist to clearly challenge the biblical account of creation.</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Charles Darwin</b></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">But
the idea of evolution, that plants and animals had changed and developed in the
course of time, was not new. Even in classical Greece such an idea existed and
geological discoveries in the 19<sup>th</sup> century gave rise to considerable
scientific speculation. What Darwin did was to provide an acceptable
explanation of how such development could take place. This was his theory of
natural selection, that all living things reproduce themselves with slight
variations to adapt to a changing environment. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">But
behind a great mind which was in the right place at the right time, there is
often another great character, or several, who manage to remain less acclaimed or even anonymous,
depending upon whose history books one prefers to read. Alexander Von Humboldt,
for example, is perhaps the best known of these and, if you were to read Andrea Wulf’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Invention of Nature</i>, in which she
describes Humboldt as “The Lost Hero of Science”, you might be forgiven in
thinking that perhaps Mr Darwin was, in fact, behind the times. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>The Invention of Nature, by Andrea Wulf</b></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">In
fairness, Charles Darwin was a huge admirer of Humboldt and, having read so
much of the Prussian’s writings, how disappointed he was in January 1832 when he
and his expedition were prevented by the local authorities from exploring the
island of Tenerife, from seeking out the amazing Dragon Tree in the Orotava
Valley and from climbing the great Mt Teide volcano. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Mount Teide through the retama and flixweed in Spring</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>The famous Dragon Tree (Dracaena draco) at Icod de los Vinos</b></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">HMS
Beagle anchored in the Bay of Santa Cruz on 6<sup>th</sup> January but, before
anyone could be rowed ashore, a little pale-faced man, as described by Darwin,
informed them that the Beagle was to be placed in quarantine for twelve days because
of a suspected outbreak of cholera in England. HMS Beagle sailed on her way,
catching <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">los Alisios</i>, the north
easterly trade winds, towards the Cape Verde Islands. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Painting by Conrad Martens of the Beagle at anchor whilst surveying Tierra del Fuego</b></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">One
of Spain’s own great adventurers and travellers had also been discovering the
wonders of nature before Charles Darwin, and perhaps never received the
attention he deserved. This often happens when a great nation or empire is in
decline, as Spain’s was in the early 19<sup>th</sup> century. His name was Felix de
Azara. He was a soldier, mathematician and engineer by profession. However, he was a
marvellous naturalist at heart and has numerous species named after him, like Azara’s
Night Monkey (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Aotus azarae)</i>. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Azara´s Night Monkey at Cristalino Jungle Lodge, Matto Grosso, Brazil</b></span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">He is also believed to have had a considerable, if unrecognised, influence on Darwin’s philosophy.</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> </span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Whilst </span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Azara played out his role as a military defender of the Spanish Empire he</span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> still found time to make amateur notes on the virgin ecosystems of the South American continent. </span></b></div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Azara's illustration of his "Tamandua noir", a species of anteater</b></span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;">He illustrated over five hundred birds and fifty mammals in a military exact manner but, what caught Darwin’s eye were Azara’s ideas about</span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> evolution</span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> which appeared in his later manuscripts.</span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> Azara´s findings were published in England
and France but not in Spain, possibly due to greater religious pressures.</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Sculpture of Felix de Azara by Eduard Alentorn (Barcelona's Martorell Museum)</b></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Felix
de Azara was more than a just naturalist. Indeed his adventures in the name of
the King of Spain would make a thrilling movie. It all began in 1781 when he
was ordered to set sail for Montevideo on a secret mission. He was a reputed
engineer and loyal to King Carlos III when he was commissioned to draw up the
borders between the Spanish and Portuguese South American territories, as
agreed under the 1777 Treaty of Ildefonso. In this task he covered a surface as
big as Western Europe from the Andes to the Atlantic coast, from Patagonia to the
dense forests of Brazil and the Bolivian hills. </span></b></div>
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<b style="text-align: center;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">It was evident, </span></b><b style="text-align: center;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">perhaps as scientists like Humboldt, Azara and Darwin began to understand that everything in nature appeared to be connected somehow, that the Spaniard</span></b><b style="text-align: center;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></b><b style="text-align: center;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">had also, by accident, become a pioneering anthropologist. </span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">He identified forty different tribes or <i>nations, </i>as he preferred to call them,
and studied their customs. </span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Running against the tide of European colonial
methods Azara is possibly one of the earliest Europeans to have shown concern
for the manner in which different peoples in remote parts of the world were
being <i>cultured</i> by advanced
civilisations. Some movements today, in their absurd quest to annihilate history
as a remedy for our sins, are asking Europeans to apologise for what Felix de
Azara already recognised over two hundred years ago.</span></b></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">“<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">What a pity to see such beautiful and strong
nations extinguished by our intervention. What I find most sad is that there
appears to be no remedy</i>”. </span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">It is no wonder his views were kept quiet in
those days, but it is no surprise also that relatively new "nationalisms" are using these very understandable feelings to stir up nationalist sentiment today. On this side of the Atlantic, the Canary Islands were a stepping-stone for early American exploration and exploitation, and the islands' own indigenous nations or kingdoms, the <i>Guanche</i> people, were, as Azara would say, "cultured" and to a great extent, extinguished. It is since the Canary Islands were given the chance to have their autonomous governments, and have been governed by semi-nationalist coalitions, that interest in the Guanche heritage has become much more than just anthropological and, rightly so, helped Canary Islanders today to feel very proud of their indigenous background. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Azara,
Darwin’s Spanish connection, returned to Spain in 1801. In what is an early
example of man’s continuing need to progress, even if it involves evident destruction
of the environment and of the species, he discovered that many of the reports and
birds he had sent back to Spain had vanished in mysterious circumstances.
Nevertheless he continued to serve Spain as a soldier, especially against the
French, whose culture, incidentally, he greatly admired.</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Garamond",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: verdana; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: calibri;"><span style="color: black; font-family: calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i></span></span></span></span><br style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 15.84px;" /></div>
<br />
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<b>By John Reid Young</b><br /><b><br /></b></div>
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<div class="MsoBodyText" style="font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>Author of books "<i>A SHARK IN THE BATH AND OTHER STORIES</i>" and "<i>THE SKIPPING VERGER AND OTHER TALES</i>", collections of his short stories set in Tenerife and the Canary Islands.</b></span></span><br /><div style="color: #333333;">
<br /></div>
</div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.52px;"><b>John Reid is also owner of Tenerife Private Tours</b></span></span><br /><span style="color: blue; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.52px;"><a href="http://tenerifeprivatetours.com/" style="color: #888888; text-decoration-line: none;">http://tenerifeprivatetours.com/</a></span></span></div>
</div>
<br />reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com30tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-68040341117528435372019-04-16T02:49:00.000-07:002019-04-16T02:49:53.168-07:00DITCHED! When an aircraft crashed into the sea off Tenerife.<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">A
brief, almost matter-of-fact entry in Noel Reid’s diary on Friday 16<sup>th</sup>
September, 1966 refers to an aircraft that crashed into the sea just off the
northern town of El Sauzal on the Canary Island of Tenerife.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">“Spantax plane for La Palma had to make a
forced landing in the sea near Los Angeles. Very good work by pilot. One male
passenger only lost due to fear. I think crew could not unfasten his grip”. </span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilUOe2DoTLhxcRv3fTxc6trt-Ihg8CiXUY9Jj3ORVue_ykP6OxTfYJ8paU7M9INVv0VVOrYBT7brMGS74FQfuonWArvlwy0ASJegfto_hpOHE_1UA4Z7DHOj7tcA-u35e03jsmO45Nh1U/s1600/Noel+Spence+Reid+WW2+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1525" data-original-width="1160" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilUOe2DoTLhxcRv3fTxc6trt-Ihg8CiXUY9Jj3ORVue_ykP6OxTfYJ8paU7M9INVv0VVOrYBT7brMGS74FQfuonWArvlwy0ASJegfto_hpOHE_1UA4Z7DHOj7tcA-u35e03jsmO45Nh1U/s320/Noel+Spence+Reid+WW2+%25282%2529.jpg" width="243" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Lt. Colonel Noel S Reid OBE DSO MC TD</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Noel
Reid served in both World Wars and had been tea farming in Africa in between
and for a short spell afterwards before returning to his home town of Puerto de
la Cruz. His diary annotations clearly reflected his Army ways with a
preference for precise notes. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><o:p></o:p></i></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCK7Y-m6SMGbmtxP3RxSwOg2mkdY1UFFj-TKobAwPfw0_l-SJS60vYBcYJXB9QemqoXFIPu9uqnxWEbtw75ry4L4gZSMji70AbOBZRVnugnFflpyB8afv6tbcwHsyLk3KOiSy9pug2jug/s1600/1963+Los+Rodeos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="660" data-original-width="960" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCK7Y-m6SMGbmtxP3RxSwOg2mkdY1UFFj-TKobAwPfw0_l-SJS60vYBcYJXB9QemqoXFIPu9uqnxWEbtw75ry4L4gZSMji70AbOBZRVnugnFflpyB8afv6tbcwHsyLk3KOiSy9pug2jug/s320/1963+Los+Rodeos.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;">Los Rodeos airport with Mount Teide in the distance</span></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">It
was 08.21. The Spantax Airlines Douglas Dakota DC-3 lifted off from Los Rodeos,
what is today known as Tenerife North airport, into the cloudy, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">panza del burro</i> sky towards the west,
heading for the island of La Palma. Apart from the pilot, co-pilot and
airhostess there were 24 passengers, including three children on board. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIt6iqZGVQ9lFv_xdY-k49Q5B0wOrCAsffrfprhTrp1qq_FIKQ5t6xT4ylp7hg4OD1VuJlnD_yfuY0cL_otZJKYcz70pvy-LhzPQB0BXr8l2ezMkQ_EfpJu6pkL4n2_uQDjWu-rvtA1aU/s1600/ECACX_R.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="202" data-original-width="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIt6iqZGVQ9lFv_xdY-k49Q5B0wOrCAsffrfprhTrp1qq_FIKQ5t6xT4ylp7hg4OD1VuJlnD_yfuY0cL_otZJKYcz70pvy-LhzPQB0BXr8l2ezMkQ_EfpJu6pkL4n2_uQDjWu-rvtA1aU/s1600/ECACX_R.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Spantax Airlines DC-3 EC-ACX</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The
Dakota, a faithful old workhorse of the island airways, roared into a gentle
climb. All seemed perfectly in order until seconds after
entering the first cloud layer when the port engine over-revved. That was one
of the worst possible failures to occur in those days and the aircraft began to
lose height from 2,600 feet above sea level. </span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The
crew realised they were still flying over land but the dense cloud made it
impossible for the pilot, Eugenio Maldonado, to judge exactly what their
position was. He knew they were surrounded by hills and that there was a very
strong possibility that they would plunge into one of them at any moment. </span></b></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">“<i>We are going to kill ourselves</i>”, uttered
Fernando Piedrafita, the co-pilot quietly. He seemed remarkably composed.</span></b></div>
<br />
<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">After a horrifying thirty seconds and losing height rapidly, they spotted the coastline
below El Sauzal. Miraculously they had left the hills behind them and the
jagged and beautiful cliffs began to drop sharply to the sea. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">“<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">It’s going to be all right. We’ll ditch her
in the sea</i>”, Maldonado reassured his colleague. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixwO2LHPWSrE7Gi9TfGGhPznlzp90eLZpwrPQUE5YLoWE51hkZecPCrnLJh46h4eUY4OfcvR1QRmZjLTjHRBIUywwR9X0fYfr-jUJr3I7nfqpeAiecbsmiqxGMPPnbTLMRhexdGHgkbks/s1600/330x440EugenioUniformeSpantax+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="345" data-original-width="264" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixwO2LHPWSrE7Gi9TfGGhPznlzp90eLZpwrPQUE5YLoWE51hkZecPCrnLJh46h4eUY4OfcvR1QRmZjLTjHRBIUywwR9X0fYfr-jUJr3I7nfqpeAiecbsmiqxGMPPnbTLMRhexdGHgkbks/s320/330x440EugenioUniformeSpantax+%25282%2529.jpg" width="244" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Pilot Commander Eugenio Maldonado</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Eugenio
Maldonado was only 26 years old but his actions were so calm and skilful that
he avoided what would otherwise have been a disaster. He quickly informed the
passengers of the situation and told them to put on their life jackets because
he was going to try to land on the sea. He also asked everyone to remain calm but
to be prepared for a rough landing. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">In
a local press interview thirty-seven years later Maldonado praised those aboard
his plane.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
passengers really responded very well indeed. There were no signs of panic at
all</i>”. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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</div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Nevertheless
at 08.33 the silver Dakota with the familiar Spantax Airlines white and sky-blue
colours hit the sea so hard that the pilot of another aircraft flying towards
Los Rodeos reported upon landing that there would be no survivors. His
pessimistic report led to the emergency services taking rather a long time
getting to the scene of the crash. There was nothing they could do, they
mistakenly thought.</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">After
the impact the young pilot knew he only had five minutes to get survivors out
before the aircraft disappeared under the surface. Luckily, a fishing boat had
been netting an early morning catch nearby and was quickly alongside the
steaming aircraft to help pick up some of the passengers and crew. </span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The
trickiest moment for the pilot was when he asked the mothers to hand over their
children. The mothers refused to be separated at first but Maldonado was firm
enough to persuade them. The children, followed by the women and the older men
were lifted into the fishing boat. The remaining passengers simply had to make
do with hanging on to the side of the swaying little <i>falua</i> as best they could.</span></b></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Meanwhile,
Commander Eugenio Maldonado realised that one passenger had a firm grip on the
aircraft’s doorway and was refusing to let go. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">“<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I can’t swim</i>”, was the only thing the
man would say. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">“<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I will take you to the boat. You can hang on
to me</i>”, implored </span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Maldonado, trying to get him to let go.</span></b></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">But the man wouldn't reply, however much Maldonado insisted. In fact
his eyes appeared to stare straight at the pilot. What Maldonado did not
realise was that during those few seconds the man was actually dying of a heart
attack as</span></b><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> the Dakota flooded and began to sink fast. The pilot grabbed the passenger but both men were sucked down into the deep with the aircraft and Maldonado, still holding on to the dead man, began to lose strength. He really thought
he was done for but, during those desperate minutes, the airhostess, Mari
Carmen Vázquez, in another act of courage, plunged into the depths herself to
save her Captain’s life. The pilot, whom she pulled to the surface just in
time, was still holding on to a piece of shirt torn from the passenger
whose life he had attempted to save.</span></b></div>
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<b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">After
recovering enough to check that the rest of the passengers and crew were safe
he was landed ashore and was able to report to the emergency services that all
except one person on board flight IB261 had survived.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Under Spanish transport and maritime laws at that time Commander Maldonado was
actually condemned to death for the loss of one passenger. Perhaps it was
assumed that most pilots would die anyway. Nevertheless he was released after
an autopsy proved the lost passenger had died of a heart attack and had not
been drowned as a result of the accident. The unfortunate passenger, Fernando
Izquierdo, was a justice of the peace from the town of La Victoria where he had
once been Mayor. So perhaps he would have been pleased to hear that justice had
been done.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTINqyNdILMgZB5TduXp2O6_Jdb05BrTdf2B58k-o_OzXSuFpj_-O0XDDMtSZ20VVUAmCJ5H0j2FMLmEU6-2XZox1RYAmaIvS9snbeKVdMjz9G8kqrNj7hOC3Owg2Oa4pz4CDdOQdyHpI/s1600/2018+02.11+Carpobrotus+edulis.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTINqyNdILMgZB5TduXp2O6_Jdb05BrTdf2B58k-o_OzXSuFpj_-O0XDDMtSZ20VVUAmCJ5H0j2FMLmEU6-2XZox1RYAmaIvS9snbeKVdMjz9G8kqrNj7hOC3Owg2Oa4pz4CDdOQdyHpI/s320/2018+02.11+Carpobrotus+edulis.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;">The Dakota crashed off the stunning northern coast of Tenerife</span></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Maldonado
eventually moved to live in mainland Spain. He was distinguished and praised
for his skill and bravery in 1966 and never forgot any detail of that
particular flight. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">“<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">What you always have in mind is how to save
the lives of the passengers and crew. You automatically organise yourself in
such a way that you really believe in what you are doing. A pilot is capable of
giving his life to save others</i>.” <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">His
advice to young pilots in an emergency today is not to abandon hope. There is
always a solution. Nevertheless, despite modern technology, old twin-engine
Dakotas, ungraceful as they might have looked, were probably simpler beasts to
fly. There were fewer reasons for failure and the pilot, ultimately in control, had fewer possible
solutions to consider.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "verdana"; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended. This is an adapted version of an article published by the same author in the Island Connections newspaper of Tenerife)</i></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="color: #333333; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; line-height: 20.28px;">
<b>By John Reid Young</b><br />
<b><br /></b></div>
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<div class="MsoBodyText" style="font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><b>Author of books "<i>A SHARK IN THE BATH AND OTHER STORIES</i>" and "<i>THE SKIPPING VERGER AND OTHER TALES</i>", collections of his short stories set in Tenerife and the Canary Islands.</b></span></span><br />
<div style="color: #333333;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="color: #333333;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;"><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/8469761609">https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/8469761609</a></span></span></div>
<div style="color: #333333;">
<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales-Tenerife/dp/8461596323">https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/8461596323</a></div>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.52px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.52px;"><b>John Reid is also owner of Tenerife Private Tours</b></span></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: "arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.52px;"><a href="http://tenerifeprivatetours.com/">http://tenerifeprivatetours.com/</a></span></span></div>
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<br />reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-57604663009454402022018-11-15T10:54:00.001-08:002018-11-15T10:54:50.014-08:00A Flying Boat in Tenerife<br />
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">An entry in the diary of a British resident living on the Atlantic island of Tenerife in the Canary Islands remarked on how an afternoon tea on the veranda with her
baby daughter on 9<sup>th</sup> January, 1956 was suddenly interrupted by a far-off drone. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Although she was blessed to be living just above Puerto de la Cruz in the Orotava valley, a tranquil paradise where birdsong competed for attention only with the laughter and shouting of the men in the banana plantations, that sound made her shiver. Just f</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">or a second the deep humming noise reminded her of a German bomber high over her father’s farm in Kent as it headed to release bombs
on the London docks during the war. She put her child down and walked to the edge of the garden to look into the sky.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPtatYI6OBAl552lwD32XOtY1OHJmfPiCYo9oitvCTy2ZkXxueFGmMDBNJnNCugntEqmrQTPR_oaLOTOWGIh857d0BTAGmv__JPm95RmeMiIyO3Awv25hUKldePLB21ziu6TzuQwPYWlI/s1600/Puerto+from+Taoro-Churchill%2527s+visit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="669" data-original-width="1061" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPtatYI6OBAl552lwD32XOtY1OHJmfPiCYo9oitvCTy2ZkXxueFGmMDBNJnNCugntEqmrQTPR_oaLOTOWGIh857d0BTAGmv__JPm95RmeMiIyO3Awv25hUKldePLB21ziu6TzuQwPYWlI/s320/Puerto+from+Taoro-Churchill%2527s+visit.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Puerto de la Cruz, between the sea and the bananas</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It was certainly an aeroplane but she knew
it wasn’t one of the island-hopping Dakotas on its way from Los Rodeos, the old airport in Tenerife, to the landing
field above Santa Cruz, the capital of the island of <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">La Palma</st1:place></st1:city>. </span><br />
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqaPCHU-7jonKj5L9cE_Odpj5q8MctUurunWYVbNMd4TNwNrOYB4NIbPWr7vD6O-BF3H5IqvPaYayZouo9urL44nogqwVKL_2Ycb2UKVNvjg1ERltz0JsfV8ql1TKtK4x8w7iaNFTBzf8/s1600/1963+Los+Rodeos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="660" data-original-width="960" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqaPCHU-7jonKj5L9cE_Odpj5q8MctUurunWYVbNMd4TNwNrOYB4NIbPWr7vD6O-BF3H5IqvPaYayZouo9urL44nogqwVKL_2Ycb2UKVNvjg1ERltz0JsfV8ql1TKtK4x8w7iaNFTBzf8/s320/1963+Los+Rodeos.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: calibri, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Los Rodeos airport with a Dakota just visible to the left of the control tower</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: calibri, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
</div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">As she searched in the sky the drone suddenly turned magnificently into the impressive
roar of a huge sea plane and it made a triumphant low pass over the lush northern coastline
of <st1:place w:st="on">Tenerife.</st1:place> What she didn’t know was that her
cousin Tom was a passenger on the plane and that this once in a lifetime flight
over Puerto de la Cruz was the result of another of his entrepreneurial ideas.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgc9424vOfSGFRnkfrhcWeOFDuxQ6sflvArWzkaTxIX9dCHvxEBqxXnzdPu8FMsknRYP_Jt9NGSgiQnpq3a5dksYCD8_WTBsfeBlduZnPODk3Kf3cDYGiMuT_INki1vVNxChE8ZZ9inLI/s1600/AQUILA-AIRWAYS-SOLENT4.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="468" data-original-width="640" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgc9424vOfSGFRnkfrhcWeOFDuxQ6sflvArWzkaTxIX9dCHvxEBqxXnzdPu8FMsknRYP_Jt9NGSgiQnpq3a5dksYCD8_WTBsfeBlduZnPODk3Kf3cDYGiMuT_INki1vVNxChE8ZZ9inLI/s320/AQUILA-AIRWAYS-SOLENT4.02.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>A Short Solent flying boat of Aquila Airways</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
</div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">That Short Solent flying boat belonged to Aquila Airways Ltd. The
company began a regular service from <st1:place w:st="on">Southampton</st1:place>
after its founder, Barry Aikman, bought a number of the aircraft from BOAC,
which was withdrawing its fleet of sea planes. To begin with they were just
used as freight carriers but they were later converted into luxury passenger
aircraft for the new tourism routes. The company’s first holiday destination was Madeira via <st1:city w:st="on">Lisbon</st1:city> but they later extended it to
<st1:city w:st="on">Las Palmas, on the Canary island of Gran Canaria</st1:city> and opened new
routes to <st1:place w:st="on">Capri</st1:place>, Santa Margarita and Montreux. Passengers travelled in great comfort
and <i>service a l'anglaise or </i></span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“silver service” was provided during meals aboard, reflecting early days of tourism when
standards were extremely high.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD2avWY3URuWFatRZYvITGp45ZETA2ngRyNY4fQMR1xb74qK81aIqAlLjqzyq_kvYGJBoXwICgilAypUh7WBgdAUiV6snS1n1qcGzTuSYhKCfCcG1urJ9muT4VXd2UTwuR5wqaU0vW7mo/s1600/poster-ad-aquila-airways-4431699+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="557" data-original-width="354" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD2avWY3URuWFatRZYvITGp45ZETA2ngRyNY4fQMR1xb74qK81aIqAlLjqzyq_kvYGJBoXwICgilAypUh7WBgdAUiV6snS1n1qcGzTuSYhKCfCcG1urJ9muT4VXd2UTwuR5wqaU0vW7mo/s320/poster-ad-aquila-airways-4431699+%25282%2529.jpg" width="203" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Advertising posters, so typical 1950s, added a touch of magic</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It was a time when the thoughts of attracting mass tourism to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">Valley</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">La Orotava</st1:placename></st1:place> were beginning to take shape
and the British lady’s diary seemed rather sceptical and concerned about her
cousin, Tom’s ideas. He wanted Aquila Airways to fly to Tenerife as well as to <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Las Palmas</st1:place></st1:city>. That is the
reason he was on that Short Solent flying boat and why he had agreed with the
company and pilot Jim Broadbent to make a small diversion, by flying round the
coast of Tenerife before continuing on their way to <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Las Palmas</st1:place></st1:city>. Naturally passengers on their way
to holiday in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Las Palmas</st1:place></st1:city>
were thrilled. Teide was sparkling with a fresh coat of snow and the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Orotava</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Valley</st1:placetype></st1:place>, as the
flying boat passed by, was an enticing vision of paradise. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">Sadly the Aquila Airlines flying boats never came to <st1:place w:st="on">Tenerife</st1:place>.
