Santa Cruz De Tenerife: A-Wander

With a 4:00p sailaway, we had a short day in port for what was our second time visiting Santa Cruz de Tenerife (SCdeT). Part of it experienced on our own … part of it with friends.

When we were in SCdeT in 2017, friends — Manuela & Wolfgang — took us around the island, stopping to visit Teide National Park, before having lunch and enjoying the beautiful views from their terrace. We had plans to get together for lunch again, but first we had a bit of time to explore the city on our own.

Our first stop was at the information office to pick up a map. Since the weather was lovely, with comfy temps, we decided to skip the museums and enjoy our time outdoors — stopping for photos at Iglesia de la Concepcion; checking out the Mercado de Nuestra Señora de Africa (housed in La Recova) … from where we got some delicious gelato and I left with three lava stone bracelets; strolling streets lined with shops where the locals do their shopping; taking a break at the Plaza Principe de Asturias … where my photo-finger was entertained by a couple of statues and a fountain; taking a peek inside Iglesia de San Francisco. That pretty much filled the 2½ hours we had before our lunch date.

Retracing our steps back to Plaza d’España, we met up with Manuela and Wolfgang. They suggested we dine at one of the restaurants at Plaza de San Francisco. We settled on Plaza 18 when we arrived and took one of the tables on the street for a delightful meal. Sharing a pitcher of sangria, we reminisced about the experiences we shared on our world cruise in 2017 … and talked about future travel plans. The chatter was nonstop … as was the laughter. It was great seeing them again.

Alas, the time passed all too quickly. By 3:00p, Manuela & Wolfgang were dropping us off at the entrance to the port. Here’s to meeting again … somewhere … sometime.Read more