Colombus sailed the ocean blue…
Last night, I went to the restaurant that my host Zuri recommended called Casa Camilo. It’s right on the tip of the Puntilla, to the north of Playa Cantera. He’d said they had the best seafood around, and when I got there, the waitress first asked what I wanted to drink. I thought maybe a glass of wine because I’d heard they had some vineyards on the island. They didn’t have any from Gran Canaria, but she had some wine from Lanzarote, another island in the Canarias. I picked a glass of blanco, semi-dulce (white, semi-sweet). They hadn’t brought me a menu but when she asked if I wanted to pick what I wanted, she pointed in the direction of what I thought was a menu on the wall. So I got up from my table and headed over there, thinking it was a bit odd but willing to go with it. Instead, she had me walk from the patio into the inside dining area, where I found the chef in the kitchen standing behind a cooler with a large array of fresh seafood (like you see in a market). They showed me all the types of fish or shrimp or calamari they had available. I got to select my own fish and how I wanted it cooked – grilled, fried, whatever. Then they asked if I wanted salad or some other side. I picked the papas arrugadas. That’s the island specialty. They are small potatoes, like new potatoes, wrinkly and salted, with a red or green sauce, called mojo. I had some of those and a delicious, lightly fried and salted white fish with teeth. Of course I couldn’t finish it, but I ate what I could while listening to the waves crashing on the shore right next to me. It was fantastic! I even saved a tiny bit of space for a small cup of chocolate mousse at the end (or at least, I convinced myself I did!) and it was worth it too. Good suggestion, Zuri!
Astrolabes at Casa de Colon, Las Palmas
Earlier in the day, I had gone to the old part of Las Palmas, where I wanted to see the old cathedral and some of the older buildings. I had also noticed on the map that there were some museums to check out. While walking about, I realized that one of the museums was at the former home of Christopher Colombus and decided to visit. The “Casa de Colόn” was quite interesting. It had displays talking about his voyages to the Americas. Columbus used the Canarias as his point of departure for all of them.
Well in Courtyard of Casa de Colon
As part of Spain, this was a great place to utilize as a stopover before leaving this side of the Atlantic to gather supplies and rest before continuing the journey. At the museum, there were miniature models of all of the ships he used and old navigational instruments and atlases. They had a display of paintings from Canarian painters and of artwork from Mexican, Ecuadorian, and Amazonian cultures. I found it quite interesting. The house itself was also beautiful, as it was originally the governor’s home, dating back to approximately 1478, when the city was founded and is likely where Colombus stayed when he visited the island.
Catedral de Santa Ana, Las Palmas
The older part of town was beautiful, as was the cathedral, which had been built, and rebuilt and used as a school, monastery, hospital, and church, throughout the years. I liked the architecture in the area, and the backdrop of the mountainous volcanoe-y island behind the city with the sea to the other side was quite spectacular. I walked back north through the shopping district, where the pedestrian streets were full of life. Musicians, beggars, tourists, and shoppers all jostled through the area, a mix of languages and music and sounds filling the air. By the time I hopped a bus back to the Playa Cantera to watch the sunset before dinner, I had worked up an appetite for that fish I picked out!
Ermita de San Telmo, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
Tonight, I’ll take the night ferry to Fuerteventura, the next island to the northeast of Gran Canaria. The beaches there are supposed to be spectacular, and there are some nature preserves there as well. Maybe I can get a chance to do some diving again. Should be fun regardless!