The idea never prospered. To begin with the local authorities took their time
to digest the initiative, especially as the aircraft would have to compete for
space with ships in the <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Santa Cruz</st1:place></st1:city>
harbour a</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">nd landing in the rarely calm seas off Puerto de la Cruz was simply out of the question.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3pH2e-hgcmUBs5p74y2PSFK7Ile-O16aOKLZh-JlJ7vAkBQhl70Aeq9B91H9AmgzbHSiI465AIC7QeecnS1yZ3DI6t0oICHz5jwJ77i0ND36NC3yJBQTSOsapVeNUVT7SgdRl9yM9SKE/s1600/1950s+2+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="340" data-original-width="960" height="141" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3pH2e-hgcmUBs5p74y2PSFK7Ile-O16aOKLZh-JlJ7vAkBQhl70Aeq9B91H9AmgzbHSiI465AIC7QeecnS1yZ3DI6t0oICHz5jwJ77i0ND36NC3yJBQTSOsapVeNUVT7SgdRl9yM9SKE/s400/1950s+2+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Ships line the south mole at Santa Cruz, the capital of Tenerife</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
</div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">But tragedy marked the end of the Tenerife project. In fact, it also brought a rapid decline to Aquila Airways. </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">Just two
years after that flying boat interrupted the British lady’s afternoon tea on the veranda overlooking the colourful town of Puerto de la Cruz a Solent flying boat on its way to <st1:city w:st="on">Las Palmas</st1:city>
developed engine trouble after taking off from Southampton and crashed on
the <st1:place w:st="on">Isle of Wight</st1:place>. The crew and all 35
passengers were killed. As a result confidence in the safety of those flying boats began to falter. At the same time it became known that <st1:place w:st="on">Aquila</st1:place>
had begun to have difficulty finding spare parts for the aircraft. They were
forced to cease flying in 1958.</span><br />
</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiImslWQKRPOmUhXwtTbSMiiZif6QOnnldEBX4dpxCil3y2DRb4rTOsIKHY9DHIJ4noqLFSVoRLVhYrDp2RKGwjb0Tjtk15TugQBZnWtcoysVDqZZolc10JPC8833ErcyAa5ioYS6hkPEs/s1600/Captain+Harry+Frank+%2528Jim%2529+Boradbent.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="353" data-original-width="547" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiImslWQKRPOmUhXwtTbSMiiZif6QOnnldEBX4dpxCil3y2DRb4rTOsIKHY9DHIJ4noqLFSVoRLVhYrDp2RKGwjb0Tjtk15TugQBZnWtcoysVDqZZolc10JPC8833ErcyAa5ioYS6hkPEs/s320/Captain+Harry+Frank+%2528Jim%2529+Boradbent.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span lang="EN-GB" style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Captain Harry Frank (Jim) Broadbent</b></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">Coincidentally it was the same year when Jim
Broadbent, who flew that magnificent aircraft past Puerto de la Cruz in
January 1956, is presumed to have died. A legendary pilot who began his flying career in Australia, he started flying for a Portuguese
airline called ARTOP </span><span style="font-family: calibri, sans-serif;">after the demise of Aquila Airways. O</span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">n 9th November he took off from Lisbon to Madeira in a Martin Mariner flying boat. An hour into the flight, at 13.21, a member of the crew reported they were making an emergency landing in the Atlantic. No trace of the aircraft, crew or passengers were ever found. </span><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> </b><br />
<b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><br /></b>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: verdana; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: calibri;"><span style="color: black; font-family: calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended. This is an adapted version of an article published by the same author in the Island Connections newspaper of Tenerife)</i></span></span></span></span><br style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: calibri; font-size: xx-small;" /><span style="background-color: white;"><div class="MsoBodyText" style="color: #333333; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; line-height: 20.28px;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="color: #333333; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; line-height: 20.28px;">
<b>By John Reid Young</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 20.28px; text-align: justify;">
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="color: #333333; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">Author of books "A SHARK IN THE BATH AND OTHER STORIES" and "THE SKIPPING VERGER AND OTHER TALES" , short stories set in Tenerife and the Canary Islands.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.52px;">https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/8469761609</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.52px;">https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/8461596323</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.52px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.52px;"><b>John Reid is also owner of Tenerife Private Tours</b></span></span></div>
</div>
</span><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">http://tenerifeprivatetours.com/ </b></div>
<br />reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-85757912751200568412018-04-19T02:28:00.000-07:002018-04-19T02:28:59.629-07:00A SHARK IN THE BATH AND OTHER STORIES<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Dear friends,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">With a little help from DesignCrowd, I have chosen the the cover for my new book, "A Shark in the Bath and Other Stories". It is available very soon!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFxci8yz-jM1QuR_V57iaBY3oo9jlNWqEhpT0KTNl5VmY6UByMzpPAkU9uRCuIc8QvmbN1d1fdCXtJYUNt9KLfROh1HyzouTnEySZ4TT3nMzTS3sXkBK8odTlnGTjLV7yyCK_Lg74bHkQ/s1600/A+Shark+in+the+Bath+and+Other+Stories.tif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFxci8yz-jM1QuR_V57iaBY3oo9jlNWqEhpT0KTNl5VmY6UByMzpPAkU9uRCuIc8QvmbN1d1fdCXtJYUNt9KLfROh1HyzouTnEySZ4TT3nMzTS3sXkBK8odTlnGTjLV7yyCK_Lg74bHkQ/s320/A+Shark+in+the+Bath+and+Other+Stories.tif" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Hlk508797280"><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></b></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Hlk508797280"><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;">What would <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">you</i> do
if you found a shark in a hotel bath?</span></b></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_Hlk508797280"><b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></b></a></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The hotel manager
was horrified. Well, he would be, wouldn’t he? There’s a shark in a guest’s
bath. How did it get there? Only I, the author, knows....and I can tell you I was in a heep of trouble!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Hotel sharks aren’t
the only surprise in this charming collection of short stories set in Spain’s
Canary Islands… <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span>There’s a desperate race against time to arrest
one of the Great Train Robbers when he flees to Tenerife.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span>A British revolutionary gets caught up in the
illegal transport of human cargo during the dark days of General Franco.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span>A young American is shocked when he finds out
why island villagers are convinced he’s a ghost.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span>When a pirate’s chest was discovered in a cave near
a waterfall, nobody could have expected what lay within.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;">
<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In these, and other
fascinating stories, you’ll encounter a host of captivating characters, some of
whom have left their mark in the history of these beautiful Atlantic islands,
and you’ll discover that this unique archipelago off the African coast is so
much more than just a modern-day tourist destination.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I hope you'll let my stories transport you to bygone days
of love, war, intrigue and adventure in the sub-tropical sunshine of Tenerife.</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508797280;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b>If you would like to know more, please see link below:</b></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
<style type="text/css"><!--td {border: 1px solid #ccc;}br {mso-data-placement:same-cell;}--></style><div class="MsoNormal">
<a class="in-cell-link" href="http://geni.us/blogtolandingpage" style="font-family: arial; font-size: 10pt;" target="_blank">http://geni.us/blogtolandingpage</a><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b> </b></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span>reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-18496941227255074372017-01-19T03:48:00.001-08:002021-04-19T03:46:15.942-07:00An English Major and his Canary Island Sunset<br />
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"> The
Illustrated London News, for decades an essential newspaper and reflection of
British imperial glory, often carried sketches and photographs from those fearless
adventurers and explorers who helped shape British dominions. It was also an
educational magazine in which contributors described interesting events and
picturesque lands Victorian ladies and gentlemen might like to visit. The Canary
Islands were idyllic and conveniently placed on steamship routes to India and Cape
Town before the Suez Canal was opened in 1869. Travellers found themselves
enchanted by the Spanish Macaronesian archipelago and contributed articles and
images to British and European publications, including the Illustrated London
News.</span></div>
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh9e8OfSKmGrLfo8J5Pim7uTCJ8sYcOM4AT0N2uA_s4VlwfGECUURNC0xRuA2hh793IOxBNPj38njhnjlePliSYfshiFpu0r2my8xTc06Ck7wU93FaIa5gMkWGYZDuKF8HkMj4Q7LMbvc/s1600/CiZ6z3uW0AAumJX.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="121" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh9e8OfSKmGrLfo8J5Pim7uTCJ8sYcOM4AT0N2uA_s4VlwfGECUURNC0xRuA2hh793IOxBNPj38njhnjlePliSYfshiFpu0r2my8xTc06Ck7wU93FaIa5gMkWGYZDuKF8HkMj4Q7LMbvc/s320/CiZ6z3uW0AAumJX.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="margin: 0px; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri"; font-size: x-small;"><b>An Illustrated London News header</b></span></div>
<span style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri"; font-size: x-small;"><b></b></span><br />
<div style="margin: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri"; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"> </span><span style="font-family: "calibri"; margin: 0px;">One of
those travellers was Major Henry Astbury Leveson. There is very little written
about him, but there is no doubt he was one of those men who, if history had
not forgotten them, may well have been the hero in some epic movie. He served
his country as a soldier, not only in the British Army but also as a freedom
fighter or on secondment to a friendly army. His courage was evident on many
occasions and his body was scared from head to foot with the tell-tale signs of
close encounter.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"> His
gallantry in battle and skill as an officer was often remarked upon and he is
known to have fought in many campaigns in different countries. He served in the
British Indian Army and was seconded to assist the Ottoman forces in Crimea. On
5<sup>th</sup> November, 1854 Major Leveson took part in the Battle of Inkerman.
This has often been referred to as “The Soldier’s Battle” because troops had to
fight mostly on their own initiative due to the foggy conditions. The fierce
Ottoman commander, Omar Pasha Latas, personally reported his appreciation of
the Englishman as a brave and skilled officer.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtVi3evF-vSOITXbjfuMo_VxVVzp-tla9u-A1sqAhHbjwG6JyWqDEaw2CutLkdpcUvU5LjDUwAR0b5crtnKd2n4556-NI7S858AvboF69AGDuBR7lvv6lj1v1lhTg9ps3rXmItqVHZBYY/s1600/Omar+Pasha%252C+picture+by+Adolf+Dauthage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtVi3evF-vSOITXbjfuMo_VxVVzp-tla9u-A1sqAhHbjwG6JyWqDEaw2CutLkdpcUvU5LjDUwAR0b5crtnKd2n4556-NI7S858AvboF69AGDuBR7lvv6lj1v1lhTg9ps3rXmItqVHZBYY/s320/Omar+Pasha%252C+picture+by+Adolf+Dauthage.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri"; font-size: x-small;"><b>Omar Pasha</b></span></div>
<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri"; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"> But,
above everything, Henry Leveson was an adventurer and a big game hunter.<span style="margin: 0px;"> </span>In </span><span style="margin: 0px;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN" style="margin: 0px;">Four
Fathers of Big Game Hunting - Biographical Sketches of the Sporting Lives of
William Cotton Oswell, Henry Astbury Leveson, Samuel White Baker and Roualeyn
George Gordon Cumming,</span></i></span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;">
</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;">by T.R Thormanby, he is
one of the big names in the “sport”. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-KzKZJKwpiiwyHpNRJh15-yrpuSVz3v1VI-WDNB0S-C1qbaJUaWdsJ1ZxrlqXeNPwdDHU_xh6cS7isNWYaSdPHu6vIVLfKByJsVDfu9GbWodEiqqFK-6HQPjz_uuMMcolXbxHaPs7X6k/s1600/8002e5da1cf9097be1f615a0dff10e3e.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-KzKZJKwpiiwyHpNRJh15-yrpuSVz3v1VI-WDNB0S-C1qbaJUaWdsJ1ZxrlqXeNPwdDHU_xh6cS7isNWYaSdPHu6vIVLfKByJsVDfu9GbWodEiqqFK-6HQPjz_uuMMcolXbxHaPs7X6k/s1600/8002e5da1cf9097be1f615a0dff10e3e.jpg" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;">Major H.A. Leveson, the hunter, poses with servants outside his tent </span></b></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"> But there
was much more to him than soldiering and shooting. He was a cultured man. On
his travels he sketched and wrote books and stories. But his drawings often betrayed
a certain amount of imagination, perhaps being accustomed to wilder forms of
adventure. Indeed he was known to have painted somewhat surprising images,
exaggerating already spectacular natural scenery. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"> In 1867 he
broke his journey to the African continent for a second time on the Canary
Island of Tenerife. He was tempted to sketch some of the magnificent scenery and
his drawing of Mount Teide, for example, published in the Illustrated London
News, was quite different and less accurate to any produced by his contemporary
travelling artists. He gave the volcano a sharp pointed peak when it has a
rounded crater at the top. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhih0LYkJkdY_LG3Q-vY1CcsP-pGtrGFPzVQPp0KzL0XZwktVshAX-wpVbcDPvruVUdou2TlkS0mNBPv5XCy234c2m6qqsU07r7FR6WcmcOvt2Uk_WM_-qsBPYDfGv6Kay1a4_m-wkPvpo/s1600/Crater.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhih0LYkJkdY_LG3Q-vY1CcsP-pGtrGFPzVQPp0KzL0XZwktVshAX-wpVbcDPvruVUdou2TlkS0mNBPv5XCy234c2m6qqsU07r7FR6WcmcOvt2Uk_WM_-qsBPYDfGv6Kay1a4_m-wkPvpo/s320/Crater.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri"; font-size: x-small;"><b>Mount Teide has an 80m diameter rounded crater</b></span></div>
<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri"; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"> The drawing depicts the charm of the nineteenth-century
island, with a goatherd attending his tribe and an ox drawn cart about to cross
a romantic, ancient bridge. <span style="margin: 0px;"> </span>This sketch with
mountains in the background and in the distance beyond the volcano, suggest
that Major Leveson was prone to use his artistic imagination for effect.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzpWvV39SkPRzLXsTMvbVkbGRkzaqr4lz9F33JjqoDewYHbiSWRYFqCO0MwnolgVDw5ggO1r9qb4iksy8OOlPeah1B2B5AChQJyd8nnvrwZaBW5phaJg0_fL7QE3exXGYbe0vMLl_OZiU/s1600/Wood+engraved+print+with+recent+hand+colour.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzpWvV39SkPRzLXsTMvbVkbGRkzaqr4lz9F33JjqoDewYHbiSWRYFqCO0MwnolgVDw5ggO1r9qb4iksy8OOlPeah1B2B5AChQJyd8nnvrwZaBW5phaJg0_fL7QE3exXGYbe0vMLl_OZiU/s320/Wood+engraved+print+with+recent+hand+colour.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;">A coloured print version of Leveson's drawing for the Illustrated London News</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"> Rudyard
Kipling, in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Something of Myself and Other
Autobiographical Writings</i>, his last book, referred to Major H. A. Leveson
as having published a number of stories of hunting and adventure under the
pseudonym of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Old Shekarry</i>. <span style="margin: 0px;"> </span>Under the same name Henry Leveson also
published a book called <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Forest and
the Field</i>. In its introduction his 19<sup>th</sup></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"> century sense of
soldiery, adventure and romanticism cascade, describing his life as<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> inseparable from fatigue, privation,
hardship and danger</i> but <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">full of fascinating
excitement, </i>and possessing<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">
irresistible charms that amply compensate for the loss of more refined
pleasures and luxuries of civilised life.</i></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnnJ90MbX0GSM2hwk3vlpl16RNX8uyVgpN2stz77Quq3skuTfoqP88um0ELHT7y_-wZy-A1e0D1R5vFD4hzrlpl8fQ985uVwc0zKVQS84OzFsgIVydunpakgLmMA200_XkAdg2B8-li5I/s1600/The+Forest+and+the+Field+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnnJ90MbX0GSM2hwk3vlpl16RNX8uyVgpN2stz77Quq3skuTfoqP88um0ELHT7y_-wZy-A1e0D1R5vFD4hzrlpl8fQ985uVwc0zKVQS84OzFsgIVydunpakgLmMA200_XkAdg2B8-li5I/s320/The+Forest+and+the+Field+%25282%2529.jpg" width="237" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;">Front cover of The Forest and the Field, by The Old Skekarry</span></b></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"> It is
evident that he was quite taken with Tenerife because in the same book of
stories he dedicates a chapter to the island. He also betrayed a debonair and
swashbuckling attitude. It was during his second visit that he even had time to
become a member of the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Casino</i> close
to where he took a room in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Santa Cruz</i>
and he recommended the cigars purchased at Mr Belloso’s store in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Calle Castillo</i>. He had an eye for women
too and observed - <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the ladies are elegant
and piquant as any in Spain. </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"> In spite
of his reputation, which would be frowned upon today, as a big game hunter, his
stories also suggest a man with a tender feeling for the natural world when it
didn’t imply the excitement of an encounter with a dangerous, wild animal. In
Tenerife he referred to the constant singing of birds, especially of the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Capirote</i>, the Canary Island Blackcap
whose song, he said was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the most
melodious of any songster I know</i>. Indeed, there is rarely any sound more
beautiful than the male’s rich musical warbling.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhroy2zmkOjSaY8MCLd-_r422zMtJoOZlB1H1gNjShefYqGCzOsE1I7dkWoIlEutrhpT1cu_oVWiNxNvQT8Zw8voTBYamoj8xytvmZKiORtsR57Hfhnkgen9kSaGGXNDPh-Ew8GFfP6cLU/s1600/Capirote+%2528miguelbravo.com%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhroy2zmkOjSaY8MCLd-_r422zMtJoOZlB1H1gNjShefYqGCzOsE1I7dkWoIlEutrhpT1cu_oVWiNxNvQT8Zw8voTBYamoj8xytvmZKiORtsR57Hfhnkgen9kSaGGXNDPh-Ew8GFfP6cLU/s320/Capirote+%2528miguelbravo.com%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;">The Canary Island Blackcap (courtesy Miguel Bravo photographs - see footnote 1)</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"> His
description of the island’s varied scenery was almost poetic. He ascended Mount
Teide, the island’s magnificent volcano, on a stubborn mule. Looking beyond the
lava flows and down into the valley of La Orotava he saw lush green hillsides
dotted with small, picturesque country houses, dark ravines, woods, vineyards
and open fields. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"> As we can
on a clear day today, across the sea he could clearly make out the islands of
La Palma, Grand Canary, La Gomera and El Hierro. The sunset captivated him and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the deep blue colour of the sea, with here
and there a distant white sail, formed a magnificent background to the glorious
panorama.</i> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"> Like
others before him, especially whom was possibly the greatest naturalist in
history, Alexander von Humboldt, <span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;">“the lost hero of science”²<span style="font-size: x-small;">,</span></span> Major Henry
Astbury Leveson was enthralled by what he witnessed. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I have gazed upon many of Nature’s most gorgeous pictures in different
parts of the world,<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b></i>he wrote,<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> but never beheld anything more
transcendently beautiful than sunset from the highest summit of the Peak of
Tenerife.</i> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"> While it
was more scientific writers who persuaded the first winter visitors to begin
sailing for Tenerife, especially to the Orotava Valley in the late 1800s, there
is no doubt that adventurous travellers like Major Leveson considerably helped
fascinate those early Victorian tourists. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Old Skekarry</i> was 38 when he climbed Mount Teide. He died only ten years
later in England, never recovering properly from old bullet wounds which
weakened him over the years.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><b><i>1. Miguel Bravo </i></b></span></span><b><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: xx-small;">http://miguelbravo.com/VARIOSTEMAS/pajarosdecanarias/avescanarias.html</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i><b>2. From "The Invention of nature - The Adventures of Alexander von Humboldt, The Lost Hero of Science by Andrea Wulf</b></i></span></span><br />
<b><i><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></i></b>
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="color: #333333; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; line-height: 20.28px;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="font-family: "calibri";">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; line-height: 20.28px; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">By John Reid Young</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">Author of The Skipping Verger and Other Tales, a collection of short stories set in Tenerife.</span><br /><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323" style="color: #996e22; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc9900;">http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323</span></a></div>
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http://tenerifeprivatetours.com/</div>
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</span></span></span></div>
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike>reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-88363219683416138292016-10-31T15:04:00.000-07:002016-11-06T01:55:21.509-07:00Sir Frederick Leighton, an English classical artist in the Canary Islands<br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When Frederick Leighton’s</span><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Flaming June</span></i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> went to the Royal
Academy Exhibition in 1895, the artist was too ill to attend. In fact he was
dying of angina pectoris. Like so many of his works, that exquisite and sensual
painting, his most famous work of art, was just too meticulous for an era when
Impressionism, with its carefree brushwork, was all the rage. </span><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Flaming June, </span></i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">which
would now fetch a fortune, hung almost insignificantly at the Maas Gallery in
London until it was eventually purchased by chance at a bargain price of ₤2,000 in 1963 for the Museo de Arte de Ponce in the Caribbean island
state of Puerto Rico.</span></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibONIOtav5nJjhgt7GCBG0rAfRcOJz1nuVeDHdAGylKPMs2Id-_bdSZOfn7yQsv7S056GF-XehGKdkSScIhyZVOloeqQb46o8XTf-WCAiuA6EfKsbaNih0ETI0OpnaXwP9hXxmQ257Mi4/s1600/Flaming_June%252C_by_Frederic_Lord_Leighton.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibONIOtav5nJjhgt7GCBG0rAfRcOJz1nuVeDHdAGylKPMs2Id-_bdSZOfn7yQsv7S056GF-XehGKdkSScIhyZVOloeqQb46o8XTf-WCAiuA6EfKsbaNih0ETI0OpnaXwP9hXxmQ257Mi4/s320/Flaming_June%252C_by_Frederic_Lord_Leighton.jpg" width="319" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Flaming June (Museo del Arte de Ponce), Puerto Rico</span></b></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span lang="EN" style="margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It is interesting to note that one of Frederick
Leighton’s least known and perhaps forgotten works of art hangs in another </span><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Puerto</span></i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">,
right here in the Canary Islands. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin: 0px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin: 0px;">As a mere passer-by I cannot assume it is worth the
fortunes other works of Sir Frederick have fetched at Christies in recent
years. Nevertheless, the artist’s history certainly stirs my imagination.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Born into a
wealthy and cultured family in Scarborough in 1820, Leighton was able to travel
from an early age. Thus he not only learnt several languages but was also
introduced to art and architecture in Europe</span><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">. </span></i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">His father,
Frederick Septimus, was a doctor. His grandfather, Jacob Leighton, had been
friend and personal physician to the Russian Emperors Alexander I and Nicholas
I. Like so many others who could permit themselves the luxury of leaving the
damp and smoggy England, they sought to find a better climate for his mother
Augusta’s ailing health.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="margin: 0px;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Frederick, Lord Leighton (Aberdeen Art Gallery)</b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With such a background
young Frederick had also been expected to become a doctor. His father taught
him, in great detail, about human anatomy and this may well have influenced his
meticulous artistic style. Nevertheless, recognising his immense talent, his
father presented Leighton with a set of paints and by the time he was ten he
was receiving his first master classes at the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence.
