The hidden gems of Gran Canaria

 

Swaying palm beans, traditional tapas and wonderful temperatures, that sounds like music to my ears. I take another look at the thousands of ads, scroll through the endless pages of various, tempting offers one more time, then slam my laptop shut. I'm sure, my choice fell on the beautiful island of Gran Canaria. The enchanting volcanic landscapes and varied flora and fauna lead to a beautiful picture, which I am only too happy to see with my own eyes.

Gran Canaria is part of the Canary Islands archipelago and is located in the Atlantic Ocean. The beautiful beaches and clear blue sea make this island a suitable destination for a relaxing holiday in the sun. I can already picture myself dreaming away with a coconut on my beach chair. For the real explorers, Gran Canaria also offers a number of adventurous trips. Besides the beautiful beaches and busy boulevards, the island has a few hidden gems that fascinate me. Moving visits, historic buildings and special sights. For example, I learned that the first inhabitants of the island, the Guanches, lived in cave dwellings. Even today some of these caves are still inhabited! If you're lucky, you can even take a look at the home of a local cave inhabitant. Gran Canaria also has a beautiful garden with no fewer than 500 different, endemic plants. The atmospheric details and authentic villages have certainly aroused my interest, I assume a good choice!

There I am, together with my mother Janna and my father Pier, waiting at Gate D17. A little nervous, but above all very enthusiastic, I let the employee scan my ticket. I can't wait to finally experience everything I've seen in photos and read in stories!

Once arrived on Gran Canaria I immediately feel the warm summer sun burning on my skin. Not in an annoying, stinging way, but in a pleasant and pleasant way. As if the warm rays of the sun welcome me to beautiful Gran Canaria. We stay in an apartment complex in the town of Puerto de Mogán. Puerto de Mogán is an area where tourists and locals come together. It is known as a, until now, quiet holiday area. In contrast to the nearby Puerto Rico, where it is very touristy. On the first day we will explore the village. We soon find out that close to our apartment is the small, local village of Puerto de Mogán Marina.

Puerto de Mogán Marina is really beautiful. The place is also called "Little Venice", because the romantic atmosphere of Venice is strongly present here. We look around us and it seems like we are looking at a postcard. It reminds me a bit of the Greek island of Santorini. All small, authentic houses have been built against a high mountain. There are no elevators, small roads with stairs lead everywhere to homes. The houses are softly colored and on the ground run channels with white bridges, decorated with cheerful flowers.

You walk further and further up and there we find a lookout point, here we can look over the sea, the beach, the harbor and a large part of Puerto de Mogán, the view is really beautiful. I have always had a thing for all the lights that light up in the night and make a beautiful whole of a city, this view was like a fairytale for me!

The next morning I am wide awake, which I normally still have some difficulty with. The nice and calm atmosphere of the island makes my worries disappear like snow in the sun. It seems as if we live in slow motion compared to the Netherlands. Sometimes we don't realize how much we actually do in a day, on such a wonderful holiday you really think about it and enjoy the peace around you.

The first two days we go to the beautiful beach, near our apartment. In the evening we go out for dinner at the tastiest restaurants on the atmospheric and pleasant boulevard on the beach. I enjoy it to the fullest and so do my parents, what a nice atmosphere.

On day three it's finally time, we participate in an island tour! I will remember this day for a long time, I have seen so many special and moving things, which I enjoy writing about and of course thinking about.

The beautiful Gran CanariaThe beautiful Gran Canaria

The first bus stop is one of the most impressive excursions. We stop at a large ravine called “Barranco de Quayadeque”. Along this valley is the cave village of Cuevas Bermejas. This area is an important remnant of the Guanches, the original inhabitants of Gran Canaria. What's also fascinating to know is that no one is sure

know how these people got to the island. The original Guanches had blue eyes and were tall and blond, with this appearance they differed a lot from the local Spanish population, because they were tinted and not very tall. At that time there was much speculation about the origin of the Guanches. For example, a certain group of people used to think that the Guanches were descendants of Vikings who were lost. That they would descend from the Berbers, the original inhabitants of North Africa, was also thought by another group. However, this remains a mystery. What is certain is that they spent a lot of their lives in caves and lived there.

First we walk into a very small cave restaurant, here we can taste local cheese, and for the non-vegetarians among us, local sausage. Next to the restaurant is an old church, boarded up. There is a Spanish notice on the door and it looks extinct. Our guide later tells us that theft was often committed and the church was therefore closed after a long time. We walk further and climb the mountain. Here is an old lady in Cuevas Bermejas, this woman has lived in a cave all her life! Her name is Isabel and she is about 90 years old. She has all the facilities she needs, including water and electricity. The guide tells us that if we are lucky we can take a look around her house! Isabel welcomes us and gestures to us that we can move on. It is fascinating to see how differently a person can live, in the Netherlands we are used to something different. Everywhere I look there is another picture. It's cozy and she even has a television in her small living room. Quite modern, but also old-fashioned. Very impressive to see and especially special how hospitable Isabel is towards her visitors.

The cave houseThe cave house

After this impressive visit we continue by bus. My parents and I are amazed. We drive past old craters, palm tree valleys and in each area there are different trees and plants. Our next stop is the botanical garden with the long, intricate name “Jardín Botánico Canario Viera y Clavijo”. I had expected that this garden would be impressive, but I certainly did not expect that there was so much different flora and fauna.

This garden is located southwest of the capital Las Palmas, close to Santa Brídga, the town is called Tafira. Eric Sventenuis, a man born and raised in Sweden, came up with a genius idea, a botanical garden with all kinds of different flora and fauna of Gran Canaria. No sooner said than done. There are more than 500 species of trees, flowers and plants in the garden. The Canarian people are very proud of the botanical garden.

In my opinion the tree “Ficus socotrana” is a tree that everyone should see, it is like a fairytale tree. All roots grow together. We also encountered all kinds of different palm trees, succulents and cacti, we even saw salamanders and lizards.

If we are to believe the travel guides, Teror would be one of the most beautiful villages in Gran Canaria. Atmospheric and authentic describe the town. The great thing about Teror is that, despite the large tourism, its beauty is not affected.

The colored houses and balconies stand out in the village. In Plaza Nuestra Senõra del Pino is a basilica from the year 1767. Inside the basilica is a statue of the Virgin Mary, which is visited by pilgrims every year on September 8th. There are a number of small terraces and shops where tourists, but also locals, can eat or drink something cozy.

As soon as we walk towards the church we see a woman dressed in a long, beautiful white dress and a man in a suit, a wedding! Just in front of the door is an old car with an open roof, in which two little bridesmaids wave goodbye to the visitors, a touching sight.

I will probably often think back to these special sights. Gran Canaria is a magical island with all kinds of beautiful things, I'm glad I got to experience this trip with two very important people in my life, it was a very nice time and definitely recommended!