Sarra J

Joined July 2016 Message

Sarra J Canary Islands
- Apr 9, 2022, 7:45am · ☀️ 3 °C Altitude: 2 m
  England Southampton 50.90488, -1.4300750°54’18” N 1°25’48” W
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Day13
Back home
April 9 in the United Kingdom ⋅ ☀️ 3 °C
The last day at sea was a little rough, although less than we expected given the captain's warning not to leave things on tables and to expect notable roll as we crossed the Bay of Biscay in 50 knot (gusting 60) winds. We had a very lazy day as the weather wasn't suitable to go on deck, so we watched MacGyver and ate lots! Back into Southampton and we got a taxi that was included with our hotel and car parking, grabbed the car and headed home!Read more
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Sarra J Canary Islands
- Apr 7, 2022, 10:16am · ☁️ 12 °C Altitude: 136 m
  Galicia Vigo Castelo do Castro 42.23241, -8.7262542°13’57” N 8°43’35” W
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Day11
Vigo, Spain
April 7 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C
So, firstly, an inside cabin with no phone signal means your phone does not automatically update to local time...which is a slight issue for an alarm. Nonetheless, we managed to get up about 8.15am for the Spanish port of Vigo. Those on excursion used it as a via for Santiago de Compostela, but we breakfasted and then spent the day wandering in Vigo, the train times not being suitable for a trip further. We walked up the many, many stairs to the castle under a grey sky more akin to a British seaside. We then wandered through the shops, zigzagging our way back towards the ship. We stopped at Sete Portas on the front for what turned out to be the first of many beers before heading back to the ship on slightly wobblier legs!Read more
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Sarra J Canary Islands
- Apr 6, 2022, 6:10pm · ☀️ 15 °C Altitude: Sealevel
  North Atlantic Ocean 37.52828, -12.6155737°31’42” N 12°36’56” W
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Day10
Day 5 at Sea
April 6, North Atlantic Ocean ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C
Yesterday was a day at sea. So short of the formal night, it was a fairly relaxed day, watching Instinct and MacGyver and taking advantage of the food on ship!
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Sarra J Canary Islands
- Apr 5, 2022, 2:43pm · ⛅ 16 °C Altitude: 27 m
  Autonomous Region of Madeira Funchal Municipality Santa Luzia Marina do Funchal 32.64603, -16.911732°38’46” N 16°54’42” W
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Day9
Around Funchal, Madeira
April 5 in Portugal ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C
From the shore, we wandered along the front to a fort, before turning to town and heading along narrow alleys lined with restaurant tables and brilliant and eclectic street art. Unlike Lisbon, the Duck Store was actually open here so we popped in before walking through the old market and into the main shopping street. Funchal is a beautiful town with stunning architecture and so much to. Alas, we had only a couple of hours left so we headed on to the Blandy's Wine Lodge - good for present shopping! En route back to the ship, the Beerhouse served a tasting flight of their own brewed lagers, which we enjoyed in the sunshine before a day at sea tomorrow.Read more
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Sarra J Canary Islands
- Apr 5, 2022, 9:54am · ⛅ 13 °C Altitude: 9 m
  Autonomous Region of Madeira Funchal Municipality Santa Luzia Praça do Povo 32.64597, -16.9081432°38’45” N 16°54’29” W
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Day9
Dolphins in Madeira
April 5 in Portugal ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C
The overnight transit to Madeira was irritating. The seas were rough with 45 knot winds, which made for significant pitch and roll. None of which bothered us, except our room has two bunks folded up again the wall which creaked and whined throughout the night with every movement of the ship.

A bleary-eyed breakfast saw us into Madeira, running a little late due to the weather. We had catamaran tickets booked for 10.30 so as soon as we docked we headed off to the shore front.

The trip was superb, as it was last time. We headed out from Madeira in some sunny and cloudy skies and were treated about an hour into common dolphins darting in and around the hull of the catamaran.