But later, when he lived in Frankfurt, he enrolled at the State Institute of
Art. There he was influenced by other painters like Johann Friedrich
Overbeck and Eduard von Steinle of the</span><span style="color: #111111; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin: 0px;"> German
Nazarene movement, whose religious and spiritual overtones also influenced the
British Pre-Raphaelites. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In 1855 he
exhibited his work at the Royal Academy and when Queen Victoria bought one of
his paintings he instantly became a member of Society circles in London. </span><span style="color: #111111; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin: 0px;">Leighton also lived in Rome and Paris, meeting other
European painters and training in their studios before he returned in England
in 1859.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin: 0px;">But his
purely classical style toiled against the Impressionists, who were in vogue,
and was often criticised for lacking temperament and individuality. Apparently
his stiff technique lacked expression and suggested laborious work and
methodical use of colour rather than natural flair. Consequently critics said
his paintings lost a certain charm. Nevertheless his art was regarded as being
very refined and some of his finest paintings, often betraying his idealistic
attraction to Greek and Roman mythology, suggest his own sensuality and
passion. This became more evident after becoming less inclined to subjugate his
own talent and self-esteem to other masters, especially after he met nineteen
year old lass, Ada Pullan, in 1879.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span lang="EN" style="margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Frederic Leighton was nearly fifty and fell
captive to her beauty and headful of curls. She became his favorite model
and muse. Although some have tried to suggest Frederick Leighton may have
dabbled in homosexuality, possibly in earlier years, this has never been
certain, especially as he kept his private life very much to himself. It is
more likely that he enjoyed a very secret and passionate love affair with his
model. It is thought he used her nude to paint </span><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Flaming June</span></i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> before
adding her light, flaming orange robe to entice and awaken the senses. </span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfXSP8vg6tobY2VAcZLRt0soUFUS5tbHUwqf_QSNE44wnsAK28S4uQy-dOdwZlATIMKCTy-IAO97oBF37kbNBFX70ySyAHR7gDcIjKYFtuw0xhEJo8Zpfns7mqx9Sawe7AOxOofJ1bd5g/s1600/Crenaia%252C+the+Nymphe+of+the+Dargle%252C+P%25C3%25A9rez+Simon+Collection%252C+Mexico.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfXSP8vg6tobY2VAcZLRt0soUFUS5tbHUwqf_QSNE44wnsAK28S4uQy-dOdwZlATIMKCTy-IAO97oBF37kbNBFX70ySyAHR7gDcIjKYFtuw0xhEJo8Zpfns7mqx9Sawe7AOxOofJ1bd5g/s1600/Crenaia%252C+the+Nymphe+of+the+Dargle%252C+P%25C3%25A9rez+Simon+Collection%252C+Mexico.gif" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span lang="EN" style="color: blue; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small; margin: 0px;"><b>Ada posed for <i>Crenaia, The Nymph of the Dargle</i> (Pérez Simon Collection, Mexico)</b></span></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-family: "verdana"; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin: 0px;">He persuaded Ada to change her name to Dorothy Dene, he
educated her, he introduced her to fashionable circles and he helped her obtain
a certain amount of success as an actress. It is believed George Bernard Shaw
used her extraordinary relationship with Frederick Leighton to conjure up
Pygmalion, which then reached such fame as the musical My Fair Lady. Leighton
was considered most generous and helped younger painters and sculptors and
was a pioneer in assisting women artists. After becoming President of the
Royal Academy of Arts in 1878 he pushed a case for women artists to have the
same privileges as their male colleagues. </span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin: 0px;"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin: 0px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin: 0px;">Sir Frederick L</span><span style="margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">eighton was a cultured and handsome man. He spent time at
Cambridge, Oxford, Dublin, Edinburgh and Durham Universities. His talent earned
him the Prussian </span><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pour la Mérite </span></i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">distinction and the Medal of Honour as
sculptor at the Universal Exposition of Paris in 1889. His last house in
Holland Park is known as Leighton’s Art gallery. Many of his works are on
display there, as well as treasures collected during his travels throughout
the world. The mansion is regarded as a work of art in itself because it is
filled with the tastes and fantasies of a man who lived for his art but who was
also an enthusiastic volunteer soldier and commanding officer of what was
known as the </span><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Artists Rifles</span></i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin: 0px;"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin: 0px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin: 0px;">Frederick
Leighton visited Tenerife and Gran Canaria in 1887, spending most of his time
in the Orotava Valley. The light and tones of the coast, especially in the
colourful port of Puerto de la Cruz with its volcanic rock pools and Mount
Teide in the nebulous distance, caught his imagination. Consequently one of his
landscapes hangs proudly, albeit almost as discretely as his own private life,
in the Mayor’s office at the Town Hall. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small; margin: 0px;"><b>Frederick Leighton's painting in the Canary Islands</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small; margin: 0px;"><b><i>(Courtesy The Town Council, Puerto de la Cruz)</i></b></span></span></div>
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<b><i><span style="color: blue; font-family: "verdana"; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></i></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin: 0px;">It is nothing like the colourful
tourist resort we know today. In fact Frederick Leighton plays with the exact
positioning of Mount Teide and the houses have a more Mediterranean look. But
it is supposed to be a view of Puerto and the old harbour wall, possibly
sketched from close to the San Telmo chapel. </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1aSa873wMT-j_nhyphenhyphenKUmeMIfyWTV6Pl_kkKZw6vCv1TZBWEjmawNyFXm3gNj-GW6tH9u0-l84jAhVK8nFWYGiRl7kY5qzI10kT1H-l-O3w0oWyylOy3SygWd0iVznQJ_l5NyuR5jbgJ7M/s1600/Don+Felipe+Machado+del+Hoyo+y+Sol%25C3%25B3rzano%252C+Alcalde+del+Pto+Cruz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1aSa873wMT-j_nhyphenhyphenKUmeMIfyWTV6Pl_kkKZw6vCv1TZBWEjmawNyFXm3gNj-GW6tH9u0-l84jAhVK8nFWYGiRl7kY5qzI10kT1H-l-O3w0oWyylOy3SygWd0iVznQJ_l5NyuR5jbgJ7M/s320/Don+Felipe+Machado+del+Hoyo+y+Sol%25C3%25B3rzano%252C+Alcalde+del+Pto+Cruz.jpg" width="237" /></a></div>
<div style="margin: 0px; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;">Felipe Machado del Hoyo Solórzano</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"></span></b><br />
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; margin: 0px;">How Frederick Leighton’s painting should be there, as unaware of
its artist’s prestige as it is of itself, is quite simple. We can thank another
cultured gentleman and soldier, the late Felipe Machado del Hoyo Solórzano who
inherited the title of Count de Las Siete Fuentes, one of the oldest hereditary
titles in the Canary Islands. He was Mayor in Puerto de la Cruz in the 1970s
when he spotted and purchased the painting for the Town Hall at an auction in
Madrid in 1973.</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; margin: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana";">
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"></span></span>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana";"><span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i></span></span></span></span></div>
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<div class="MsoBodyText" style="color: #333333; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; line-height: 20.28px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.52px; line-height: 20.28px; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">By John Reid Young</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">Author of The Skipping Verger and Other Tales, a collection of short stories set in Tenerife.</span><br /><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323" style="color: #996e22; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc9900;">http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323</span></a></div>
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<a href="http://tenerifeforum.org.es/" style="color: #996e22; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Tenerife Forum Community</a></div>
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reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-34883731149809611662016-07-27T12:18:00.000-07:002016-07-27T12:18:03.698-07:00When Sunbeam and Lady Brassey came to the Canary Island of Tenerife<div class="MsoBodyText">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> At the height
of the British Empire, towards the end of the nineteenth century and when
British influence and wealth was flaunted with considerable pride around the
world, travel was still considered something of an adventure and often perilous.
But it was also a period when women like Mary Henrietta Kingsley, Isabella Bird
and Marianne North boldly journeyed far from the comforts and ties of a lady’s
place. One of these was Lady Annie Brassey. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg6nvJuoLzohpUwQoR9ujW3Y8kPq3-0uDv7MKHBN8avYHy_cZeQ6rwBXqHI1NPjO_zZBaNTCopquI24xl_pdnh0MNsCF91bAETWIgrtoqRjocFcDBeWDjH1B3Cy97qjdgqTHL5vqmoASM/s1600/Lady-Brassey.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg6nvJuoLzohpUwQoR9ujW3Y8kPq3-0uDv7MKHBN8avYHy_cZeQ6rwBXqHI1NPjO_zZBaNTCopquI24xl_pdnh0MNsCF91bAETWIgrtoqRjocFcDBeWDjH1B3Cy97qjdgqTHL5vqmoASM/s320/Lady-Brassey.jpg" width="224" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Lady Annie Brassey</b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> Although
it is true to say that she travelled in certain style and comfort together with
a husband, her children, friends and a full ship’s company, Annie was
nevertheless equally courageous. Travel in the 19<sup>th</sup> century could
never have been described as easy of course and she suffered from ill health
throughout her journeys. But nothing would stop her. In fact Annie’s enthusiasm
for adventure was contagious. Her letters to family in England so vividly
described the first voyage aboard <i>Sunbeam</i>,
her husband’s yacht, that she was urged to publish. Lady Brassey’s curiosity
coupled with detailed accounts of ethnographic diversity, her evident sympathy
for humankind and not a small amount of humour made her first journal an
instant success. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> Annie
lost her mother as a child and lived her first years with her grandfather in
Clapham and her father in Berkley Square. Like so many young Victorian ladies
she became interested in botany. At the age of twenty-one she married Lord
Thomas Brassey, lawyer, historian, Member of Parliament, sailor, writer of
naval books and later Governor of Victoria, Australia. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizn8sdIOQDw0GzQlyPhNlhBAS_rTk71Z_c50eE6gHj4pKQuhQGBcJYyJHLXfYbehQ7qj2y8pd8sW8tO6EHRtvNy-4pZK6zv8IBsyqjfXwlN9kenbk2FD_9KaWV-3eSXmDHCpCBvr_rne8/s1600/CY7V08eWMAAWOUY.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizn8sdIOQDw0GzQlyPhNlhBAS_rTk71Z_c50eE6gHj4pKQuhQGBcJYyJHLXfYbehQ7qj2y8pd8sW8tO6EHRtvNy-4pZK6zv8IBsyqjfXwlN9kenbk2FD_9KaWV-3eSXmDHCpCBvr_rne8/s320/CY7V08eWMAAWOUY.jpg" width="245" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Thomas Brassey, Ist Earl Brassey</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> Lord
Thomas Brassey’s yacht was launched in 1874. She </span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">was a three-masted schooner with iron frame and teak skin. She had been
designed for long distance voyages and although primarily a sailing yacht her
bunkers carried eighty tons of coal and she could steam for three weeks if
necessary. Accommodation for her owners and guests was luxurious, with cabins
and staterooms furnished in elegant Victorian drawing-room style. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRkH79G6dgALEvJ0bX8FU4_5n4v5BZm0D4psF8Am7ZEr2808KNCBv3MzfpoDqnG1gFh3orCHxNQl-BMpo9BwrIW4ihgfU3iLimK9OrsU44Y3UMGFTM6uolMJvNX3InmliHGqsPksTCEyI/s1600/large.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRkH79G6dgALEvJ0bX8FU4_5n4v5BZm0D4psF8Am7ZEr2808KNCBv3MzfpoDqnG1gFh3orCHxNQl-BMpo9BwrIW4ihgfU3iLimK9OrsU44Y3UMGFTM6uolMJvNX3InmliHGqsPksTCEyI/s320/large.jpg" width="211" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The Voyage in the Sunbeam, our Home on the Ocean for Eleven Months</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> Lady
Brassey set foot on many more exotic and remote places than the Canary Islands
but she wrote very fondly of Tenerife in <i>The
Voyage in the Sunbeam, our Home on the </i></span><i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Ocean
for Eleven Months</span></i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">, which was published in 1878. Of course, Tenerife
today is one of Europe’s favourite holiday destinations. It is dotted with
modern marinas and her seas are saturated with pleasure craft and small and
medium sized yachts but in the nineteenth century it was very rare to find
ships of a private nature sailing the oceans</span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">. <i>Sunbeam</i></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> must have
been a glorious sight as she approached from the northeast.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> “We all rose early and were full of
excitement to catch the first glimpse of the famous Peak of Teneriffe”</span></i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> Lady Annie Brassey wrote on 21<sup>st</sup>
July exactly 142 years ago, the morning
before they dropped anchor off </span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">the coast of Puerto de la Cruz</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";">.</span><i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span></i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi51zUcCJZRYB3ohZz1_0DW2xvNrhBWPatrW2iMrJcpjTm2Uo-Dptc0t9EnlzidqS8kbAwSsczXnPk65TJVPLDxrnlo4fjPwV_E0pTzhl67qvBf1UwA8gnnxirBaUlZm4TaXbqFKAy6uVQ/s1600/Mount%252520Teide%252520volcano%252520Tenerife%252520Canary%252520Islands%252520Spain%252520nature%252520photo%252520wallpaper.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi51zUcCJZRYB3ohZz1_0DW2xvNrhBWPatrW2iMrJcpjTm2Uo-Dptc0t9EnlzidqS8kbAwSsczXnPk65TJVPLDxrnlo4fjPwV_E0pTzhl67qvBf1UwA8gnnxirBaUlZm4TaXbqFKAy6uVQ/s320/Mount%252520Teide%252520volcano%252520Tenerife%252520Canary%252520Islands%252520Spain%252520nature%252520photo%252520wallpaper.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Floating above the nebulous horizon - a first glimpse of Mount Teide </b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> Always
a lady of action and determination Lady Brassey volunteered with Captain Lecky,
as soon as they could be rowed ashore, to visit Mr Goodall, the British Vice-Consul
in Puerto. She planned to make arrangements for an expedition up Mount Teide
immediately and in fact they set off at two o’clock the following morning after
they had assembled twelve hired horses and guides. By half past seven they were
already above the sea of clouds which Annie described as resembling “<i>an enormous glacier, covered with fresh
fallen snow, extending for miles and miles while the projecting tops of other
Canary Islands appeared like great solitary rocks”.<o:p></o:p></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>"It was like the Great Sahara"</b></span></div>
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> She
wrote of the oppressive heat as they rode through what local inhabitants call <i>Las Cañadas del Teide</i>. <i>“It was like the Great Sahara” </i>she
exclaimed. She mentioned huge rocks of obsidian thrown from the mouth of the
volcano and then the remarkable scene of bushes of yellow broom and the
beautiful <i>Retama </i>in full white bloom <i>“scenting the air with its delicious
fragrance, and resembling huge tufts of feathers”.</i></span><i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUt3TTvpNQMXHNZwGpHYc_B0QnKpxay5kFC3wv-YBVBbd_6XZVVYUn7o5uBrr8etRoxhINgU8pDDKqyQlc_ODIjhsXuYeZ6wnzCyBkFTrpJrgBlhqz3coWTzNOeHZ-cLx86_NQjHUMKOI/s1600/19.06.16+Teide+through+the+ratama+blossom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUt3TTvpNQMXHNZwGpHYc_B0QnKpxay5kFC3wv-YBVBbd_6XZVVYUn7o5uBrr8etRoxhINgU8pDDKqyQlc_ODIjhsXuYeZ6wnzCyBkFTrpJrgBlhqz3coWTzNOeHZ-cLx86_NQjHUMKOI/s320/19.06.16+Teide+through+the+ratama+blossom.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Like tufts of feathers, Retama blossom with Mount Teide in the background</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> When the
expedition reached <i>Altavista</i>, a
plateau where Astronomer Royal for Scotland, Charles Piazzi Smythe had set up
his telescopes in 1856 and where another Briton, George Graham Toler was to
build the first climbers’ refuge, Annie
Brassey decide not to go any further. Lord Thomas Brassey and the men continued
to the summit. Annie, who had found her splendid Victorian clothes unsuitable
for such an adventure and her exhausted children found shelter from the sun
under overhanging rocks. While the young ones slept, she took photographs. The
guides who had not continued to the summit with her husband’s group returned
with icy water from the <i>cueva del hielo</i>,
the Ice Cave, a cavern in the volcano not far from <i>Altavista</i>. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4MfD_uouvhQ72xfb66BmU9b0C3Jg2hG6XJiFrPHkioAXjWGj-AsVtqVLjrOr3yqAsRb2h702S8fhrh-WZhrL5dhPDg2vDSBK45AfeaDPzEdKqN-1fRdnpYM2dQt5LCL_HzuoJhdH3ck0/s1600/cueva-del-hielo-teide-2.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4MfD_uouvhQ72xfb66BmU9b0C3Jg2hG6XJiFrPHkioAXjWGj-AsVtqVLjrOr3yqAsRb2h702S8fhrh-WZhrL5dhPDg2vDSBK45AfeaDPzEdKqN-1fRdnpYM2dQt5LCL_HzuoJhdH3ck0/s320/cueva-del-hielo-teide-2.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The Ice Cave on Mount Teide</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> They
returned to the <i>Sunbeam</i> in the early
hours of the following morning, twenty nine hours after setting out on their
expedition and not without accidents, falls and becoming separated from her
husband and part of the team during the night descent. <i>“We were too tired to do anything but go straight on board the yacht,
where, after some supper and champagne, we were glad indeed to retire to out
berths”. </i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> Lord and
Lady Brassey had given out invitations for people to visit the <i>Sunbeam</i> and there was a constant flow of
visitors, now and then having to be reprimanded for being too curious. The seas
off the north coast are notoriously rough but it was noted how a good many very
attractive and distinguished <i>señoritas</i>
came aboard accompanied by young men carrying bowls, presumably in case of sea
sickness. Many local inhabitants brought gifts and the decks were adorned with
baskets of fruit and flowers from the glorious gardens in the Orotava Valley, although in the stifling humidity they barely lasted a day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> Afternoon
tea was a necessary and elegant ritual, either aboard the Sunbeam or in the
gardens of aristocratic landowners like the Marquis de la Candia where they
were shown coffee plantations. Conversation was considered a stylish and
necessary art in those days and Lady Brassey gathered much of her knowledge at
these comfortable meetings about local customs, of botanical aspects in
Tenerife and indeed about the variable weather in the north of the island. She
was most enthusiastic about the variety of flora in the Orotava Valley and
wrote that the temperate climate contributed to the valley being a giant
greenhouse where plants from all over the planet could flourish. Indeed the
remarkable Botanical Gardens in Puerto de la Cruz, which were shown to the
Brasseys by the curator, <i>Herman </i>Wildpret,
were opened in 1788 specifically to acclimatise plants from the Spanish and
other European colonies before introducing them to Europe. Of the garden of the
Marquis of Sauzal Lady Brassey remarked on the remains of an enormous dragon
tree, <i>Dracaena draco </i>and “<i>hedges of myrtle, jasmine, clematis and
flowers of every description in full bloom”</i>.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The Botanic Garden - Courtesy of the Marianne North Gallery at Kew Gardens, London</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> She was
told that many landowners had been virtually ruined by disease affecting the
vine industry, although historians now admit that part of the problem was due to
European wine merchants being tempted by markets elsewhere. <i>“Most of the large landed proprietors have
left their estates to take care of themselves and the peasants, for the last
few years, have been emigrating by hundreds to Caracas in Venezuela</i>“. But
the cochineal dye industry had been a success and coffee and tobacco were
becoming alternative sources of wealth. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> Sunbeam</span></i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> sparkled in the sunlight of
Tenerife for just four days and departed as suddenly and splendidly as she had
arrived, in full sail along the northwest and under the majestic cliffs of Buenavista
before disappearing southwest towards the Americas and Brazil.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLpJXVyQhCcqCNnrawnz66NOG14VDL3W-dFdSp5B_iFTgI1abSsKwORz__x24ro5doiZlcnRjX4NzkcgKzBT-Aw27j9H-CoPSers3DoGCui2zxLAH9LTgnC1CX8ceBzkmn7sv8qZR4YgE/s1600/luca-papaluca-lord-brasseys-steam-yacht-sunbeam-off-naples.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLpJXVyQhCcqCNnrawnz66NOG14VDL3W-dFdSp5B_iFTgI1abSsKwORz__x24ro5doiZlcnRjX4NzkcgKzBT-Aw27j9H-CoPSers3DoGCui2zxLAH9LTgnC1CX8ceBzkmn7sv8qZR4YgE/s320/luca-papaluca-lord-brasseys-steam-yacht-sunbeam-off-naples.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b style="color: blue; font-family: calibri, sans-serif; font-size: small;">The Sunbeam - as painted by the Italian artist Luca Papaluca</b></div>
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<b style="color: blue; font-family: calibri, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"> Sunbeam </span></i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";">was the nickname of their daughter,
Constantine Alberta, who had died aged five of scarlet fever. On her last
voyage aboard the schooner, nine years after visiting Tenerife, Annie also died
of a fever. It had been brought on by renewed attacks of malaria, a disease she
fought with for many years. She was only 47 when she made her final entry into
her journal. She died four days later and was buried at sea as <i>Sunbeam</i> circumnavigated Australia. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="color: #333333; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.524px; line-height: 20.286px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #333333; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.524px; line-height: 20.286px; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">By John Reid Young</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">Author of The Skipping Verger and Other Tales, a collection of short stories set in Tenerife.</span><br /><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323" style="color: #996e22; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc9900;">http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323</span></a></div>
</div>
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<a href="http://tenerifeforum.org.es/" style="color: #996e22; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Tenerife Forum Community</a></div>
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reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-35161738033903999632016-03-26T02:28:00.000-07:002016-03-26T02:28:01.240-07:00Did artist William Turner sketch in the Canary Islands?
