La Vida de los Hubers: April 2016

During our spring break we flew to Tenerife, the largest of the Canary Islands, west of Africa. We had a late flight from Madrid arriving around 1:00 am

We stayed in the Iberostar Las Dalias and had such an amazing time we are still trying to figure out how to justify going back.

Our hotel was all inclusive which had the typical
buffet food but the Mexican night was amazing. I
ate so much I had to skip the ice cream bar for once!

These lava rock walls are very
common in Tenerife, Our
resort/hotel is straight ahead.

Tenerife is volcanic in origin, which is evident in many parts of the coastline.

Day 1

The first day after a short swim in the pool, we headed down to the boat docks for a surprise whale watching tour. The kids were so tired from the late arrival the night before that the lengthy boat ride had no trouble rocking them to sleep. Initially, Morgan wasn't pleased about being woken up just to see a few whales.

This is a video of a few dolphins and then several pilot whales that we saw.

As we returned to port we glimpsed our only castle of the entire trip, the Casa del Duque (the Duke's house). It was built in 1931-1936.

Before returning to the hotel we walked along the shore until we found a suitable beach with a built in shade. We were surprised it wasn't already taken, but then realized that it would defeat the lobster red skin most of the tourists are aiming for here,

They were all in the water before I was done setting up camp.

We did buy a couple of boogie boards to help keep the kids in the water.

We never expected it to work for these two. We assume the dark sand is from the lava rock.

We eventually talked Mason into taking a run on a boogie board.

Day 2

The next day was mostly a repeat of the first day except we replaced the whale watching with parasailing.

This was the friendlier of the boat's two captains. Mason and Kamree couldn't get enough of him/her.

Brent and Kamree went first.

Followed by Kaiya and Morgan.

This is the video Morgan took of their ascent.

Mason and I cried to go last.

Back at our same beach with our same cave shade. We might have chosen differently had these three too cool dudes arrived first. It wasn't their physique, attire, smoking, or drinking that would have kept us away but simply their loud banging boombox which could have been heard several beaches away.

That evening we took a romantic evening walk along the Fanabe Beach with our disturbs, I mean our kids.

Our hotel was at the far end of this beach which we all bemoaned during our return. It really was a long walk.

Day 3

The third day was very lax; we again went to the beach and then to the hotel pool in the afternoon. Not sure which day these photos are from but it could have been from any since this is what they did everyday in the pool.

Day 4

Sunday we attempted to attend church, but the doors were locked and the note said they were having Stake Conference. It seems this has happened more often than not when we are traveling. Before returning we read some scriptures across the street.

After changing into more comfortable clothes we took a drive to Mt. Teide a volcano last erupting in 1909. It's white capped summit dominates the island as it is seen from nearly every corner of Tenerife and can be seen here just to the left of the rainbow.

Since Mt. Teide is the highest point of Spain and beginning at sea level we had a lot of altitude to climb. We drove through so much fog we were worried we would be able to see the summit or anything from it.

Fortunately, as we got closer to the base of Mt. Teide, it began to clear up and dry up.

Mt Teide has an elevation of over 12,000 ft and is the world's third largest volcano.

The lava fields spanned most of the area at it's base but also patches of land all the way to the sea.

After about an hour long line, we crammed into a very pricey cable car to ride up near the summit. Mt. Teide is the most visited natural park in Europe, receiving 3 million visitors a year.

About all we saw from the peak were clouds and at times the ocean. Mason asked, "How can it snow if we are above the clouds?" well, the gravity force isn't strong enough to always force the lightweight flakes downward so sometimes, with the upwind they go upwards, right?

The kids were so excited to play in the blanket of snow, but it was deceivingly hard as the lava rock it covered.

After Mt. Teide, we intended to drive north to a village in these steep mountains.

The road was snakelike all the way up and down with just one way in and out. The drive was slow moving and the roads got so narrow that we wondered if it was worth it.

The views were amazing.

Eventually we made it to Masca safe and sound along with the rain. The ocean is found just between the mountains.

This massive old tree was a great cover from the rain.

Day 5

Brent and I initiated Morgan into scuba diving the day before we left. He handled it like a pro and is ready to go again. This photo is just as we were suiting up.

This is a video of some of our sea friends. After our dive we returned to the beach for some more water fun.

The hotel had nightly entertainment, which disappointingly was not always kid appropriate. The kids loved sipping on slushies while waiting for them to start.

The last night was a Chinese variety show which we all loved. It ended with two of the performers in this frightening dragon costume trying to scare Mason and me.