The three hour trip finished with a long run along the shoreline back to Funchal.Read more
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Sarra J Canary Islands
- Apr 4, 2022, 10:34am · ⛅ 17 °C Altitude: 1 m
  Canary Islands Arrecife Charco de San Ginés 28.96217, -13.5464728°57’44” N 13°32’47” W
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Day8
Arrecife, Lanzarote
April 4 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C
We were prepared for an underwhelming stop in Lanzarote. We weren't disappointed. Having spent days sightseeing, driving and hiking, the island of Lanzarote appeared quote lacklustre from the recommended things to do. So we headed for a brief walk into Arrecife from the ship not expecting much. The shoreline is pretty enough, with low tide and lots of colour little boats in the harbour. The squat castle on the pier made for some pleasant rock-pooling as the sky tried to rain. The town itself had some cafes and touristy tat shops but not a lot else, so we meandered a bit before heading back to the boat for a late morning swim in the sunshine. We depart at 3.30pm today anyway and Funchal tomorrow promises more!Read more
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Sarra J Canary Islands
- Apr 3, 2022, 12:00pm · ⛅ 16 °C Altitude: 726 m
  Canary Islands San Cristóbal de La Laguna Las Mercedes 28.5213, -16.2840828°31’17” N 16°17’3” W
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Day7
Jardina
April 3 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C
We wound around the second valley and into a third, able to catch a glimpse of the sea out of the base of the valley. We passed even more remote mountainside homes, before ascending the final few switchbacks to the edge of the park and the highest point of the day - 751m (or 2461 ft). The path tipped us out into a small village of Jardina where we were to follow the road for an hour to San Cristobel to catch the tram back. Walking through colourfully painted houses with traditional wooden shutters, it felt like we should have found a cantina for a restorative beer! We made it to the tram just in time for the heavens to open, and we rode back to the sea, stopping in the terminal for a drink before braving the stairs of the ship.Read more
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Sarra J Canary Islands
- Apr 3, 2022, 11:39am · ⛅ 16 °C Altitude: 543 m
  Canary Islands San Cristóbal de La Laguna Batán de Arriba 28.52451, -16.2735328°31’28” N 16°16’25” W
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Day7
Barranco de Aguirre
April 3 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C
As we crossed onto a new path, roughly where the Barranco de Aguirre hiking path was marked, it became quickly and painfully apparent that 'downhill' was not in our near future. Instead, the path once again became paved but wound ever upwards through a series of switchbacks and mountain cuttings. At its highest, we hit about 650m above sea level, which it also turned out was not as high as we would be climbing today. As we passed through the first cutting, we were greeted by the valley up which we had begun our climb, greeted by lofty views over the reservoir to the west, and more upward paths to the east. Clearly, we kept meeting people coming the other way because the were sensible - starting the top and working their way down. The whole series of mountains and valleys were very "Red Dead" - the rocky outcrops on the peaks looked precariously stacked, the huge cacti and succulents coated the hillside and the mountainside shacks looked to be ripe for the start of a quest!Read more
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Sarra J Canary Islands
- Apr 3, 2022, 11:09am · ⛅ 16 °C Altitude: 425 m
  Canary Islands Santa Cruz de Tenerife La Fortaleza 28.51889, -16.2690428°31’8” N 16°16’9” W
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Day7
Cam Real
April 3 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C
The route we were following up was the Cam Real. At the top of the path marked on Google, there was a short break before a different path continued (which I thought, mistakenly, would be downhill...). The path became a proper hiking path, well trodden but rough and loose stone underfoot. But as we wended mountainside paths, passing cacti that were significantly taller than we were, the scenery was breathtaking. Tall, jagged mountain ridges covered in a variety of towering cacti and colourful flowers, with small residences tucked away - it'd be a challenge if you ran out of milk here! We met plenty coming the other way but only few going in our direction; it would become apparent why.Read more
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Sarra J Canary Islands
- Apr 3, 2022, 10:25am · ☀️ 16 °C Altitude: 286 m
  Canary Islands Santa Cruz de Tenerife La Fortaleza 28.50909, -16.2686628°30’33” N 16°16’7” W
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Day7
Santa Cruz, Tenerife
April 3 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 16 °C
Today's lesson - do not assume a hiking route will be over and down...some of them just go up, and up, and up.

We arrived early into Tenerife, and seeing the beautiful scenery of Santa Cruz, plotted a hike up the mountains to the tram of San Cristobal. The weather was warm and overcast, perfect for hiking. So we breakfasted, and headed out of the port and began our ascent. The first few kilometres were well paved and surrounded by flats and schools, following an empty river bed. We passed a herd of goats including some fabulous little baby goats which did distract me for a while before contining upward. We soon found the paved road narrowing and the cactus-covered hillside looming over us. We were aiming for a reservoir half way up the mountain before deciding what to do next. En route, we met a number of terrifyingly large and loud dogs who clearly were not happy to have us passing by their mountain retreat. The reservoir was about 90 minutes walk up the mountain and by the time we arrived the city felt miles away, replaced only by sharply cut hills and valleys, birdsong and bees. Here the paved road ended.Read more
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