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The life of Joseph Mallord William Turner,
one of England’s greatest Romanticist artists and master of watercolour
landscape painting, has been well and truly investigated and analysed over the
years. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9sq3Fcl6O1E61bvcGjliSnYTUFXR3IrVgznBRFk1RfWzunI8Vi-5MRvTBKTGFWSjmp0iB0SBrXXYYgvK7kg99y1vYl34Z5NGPBRsxGAV0vrpsu89_bqvgDxNaFmd8kDLriGQr1nlxu4U/s1600/JMW+Turner+self-p%252C+circa+1799+Tate+Gallery.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9sq3Fcl6O1E61bvcGjliSnYTUFXR3IrVgznBRFk1RfWzunI8Vi-5MRvTBKTGFWSjmp0iB0SBrXXYYgvK7kg99y1vYl34Z5NGPBRsxGAV0vrpsu89_bqvgDxNaFmd8kDLriGQr1nlxu4U/s320/JMW+Turner+self-p%252C+circa+1799+Tate+Gallery.jpg" width="245" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>J.M.W Turner (self-portrait circa 1799) Tate Gallery</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nobody, however, except perhaps the American
biographer John Anderson in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Unknown
Turner </i>of 1926, has ever mentioned that Turner may have visited the Canary
Islands or even sketched one of the colourful and still unspoilt scenery in the
islands of the 19<sup>th</sup> century. Consequently it is now only local
historians, researching in depth about foreign and famous travellers to the
Canary Islands, who find themselves tempted to clutch at any evidence that
Turner actually came to the islands.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>William Turner was constantly on the move
and spent his very early days wandering all over England in the footsteps of
his friend and fellow painter Paul Sandby. He also travelled in Europe, first
to France and Switzerland and then, in 1819, to Italy and Venice where sunlight
began to have a magic effect in his works. He later visited the Mediterranean
islands of Corsica and the Balearics. He also spent time in mainland Spain<span style="color: #993300;"> </span>during the 1840s where he sketched the Roman
aqueduct in Segovia and the castle in Madrid, both of which are kept at The
Metropolitan Museum of New York. Wherever he travelled Turner sketched and took
detailed notes which he would eventually use in his customary studio-bound
painting. John Anderson accounted for over 40,000 oil paintings, watercolours
and sketches although some art historians suggest Anderson was not precise
enough and therefore prone to exaggerate. In 1845 he travelled to Algiers and
Gibraltar as well as to Madeira and the Canary Islands.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If he was indeed so prolific one would assume
that, like so many British visitors and artists to the Canary Islands in the 19<sup>th</sup>
century, Turner would have captured some of the islands’ unique landscapes.
Unfortunately there is no apparent record of any work carried out here although
one or two analysts believe there must be something hiding somewhere and that
he did sketch a scene from out at sea looking across the bay towards Santa Cruz
in Tenerife, perhaps with Mount Teide in the distance. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi97i9KM8ywk7mYRImwkzzrOf519v4XKKuWgPEk_tGDOsex1p5xNFPCAO0Rk7qGecOcD4adxL-ob3G6oU26w5JkqcVPOGf1jCpUKdMJjhhbdlEGmaiP21jWG6dmnaA_CtxZgSLE59spxTg/s1600/1860+from+Le+Monde+Illustr%25C3%25A9+cut.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="163" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi97i9KM8ywk7mYRImwkzzrOf519v4XKKuWgPEk_tGDOsex1p5xNFPCAO0Rk7qGecOcD4adxL-ob3G6oU26w5JkqcVPOGf1jCpUKdMJjhhbdlEGmaiP21jWG6dmnaA_CtxZgSLE59spxTg/s320/1860+from+Le+Monde+Illustr%25C3%25A9+cut.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Santa Cruz de Tenerife with Mt. Teide in the background (Le Monde Illustré, 1860) - not Turner's</b></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> The reason for his
apparent inactivity during his travels to the Canary Islands or even that he might
not even have stepped ashore, is perhaps because he came to the islands as an
old man in declining health. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq_OBKaNY4CbEM4m_d58c3Fu2H0lDsfqbvm3q6csuwheZSkhCxZuSBAdylYtWcMYADvZAV6jUaP4mOn17iewa8UZ1F1zHSVJxXYKwnunG0IgYIf87sO9SPv28835fTqwLnueR_kLFix7s/s1600/Sir-James-Clark-1788-1870+unknown+artist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq_OBKaNY4CbEM4m_d58c3Fu2H0lDsfqbvm3q6csuwheZSkhCxZuSBAdylYtWcMYADvZAV6jUaP4mOn17iewa8UZ1F1zHSVJxXYKwnunG0IgYIf87sO9SPv28835fTqwLnueR_kLFix7s/s1600/Sir-James-Clark-1788-1870+unknown+artist.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Sir James Clark (1788-1870) - unknown artist</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact it is believed he sailed to the
Canary Islands precisely for health reasons, following the documented advice of
famous physicians like Sir James Clark of Cullen in Banffshire who recommended
the climate in Tenerife. In his 1829 work </span><i><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">The Influence of Climate in the Prevention and
Cure of Chronic Diseases, more particularly of the Chest and Digestive Organs</span></i><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">, Clark was especially complementary
of the Orotava Valley and Vilaflor, remarking upon their peacefulness and
clean, healthy air.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKni-qsPS6vXKsuU-XNzb6BTEeDsbNTtE8cberRzrDk4iVyAGad-ustgSYFzfNy7ouXhu2Wa2eXSmL5cIuTSQ5GHIKUKQbIf3HN8ZZcTexoBgr-QnIIepwpC5wRFdBvXHc57NyCGwAgXk/s1600/Vilaflor-Blog+Octavio+Rodriguez+Delgado.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKni-qsPS6vXKsuU-XNzb6BTEeDsbNTtE8cberRzrDk4iVyAGad-ustgSYFzfNy7ouXhu2Wa2eXSmL5cIuTSQ5GHIKUKQbIf3HN8ZZcTexoBgr-QnIIepwpC5wRFdBvXHc57NyCGwAgXk/s320/Vilaflor-Blog+Octavio+Rodriguez+Delgado.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;">Vilaflor in the 19th century (courtesy blog Octavio Rodriguez Delgado)</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nevertheless, artistic imagination does
tempt one to wish that William Turner might have at least dreamed of painting
just one of Tenerife’s sunsets from the rocky, volcanic northern coast, perhaps
in Puerto de la Cruz. John Whitford, who published <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Canary Islands as a Winter Resort</i> <span style="color: black;">in
1890 certainly did. He compared the sundown colours of the Orotava Valley to the
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">same marvellous golden colours</i> found
in William Turner’s paintings. </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMJHYB9Gl6aORcNehKP6UELISDhsSScIAP7fYo6Rrx7jBcuH_9qf7pqQ1TF7g32immS2BAxXjBSIlEvwvlQOe0eJb0NvDkf2oclIEHauq4f0bnuRmX7cTgyaTnADDDkrgcKBH43SgiosY/s1600/Marcos+Baeza+-+private+collection+Pto+cruz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMJHYB9Gl6aORcNehKP6UELISDhsSScIAP7fYo6Rrx7jBcuH_9qf7pqQ1TF7g32immS2BAxXjBSIlEvwvlQOe0eJb0NvDkf2oclIEHauq4f0bnuRmX7cTgyaTnADDDkrgcKBH43SgiosY/s320/Marcos+Baeza+-+private+collection+Pto+cruz.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;">Marcos Baeza - private collection - Puerto de la Cruz</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><b><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Would Turner, had he set foot on Tenerife
and set up his easel on the volcanic rocks to the east of the fishing port in
Puerto de la Cruz, or beside the chapel of San Telmo as so many artists do
today, have captured the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">same marvellous
golden colours</i> depicted by Tenerife artist, Marcos Baeza in 1890? Would he
have equalled the same scene with the typically golden sunset lighting up the placid
rock pools, the waves and the island of La Palma on the horizon? There would certainly
have been mutual admiration, for both Turner and Tenerife’s Baeza were masters
inspired by the subtleties of the sun’s fading light.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><div class="MsoBodyText" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.524px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 20.286px; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">By John Reid Young</span></span><br /><div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">Author of The Skipping Verger and Other Tales, a collection of short stories set in Tenerife.</span><br /><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323" style="color: #996e22; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc9900;">http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323</span></a></div>
</div>
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<a href="http://tenerifeforum.org.es/" style="color: #996e22; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Tenerife Forum Community</a></div>
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</span><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike>reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-28026161488543489352015-11-30T15:04:00.000-08:002015-11-30T15:16:22.225-08:00The Last Execution in Tenerife<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> The wooden cart rocked slowly over the cobblestones down from the chapel in Our Lady of the Snows Convent </span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">and out between the fishermen's cottages before making its way towards a dusty
plain to the east of Puerto de la Cruz. Two men, </span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 16px;">guarded by four members of the Provincial Guard, were seated</span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"> at the rear together with the bailiff, a judicial clerk and two priests. The prisoners' hands were shackled behind their backs and their foreheads dripped beads of dirty sweat. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-3Xj3nubsPu0b-QWgJ-gDXlpWZRWONF0aoWLO28wSc7TTporKKYDTky4U0ImL_L3xdAAYRb3y-XFV8fYe0mGXPEEfwKkwp_rnVYl8BiWWRF2XN2a9q1VHRCzEMXEEi6BJkfg3s4k6ME4/s1600/5108.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="139" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-3Xj3nubsPu0b-QWgJ-gDXlpWZRWONF0aoWLO28wSc7TTporKKYDTky4U0ImL_L3xdAAYRb3y-XFV8fYe0mGXPEEfwKkwp_rnVYl8BiWWRF2XN2a9q1VHRCzEMXEEi6BJkfg3s4k6ME4/s320/5108.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The Lady of the Snows Convent was destroyed by fire in 1925</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 16px;"> It was 2nd June, 1881 and a typically humid morning in the Orotava valley, with that familiar low cloud hanging against the sloping hills. But their sweat</span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"> was caused, not by the sticky warmth of early summer but by sheer terror. The Supreme Court had sentenced them to die by the dreaded <i>garrote vil</i>. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> Shortly afterwards almost the entire population of Puerto de la Cruz,
summoned to witness the execution as an example, held its breath. They watched as Manuel
Brito and Pedro Armas were seated </span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">and tied, almost with compassion, to the two wooden posts which had been erected specially for them the previous evening. To begin with the silence was broken only by the sea punishing the nearby rocks just beyond the flat piece of land which separated the town from San Carlos cemetery and the San Felipe fortress.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiskkmXq_XuTpIcnXvffpf0ftfNzB-s2r-HNRRZvk5JOsyQHVV5tq8KJ4uUAxx0FV0GUnhGvzxLM_nAqHAYGJrWS-lsIO_PgJnAhKaM_txOiL32dzb605LWiUE_1rTRLs0mw-2gxst2C7c/s1600/The+last+execution+-+murder+of+James+Morris+-+by+Marcos+Baeza+Carrillo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="158" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiskkmXq_XuTpIcnXvffpf0ftfNzB-s2r-HNRRZvk5JOsyQHVV5tq8KJ4uUAxx0FV0GUnhGvzxLM_nAqHAYGJrWS-lsIO_PgJnAhKaM_txOiL32dzb605LWiUE_1rTRLs0mw-2gxst2C7c/s320/The+last+execution+-+murder+of+James+Morris+-+by+Marcos+Baeza+Carrillo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The last execution in a sketch by Marcos Baeza Carrillo</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"> The officiating priest was thankfully brief.
The authorities also stood in respectful silence. But there was horror in their eyes as the executioner, who had been brought out from Seville specially for the occasion, </span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">began to turn the wooden handles of the garrote at the back of the condemned men’s necks </span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 16px;">one by one</span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"> and their imploring cries drowned the waves on the rocks. The fearful screams were the consequence of their crime. Their gradually reddening faces and desperate choking gasps was their cruel penalty. As the
screws twisted behind the wooden posts the ropes pulled on the metal bands, tightenening gradually and with torturous agony around the men’s necks until they suffocated.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> Theirs was the last public execution in the Canary Islands and historians remember it as a horrible event. They had been accused of murdering James William Crighton Morris, </span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 16px;">a British resident </span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">who had arrived in Puerto de la Cruz in 1873. He was only 24 and had been sent to Puerto </span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 16px;">a year after joining his uncle Thomas Miller's firm in Grand Canary </span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">to be a part of the Miller's subsidiary in Tenerife, known as Miller and Son. </span><br />
<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><br /></span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> Peter Spence Reid managed the firm in Puerto de la Cruz but later broke away from Thomas Miller to found his own enterprise which became known as </span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 16px;">Thomas Miller Reid and Company. </span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 16px;">Young Morris was chief cashier. That may well have been his downfall. He is thought to have been a bit of a loner and historians suggest he had a weakness for women and possibly for wine. He also hung keys from his pocket watch chain. They were the keys to the company offices and safe.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMWQFJidIKAWhU1eFNNQbZU_0QnoqJgXlwUvcbbdzQ187uSvY33lB9bz-YGKFTP8nABahii-Gt3EuFM0xOPjpIRuwTQshAqlXXM_5TV88Nf_VhZjsOJP6t1k6j3F-PNGy3OzplKzkUGww/s1600/Peter+S.+Reid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMWQFJidIKAWhU1eFNNQbZU_0QnoqJgXlwUvcbbdzQ187uSvY33lB9bz-YGKFTP8nABahii-Gt3EuFM0xOPjpIRuwTQshAqlXXM_5TV88Nf_VhZjsOJP6t1k6j3F-PNGy3OzplKzkUGww/s320/Peter+S.+Reid.jpg" width="233" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>Peter S Reid in his latter days</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> Manuel Brito and Pedro Armas each had
ambitions. Brito was 36. He was married with two children but apparently had a lover in
Santa Cruz with whom he wanted to disappear to South America. His friend, 44 year old Armas also had a family but just hungered for money. They worked out a plot to
rob James Morris of the company takings. Having studied the foreigner's liking for women and wine, they persuaded him that a local girl was interested in
meeting him close to the San Felipe fortress.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjisvQomZevJnD6bi0lTTG5fye55t8ThG2RQX_mfcNRIicSszLt_ArDHbyVCThYEJmutU2NQNqpR_kTV1JNr3YBBoK0C8ntwGVuTVaj9yI1cZjNl2RzC6nm2HGBAIXm-c7wgYALTnUErz8/s1600/San+Felipe+fortress+by+Alfred+Diston+%2528died+1861%2529+private+collection+Madrid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjisvQomZevJnD6bi0lTTG5fye55t8ThG2RQX_mfcNRIicSszLt_ArDHbyVCThYEJmutU2NQNqpR_kTV1JNr3YBBoK0C8ntwGVuTVaj9yI1cZjNl2RzC6nm2HGBAIXm-c7wgYALTnUErz8/s320/San+Felipe+fortress+by+Alfred+Diston+%2528died+1861%2529+private+collection+Madrid.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The San Felipe fortress by Alfred Diston (</span><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">belongs to a private collection in Madrid</span></i><span style="font-size: x-small;">)</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> The murder took place was on Sunday, 25<sup>th</sup> November, 1878. It was an overcast, dark and chilly evening. The younger of the two local men dressed up as a woman and hid while Armas led the victim to the chosen rendezvous. When Morris was close enough Brito threw a
handful of clay into his eyes before they both beat him up and stabbed him
several times. They took whatever possessions he carried on him, his gold pocket watch, a gold locket, a small revolver and the safe keys which dangled enticingly from his watch chain. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0TO_a0T8v4w-B4WXmNw417_gpY9fgrEvo4MGQ08Cgz6pyivnZDtfmfi1Du7SkJY-9E7F9sX8bM5DPaaoUeu-wBJ_70CO1iNKCZZQrO5tjygt9oJgNoAEd2LZ9gwhhT0CD7l-V6hXvURI/s1600/11947496_1135689579792807_3399033823187518250_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0TO_a0T8v4w-B4WXmNw417_gpY9fgrEvo4MGQ08Cgz6pyivnZDtfmfi1Du7SkJY-9E7F9sX8bM5DPaaoUeu-wBJ_70CO1iNKCZZQrO5tjygt9oJgNoAEd2LZ9gwhhT0CD7l-V6hXvURI/s320/11947496_1135689579792807_3399033823187518250_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The same dusty, executioner's plain became the town's football pitch many years later</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> Brito and Armas had a risky plan worked out. First they returned in the dark to Peter Reid's offices in what was then known as Calle del Sol where they removed the contents from the safe. In total they stole over 20,000 Reals, the silver and copper coins of the period which they shared out and hid. To this day the coins have not been recovered. </span><br />
<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><br /></span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> Getting rid of the body was only their second priority. This they did in the early hours of the following morning when in those days nobody would
be about. They carried the
unfortunate Morris to the nearby San Carlos cemetery and placed his body in an
existing tomb belonging to an aristocratic lady, the Marchioness of San Andrés and
Viscountess of Buen Paso who died in 1853. In their haste to replace her tombstone, it cracked. That was to be their undoing.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0PP78HLznpkiAkKcHv94zHu4a_FAZRaB0FGmqzhuL6vwHFbk0QcgaonWlB6Fa5USM0FuWCtUoaLOvCTqzOf2jkYoNm3uSLneUHmETcgfwXvkTLRn3ImB-BmHrXp8bd2gsQjXkarhQy-A/s1600/10373778_292826160897484_8414569880626023748_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0PP78HLznpkiAkKcHv94zHu4a_FAZRaB0FGmqzhuL6vwHFbk0QcgaonWlB6Fa5USM0FuWCtUoaLOvCTqzOf2jkYoNm3uSLneUHmETcgfwXvkTLRn3ImB-BmHrXp8bd2gsQjXkarhQy-A/s320/10373778_292826160897484_8414569880626023748_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The San Carlos Cemetery with Mt Teide in the background</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> When company employees opened up the offices on the following Tuesday morning nobody suspected James Morris of going off with the cash even when he failed to turn up to work as punctually as always. Although they had apparently locked the safe again after removing the money, the thieves, in their eagerness to find more money, had left
the offices in considerable disarray, with documents and other items strewn all over the wooden floor. On the contrary</span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 16px;">, whilst investigations were kept very discrete,</span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"> there was immediately grave concern for the fate of young Mr James Morris.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> Three days after the crime there was a funeral for a child who had died of pneumonia. The burial ceremony at the cemetery was delayed because the gravedigger refused to do his job until the required official permit had been issued by the municipal judge. Mourners were forced to stand around
waiting for the document to arrive. As fate would have it a local blind man, Juan García Olivera, sensed something strange in the air. He told the gravedigger there was a bad smell somewhere in the cemetery and pointed to where he thought it was coming from. It was rotting flesh and it was coming from a cracked tombstone. It had attracted the attention of greenbottle flies. They have a habit of laying their eggs in cadaver tissue within hours of death. </span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">When the tombstone was removed they found a decomposing body. Of course it was poor James Morris. An autopsy revealed he had
been severely beaten and then stabbed. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuE23Z7wBeGpLqngG-A5uW-wcAjflaIuP2gP45HAyAk-Viw_Bk1u1Vt-0pe7JdPk1T1iRCQxpWLpH26JC_XBohZRhhaVTVc-DVZz3GiOjhIRNhec9vbW-RM1ciYQI_Hb2F5pXOZFwzorw/s1600/James+Morris+Cause+celebre.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuE23Z7wBeGpLqngG-A5uW-wcAjflaIuP2gP45HAyAk-Viw_Bk1u1Vt-0pe7JdPk1T1iRCQxpWLpH26JC_XBohZRhhaVTVc-DVZz3GiOjhIRNhec9vbW-RM1ciYQI_Hb2F5pXOZFwzorw/s320/James+Morris+Cause+celebre.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b style="color: blue; font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The trial of Brito and Armas is classified as a "celebrated legal case"</span></b></div>
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<b style="color: blue; font-size: small;"><br /></b></div>
<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"> Investigators discovered that Brito and
Armas had befriended </span><i style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">el inglés</i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"> in a local tavern and they were
arrested and taken, first to the jail in La Orotava and then to the prison in Santa Cruz where they admitted the crime.
Three years later they met their own death, horribly garrotted, close to the very
spot where they had murdered the accountant, James Morris. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">By John Reid Young</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">Author of The Skipping Verger and Other Tales, a collection of short stories set in Tenerife.</span><br /><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc9900;">http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323</span></a></div>
</div>
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<a href="http://tenerifeforum.org.es/" target="_blank">Tenerife Forum Community</a></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-87475638858261236122015-10-12T05:27:00.000-07:002019-09-11T00:35:17.943-07:00Honeymoon on Mount Teide<h1>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"> Jessica Duncan Smyth is not the first woman known to have climbed Mount Teide. According to Canary Island historians she may have been preceded by a Scottish lady whom they simply refer to as Mrs. Hammond, believed to have crossed paths on the volcano with another expedition organised by the Prussian geologist Leopold von Buch in 1825. But Jessie, as everyone knew her, did belong to that unique and distinguished category of 19th century British women who made their name travelling the world in search of knowledge, adventure and, on occasions, romance. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQExvTdpBADSVmim12qakBt6ZwSVPzy93bJl9wWllVZ2lOt_Kcm-gKrxE6TgFR6AAeCvUciVZCD5KvkaVauroVcyEI-8STqAwAKV0AeIq6d3PGyQ3f7EW_Jl_YxXhr9QTNlDS9I5df1LM/s1600/Jessie+Duncan+Smyth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQExvTdpBADSVmim12qakBt6ZwSVPzy93bJl9wWllVZ2lOt_Kcm-gKrxE6TgFR6AAeCvUciVZCD5KvkaVauroVcyEI-8STqAwAKV0AeIq6d3PGyQ3f7EW_Jl_YxXhr9QTNlDS9I5df1LM/s320/Jessie+Duncan+Smyth.jpg" width="237" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span><b><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span><span style="font-size: x-small;">Jessie came to Tenerife in 1856 to accompany her famous astrologist husband, Charles Piazzi Smyth.</span></b></span></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> The purpose of the expedition was to
assess the potential of the island’s high mountains for an astronomical
observatory. But as well as scientific, it was also a romantic adventure
because they were just married. Their honeymoon, in fact, became a voyage to the island
on the yacht</span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Titania</i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">, as well as a
prolonged stay on the island of Tenerife, sixty five days of it spent on Mount
Teide. Jessie was one of the first women to have been a member of a scientific
expedition of such importance and her role marked a turning point in
the history of the islands during the 19th century. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> The </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Titania</i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> was a
magnificent schooner. She was launched in 1853 and was the second of the same name to belong to Robert Stevenson, the great 19th century engineer. He put the yacht at the disposal of his fellow scientist for the entire duration of the expedition to Tenerife</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">. Stevenson, of course, was a man of immense wealth
but he was extremely generous with it. Sadly he suffered ill health for many
years and died while sailing on his beloved </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Titania</i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">
in Norwegian waters just three years after lending it to his astronomer friend.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMEd63iYqrQeOzxWHkd7ZpW_B9JrKgohn7mIjgNgxSmUF49MHIBPgiZgsTf_o3AUDwNzpSovKxA2BN53egzlYSw32543lGBHfni0Vkcq4YHCMIeG4NZRydRGAcg7d-aIA1ri9tNLaQap0/s1600/IMG_0022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMEd63iYqrQeOzxWHkd7ZpW_B9JrKgohn7mIjgNgxSmUF49MHIBPgiZgsTf_o3AUDwNzpSovKxA2BN53egzlYSw32543lGBHfni0Vkcq4YHCMIeG4NZRydRGAcg7d-aIA1ri9tNLaQap0/s320/IMG_0022.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The Titania, illustrated by Annie Chapman in "New Year on Piazzi's Mountain" </b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>(a story in The Skipping Verger and Other Tales)</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> In Tenerife Jessie met Mr. Alfred Diston, a British
merchant in the Orotava Valley who always saw to it that British visitors were
well received. Through him she also became friends with Elizabeth Murray, the artist and writer
who had been in Tenerife for six years due to her husband’s consular position.
