Friday 27th January 2012

Cesar Manrique was a real mensch. He was buried in the village of Haria, so we are planning to visit his grave and pay our respects.

Thursday 26th January 2012

We cycled up to Timanfaya (Fire Mountain), and then went on a coach tour of the volcano park. At the top volcano the molten lava is only meters below the surface and you can feel the heat rising up. There is a restaurant cooking meat on a grill above the hole in the ground. There is also a little public barbecue where you can cook your own food from the heat of the volcano. If you put your hand in the cracks in the stone walls around the area you can feel the heat. It's quite amazing.

We can thoroughly recommend the Canary Islands. It's very cycle friendly and very peaceful, and the local food is excellent.

Wednesday 25th January 2012

You can buy local wine here for 1 euro per liter, and it's not at all bad. I could get used to this lifestyle!

I read in the paper today that keeping the brain active with a lifetime of reading, writing and mind stretching games such as crosswords and chess could keep Alzheimers disease at bay.(University of California, Berkeley)

Tuesday 24th January 2012 Lanzarote

We went for a good ride from Playa Blanca to Yaiza, then on to Mount Tinasoria, where we met two walkers who were from County Cork in Ireland. They've been coming to the Canaries for years, and are currently staying at an ex German hippy settlement (from the seventies) on the island La Gomera , which is just south west of Tenerife. La Gomera is interesting, because it is only 22 km across but has a mountain on it that is 5000 feet above sea level. They say that the peak is very often shrouded in cloud which condenses moisture on the rainforest. This means that there are rivers on the island which is rare on the Canaries. It is also only accessable by ferry from Tenerife, so it is a bit harder to get to, but it is considered to be one of the best places to do a walking holiday.

I read in the paper today that the world stock markets are predicted to rise by 20 % in 2012, with some wild volatility on the way. All of last years predictions were way too optimistic, so I wouldn't bet the farm yet.

Monday 23rd January 2012 Lanzarote

Playa Blanca, where we are staying, has the best promenade we've seen. It puts the ones we saw in Spain in the shade. We cycled along the length of the promenade to the lighthouse in the west, then rode and walked up Montana Roja (Red Mountain) , which is on the edge of town. I was quite surprised to find that it is an extinct volcano with a huge crater at the top. From the bottom it just looks like a mountain! It was a mostly sunny still day today with 20 degrees. Very pleasant.

 I read in the paper today that new research has discovered that the herbs origano, rosemary and thyme, as well as olive oil and navel oranges are essential in your diet to boost your immune system against cancer and heart disease. No wonder the Italians and French live so long.

Sunday 22nd January 2012 Lanzarote

Artist and architect Cesar Manrique had a very strong influence on the early development of Lanzarote, which has resulted in a very nice place to visit. He ensured that there would be no high-rise buildings and most hotels and resorts are no more than three storeys high. All the bars and restaurants are very tastefully laid out facing the lovely promenade that stretches forever along the seafront. We love Lanzarote.

We went for quite a challenging ride today. We followed the boulevard along Playa Blanca towards the east and then went along a dirt road to Papagayo Beach. From there, we followed the coast along an increasingly deteriorating track to Lomo Blanco, and then turned north west and climbed over Los Ajaches which is a ridge of extinct? volcanoes. From there it was downhill all the way back to Playa Blanca.The scenery was superb.

I read in the papers today that the worlds population is increasing by nearly 2 million people per week. Since I was born in 1951 the worlds population has doubled from 3 billion to 6 billion. It took hundreds of thousands of years reach 3 billion and only 60 years to grow from 3 billion to 6 billion! Let's hope that technology can keep up in the task of having to feed and water them.

Saturday 22nd January 2012 Lanzarote

We have hired bikes for the full three weeks. Today we cycled from Playa Blanca to Los Hervideros and then to El Golfo, which is a fishing village next to some huge volcanic cliffs. On the way, the road was closed to motor cars, but not to bikes, so we weren't affected. The road closure was to facilitate the filming of a new model Mercedes, presumably for a television advertisement. The car looked very different to current models - very squat and muscley!

 I read in the papers today that statins have now been shown to prevent cancer and even destroy tumours.(Columbia University in USA)

Friday 20th January 2012 Lanzarote, Canary Islands

We are delighted with Lanzarote, which reminds us a bit of Mauritius. The volcanic landscape and beautiful climate is very conducive to feeling relaxed. The last major volcano eruptions were only in the 18th century, with more minor eruptions in 1824 which is only a blink of an eye in geological terms.

I read in the paper today that the European Central Bank is going to print 1 trillion euros on 29th February, and that Greece is going to default on 20th March. We live in interesting times.

Thursday 12th January 2012

We had a very pleasant few days at Dianes house in Leicester over the new year, and then returned to Hereford. Di lives in a very nice part of Leicester, where she is able to either walk or cycle across a park to the university, where she lectures.

We also took a short trip to Gloucester to meet Mike Barrie who is retired and living on a narrowboat. He has cruised much of Englands canals and is now considering crossing the channel and touring Europe. It seems to be not unlike caravanning, but with more space and perhaps a slower pace. We had a nice lunch at the local pub next to the canal which cost only 5 pounds each.

We've been for a few rides around Hereford with Shane. The weather is surprisingly mild for January (usually around 13 centigrade max and 3 centigrade min.)

Friday 30th December 2011 London.

Well, now I know why so many people love London. We spent the last two days exploring the city, and found it to be really fascinating. We saw the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace. walked through Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens and St. James Park to the Thames. It's quite an experience to see all the famous places like Berkeley Square, Grosvenor Square, Piccadilly Circus, Trafalgar Square, Houses Of Parliament, Big Ben, the Tower Of London and Oxford Street. All over London the streets are lit up by very sophisticated Christmas decorations, even in the small lanes in the inner areas away from the big streets. We took a boat tour along the Thames under all the famous bridges and past Canary Wharf, and then on to Greenwich. When we went into the National Maritime Museum at Greenwich we discovered that there was a big section of it dedicated to Lord Horatio Neson, with a glass cabinet containing the uniform that he was wearing when he was hit by a musket ball in his left shoulder. At the time he had already lost his right arm and right eye in previous battles, and this latest injury in the Battle of Trafalgar killed him.

We had no idea that we were going to come across a connection to Nelson in Greenwich and will now no longer be surprised by any more encounters. Anyone would think that we have been researching all the connections to Nelson for the last 9 months.

Interestingly, I read in the paper the other day that the powers that be are calling for Greenwich Mean Time to be discontinued as the exact reference point for time, because the International Atomic Time is more accurate. It seems that because the Earth wobbles on it's axis at various intervals it slightly changes the position of 0 degrees longitude, which means that the 400 atomic clocks all around the world have to be adjusted by adding a leap second every twenty something years. This is considered to be very tricky and seemingly inappropiate, considering that IAT is more accurate than Greenwich time.