Santa Cruz de la Palma will be starting Carnival tonight. If you’re staying in town, it’s a great spectacle, but you should probably buy ear-plugs, as the music will be loud, and most nights it will go on until about 2 am. On Monday there will still be people partying at dawn. Where things are:The Alameda Square is at the north end of town, next to the concrete ship.The main…
The entrance to the island’s museum, beside the church of San Francisco. The Island’s Museum is in the old convent of San Francisco. The building itself is lovely. It dates from the early 16th century; work started in 1508, just fifteen years after the Spanish conquest. (Forty years ago, it was the technical school, and my husband studied there. It certainly looks better than the concrete box I studied in.)…
Although Father Christmas does visit Spanish children, he’s a new arrival. Traditionally the presents arrive on the morning of January 6th, when the three kings visit baby Jesus. This is why the sales haven’t really started yet – Christmas isn’t over here. And on the evening of the 5th, they ride in procession through most of the major towns and villages in Spain. In previous years we’ve usually gone to…
New Year fireworks in Santa Cruz de la Palma, 2009 The Spanish celebrate New Year in a big way. A lot of people go out for an expensive meal wearing evening dress – the the sort of thing I associate with Glyndebourne Opera. Most restaurants offer a special menu, and you have to book well in advance. This year, large family parties were back in fashion, because they’re cheaper. I’ve…
One of the tall ships in Santa Cruz de La Palma last year For several years now, Santa Cruz de la Palma has hosted a Christmas market and a meeting of tall ships. This year, there are sadly no ships, but there’ll still be a flea market on Christmas morning, from 9 am to 2 pm. And a very Merry Christmas to all my readers. Here on La Palma, it’s…
Christmas trees are a newish thing here, although probably most houses have one now. The main traditional decoration is nativity scenes. Some just show the stable, but some public ones are so elaborate that they include the whole village, and it’s always a Canarian village. Obviously that’s historically inaccurate, but no more so than all the English nativity scenes where Mary and Jesus are blond. This one was on display…