But </span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Jessie, whose father, lawyer Thomas
Duncan had also been an artist, was not going to accept the comforts and
company provided by the small and distinguished British community. She had studied geology in Edinburgh and her
love of adventure and scientific travel was equal to Piazzi's.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Jessie became a very important member of her husband’s
scientific expeditions. She always kept notes and made sketches for their
adventures and learned to prepare and to preserve local foods. Amongst
other activities she acted as photographer for the astronomer’s team. Indeed her
stereoscopic prints were the first to have been published alongside text in a
book and her work is considered of pioneering value. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg06mYMSE6tv01u3G_4uH1OFrp0YSiQgD7jX_Z2YIfG5HEUirG0YXKn92v4uiPV3oBRSjGV60bEO-_7PbChPI93BzWqtXsDB5WJ8Nr__tyq4Ph9l_G06_i1NtHfQixS_SR0VoU3S9YOkk/s1600/69279700_10215043583058748_695175903222693888_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="865" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg06mYMSE6tv01u3G_4uH1OFrp0YSiQgD7jX_Z2YIfG5HEUirG0YXKn92v4uiPV3oBRSjGV60bEO-_7PbChPI93BzWqtXsDB5WJ8Nr__tyq4Ph9l_G06_i1NtHfQixS_SR0VoU3S9YOkk/s320/69279700_10215043583058748_695175903222693888_n.jpg" width="288" /></a></div>
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<b style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Their first observation point was on Mount Guajara</span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMsFSQ42Gm3sq_vDzJ5rCHDk3IDSBxtrRGhVfB9qGprhSgrgNOzgrdCqnhgxjxsg-6D2roDEwm_B5F-BrcrVSLaq7s40Dqq0YhZ8Aw2ZGAUbTzarbpLyLSB7BI-VZ9bWkpkixlj0qKUgg/s1600/rar_2996_0002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="438" data-original-width="600" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMsFSQ42Gm3sq_vDzJ5rCHDk3IDSBxtrRGhVfB9qGprhSgrgNOzgrdCqnhgxjxsg-6D2roDEwm_B5F-BrcrVSLaq7s40Dqq0YhZ8Aw2ZGAUbTzarbpLyLSB7BI-VZ9bWkpkixlj0qKUgg/s320/rar_2996_0002.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>On Mount Teide a walled enclosure provided shelter for the Piazzi's telescopes, as well as for the honeymoon couple and companions. </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><b>This is w</b></span><b style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">hat George Graham Toler later developed into the Alta Vista mountain refuge.</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> It was thanks largely to the novelty of including twenty of Jessie’s stereoscopic reproductions in Charles Piazzi Smyth’s book, </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Teneriffe: an Astronomer’s Experiment or Specialities of a Residence above the Clouds</i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">, that it was accepted for publication in 1858.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEhnz8XuzOUG2DZUVsbE1-lsxvl6HGoBrQlco4hRAVdzEVH-vHcC6_LcIKpnCzBflLbF6yQw6B8mvedkRD3vdtiJYBBy6RUo9ED6smXap9wMHIfZOh50j4-aIKY3zps92bdQKUWUEJfas/s1600/teneriffeastrono00smyt_0011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEhnz8XuzOUG2DZUVsbE1-lsxvl6HGoBrQlco4hRAVdzEVH-vHcC6_LcIKpnCzBflLbF6yQw6B8mvedkRD3vdtiJYBBy6RUo9ED6smXap9wMHIfZOh50j4-aIKY3zps92bdQKUWUEJfas/s320/teneriffeastrono00smyt_0011.jpg" width="204" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"> <b style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Piazzi's account of his experiments in Tenerife.</b></span></div>
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<b style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> After Tenerife the husband and wife team travelled to
Russia and in 1864 the couple spent a year in Egypt. Jessie and Charles Piazzi
Smyth lived four months under canvas whilst carrying out investigations into
the Great Pyramid of Giza. Jessica’s photographs, inside and outside of the
pyramid, were essential for backing up her husband’s work. Actually her
photography in Tenerife only found limited recognition in the British Isles, but
Canary Island historians consider Jessie Duncan Smyth’s work most important.
After all, she was the first to have photographs of their islands printed in
books. Therefore she is one of those early travellers who helped put Tenerife
on the map, especially in scientific circles, and to have turned the
spectacular mountains of Tenerife into a prime destination for any explorer.</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">Some of her photographs of the interior of Teide’s ice cave captured the imagination of many explorers and early visitors to the island. The domed cave hid a beautiful icy lagoon with the purest water to be found, and icicles and stalactites hung in it like fragile works of art.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcaNSvvEOEsK5Ml1-_u15yHI3CfiFl0k1eg58gviyakoTGFxSvtmfmZwqVxSPVFNHRUTj_b3DJvqYtCYaStxybqxDfk7ndEN1dJKZQTPJ4OW9A264dKDAgd4OYg6SlLjFeFC-9v1_IAEE/s1600/cueva-del-hielo-teide-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcaNSvvEOEsK5Ml1-_u15yHI3CfiFl0k1eg58gviyakoTGFxSvtmfmZwqVxSPVFNHRUTj_b3DJvqYtCYaStxybqxDfk7ndEN1dJKZQTPJ4OW9A264dKDAgd4OYg6SlLjFeFC-9v1_IAEE/s320/cueva-del-hielo-teide-2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>A photograph taken in 1927 inside the ice cave.</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> The
islands today are considered one of the world’s best locations for astronomic observations and there is no doubt that the Canary Islands Astrophysics
Institute, with its Tenerife centre at Izaña, owes much to Charles and Jessica
Piazzi Smyth’s expedition in 1856.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV1EwOI3mpNRq8tLUBmBikMUkVTL1icwhvZ1rfphA9rbd139J3AzFPqiwnJk584cm_8PnTUz7Zo0hh9JTlznEx05oB5pgEg8l4x08ncXUoZXV5wQo3GwnN7tywwIm3CAFzsFosmwIrQLM/s1600/Observatorio+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV1EwOI3mpNRq8tLUBmBikMUkVTL1icwhvZ1rfphA9rbd139J3AzFPqiwnJk584cm_8PnTUz7Zo0hh9JTlznEx05oB5pgEg8l4x08ncXUoZXV5wQo3GwnN7tywwIm3CAFzsFosmwIrQLM/s320/Observatorio+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The Mount Teide Astrophysics Institute at Izaña.</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> The couple retired to North Yorkshire where
Jessie Piazzi Smyth died in 1896, aged 81. There is an interesting,
pyramid-shaped monument to the couple in the churchyard at St. John's Church at
Sharow. It is a pleasant thought that they took their romantic adventures in Tenerife and Egypt with
them to the grave.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS7hpbt-YRTfUfsH3sIKDK9k05IXi0YhY9SCOoZFcy2djXaQkRz_5QSm5G9K9kbI0jvKmRS719mebR5y0m2njeCDFAqdjUzHhlhDZMVlIRow8r84Laca2B_PWsTkdp6OgPbKezbOApy60/s1600/220px-Pyramid_Tombstone_in_Sharow_Churchyard_-_geograph_org_uk_-_327872.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS7hpbt-YRTfUfsH3sIKDK9k05IXi0YhY9SCOoZFcy2djXaQkRz_5QSm5G9K9kbI0jvKmRS719mebR5y0m2njeCDFAqdjUzHhlhDZMVlIRow8r84Laca2B_PWsTkdp6OgPbKezbOApy60/s1600/220px-Pyramid_Tombstone_in_Sharow_Churchyard_-_geograph_org_uk_-_327872.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-small;"><b>The unusual pyramid where the scientific and romantic adventurers, Charles and Jessie, lie at rest.</b></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">By John Reid Young</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">Author of The Skipping Verger and Other Tales, a collection of short stories set in Tenerife.</span><br /><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc9900;">http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323</span></a></div>
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<a href="http://tenerifeforum.org.es/" target="_blank">Tenerife Forum Community</a></div>
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reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-32232558544004302252015-06-27T03:00:00.002-07:002021-02-11T10:34:50.004-08:00Under the Loquat Tree with Doctor Creagh<div class="MsoBodyText">
<span face=""calibri" , sans-serif"> According to modern weathermen this past
winter in the Canary Islands was the dullest in terms of prolonged low
temperatures, as well as the driest for seventeen years. But, sheltering from
the mid-day sun under a <i>nispero</i> or loquat
tree </span><span face=""calibri" , sans-serif">in my garden, just inland from
the northern shores of Tenerife, I can only agree with those many 19<sup>th</sup>
century British scientists, artists, doctors or mere travellers who wrote such
admiring articles about the climate in the Canary Islands and especially of
that to be found in the Orotava Valley.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><b><span face=""calibri" , sans-serif">Loquats in the Orotava Valley (</span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Eriobotrya japonica</i><span face=""calibri" , sans-serif">)</span></b></span></div>
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<span face=""calibri" , "sans-serif"" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> One of them
was Doctor Jasper Creagh. In 1889 he wrote one of those articles for the
British Medical Journal after spending three months in the valley, which was in those
days carpeted with fields in blossom and the beginnings of banana
plantations, a produce which replaced the cochineal industry. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face=""calibri" , "sans-serif"" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> He had spent the previous twenty years living in Buenos Aires, Argentina as a doctor for the British community. The climate in that part of the world can vary between freezing cold winters and stifling summers so it is perhaps not
surprising that Doctor Creagh found the climate here so gentle. Nevertheless he
decided to visit the island after hearing so much about the charms of Tenerife
and its weather from earlier travellers and during his stay he took very
scientific notes to support such praise for the climate. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><b>La Orotava</b></span></div>
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<span face=""calibri" , "sans-serif"" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> The doctor
spent a few days exploring the island on horseback and in carriages before falling
for the colourful charms of La Orotava. It was here that he began to make
observations, taking into account the weather patterns and temperature
variations. In his article for the British Medical Journal he referred to Sir
Morel Mackenzie who had also stayed in La Orotava during the winter of 1888 and
had observed that <i>Tenerife has three
great advantages….the relative constancy of the temperature, the dryness of the
atmosphere and the variety of weather in a small space.</i> Mackenzie was one of Britain's pioneers in laryngology. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitajU_zYMJYGosCl8IiM8rdgaDFm2vLcGC8JyrwP36u_iKSfl6wY7vGySeRJUhQLAoDdcridNBj6t1xctomwiA2Ck_svKgKmgak6kVhQxgehKfpmnhtLB5auFYJuswwRxyQuYgN-Jg8Wo/s1600/Morell_Mackenzie_2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitajU_zYMJYGosCl8IiM8rdgaDFm2vLcGC8JyrwP36u_iKSfl6wY7vGySeRJUhQLAoDdcridNBj6t1xctomwiA2Ck_svKgKmgak6kVhQxgehKfpmnhtLB5auFYJuswwRxyQuYgN-Jg8Wo/s320/Morell_Mackenzie_2.jpg" width="215" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: xx-small;"><b>Sir Morel Mackenzie</b></span></div>
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<span face=""calibri" , "sans-serif"" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> Doctor
Creagh, referring to Sir Morel’s conclusions, compared the climate of Tenerife
with another British favourite, Madeira. The average temperature in Madeira was 63°F. The average in La Orotava was approximately
67°F. In Port Orotava, the old name for
Puerto de la Cruz, bathed by the sea and protected by the mountains, the
average temperature was 68°F, ranging from 62°F in January to 76°F in July. It
was indeed during the winter months that most Victorian visitors came to stay
in the valley and they were greeted with temperatures, from November to March,
averaging 63°F to 64°F. A paradise, it would seem.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face=""calibri" , "sans-serif"" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> Nevertheless,
visitors to Puerto de la Cruz this past winter, which was perpetually cloudy
and cold, might have felt the same as my mother did 52 years ago. In her
diaries she described the weather during most of January 1963 as cold, windy
and wet, almost as bleak as the Dartmoor farm from which she had escaped ten
years earlier. However she lived in the Orotava Valley, which she loved, for nearly sixty years so
would certainly agree with Doctor Creagh who remarked at the lack of
atmospheric disturbances in Tenerife. Like Creagh, who described the delights
of the sea breeze which gave Puerto its gentle conditions, even in the hottest
summer, she too would sit under this <i>nispero</i>
tree and enjoy feeling the gentle, cool breeze soothing away the mid-day sun.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><b>Friedrich Heinrich Alexander, Baron von Humboldt, the great German Naturalist and Explorer</b></span></div>
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<span face=""calibri" , "sans-serif"" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> Doctor
Jasper Creagh was almost as generous as Alexander von Humboldt who, in June
1799, described the Orotava Valley as a place of varied beauty, with
pretty fields, woods and delicious gardens providing a perpetual spring. He was
also enthusiastic, as few Victorians were, about bathing. Indeed he noted the
sea was warm enough to swim in, even in winter.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><b>A mobile hammock in Port Orotava (Puerto de la Cruz)</b></span></div>
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<span face=""calibri" , "sans-serif"" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> Whilst in
Tenerife Doctor Creagh got around on horseback, in carriages or in hammocks.
They could all be hired for a very reasonable price. For example he could hire
a horse for a whole month for less than 150 pesetas. He had come to the island
on a British regular line steamer from South America although he appears to
have been most unpatriotic in recommending French ships as the best. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face=""calibri" , "sans-serif"" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> Representatives
from the very few, but fine old hotels in the 19<sup>th</sup> century, like the
Camacho or Quisisana Grand Hotel which overlooked the bay in Santa Cruz, met
passengers aboard the ships as they docked in the harbour or anchored offshore.
They took care of every detail and would have carriages waiting to take
passengers to La Laguna or to the Orotava Valley along what Creagh described as
<i>an excellent macadamised road. </i>In
other words horse drawn wooden carriages would offer a <i>smooth</i>, bumpy ride over compressed layers of stones. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><b>Early postcard depicting the Quisisana Hotel</b></span></div>
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<span face=""calibri" , "sans-serif"" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> Whilst Victorian elegance was evident in the grand hotels there were
different expectations about travel comfort one hundred and twenty years ago and journeying any distance was still expected to be <i>an adventure</i>.
Nevertheless it was thanks to writers like Doctor Jasper Creagh, recommending the
qualities of the Orotava Valley as a health resort, that so many British
travellers chose to come here in the late 19<sup>th</sup> century, creating the
beginnings of the Canary Island tourist industry. </span><br />
<span face=""calibri" , "sans-serif"" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">By John Reid Young</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">Author of The Skipping Verger and Other Tales, a collection of short stories set in Tenerife.</span><br /><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc9900;">http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323</span></a></div>
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<span face=""calibri" , "sans-serif"" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-4115520067496619052015-05-23T09:56:00.000-07:002015-06-23T06:27:19.617-07:00Winston and Aristotle on the island of Tenerife<div class="MsoNormal">
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Looking back on things, or
remembering epic or even minute historical events and the reasons they came about is
never a waste of time. Indeed past moments are always worth reflecting upon as
they can often explain the present.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To the Canary Islander, whose
known history dates just over six hundred years, any event, however small in a
world context, is naturally framed as vitally important. Rightly proud they should be indeed, for these islands have played a huge part, due to their stategic geographical situation, in world affairs, not least in the discovery and conquest of America. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>As Columbus discovered, the Canaries were strategically positioned for conquest and trade</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">But this incidental account touches casually on one of those minute historical events which, because of the characters they involved, attracted my attention. It is a very personal description of Sir Winston Churchill's brief visit to the island of Tenerife in 1959 and I can't help thinking that the old man must have amused himself, and perhaps his companion Mr Onassis, remembering that only 18 years earlier, in September 1941, he had contemplated invading the Canary Islands. This possible invasion plan, codenamed </span>Operation Pilgrim and which was drawn up with the Americans, might have taken place had General Franco done a deal with Mr Hitler and accepted Germany's assistance to take Gibraltar. Luckily, it was a suspicious Franco who met Hitler at Hendaye in the Pyrenees, and his considerable demands and his reluctance to enter the war on the Axis side, led to seven hours of fruitless negotiations. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiD1sp76yQWH4aEqxycqTC-oPSVpnc7JoIfut5ECH_wqgOxC-YiuZa0MgiKHAL6fKulvBQ_cGHcQMCvifvZ1ng0_6ithS5Rg5MdxJ0hJALfnKCXalrsMLTHKHB9om_8Janjsspm-jA7G8/s1600/Spain_Hitler_FrancoA_10-40A_280x205.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiD1sp76yQWH4aEqxycqTC-oPSVpnc7JoIfut5ECH_wqgOxC-YiuZa0MgiKHAL6fKulvBQ_cGHcQMCvifvZ1ng0_6ithS5Rg5MdxJ0hJALfnKCXalrsMLTHKHB9om_8Janjsspm-jA7G8/s1600/Spain_Hitler_FrancoA_10-40A_280x205.jpg" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><b>The smile did not hide General Franco's mistrust of Hitler</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">In 1956 Randolph Churchill introduced his father to Aristotle Onassis, the Greek tycoon. Churchill, who
was relaxing on the Côte d’Azure </span>at the time, described his encounter with
Onassis to his wife Clementine in a letter. <i>I like him. He is very pleasant
and domineering and told us a lot about whales. He kissed my hand!</i></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOhd69J7pp0Y0HCpqRhh_sRlDDNRtT51OWCWHxEfhKz4rgU1N4KwFY2r1uT5vKHaNGP8EykDPq7wWHOX5h9GxpS_-e7vMmNSFJeBu_1OFEvjMxud3aD8caLqvieJpJsX0NePEZp43zVOI/s1600/Teleguia-Pagina_Negra-Aristoteles_Onassis-John_F-Kennedy-Maria_Callas-Jacqueline_Kennedy_LNCIMA20131122_0178_27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOhd69J7pp0Y0HCpqRhh_sRlDDNRtT51OWCWHxEfhKz4rgU1N4KwFY2r1uT5vKHaNGP8EykDPq7wWHOX5h9GxpS_-e7vMmNSFJeBu_1OFEvjMxud3aD8caLqvieJpJsX0NePEZp43zVOI/s320/Teleguia-Pagina_Negra-Aristoteles_Onassis-John_F-Kennedy-Maria_Callas-Jacqueline_Kennedy_LNCIMA20131122_0178_27.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><b>Aristotle Onassis, whom Churchill described as pleasant and domineering</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Onassis so impressed the old
statesman that he told his secretary he would like to meet the Greek again.
That is how their relationship, which many people frowned upon, developed. Churchill gave
Onassis important international prestige although it is believed Onassis never actually used the
Englishman’s contacts for business interests. In return, Onassis offered Sir Winston a
great deal of Mediterranean luxury and comfort. Churchill is known to have said, <i>I have simple tastes. I am satisfied with the best. </i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Actually the two men had a number of interest in common. One was oil. Churchill, when he was First Lord
of the Admiralty, had pushed to have every Royal Navy ship running on oil
rather than coal. Onassis owed most of his enormous fortune to the maritime
transport of oil. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQL3mL9wrAQTMPL-pyUJWMHs5gC3qvaT2fBt3kEvNL7Ytsq6IRvP3mR2NbrUoPUWI9vjU26MI8wd8UgBdvcyx20Y2zc6UczJp9vzcSlFjSsttT3uLV5WRDWnaozHS1FvAmjzGGiIRUzMU/s1600/christina_o_onassis_yacht_cruising_a_x.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQL3mL9wrAQTMPL-pyUJWMHs5gC3qvaT2fBt3kEvNL7Ytsq6IRvP3mR2NbrUoPUWI9vjU26MI8wd8UgBdvcyx20Y2zc6UczJp9vzcSlFjSsttT3uLV5WRDWnaozHS1FvAmjzGGiIRUzMU/s320/christina_o_onassis_yacht_cruising_a_x.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>The Christina</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As a result of their friendship Onassis invited Churchill to
accompany him on his yacht, the Christina, on eight cruises in the
Mediterranean and the <st1:place w:st="on">Atlantic</st1:place> between 1958
and 1963. Celia, Sir Winston’s granddaughter, observed that he had aged
considerably and was wonderfully happy on the yacht and those pleasurable holidays appeared to give him renewed life. Onassis, apart from being one of Churchill's great admirers, was an intelligent and civilized man who did all he could to make
life as enjoyable and easy as he could for the old, valiant leader. Churchill’s
doctor, Lord Moran, described how Aristotle Onassis never stopped caring for
his friend. <i>In one moment he would be giving Churchill a whisky. In another,
when Churchill felt chilly on deck, Onassis would cover him with a blanket. </i></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdAn6o71yldAFtaXNI2hKCfwNWJIdbUfHqB4gE6rDQ5WCvvT-nNMjmsY4vfQdQMGieZ21MLBsbizDLnPjXY5Kx10MeuYlXPGltADhYpzFZt-lnBEmsti_jim1C5AzzJJ17VOdvX5h-qCU/s1600/Playing+cards+on+deck+with+Athina+and+Onassis-coutesy+la+Opinion+de+Tenerife.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdAn6o71yldAFtaXNI2hKCfwNWJIdbUfHqB4gE6rDQ5WCvvT-nNMjmsY4vfQdQMGieZ21MLBsbizDLnPjXY5Kx10MeuYlXPGltADhYpzFZt-lnBEmsti_jim1C5AzzJJ17VOdvX5h-qCU/s1600/Playing+cards+on+deck+with+Athina+and+Onassis-coutesy+la+Opinion+de+Tenerife.jpg" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><b>Onassis, his wife Athina and Churchill, playing cards on deck during their Canary Island cruise</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 1959, when the Christina made
her first voyage to the <st1:place w:st="on">Canary Islands</st1:place>,
Churchill was 84. He was still a member of the House of Commons and
in good health. Sir Winston had been spending a few week’s holiday at the Mamounia Hotel in
Marrakech with his wife Clementine and daughter Diana. <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:country-region w:st="on">Morocco</st1:country-region></st1:place> was one of his favourite
places to which to escape and sketch. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaK3Se_y804McgLy4kNDbSqterlBl52s8wJwyNbNI24XfMbSlTY8I8MxQeknBltyI_Hv9xpaL20TC_H5gKD05D6bQNWjFIGJ-9Nrcno3wzyYPGFU-1fxTBRQgpBjKywbSUI8GRFWLfmlc/s1600/la-mamounia-pre2009.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="142" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaK3Se_y804McgLy4kNDbSqterlBl52s8wJwyNbNI24XfMbSlTY8I8MxQeknBltyI_Hv9xpaL20TC_H5gKD05D6bQNWjFIGJ-9Nrcno3wzyYPGFU-1fxTBRQgpBjKywbSUI8GRFWLfmlc/s320/la-mamounia-pre2009.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><b>Inside the Mamounia, a splendid, palacial Hotel in the heart of Marrakech</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Christina was at <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Casablanca</st1:city></st1:place>
and on the 17<sup>th</sup> February Aristotle and his wife Athina, daughter of shipping tycoon, Stavros G. Livanos, got into the
ship’s seaplane and flew to Marrakech where Churchill was giving a farewell
dinner. On the following day Churchill and his party made their way to <st1:city w:st="on">Safi</st1:city>, on the Atlantic coast, where Onassis took them
aboard for a cruise to the <st1:place w:st="on">Canary Islands.</st1:place> This was not part of an invasion plan but a peaceful visit and they were joined by Sir Anthony Montague
Brown, from the Foreign Office, Sergeant Edmund Murray of Scotland Yard, and
Arthur Sheppard, Churchill’s personal nurse. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhltXUHLxtaVyMsXF_jUbxPfpfLU7gU5zNJPULlHqFucyvmYlHJI4270p0f7NyssdX3tpV2bLTjvHRmzgE34C583Z3h5JcZZknajc3dqP8DzRAHVisafCLCedPxj1-NsxDJzVMNIQYr9Yg/s1600/CIUDAD%252BDE%252BPALMA%252BII-2-20141129-6300-En%252BTenerife-LGF-r1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhltXUHLxtaVyMsXF_jUbxPfpfLU7gU5zNJPULlHqFucyvmYlHJI4270p0f7NyssdX3tpV2bLTjvHRmzgE34C583Z3h5JcZZknajc3dqP8DzRAHVisafCLCedPxj1-NsxDJzVMNIQYr9Yg/s320/CIUDAD%252BDE%252BPALMA%252BII-2-20141129-6300-En%252BTenerife-LGF-r1.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><b>The port of Santa Cruz, quite a few years ago</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Three days later, on a glorious morning and with a crowd gathering to catch a glimpse of Churchill, the Christina docked in Santa Cruz. Churchill spent the morning aboard and lunched early with Mr Bill Lucas, </span>Director of Miller and Co., shipping agents in <st1:place w:st="on">Tenerife and Las Palmas. His</st1:place> wife Clementine, Athina and Mary Lucas went exploring. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was not the first time
Lucas and Churchill had been together aboard a ship. During WW2 William
Lucas was an MI6 agent in the Carribean. In 1944 both he and Churchill returned
to <st1:country-region w:st="on">Britain</st1:country-region> from <st1:state w:st="on">New York</st1:state> aboard the Queen Mary, which was transporting
support troops destined for the already launched <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:state w:st="on">Normandy</st1:state></st1:place> invasions. Winston Churchill had been to the Quebec
Conference and to his meeting with <st1:place w:st="on">Roosevelt</st1:place>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Clementine and Athina were so enthusiastic about the beauty of the Orotava Valley and the charms of Puerto de la Cruz that Churchill and Onassis decided to have an excursion themselves. In fact Churchill's visit to Tenerife really began after his lunch with Lucas and simply involved a drive to Puerto and back along the winding roads of the 1950s.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Onassis had a convertible version of the Fiat 500 with wicker seats on his yacht and it was lowered onto the harbour in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Santa Cruz</st1:city></st1:place>. </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was a tiny car, with tiny wheels, low on the ground and had a rear engine which sounded rather like a lawn mower. </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To everyone's surprise Sir Winston Churchill was eased into the little car and
Aristotle, the powerful millionaire, drove them off out the harbour at a
dizzy speed in the direction of Puerto de la Cruz.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMYEhQ5qUyqItInXclZH9tpIs9ZCGBdiTRDElCEeTM93LJn3bWvEPD30vRTq2Q23Pbne8scQ1VI9WGcbM0dZFlgxxAilqjoslYHAYrwclF2_4YK6YYXfrFiOD1tE3Ab-tQurg9Kp2cHdU/s1600/Puerto+from+Taoro-Churchill%2527s+visit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMYEhQ5qUyqItInXclZH9tpIs9ZCGBdiTRDElCEeTM93LJn3bWvEPD30vRTq2Q23Pbne8scQ1VI9WGcbM0dZFlgxxAilqjoslYHAYrwclF2_4YK6YYXfrFiOD1tE3Ab-tQurg9Kp2cHdU/s320/Puerto+from+Taoro-Churchill%2527s+visit.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>When there were still banana plantations in Puerto de la Cruz</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">They made various stops on the
way but from the Taoro Hotel, close to All Saints Anglican Church, the two men were able to admire the beauty of the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Orotava</st1:placename>
<st1:placetype w:st="on">Valley</st1:placetype></st1:place>, undeveloped as it
was then with acres of banana plantations. I wonder if Churchill was
aware that when his plans to invade the Canaries during the war were drawn up, </span>Thomas Reid, the British Vice-Consul in Puerto de la Cruz was issued with a
giant Union Jack and was given orders to drape it over the roof of All Saints Church, where British and other allied residents would be safely gathered in the event of an airborn raid. Sadly it is thought the flag, along with
documents of immense historical value, were destroyed when the British Vice-Consulate in Puerto closed down in the early 1970s.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-s1i0-XFdRAcZxp7_nLFJiKD_YptKHBVpAZeH4HTUDPJc68px3JISyJotFOlR3N6JyDQe6GFDue49zFLvEjxdxWWYSUblmZT650i4vfZFnM-JscJnfmAARv6yPvPz8a4JJIRj8uVAzmM/s1600/DSCN2158.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-s1i0-XFdRAcZxp7_nLFJiKD_YptKHBVpAZeH4HTUDPJc68px3JISyJotFOlR3N6JyDQe6GFDue49zFLvEjxdxWWYSUblmZT650i4vfZFnM-JscJnfmAARv6yPvPz8a4JJIRj8uVAzmM/s320/DSCN2158.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><b>All Saints Church, built by the British community and completed in 1892</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rio Reid, who inherited the position of Honorary Vice-Consul in Puerto de la Cruz from his father Thomas, was unwell that day in 1959. So the Mayor, Isidoro Luz Carpenter, sent a message to his brother Noel Reid, who was in the middle of his usual game
of bowls at the British Games Club, to inform him that Mr Churchill had decided to pay a visit to Puerto. Noel Reid collected Isidoro Luz and took him
to meet the great statesman and Churchill was received by the Mayor at the Lido
San Telmo, together with an enthusiastic and applauding crowd of British
residents, tourists and local people, all of whom were squeezing each other to
get as close as possible to Mr Churchill. This was indeed a minute historical event of enormous importance to this Atlantic community. In his diary Noel Reid recalled, <i>Churchill was smiling all around and making the V sign. It was very pleasing.
Isidoro Luz was as thrilled as I was. </i></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTNoCtxEklROfGeqryVfLWb_hg9aszR-CRvjNQMW6VNrzJxgf8KTqt7l621h89v6GlA_fdSm4kF8PURTglhYlr-cyBbOhKuYH1yN2cYplXeDfcTuH6ZQs2sjpGFy62z2FeC48SkofApqo/s1600/Churchill+Lido+San+Telmo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTNoCtxEklROfGeqryVfLWb_hg9aszR-CRvjNQMW6VNrzJxgf8KTqt7l621h89v6GlA_fdSm4kF8PURTglhYlr-cyBbOhKuYH1yN2cYplXeDfcTuH6ZQs2sjpGFy62z2FeC48SkofApqo/s320/Churchill+Lido+San+Telmo.jpg" width="236" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><b>Sir Winston Churchill, leaving the Lido San Telmo, with Isidoro Luz wearing dark glasses, just behind</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">They didn't take little Fiat 500 back to the Christina. Churchill had rightly complained that he had found the drive over, especially through La Laguna in a convertible car, frightfully cold! Instead he and Onassis were chaufeured back </span>in a large, black saloon in time for an early dinner aboard the Christina. It might well have been the magnificent, black American Pontiac which belonged to the Mayor of Puerto de la Cruz.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">However brief, this was an intense and memorable visit which Sir Winston Churchill
made to Puerto de la Cruz and to <st1:place w:st="on">Tenerife and b</st1:place>efore the Onassis yacht departed for <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Las
Palmas</st1:city></st1:place> in the early hours of the morning, the
Churchills were presented with orchids, Canary drawn linen work, a box of fat cigars,
oranges, and two dozen bottles of local Malmsey wine.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i><br /><br /> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">By John Reid Young</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: blue;">Author of The Skipping Verger and Other Tales, a collection of short stories.</span><br /><span style="color: blue;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc9900;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323</span></span></a></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://tenerifeforum.org.es/" target="_blank">Tenerife Forum Community</a></div>
reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-30539257042213404332015-03-30T15:40:00.000-07:002015-03-31T00:24:52.218-07:00The Blind Traveller in Tenerife<div class="MsoBodyText">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> When
he arrived on the island of Tenerife in 1826, <i>The Blind Traveller</i> was forty four years old and already one of
Britain’s most widely travelled personalities. But he was no ordinary voyager for </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">James Holman, the
fourth son of an English chemist from Exeter, was </span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN;">completely
blind. He also suffered from debilitating pain and limited mobility.
Nevertheless he was an adventurer in mind and spirit and like so many of his
contemporaries with that typical <i>stiff
upper lip</i> education, he forbade anything from weakening his resolve.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0fw9GD3guYx8KJ6c2tSfS0tGmrSNJZQlemWZkBYlUqqvOHaRXmNb2buSqR6VD-ZXd8ycXlPNIkbz5qqtGhneNgY4ZGmgSVrpRagRgB5Lxp5n6ensPChqF09f0bMs5wDHl_-UHyLcIxSY/s1600/images42QYMXCG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0fw9GD3guYx8KJ6c2tSfS0tGmrSNJZQlemWZkBYlUqqvOHaRXmNb2buSqR6VD-ZXd8ycXlPNIkbz5qqtGhneNgY4ZGmgSVrpRagRgB5Lxp5n6ensPChqF09f0bMs5wDHl_-UHyLcIxSY/s1600/images42QYMXCG.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">James Holman, The Blind Traveller, as a young man</span></div>
<br />
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN;"> James Holman had entered the Royal Navy in 1798 just a year after Horatio
Nelson suffered his only defeat at the hands of the Spanish garrison in Santa
Cruz de Tenerife, and was appointed lieutenant in 1807. But in 1810, whilst off
the Americas on HMS Guerriere, a ship captured from the French, he was
struck down by a strange disease which at first affected his joints and quite
soon afterwards his sight. He became totally blind at the age of 25. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><br /></span>
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB-RAAZD_DcwFHNWqb3XTEREjlXiI46ZxM2N6XQE4AEqxYx4AOZBIDWBw3BdNopPL4BOmvynRaXK0rDJFnamCdFOs3GbQU2zscrACUCoEtc51-0ZNP5MWMofOBJDztgK7WhyDk7uWhTho/s1600/USS_Constitution_vs_Guerriere+by+Michel+Felice+Corne.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB-RAAZD_DcwFHNWqb3XTEREjlXiI46ZxM2N6XQE4AEqxYx4AOZBIDWBw3BdNopPL4BOmvynRaXK0rDJFnamCdFOs3GbQU2zscrACUCoEtc51-0ZNP5MWMofOBJDztgK7WhyDk7uWhTho/s1600/USS_Constitution_vs_Guerriere+by+Michel+Felice+Corne.jpg" height="220" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">The American USS Constitution sinking HMS Guerriere - Painting by Michel Fernice Corne</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></div>
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN;"> Having become ill during the course of his duty James Holman was appointed
to the Naval Knights of Windsor and therefore provided with a lifetime grant of
care in Windsor Castle. In exchange for this help which was available to British military
personnel his only obligation was to go to church twice a day. Such inactivity
made him restless and depressed and he asked for leave on the grounds of ill
health, first to study medicine and literature at Edinburgh University and then
to travel through Europe for two years in 1819. This was to become the first of
<i>The Blind Traveller’s</i> incredible solo
excursions abroad, during which he used a method of <i>human echolocation</i>, the ability to detect objects and shapes in
their environment by sensing echoes from them, to describe what he perceived. Possibly
an interesting example of fate if one considers he had </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">volunteered for the Royal Navy in
order to <i>see</i> the world.</span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> He had to
be a man of notable energy and perseverance and was curious about absolutely everything.
To begin with he travelled mostly alone, daring to go a bit further every time,
and depended to a large extent upon his own astuteness as well as the kindness
of ordinary folk. His journeys took him from France to Syria and Turkey and
from Italy and Switzerland through to Russia and Siberia, where he was actually arrested on suspicion of being a spy! He even travelled in Africa
and as far as Australia.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> When his
ship anchored in the bay off Santa Cruz James Holman expected to be met by Mr
Gilbert Bruce, the British Consul General. However Mr Bruce was away in England
and so it was the new Consul, Mr Francis Coleman Macgregor, who went to the port to welcome him. In fact this worked out rather well. Not only had they met before but Mr. Macgregor who had recently been appointed Consul to the
Canary Islands, was just as eager to learn about Tenerife and its
inhabitants.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN3vWFOAu8E7iAbUvOS9hhmx69WfrB5u8X_xW0i4GnWmpR1tx77hnZCb7tFea4O8_ge0cyQAjjKtyfw6O4ULxgneFEZA8fJxKBBLJ5vQoLJElS_Ufk5NfNELHV1a6hR6TTrVaL-jqKKok/s1600/2437.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN3vWFOAu8E7iAbUvOS9hhmx69WfrB5u8X_xW0i4GnWmpR1tx77hnZCb7tFea4O8_ge0cyQAjjKtyfw6O4ULxgneFEZA8fJxKBBLJ5vQoLJElS_Ufk5NfNELHV1a6hR6TTrVaL-jqKKok/s1600/2437.jpg" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">Ships at anchor in the bay off Santa Cruz</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> Although Holman journeyed mainly on his own, he would never turn down the companionship of a fellow traveller. What he could not
feel or sense, his companion would describe. The population in Santa Cruz was
only about 6,000 people in 1826 and he wrote about the streets being rather empty
and lifeless. In the heat of mid-day that would not have been unusual. The road
to La Laguna he found in a deplorable state, rocky, dusty and dirty. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC_gKq_nY7ZTxi_j66jd67dd81XUMVNET32h6xcNvJIeVSf3Trz5ZgXQ-Yc3hGMhp9sVmF8JQVt8eXy94A96NIzGgo_voSkRrkNDyC2kMcni7cPlr2Xm1tuAvJv9YtMxLQujJgya_FNWM/s1600/Hist7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC_gKq_nY7ZTxi_j66jd67dd81XUMVNET32h6xcNvJIeVSf3Trz5ZgXQ-Yc3hGMhp9sVmF8JQVt8eXy94A96NIzGgo_voSkRrkNDyC2kMcni7cPlr2Xm1tuAvJv9YtMxLQujJgya_FNWM/s1600/Hist7.jpg" height="93" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: xx-small;">The dusty road from Santa Cruz to La Laguna</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> It was in La
Orotava that he really encountered the colourful charm of the <i>tinerfeño</i>, feeling a vibrant commercial
buzz mingled with the people’s open and warm nature. Like so many visitors, James Holman was evidently touched by the islander's uninhibited generosity and how curious that even a blind man could appreciate the Canary Island women as being extremely beautiful, with <i>black eyes that
made them even more attractive</i>. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7HZHljQN856wj3UM25SuhrXgVzerYC-eEVAyLZCIADRCHZB1l7ql6CUWCmLfGCvVYXySGZ8i8CiLDBO9gSBE7J7Iknj8NwxZHRFUDYA8-QGSNpPuCKjnGf8HKU5HIbAK2z7oXqyaSgQk/s1600/Ducane+Sto+Domingo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7HZHljQN856wj3UM25SuhrXgVzerYC-eEVAyLZCIADRCHZB1l7ql6CUWCmLfGCvVYXySGZ8i8CiLDBO9gSBE7J7Iknj8NwxZHRFUDYA8-QGSNpPuCKjnGf8HKU5HIbAK2z7oXqyaSgQk/s1600/Ducane+Sto+Domingo.jpg" height="320" width="216" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">The colours The Blind Traveller could only imagine - Ella Du Cane's Santo Domingo Convent and Church - La Orotava</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> In recent
years one of the principal complaints made by older visitors and local people
alike has been that the island of Tenerife has been overcome by reckless construction
and an overpopulation of about one million inhabitants. So it is interesting to
know that even as long ago as the early 19<sup>th</sup> century a blind man sensed
there were too many people on the island and remarked upon the need for islanders
to emigrate. His observation was made when the population in Tenerife was
only 80,000. He also remarked at how remote the islanders were despite being so
close to the continent. One can´t imagine what James Holman, who came to
Tenerife when travel was certainly more adventurous but possibly gentler, would
feel if he visited the island today with its busy airports ferrying in five million
tourists every year!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhi17Z-e214cbKb9qw9WFzDC6Als5ZPZTZMhf3SDdqSj9Mh9J8M7-a9rPQ37TAav-sqhKqFPU_5heNfPxpeG_VhQt4xlYQ7hCAW0LqOaY1aj_tvTaMNYDF5uKQY4ODAbvdaiV8D2Cau9M/s1600/DSCN1903.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhi17Z-e214cbKb9qw9WFzDC6Als5ZPZTZMhf3SDdqSj9Mh9J8M7-a9rPQ37TAav-sqhKqFPU_5heNfPxpeG_VhQt4xlYQ7hCAW0LqOaY1aj_tvTaMNYDF5uKQY4ODAbvdaiV8D2Cau9M/s1600/DSCN1903.jpg" height="129" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">Like Holman, traditional fishermen today refuse to be defeated</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> Holman noted
that most islanders in 1826 lived from agriculture and fishing and referred to a
land of palms, fig trees, vineyards, sugar cane, lemons and oranges. He must
have felt a considerable echo from the majestic examples of Canary Pine, the <i>pinus canariensis, </i>because he wrote most enthusiastically about it. He also found the wines
quite exquisite. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> Some of his observations might seem a touch eccentric, but one has to understand that </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">any minute detail can be of </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">enormous significance to a blind person. Holman mentioned the fact that there were a lot of camels used
for transport and that everyone seemed to smoke, complaining nevertheless that it was difficult to find any cigars! He remarked upon ice-sellers, men who made a living offering ice which they brought down from
Mount Teide, sometimes offering it to travellers stirred in refreshing, squeezed lemon juice.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> His reference
to traditional fiestas is particularly revealing. In his book <i>Travels in Madeira, Sierra Leone, Teneriffe, St. Jago, Cape Coast,
Fernando Po, and Prince´s Island</i>, he pays special tribute to the custom of
the <i>Piñata</i>, possibly because it
alluded to the instinct and perception of blinded people. Today it is a favourite
at birthday parties when blindfolded children take turns to beat a decorated bag, the <i>piñata,</i> which
hangs </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">full of surprises and gifts </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">from a tree. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdm29_VHvxtkfVcjxyGM3mPo7hmTSTqc3dvRYQYzQ6wRuJR5k8dLNM1IxZ6FtaM1YuRdGlzhOtxDEiFz6iJ5uIF2_64_DLiDhC6InfmXRNH7XRIW3mlYz4lna2a_OsFNMyx2TabAEizsE/s1600/pinata.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdm29_VHvxtkfVcjxyGM3mPo7hmTSTqc3dvRYQYzQ6wRuJR5k8dLNM1IxZ6FtaM1YuRdGlzhOtxDEiFz6iJ5uIF2_64_DLiDhC6InfmXRNH7XRIW3mlYz4lna2a_OsFNMyx2TabAEizsE/s1600/pinata.jpg" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: xx-small;">Children taking turns to beat the <i>piñata</i> - a custom believed to have been introduced from China in the times of Marco Polo</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"> What James Holman described were
blindfolded young men doing much the same to a bag containing gifts. The men
would then race to gather the contents which spilled out of the broken bag and offer the gift they were able to retrieve to their chosen lady or <i>novia</i>.
How he must have wished to have beaten a <i>piñata</i>
and received the gift in the form of a miracle. An interesting subject for the
student of psychology…….a blind man observing blindfolded men at play.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="MsoBodyText">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Times;">By John Reid Young</span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Times;">Author of The Skipping Verger and Other Tales, a collection of short stories.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Times;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323" style="font-family: Calibri;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc9900;">http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323</span></a></div>
</div>
</div>
reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-22175731417666519252015-02-24T14:08:00.001-08:002015-02-24T14:08:47.105-08:00Harold Lee, an Englishman in Tenerife<div class="MsoBodyText">
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Like
many other travel authors of his time Harold Lee placed the Portuguese Madeira
archipelago and the Canary Islands into one area of study. Both groups of
Atlantic islands form part of Macaronesia, the Islands of the Fortunate
or μακάρων νῆσοι <i>makárōn nêsoi, </i>as ancient Greek
geographers referred to them. But there was another, more practical explanation
for this. Steamers from the British Isles carrying passengers to the colonies
often called in on both. His book, <i>Madeira and the Canary Islands, a
Handbook for Tourists </i>which was published in Liverpool in 1888, is a constant
comparison between the two and he portrays them, especially the island of Tenerife, with charm and candour. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
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</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGXeWSOTdf8UEWLdOKtZT5nyXAq940RKIXeBfy_6n48EBxaHV4WzizxsAdokRhBWzE0AC_tTVcrJrfmfPOTkG_bj8XVqrpmUW91omUW42tvsbQMoQc9kOa8A7In59BPReSjx3x2B4qPpk/s1600/Lee+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGXeWSOTdf8UEWLdOKtZT5nyXAq940RKIXeBfy_6n48EBxaHV4WzizxsAdokRhBWzE0AC_tTVcrJrfmfPOTkG_bj8XVqrpmUW91omUW42tvsbQMoQc9kOa8A7In59BPReSjx3x2B4qPpk/s1600/Lee+1.png" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">Madeira and the Canary Islands, published in Liverpool in 1888</span></div>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">The
image of Mount Teide, of course, captured his imagination from the moment it
became visible from about ninety miles away and, as so many adventurers and
sailors long before him, he paid reverential attention to the great volcano.
With a wicked sense of humour that on occasions betrayed a very Victorian and<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>superior<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></i>attitude towards the rest of the
world he wrote of passengers on board the ship en route from Madeira to
Tenerife virtually keeping themselves awake in order to be the first to spot
the peak. Nevertheless Lee, whilst perhaps not so elaborate as some writers when he
described Mount Teide, was both lyrical and accurate when he
suggested, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">You must not look at the horizon
itself, but in the sky above. Then, as you gaze, you will suddenly behold it,
not looking like land at all, but to all appearance a nebulous cone, faint
sepia in tint, floating above a deep bank of haze or cloud.</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><br /></span></i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9TIw-1_4eVt_psIGOpUFuKF02oBSepciN-LHcc_cPf6T4wIoNVj6h3X5qn-vExR91xhgH-qFB8BEQ_qaALY4jAZjQSeI2P2J2SlmLZvDJSAcH-5HtgeujwI5xqAZVDjX6UiFGtI35REU/s1600/Mount%20Teide%20volcano%20Tenerife%20Canary%20Islands%20Spain%20nature%20photo%20wallpaper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9TIw-1_4eVt_psIGOpUFuKF02oBSepciN-LHcc_cPf6T4wIoNVj6h3X5qn-vExR91xhgH-qFB8BEQ_qaALY4jAZjQSeI2P2J2SlmLZvDJSAcH-5HtgeujwI5xqAZVDjX6UiFGtI35REU/s1600/Mount%20Teide%20volcano%20Tenerife%20Canary%20Islands%20Spain%20nature%20photo%20wallpaper.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">Mount Teide, as seen from afar, floating above the clouds</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Most
visitors in the late 19<sup>th</sup><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>century
aimed to stay in the Orotava valley which indeed charmed him and where oleander,
euphorbia, poinsettia and hybiscus<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>flaunt
their radiant colours before every passer-by</i> and where orange trees were
borne down to the earth by the sheer weight of their golden fruit. But Lee
preferred the gentle rhythm of life in the capital, Santa Cruz, possibly
because he liked to study people and their ways of life,
especially those which so differed from his own. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: blue;">Santa Cruz, a place of extraordinary beauty, according to Harold Lee</span></span><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">
He paid tribute to Camacho's, Clarke's and The International hotels. These, as one
can imagine, were splendid and delightful examples of a different age.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Camacho himself is a
Portuguese who speaks English and understands English ways.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></i>How very, very superior indeed! The Camacho was advertised as an English Hotel, the oldest, best and most
centrally situated, having forty large well-ventilated bedrooms, with sitting
room, billiards and smoking rooms. Furthermore, there was even a bathroom on
each floor and sanitary arrangements were examined by a Doctor Paget
Thurstan.....an English resident!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI6qi9bfe_5ukLof_DV7E4orh_Jj4u3aTkb2Jd3D64XAiip49K7AndiZPSgXnIDGYP5xGM87RO-hJckCEIHFfc_oFaLqgaHcHIBJ_-eoGydDCXCr-GZFO84ZSxzsSOx0QfypfHFJyqhc4/s1600/327_01_0247.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI6qi9bfe_5ukLof_DV7E4orh_Jj4u3aTkb2Jd3D64XAiip49K7AndiZPSgXnIDGYP5xGM87RO-hJckCEIHFfc_oFaLqgaHcHIBJ_-eoGydDCXCr-GZFO84ZSxzsSOx0QfypfHFJyqhc4/s1600/327_01_0247.jpg" height="320" width="229" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">Camacho's English Hotel</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Harold
Lee was a keen observer of local custom. He referred to the eating of<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>gofio<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></i>with almost every meal. It was the
staple diet of the original<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Guanche</i> inhabitants,
based on ground and toasted grain, typically wheat and varieties of maize
and very similar to that used by Berber tribes of North Africa. He noted a
preference for salt fish too and sketched a peasant woman selling roasted chestnuts on
a street corner in the autumn.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG4MJgIoUHBoSr4cc410UOxfIGKeDni1GxduZ8T1GLtkhym265a66ZkwVKwYYTbtj3SlJOH1Roc7cl02Gj9W98D6vFjeL3dh7HYI5Giq25Pg3AkULqjNvYRETQI7gSOMaqUY5r6CD5YWk/s1600/144_01_0026.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG4MJgIoUHBoSr4cc410UOxfIGKeDni1GxduZ8T1GLtkhym265a66ZkwVKwYYTbtj3SlJOH1Roc7cl02Gj9W98D6vFjeL3dh7HYI5Giq25Pg3AkULqjNvYRETQI7gSOMaqUY5r6CD5YWk/s1600/144_01_0026.jpg" height="320" width="189" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">A peasant woman roasting chestnuts</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">On
occasions he sounded somewhat cynical in his honesty, as he would do, for
instance when suggesting <i>the visitor to the Canary Islands must not
expect to find energy a feature of their inhabitants.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></i>He did qualify this by
reporting that the peasantry, whom he described as<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>exceedingly poor but content</i>,<i> </i>did
labour very hard to make the land produce. Lee remarked at the amount of
children who smoked, and at the easy life the law keepers had, with hardly a
disturbance ever occurring. Indeed, he suggested that any misbehaviour
upsetting the tranquillity of this paradise was most likely to come from
foreigners. A resident Englishman once admitted that in three years the only
drunk he had seen was “precisely an Englishman”. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Nevertheless,
although he assured<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>brutality
is here unheard of or very rare,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></i>Lee was told about the clerk of a wealthy merchant having been murdered for money in
Port Orotava. He was of course referring to a<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>cause
célèbre,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></i>to the death in 1878
of Mr James Morris, a gentleman who looked after the accounts of a firm
belonging to Mr Peter Spence Reid, a well-known Scottish merchant.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Peter Spence Reid</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">
Like one or two other comfortably off English travellers of his time, Harold
Lee did show signs of irritability on occasions. One has visions of him being
molested by marauding flies, especially after reading that his dislike for the
habit of begging was so profound as to suggest that the practice might actually
have been authorised, usually on Saturdays.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">On
a gentler, more charming note perhaps, referring to courting couples he wrote
that they were not permitted to whisper in each other´s ear at a dance. In fact
wishful lovers were only permitted to court after the man had proven his
creditable conduct and when his economic value had been approved by the girl´s
family. Of course she would never be alone with her<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>novio</i>, always being escorted by
her mother, aunt or sister. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYFRyFLAsppQGYgKSgXTjv6WnzHVb2Tc4s25qhR-4QZbYzIe3hH2WfyFBDUCJlBrX8UtasekwnxzTpDaEnwh_Gdi60UoBD3UwbX7fxJFt93IboApbxW34L9zA_1awq5CbUGOdg3ujJUms/s1600/Harold+Lee...lovers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYFRyFLAsppQGYgKSgXTjv6WnzHVb2Tc4s25qhR-4QZbYzIe3hH2WfyFBDUCJlBrX8UtasekwnxzTpDaEnwh_Gdi60UoBD3UwbX7fxJFt93IboApbxW34L9zA_1awq5CbUGOdg3ujJUms/s1600/Harold+Lee...lovers.jpg" height="320" width="233" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Will his music pave the way to her heart?</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">But
like so many visitors to the Canary Islands, Mr Lee felt quite blessed by this
Atlantic paradise. There is a hint from time to time that he might even have
wished he weren't so inhibited by his superiority. He admits, in a fleeting
reference to Canary Island women,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i>their
flashing eyes and expressive features are quite in keeping with Spanish
loveliness.</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<u1:p></u1:p>
<u1:p></u1:p>
<u1:p></u1:p><br />
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<div class="MsoBodyText">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i></span><br /><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span> </div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Times;">By John Reid Young</span></span></span><br /><div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Times;">Author of The Skipping Verger and Other Tales, a collection of short stories</span><br /><span style="color: blue; font-family: Times;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323" style="font-family: Calibri;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc9900;">http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323</span></a></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><i> </i></span></div>
reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-78727040504753896662014-12-31T12:28:00.149-08:002023-06-25T05:37:24.053-07:00Captain Cook and his Tenerife Lemons<div class="MsoBodyText"><br /></div>
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<div class="MsoBodyText"><span face=""Calibri","sans-serif"" style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">There's a magnificent, restored property which very few people notice these days. Like so many other wonderful old mansions in Spain's Canary Island of Tenerife, it is surrounded now by a mass of modern,
cement urbanisations. The house hides on the slopes, between the cities of Santa Cruz and San Cristobal de la Laguna and today survives thanks to its owners hosting magnificent receptions and </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">New
Year’s Eve parties for Canary Island revellers. It is sometimes known as Finca Mackay, after
a Scottish merchant who settled on the Atlantic island over two hundred
and fifty years ago. He owned the magnificent 16</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> century mansion. It once had a panoramic view over the bay and port of Santa Cruz and Captain James Cook,
Britain’s most famous navigator, maritime explorer and cartographer, took full advantage as an honoured guest.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSre41E7euucU_iM51e5VRaqbQu-PZYMCYRiEBiiS98g9LSHh5xo57gKO5LPtjdN6NH33dpyuuvGqkQzaMlUT8tYdd1bw4KI6Up-kCSAZLUeTjBmlu4eTw8JrWNGXVWPgPzZ9eH78Dio8/s1600/Finca+Mackay.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSre41E7euucU_iM51e5VRaqbQu-PZYMCYRiEBiiS98g9LSHh5xo57gKO5LPtjdN6NH33dpyuuvGqkQzaMlUT8tYdd1bw4KI6Up-kCSAZLUeTjBmlu4eTw8JrWNGXVWPgPzZ9eH78Dio8/s1600/Finca+Mackay.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><b>Mackay's country mansion as it is today</b></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoBodyText"><span face=""Calibri","sans-serif"" style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Records show that on 1<sup>st</sup> August, 1776 lookouts on the San Cristóbal
fortress confirmed that sails were approaching on the horizon. It wasn’t long before two British ships sailed silently and peacefully into the bay of Santa Cruz, anchoring within rowing distance of the shore. In command was Cook, on his third and last voyage of discovery. I find it interesting to think that it was in this same arena, almost exactly
twenty one years later, that Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson lost his arm and suffered his only defeat when
he decided to attack Santa Cruz. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6oMuQr-FkSWdscPULK56tts5MsGw7cLrl8tigos1rgB27lz5hnf0PSpBwB367UlTvKxLXJVLf_2cOHWuBg-5x0x_8vtWlErYWdppVJhyOcFh2T0UTlGSozhHFlwIsrUAnmSxf7ChSIJE/s1600/Esteban+Arriaga.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6oMuQr-FkSWdscPULK56tts5MsGw7cLrl8tigos1rgB27lz5hnf0PSpBwB367UlTvKxLXJVLf_2cOHWuBg-5x0x_8vtWlErYWdppVJhyOcFh2T0UTlGSozhHFlwIsrUAnmSxf7ChSIJE/s1600/Esteban+Arriaga.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><b>Nelson attacking Santa Cruz in July 1797</b></span></div>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoBodyText"><span face=""Calibri","sans-serif"" style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It isn't clear why Cook, the great English explorer, chose to accept Mackay’s
hospitality. One might imagine he felt the need to drift inland for one last chance to savour the offerings of a fellow
gentleman, before confronting his third great voyage of discovery. Some historians
suggest Mackay was already a friend of Cook’s. Others believe there were in
fact two logical reasons. One is because the house was blessed with a perfect
view of the bay where Cook's ships, HMS Resolution and HMS Discovery, commanded by
Charles Clerke, lay anchored. The other is that Mackay’s house, which local
pronunciation gradually modified to<i>
Macario’s</i> house, was surrounded by lemon groves.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3GaRq-mYbXrZDWG88zb4ljcVanb6aRe_Jd-m_6AI7usqa_suZvJWn__BNmu9cF1W-miYHrjNAIzJeCgc3_cM8JAyKD-U99nlRhEs9TTkJw7PIjtznHbtUuxwhkrx8wcM1zvb2Fw1IyzQ/s1600/Resolution_and_Discovery.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3GaRq-mYbXrZDWG88zb4ljcVanb6aRe_Jd-m_6AI7usqa_suZvJWn__BNmu9cF1W-miYHrjNAIzJeCgc3_cM8JAyKD-U99nlRhEs9TTkJw7PIjtznHbtUuxwhkrx8wcM1zvb2Fw1IyzQ/s1600/Resolution_and_Discovery.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><b>HMS Resolution and HMS Discovery</b></span></div>
<br />
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<span face=""Calibri","sans-serif"" style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Both
explanations coincide with the idea that Captain James Cook, a quiet and
thoughtful gentleman, known for his common sense and meticulous planning, also possessed
extraordinary humanity, especially in trying to improve conditions for his
seamen. Indeed it is difficult to imagine the hardships faced by seamen of the
Royal and Merchant navies of the 18<sup>th</sup> and 19<sup>th</sup> centuries. Filth aboard ships and resultant infections were responsible for more
deaths than battles or shipwrecks. Cook, more than any other, insisted upon
cleanliness and a healthy environment upon his ships. He was often more
interested in preventing sickness than in sighting a new shore. Unfortunately,
long voyages like those he was commissioned to embark upon, often meant a
lack of fresh food and constant threat of the dreaded <i>skurvy.</i> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><b>Captain James Cook</b></span></div>
<br />
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<span face=""Calibri","sans-serif"" style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">That is why,
when he anchored in the bay at Santa Cruz in August, 1776, Cook despatched men to purchase
as many fresh greens as possible, especially from landowners in the town of
Tacoronte and beyond. These would be preserved by sandwiching them between
layers of salt. James Cook accompanied some of his men up the slopes to just below the
town of San Cristobal de La Laguna, the island’s original administrative and
religious capital after the Spanish final conquest in 1496. That was where he gratefully
accepted Mr MacKay’s invitation. I suspect the great navigator was not so much
interested in the private comforts of a grand house, but rather in what the
Scotsman could provide for the wellbeing of his seamen. His men returned to the
port with cartloads of lemons from Mackay’s estate. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face=""Calibri","sans-serif"" style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Early
medical studies proved that the consumption of ascorbic acid or Vitamin C, found
in lemons and oranges, led to the prevention of scurvy. James Lind, an
Edinburgh surgeon, conducted numerous experiments in 1747 using six sailors who
were sick with scurvy. He treated them individually with cider, sulphuric acid,
vinegar, purging with sea water and with a paste containing garlic, dried
mustard seed, dried radish root, balsam of Peru and gum myrrh. Only two of the
six patients survived. Luckily for them Lind had also given them lemons and
oranges. Although the Edinburgh surgeon never scientifically explained why citrus
juices were so effective, his four hundred page work, <i>Treatise on Scurvy,</i> published in 1753, led to the Admiralty
recommending that ships stock not only wort of malt, the preferred
antiscorbutic agent and more popular with the crew, but also lemons and
oranges.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNRr1QOy6j1FYmItorfOOIbDtKauBrR80qm-DTcSZQYIRQTuxvhJxGVE8C_jQZ2DurEJfLmyHWjO-vMpDXjrPdrqf2pHkZbegcVRI8y1ONmBa2YvOTuWil44DAF4w3pZ5F1KdvvznrHkc/s1600/untitled+james+lind.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNRr1QOy6j1FYmItorfOOIbDtKauBrR80qm-DTcSZQYIRQTuxvhJxGVE8C_jQZ2DurEJfLmyHWjO-vMpDXjrPdrqf2pHkZbegcVRI8y1ONmBa2YvOTuWil44DAF4w3pZ5F1KdvvznrHkc/s1600/untitled+james+lind.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;"><b>James Lind administering lemon juice to a sick mariner</b></span></div>
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<span face=""Calibri","sans-serif"" style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It was
already a custom for British seamen to be allowed regular gulps of fermented
liquor, and ale was the standard ration as early as the 14<sup>th</sup>
century. By the late 18<sup>th</sup> century beer was considered a staple beverage
and essential to soothe the hardships of sea life, as well as a medicine, like
wort and malt, to help prevent scurvy. Captain Cook administered an infusion of
malt in his attempts to prevent scurvy, although his own experiments to
determine whether wort was in fact a cure were inconclusive. So, persevering in
his regime of cleanliness, fresh air and an antiscorbutic diet, he encouraged
naturalists, who accompanied him on his voyages, to identify any edible plant
which might help fight scurvy. He also eagerly adopted other remedies, like
carrot marmalade and concentrated lemon juice. Thus his main objective for stopping by in Tenerife was to obtain Mr Mackay’s lemons. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face=""Calibri","sans-serif"" style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Forcing his
seamen to take concentrated lemon juice as well as sauerkraut on a daily basis
was not popular, as one can imagine. It was only after he ordered his
officers to set an example and take the same medicine that the murmurings
amongst the crew ceased. </span></div><div class="MsoBodyText"><span face=""Calibri","sans-serif"" style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoBodyText"><span face=""Calibri","sans-serif"" style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Whether his preference for Tenerife lemons resulted in maintaining a healthy crew or not, what <i>is</i> certain is that Captain Cook won the
battle against scurvy aboard his ships. Not one single member of Cook’s crews perished
as a result of scurvy. The Royal Society awarded him the Copley Gold Medal in
recognition for his efforts to improve the health of British seamen. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoBodyText">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span> </div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Times;">By John Reid Young</span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Times;">Author of </span></div><div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Times;">The Skipping Verger and Other Tales,</span></div><div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Times;">A Shark in the Bath and Other Stories and</span></div><div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Times;">The Journalist (a novel)<br /></span>
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Times;"><br /></span></div>
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</div>
reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-72043141456378054472014-11-01T10:49:00.000-07:002014-12-02T00:05:44.062-08:00An Englishman and his hut on Mount Teide <div class="MsoNormal">
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif";">His name
was George John Scarlett Graham-Toler and in time he became one of a number of
travellers from the British Isles who left their mark in Tenerife in the best
kind of way. Not only was he an old school gentleman, which is always
appreciated. He was also a philanthropist
and always gave something back to the local people in return for their well-known
kindness and generosity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOVS0-5pMmLHtbIEWJ3P1XyP7VHHUD3uuM4TwIcWRXUvKkDdcM2Co9xPxAoWnbl_EipTBGUW8pHrMQa6kVFo42wlRmNLCWGqiMAML1e5f0hfchsm-1Py_H350rBZm6_nWgxmwVP585Ahg/s1600/untitled.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOVS0-5pMmLHtbIEWJ3P1XyP7VHHUD3uuM4TwIcWRXUvKkDdcM2Co9xPxAoWnbl_EipTBGUW8pHrMQa6kVFo42wlRmNLCWGqiMAML1e5f0hfchsm-1Py_H350rBZm6_nWgxmwVP585Ahg/s1600/untitled.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">Tenerife in the 19th century - as painted by Marianne North- courtesy Kew Gardens</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Like so many of his contemporaries, George
Graham-Toler first came to Tenerife, to the beautiful Valley of La Orotava in
fact, for health reasons. He had developed a lung complaint and sought his cure
in the <i>Macaronesian</i>, temperate
climate of the Canary Islands. Almost certainly he had been attracted by the
many images and articles expressing the delights of Tenerife which were being published
by other illustrious travellers, like Olivia Stone in her <i>Tenerife and its Six Satellites</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_af-RkgPZtfgcbO7W9S35TmaswKy0PbJD1SWVjTkg4komCrr7Fvh7rmsld00TAIJVAAL_6eNJogJcQ4_8yLkwjcaAmTE5oMu5EN5I-L3mqJxjNT31tBcqRViOMGpauNbTR2NE1GZ0aqo/s1600/buch-nr-015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_af-RkgPZtfgcbO7W9S35TmaswKy0PbJD1SWVjTkg4komCrr7Fvh7rmsld00TAIJVAAL_6eNJogJcQ4_8yLkwjcaAmTE5oMu5EN5I-L3mqJxjNT31tBcqRViOMGpauNbTR2NE1GZ0aqo/s1600/buch-nr-015.jpg" height="320" width="214" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">Olivia Stone's book, as Graham-Toler might have seen it</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">He was descended from the Irish aristocracy
although he was born into a cultured and comfortably well off protestant London
family in 1850. His parents were Otway Fortescue Graham- Toler and Henrietta
Elizabeth Scarlett. His grandfather was Hector, Second Earl of Norbury from
Nenagh in County Typperary. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivhwLyz0wHDMuHaBt4P6-tdfeelqvseyrHv1Vrow1kQrRUfq_qNu51dBfsthnxc1E6eqK_uEVJOivCrhYgPwexNNwshp1U-At8GgNkAJ_bYeov5z2YFgmDv7fg9vDyXS2O8Hm7OT0vXLY/s1600/toler.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivhwLyz0wHDMuHaBt4P6-tdfeelqvseyrHv1Vrow1kQrRUfq_qNu51dBfsthnxc1E6eqK_uEVJOivCrhYgPwexNNwshp1U-At8GgNkAJ_bYeov5z2YFgmDv7fg9vDyXS2O8Hm7OT0vXLY/s1600/toler.jpg" height="320" width="216" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">George Graham-Toler as a young aristocrat</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Tenerife’s Graham-Toler arrived in 1889 at
the age of 39. He was a naturalist and an excellent photographer. Like a true
adventurer of the times he spent his first few months exploring Tenerife’s
mountains and valleys with a hired guide, a couple of mules to carry his clumsy
photographic equipment and his <i>arriero</i>
or mule handler. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">He spent the nights in a small tent </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">and his first base
camp was at the edge of a ravine, by a spring called <i>Madre de Agua</i>, high in the hills above the southern town of
Granadilla. His second was at <i>La Cañada
de la Grieta</i>, a wide, desert-like volcanic plain hemmed in by solidified,
satanic lava flows on one side and on the other by the incredible <i>Roque de la Grieta, </i>one of the steep
rock walls that make up the southern outer rim of what today we refer to as
Teide National Park. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmo5bPGmjS5qevEwyoz0hOrz7BQ71VtdFh1igaiTBkuvZaO2EOS0TFUyvjM67O5q118q_alorOxByBcKqKKulvqyyuGdsUYOgZegiCd7bbiQ-x3jf0cxqvPO8rvKWxj78mKwaqypLnyns/s1600/imagesU4MF3901.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmo5bPGmjS5qevEwyoz0hOrz7BQ71VtdFh1igaiTBkuvZaO2EOS0TFUyvjM67O5q118q_alorOxByBcKqKKulvqyyuGdsUYOgZegiCd7bbiQ-x3jf0cxqvPO8rvKWxj78mKwaqypLnyns/s1600/imagesU4MF3901.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">Roque de La Grieta, on the outer rim of Teide National Park</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">It was here that Graham-Toler channelled water from an
isolated spring for his animals to drink and then paid for a proper canal to be
created in order to provide a source of water for local sulphur collectors, and
ice men*.Until then they had to make do with filling their water
bottles for the return journey to their lowland towns from the Ice Cave, high
up close to the summit of Mount Teide . </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0oH4mXloyl1TfzKX4STSjKDsvATjakLqIu_vh4LSkTNn53tgx4dJbD3kmdwZOSUGXnfC8mxcZ0wFm0DW3z-Cnv6QYerioI6_8G28IZM3CbKtEbBnAuuZiyLhRXPp4aAevWssY1VPlBHE/s1600/DSCN1792.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0oH4mXloyl1TfzKX4STSjKDsvATjakLqIu_vh4LSkTNn53tgx4dJbD3kmdwZOSUGXnfC8mxcZ0wFm0DW3z-Cnv6QYerioI6_8G28IZM3CbKtEbBnAuuZiyLhRXPp4aAevWssY1VPlBHE/s1600/DSCN1792.jpg" height="320" width="233" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">The beautiful old town centre of La Orotava today</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The mountain air was miraculous for his
health and George Graham-Toler fell for the charms of the beautiful town of La
Orotava. Rumours invaded the steep cobbled streets, whispering that a cultured
and distinguished English aristocrat had taken residence at the Hesperides
Hotel for an indefinite period. Curiosity invaded noble households and
balconies and very soon he was sent an invitation to visit the house of Antonio
Monteverde y del Castillo and his wife, Julia de Lugo y García Benítez de las
Cuevas.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Some accounts suggest that Graham-Toler
requested the hand in marriage of their 22 year old eldest daughter, Leonor and
that his offer was politely declined because she decided to become a nun.
Others ignore that mishap and recall that Mr Graham-Toler was the source of the
minor scandal of the times by promptly falling in love with their youngest
daughter María Monteverde y Lugo. She was just 16 years old. As a member of one
of the most distinguished and privileged families in Tenerife and very Catholic
indeed, and he being almost 26 years older than the girl, the situation certainly
appeared interesting and impossible in spite of his own aristocratic
background. Nevertheless he persevered. After receiving <i>Almighty</i> advice, he took religious instruction and became a very
devout Catholic indeed. They were married in 1892.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHxxArGVxtdfKXgg7Q7IdZX6_xfQbwvG-_6bUenw5go6vnF5lMBrZ1EeEJxl5kofSLU2Ntp9JbO0_QFryw-MZr0tA_EfncvWY-zzAVRGdpR4AFtcqndDIJWWZ4ITyC8bbPLZtTrAf7xbM/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHxxArGVxtdfKXgg7Q7IdZX6_xfQbwvG-_6bUenw5go6vnF5lMBrZ1EeEJxl5kofSLU2Ntp9JbO0_QFryw-MZr0tA_EfncvWY-zzAVRGdpR4AFtcqndDIJWWZ4ITyC8bbPLZtTrAf7xbM/s1600/images.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">Photograph taken by Graham-Toler upon approaching Tenerife</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Rumours and scandals overcome, George
Graham-Toler was an accomplished photographer and his work was often published
in British periodicals, helping to attract many more visitors to Tenerife. There
is also evidence, even in those long ago days and before the rabid onslaught of
uncontrolled property development in the latter half of the 20<sup>th</sup>
century, that he was concerned about the destruction of the countryside and of indigenous
island species of flora. In a letter dated 14<sup>th</sup> December, 1889
Graham-Toler gave Sir William Thiselton-Dyer, leading British botanist and
third director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, measurements of a magnificent
example of a <i>Pinus canariensis</i>, the Canary
Islands’ indigenous species of pine which he found above Realejo Alto. He shows
concern for the destruction of the pine forests in Tenerife, Gran Canaria and
La Palma and asked Sir William to appeal to his opposite number in Spain to
have the cutting down of the trees stopped. Together with the letter he enclosed
seeds from the local pine. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0i7fBsWfLeptJ8CRTyT0UUKVG02lT4jvOHmxh09sNoWi6XJiqK9x8ja65LxHM72TAvzj7uhUVgTjxtbtF3n_6Y6Yphe3qkYQgeIm85D3EyiCzDwFlSEaQx9SZey3kqtLNFCI_OWVmuYg/s1600/220px-Pinus_canariensis_forest_Caldera_de_Taburiente_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0i7fBsWfLeptJ8CRTyT0UUKVG02lT4jvOHmxh09sNoWi6XJiqK9x8ja65LxHM72TAvzj7uhUVgTjxtbtF3n_6Y6Yphe3qkYQgeIm85D3EyiCzDwFlSEaQx9SZey3kqtLNFCI_OWVmuYg/s1600/220px-Pinus_canariensis_forest_Caldera_de_Taburiente_3.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">Pinus Canariensis, in Tenerife's pine forests</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">But he is perhaps most famous in Tenerife for
overseeing the construction of the climbers’ refuge three quarters of the way up
the steep slopes of Mount Teide. This is known as <i>El Refugio de Alta Montaña Altavista del Teide </i>and it became the
high mountain lodging for researchers and scientists. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI7bnpwlx3e1upaBWcwnnNvgMaXK16d4MJ3I-fNu-ui_kbPwhjRIkATPS3bFnVP_C-YHGm00s5TxEU7HaInBuKDn_5IHSDwD4Ojd0u18Rx6wMjCAVPACZ8slb682nn6klxH7FTz8c5YUM/s1600/refugio-historia-005.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI7bnpwlx3e1upaBWcwnnNvgMaXK16d4MJ3I-fNu-ui_kbPwhjRIkATPS3bFnVP_C-YHGm00s5TxEU7HaInBuKDn_5IHSDwD4Ojd0u18Rx6wMjCAVPACZ8slb682nn6klxH7FTz8c5YUM/s1600/refugio-historia-005.gif" height="181" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">George Graham-Toler's Altavista Refuge</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Earlier geologists and astronomers like
George Glas, or Robert Edward Alison in 1829, had left evidence of their camps
on the slopes of Mount Teide, and it was Scottish Astronomer Royal, Charles
Piazzi Smyth, who built the first proper walled shelter to keep his telescopes
and fragile instruments protected from the often dusty, high-altitude winds in
the summer of 1856. But George Graham-Toler climbed Mount Teide on numerous
occasions and in 1891, after experiencing harsh conditions on the mountain, the
philanthropist in him set about improving Piazzi-Smythe’s precarious
construction for the sake of future adventurers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">He hired a builder to lay concrete
foundations, pave the floors and put on a roof. In fact George Graham-Toler
turned it into a proper habitable structure. It had two dormitories, one for
the ladies and one for gentlemen as well as a kitchen fitted with an iron
stove. The guides shared the attached stables with the animals. There was also
a small outbuilding situated about 30 feet from the main building. It was the
bathroom. It is interesting to note that the builder was Señor Nicolás Alvarez,
the same man contracted a year later to erect All Saints, the Anglican Church
in Puerto de la Cruz.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">On 30 May 1926, three years prior to his
death, Graham-Toler offered the <i>Altavista
</i>shelter to the Orotava Town Council, which accepted the donation during a
plenary session on 4 July 1927. It had become a welcome haven on the sometimes
hazardous peak for geologists, astrologers and intrepid travellers from all
over the world, who would knock on his door and ask for the key to the <i>refugio. </i>One is not mistaken to suggest
that, thanks to George Graham-Toler, today’s adventure tourists can take
shelter when climbing Mount Teide.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDhnlJszx0BjYK5c6zNDTja6_AoVtaf4sEDCbn1mLeX7cU1VGxqnwpqkEwkHjkQC0ew3kaJcKXtd1Ig6MPgF8hdGYQujxH22DQ1W7JkLcKUJSz1l_CKJuulRKfbIBVFhyFQ_zSlk2KFLg/s1600/Altavista+today.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDhnlJszx0BjYK5c6zNDTja6_AoVtaf4sEDCbn1mLeX7cU1VGxqnwpqkEwkHjkQC0ew3kaJcKXtd1Ig6MPgF8hdGYQujxH22DQ1W7JkLcKUJSz1l_CKJuulRKfbIBVFhyFQ_zSlk2KFLg/s1600/Altavista+today.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: xx-small;">The Altavista Climber's lodge today</span></div>
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Like so many other early British guests who
spent a greater part of their lives in the Valley of La Orotava, George
Graham-Toler was well like and admired. He died in 1929 at the age of 79 and is
buried in La Orotava. He and María had no children. Many years later a street
was named in his honour in the modern La Duquesa urbanisation, fittingly quite
close to old Monteverde family house.<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">*<i>In days gone by men made a living collecting deposits of sulphur around Mount Teide's fumaroles close to the peak, which were then ground and used for agricultural purposes. Others, the <b>neveros</b> or ice men, cut blocks of ice from Teide's ice cave or deposited fresh snow in specially dug wells which would then turn to ice. They would collect and transport the ice wrapped up tightly in sacks or vegetation and sell it to wealthy households, inns, and hotels for keeping food fresh.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><i>(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Times;">By John Reid Young</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Times;">Author of The Skipping Verger and Other Tales</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Times;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323" style="font-family: Calibri;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #cc9900;">http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Skipping-Verger-Other-Tales/dp/8461596323</span></a></div>
</div>
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reidten.blogspot.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05500217374809813027noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-884627489025418593.post-49769871464081181502014-09-21T13:05:00.000-07:002023-11-25T05:05:50.105-08:00When the Mayflower sailed to Tenerife<div class="MsoNormal">
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">In 1620, a
group of Puritans, better known as the Pilgrim Fathers, sailed across the Atlantic
Ocean from the English port of Plymouth on a square-rigged brigantine called
The Mayflower. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQnmdJzd391DAVEtbO-Jb3O9IBA8EWcuzD0Z_AjH9kPE3asTwO5e2Ghg4eUwHXk627MVpbKnya17GyPUDtpApAbnwUXwwr342058nDIsBwZ9TE44KqJKRbEjJ5d-gQHASlhE5k_Uef6h8/s1600/MayflowerBlue.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQnmdJzd391DAVEtbO-Jb3O9IBA8EWcuzD0Z_AjH9kPE3asTwO5e2Ghg4eUwHXk627MVpbKnya17GyPUDtpApAbnwUXwwr342058nDIsBwZ9TE44KqJKRbEjJ5d-gQHASlhE5k_Uef6h8/s1600/MayflowerBlue.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;">The Mayflower</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It was another Mayflower which sailed to
Tenerife in 1776. Her master was Pleford Clark, an experienced seaman. She
weighed 150 tons and carried fourteen guns, like any merchant vessel of the
time, for self-defence. There were enemies around every head of land and
merchants were at the mercy of marauding pirates of all nationalities, like the
French or Turks. In fact any enemy ship could be considered a pirate. As I
suggested in earlier posts, even most respectable English captains of the
fleet, like Charles Windham, Francis Drake or John Hawkins were
labelled filthy pirates or corsairs by Spanish historians, often with good reason. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Sailing to the Canary Islands, even in the early 19th century, was risky and dangerous. It was also tough,
with ships very often running out of food and water. A modern cruise liner will
be nudged gently against the south mole in Santa Cruz de Tenerife after
leaving Southampton in just four or five days. Eighteenth century vessels like
the Mayflower could take weeks to complete the voyage. Their square rigging meant they
depended on the convenient direction and strength of the winds to make any headway.
They often ran into rocks or uncharted sandbanks and sometimes had to seek shelter
for days on end in friendly coves until a privateer or an enemy vessel became tired of
waiting and moved on.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">On her maiden voyage the Mayflower sailed
into the English Channel accompanied by three or four other merchants, all
laden with wheat and bound for the island of Tenerife. Pleford Clark had an
uneasy time with changing winds before finally beating it out of the English Channel
and heading south. By then all ships in that particular trading fleet had lost
sight of each other. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">On
the way south the Mayflower passed Porto Santo of the Madeiras on her starboard
beam and then, two days later, the Savage Islands, half-way between Madeira and
the Canaries. These islands have belonged to Portugal since 1438, albeit Spanish protests over the years. In fact, a little over ten years ago, Spain claimed they should be classified as rocks, effectively eliminating
Portuguese sovereign rights over them. This tit for tat reaction was a result of the Portuguese having
prevented Canary Island fishing vessels from fishing within coastal waters. In truth, they are sparesely inhabited and in 1971 they were declared a nature reserve for their importance in the nidification of certain bird species, especially Cory's Shearwater.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfjtGlcu4jGc5iTIfJM42a0M5OYpfeE2J7JqRqF40PmXpIejM5Z5OT8-A2W_WhFqcAtgWjHH0LGgHMijKL3mfIHX3zJoFwFXbSMXVRFIvXY6LMCNHeM8nemNXHCMat-_8ywCiohPy7Hvs/s1600/imagesCAU3IRNJ.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfjtGlcu4jGc5iTIfJM42a0M5OYpfeE2J7JqRqF40PmXpIejM5Z5OT8-A2W_WhFqcAtgWjHH0LGgHMijKL3mfIHX3zJoFwFXbSMXVRFIvXY6LMCNHeM8nemNXHCMat-_8ywCiohPy7Hvs/s1600/imagesCAU3IRNJ.jpg" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;"> One of the two Selvagem islands</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">It was a
safe and speedy voyage and they were anchored off <i>Port Orotava</i>, today known as Puerto de la Cruz, just twenty days
after leaving the English Channel. There were several other merchant ships
anchored off shore and Clark would have to wait in the queue. All the ships
loaded <i>barricas</i> or casks of
Tenerife’s famous wines destined for the inns of England and Europe. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">It was
towards the end of October and Mount Teide was completely white after recent
snowfalls. The little taverns or </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">guachinches</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
were jolly with English sailors gulping cups of </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">Malmsey</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> wine and eating what the host offered as the dish of the
day. Some historians believe the word </span><i style="font-size: 12pt;">guachinche</i><span style="font-size: 12pt;">
came from the English expression “I’m watching ye” used by these early English
wine buyers when they were ready to sample the local product. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmRbmZ1aB1-r7rOnWUa3CQAAFNZ-6iVCrmXyUrvYcFlSCqWOR9Ul9Z7RMAWeGvkLcIuD3QeokMDp-kZ8QHKXwxqdROKrLtdcCqsVJhDLdRHI0sfQakD13SJ-fG57LQYI9Y3gz6GNcjyNI/s1600/imagesCAJUTCXP.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmRbmZ1aB1-r7rOnWUa3CQAAFNZ-6iVCrmXyUrvYcFlSCqWOR9Ul9Z7RMAWeGvkLcIuD3QeokMDp-kZ8QHKXwxqdROKrLtdcCqsVJhDLdRHI0sfQakD13SJ-fG57LQYI9Y3gz6GNcjyNI/s1600/imagesCAJUTCXP.jpg" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;">The Orotava Valley, with Teide in the background, in the days of the Mayflower</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">When it was the Mayflower’s turn, Pleford
Clark began to unload his supply of wheat and to take on barrels of wine. It
was a slow process. Everything had to be ferried in and out by <i>lancha</i>. There were no safe coves along
the north coast of Tenerife. There were no convenient ports either, except for
Santa Cruz after the old harbour of Garachico was destroyed by the volcanic eruption
of 1706. So sailors were firmly at the mercy of the seas. In fact, being late
October, the Atlantic had begun to show its temper and the little ship was
forced to weigh anchor and to make for the open sea and wait for the
predominant north easterly wind and calmer waters. It was a common occurrence
and the Mayflower weighed anchor at least five times off Port Orotava before completing her load.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNXrx82uKi9qTvRAt0JsWDPiT6h2frRUrXcgLoSO4B_BOe-0v0H5_jcOC6xHqY-tOVBp8ZdZUrHFUcn50YAbSZ-V2v215o4mcMAwxiiobIHMVMBTv7-3XWnipJNRpk9RNXKziUVsD_kaI/s1600/IMG_20140904_170350.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNXrx82uKi9qTvRAt0JsWDPiT6h2frRUrXcgLoSO4B_BOe-0v0H5_jcOC6xHqY-tOVBp8ZdZUrHFUcn50YAbSZ-V2v215o4mcMAwxiiobIHMVMBTv7-3XWnipJNRpk9RNXKziUVsD_kaI/s1600/IMG_20140904_170350.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;">The vineyards of Tenerife, like these in La Guancha, are once again producing exquisite wines</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt;">But the wine was a profitable business and
Tenerife’s vineyards, as Shakespeare recorded in works like The Merry Wives of
Windsor, produced the finest wines, just as they do today. The Mayflower could
not return to England without her full capacity of barrels and, on this her maiden
voyage, took six weeks to unload her wheat and to load up her 360 kegs of wine purchased
at Port Orotava. Once loaded, Pleford Clark sailed his ship </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 12pt;">along the northwest coast as far as Garachico.
Even more famous than the Orotava Valley for its Malmsey wines, Garachico was
also where ships preferred to take on supplies of water because it was
considered the purest. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The return voyage to England was not dull although,
due to unfavourable winds, the crew aboard the Mayflower could still see
Garachico five days after weighing anchor. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Close to Madeira
the Mayflower’s lookout spotted what he considered to be an unfriendly ship
moving to intercept them from the west. It was indeed what was known as a Salley
Rover, a Moroccan corsair from Sale, a walled medieval merchant port and the
base used by the Barbary pirates. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1vM0ONY-Wjh3cooU6mBsZ-9BK5fq_Ifi0K0Q_R5RlrNzONBGyEKeIKVeVSTaxX-BuxPzJanuDEa78GcNFSj9Bc2Xj7Uivm2A6iBGB-M6zSb0QJTRQXUKyBJhA6ND9ibLidynGuZ3s5mY/s1600/Barbary+pirates+chasing+a+galleon.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1vM0ONY-Wjh3cooU6mBsZ-9BK5fq_Ifi0K0Q_R5RlrNzONBGyEKeIKVeVSTaxX-BuxPzJanuDEa78GcNFSj9Bc2Xj7Uivm2A6iBGB-M6zSb0QJTRQXUKyBJhA6ND9ibLidynGuZ3s5mY/s1600/Barbary+pirates+chasing+a+galleon.png" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;">A Salley Rover chasing a European galleon</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Sailors dreaded encountering theses small
pirate ships. They could easily outmanoeuvre the European merchant vessels and
the crews manning these small vessels had a very bloody reputation, attacking
at all cost for the smallest prize. There was no point seeking shelter in one
of the Madeira Islands because the Moroccan would simply follow the Mayflower.
Pleford Clark knew he must try to make a run for it. Although the other could
manoeuvre with ease, the Mayflower had a strong wind behind her, whereas the
pirate, heading eastwards from some hiding place in the Madeiras, appeared to
be making heavy weather of it. Indeed the Mayflower slipped past and northwards
at a good rate and the Moroccan gave up the chase and continued in a south-easterly
direction, possibly back to Sale. Their best weapon was the surprise approach
and on this occasion they had been spotted in time. From there on the voyage home</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> was uneventful. Nevertheless Pleford Clark did have the strange pleasure of exchanging greetings with what was
known as a </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">friendly</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> pirate, in this
case a roaming Dutchman only interested in terrorising fat French merchants
returning to Le Havre or Bordeaux.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSZAaIbB8AJBviRKgOiQLZgxa2X4hTgmwPjcZFyDPS4ebtzJMpauJ0LJXza1oq3uXT2ayiQWuXz7GTxKbz9MEcEJ9bZp8Y2UW-t7aAi3BLjP3T3gY8SveDvdRBSd24Sif3JupF2YVBlYQ/s1600/hindustan-1793-3by+Luni+off+Tenerife.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSZAaIbB8AJBviRKgOiQLZgxa2X4hTgmwPjcZFyDPS4ebtzJMpauJ0LJXza1oq3uXT2ayiQWuXz7GTxKbz9MEcEJ9bZp8Y2UW-t7aAi3BLjP3T3gY8SveDvdRBSd24Sif3JupF2YVBlYQ/s1600/hindustan-1793-3by+Luni+off+Tenerife.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit; font-size: xx-small;">The Hindustan at anchor off Tenerife - painted by Thomas Luny in 1790</span></div>
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The Mayflower made several journeys in following years to pick up good wines from Port Orotava and even the Bodegas beach in Taganana. She was just one<span style="font-family: inherit;"> example of the many
foreign vessels that traded with these islands since the earliest days of he Spanish conquest. But there were many more, especially ships of the British East India
Company who simply used the Canary Islands to stock up with food and water
before heading south down the coast of Africa or across the Atlantic for the
spoils in the Americas. Above is a detailed 1790 painting showing the company’s
Hindustan anchored off the rocky coast of Tenerife with a small local craft in
the foreground. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><i>(Some information was adapted from a sailor's account - Barlow's Journal of his Life at Sea in King's Ships, East and West Indiamen and Other Merchantmen. Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)</i></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><div class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><b>By John Reid Young</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b>Author of:</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b>The Skipping Verger and other Tales (a collection of short stories)</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b>A Shark in the Bath and other Stories (a collection of short stories)</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b>The Journalist (a novel)</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b>For more information, or if you would like to read any of my books, please click on the images to the right of this page.</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;"><b>Please sign up for an occasional newsletter here: </b></span></span><a data-ft="{"tn":"-U"}" data-lynx-mode="async" data-lynx-uri="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fmailchi.mp%2F249fadd56fdd%2Fauthor-john-reid-young%3Ffbclid%3DIwAR1eCvFSN2yh42exr-jvtEXd66EOevS9ErCII-1EIgMpPp727DJSllgAksw&h=AT2J3XjfWivT9MW4aa_V7Ae86pVW28qfAG81KSObyfq0z9v13kivmQ6A_JDAdOT-pWgSMZ3kZLj7x-aoEowmj2KdFmBIDauIoGW7kszf7Muot7aGUnCDGjsCG6jLV4QGIfhzgIFR3uhqa_nMDpKFigGwbBuKrB8PPqOrT8W4cuMTZ3RjQIKhWp18k837aGXJOgmobZoizL-S2RkINB2Ic_AbuCpqCBdy1FMLRKQ-3d4Ms2C7GvEuKMPI8yUWdIskR1wBRy4OCiaBvIyaQTGNC5U28UxNlVS3tnD1XLf3FuLXRzCKaRSqiFwIoa1r4sDAACeMTc38vqviTy0w71-qc9450YLVcZ8hLiE8s02PUCoFBvqry0wYaMo7mVI1RDRTck56H-yBM-AMmumsbT7qKBgTsOmwkVDNUZSsGnn_f9lvyeQxmVgnkmWfhEZY8MXm5oBh4aC_ip-25yii3xcZnK1Yckdf6XUVdc13DA3Q6by6rgrt3zArOhZxhGJ6suSSm95yUFT3U2L7NX_yLymDkxGEMNMW2D3neLCrd1jMmVqJ98YpJixvgnQBVE6TNnC5z7PuOYWvk8WRfFmHiL9P80YSiGr_iTRLf6lMQkRRxe2-9UdVjWIC7Rpg6F-nKeX83vGtsg" href="https://mailchi.mp/249fadd56fdd/author-john-reid-young?fbclid=IwAR1eCvFSN2yh42exr-jvtEXd66EOevS9ErCII-1EIgMpPp727DJSllgAksw" rel="noopener nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #385898; cursor: pointer; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">https://mailchi.mp/249fadd56fdd/author-john-reid-young</a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6667px;">Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theskippingverger</b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6667px;">Twitter: @reidten</b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 18.6667px;">Instagram: authorjohnreidyoung</b></p>
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