The cross at the heart of the procession for fiesta de la cruz, El Pinar
Fiesta de la Cruz is the eclebration of the rediscovery of the True Cross on May 3rd. On La Palma, people decorate the roadside crosses, but on El Hierro, they make decorated mobile crosses and take them out in processions, complete with musicians and dancers.
Dancers in the procession for Fiesta de La Cruz in El Pinar.
The Dodo Dragon and Other Stories
Nine quirky SF stories by Sheila Crosby (the author of this blog) to entertain you.
On sale April 23rd 2012, and available for Kindle, iPad, Mac and PCs.
Cover painting by Merche Martin Morillo
Layout by Eco-geek
This book currently has 4.5 stars on Amazon.com, but it’s slightly cheaper from our own products page, which also offers other electronic formats.
If you have any problems with this book, please click on “Leave a reply”.
If you like it, please tell as many people as possible!
The latest is that the eruption isn’t quite over after all. The very small earthquakes continue, with a few registered each day, (all too small for humans to notice.) On Saturday, the scientists sent down the robot camera from the Atlantic Explorer, and found a small amount of lava still seeping out. The hottest water that the robot found was 60 ºC. Obviously this is disappointing.
But the really excellent news is that the robot also saw fish and other marine life, showing that the damage to the marine ecosystem is very much less than feared.
Meanwhile, it’s easy to get special offers in El Hierro, especially in La Restinga. For example, the seafront restaurant Mar de las Calmas is offering a set lunch menu of three courses plus drink for just 10€.
The Atlantic Explorer in La Restinga harbour
The Scientific Committee for Volcanic Risks has unanimously declared the submarine eruption over. The Canarian government has kept the island on yellow alert, but the island’s government wants it changed to green.
El Comité Científico del Plan de Protección Civil por Riesgo Volcánico ha confirmado que la erupción submarina ha concluido.
The top of the cone is now 88 m (290 ft) below the surface, with no more magma coming out.
A statue of a child (left) hiding from a carnival ram, La Frontera
In parts of El Hierro they have a tradition of rams hunting at Carnival. These are people dressed in sheepskins and rams’ heads, with bells on their waists who chase the children around. Of course the kids love it. You can see better photos and read more at folclorehierro(in Spanish).
A statue of a child (left) hiding from a carnival ram, La Frontera
One of the floats at Valverde's carnival procession
Like many places in the Canary Islands, Valverde holds a carnival procession, where children from the local school dress up. Here are two photos from this year’s parade.
Kids in the carnival procession at Valverde, the capital of El Hierro
The sardine's funeral in La Restinga
Carnival ends with a funeral for a sardine. Here’s the procession in La Restinga, at the southern tip of the island.
Green tide at La Restinga
On Monday the crown prince of Spain and his wife will be visiting La Restinga, the village at the southern tip of El Hierro, which is closest to the volcano.
La Restinga is recovering. The residents have moved back home, and tourists are beginning to visit again, in spite of the occasional smell of sulphur. It’s a nice little place which offers the rare chance to see a volcano safely. Sometimes you can see it bubbling, and sometimes it stains the water green with sulphur.
The offshore volcano seen from the Tanajara viewpoint, El Pinar.
El Hierro’s offshore volcano is erupting again. Here’s a photo which my friend took from the Tamajara viewpoint, near the main village of El Pinar. The volcano is the silvery bit, which is where the bubbles are reaching the surface. There have been 29 earthquakes so far this year, but none of them were large enough for anyone to feel.
If you’re keen to see a volcano safely, this is one of the best chances you’re going to get.
Celebrating new year is a big thing in Spain, although El Hierro’s had a rough year and I imagine that many people will opt for family parties rather than going out for dinner. Many people dress up – I mean really dress up, as though they were going to the opera at Covent Garden. At midnight, people traditionally eat one grape for each “boing” of the clock. If you manage all twelve on schedule, it’s supposed to bring good luck, or prosperity, or something. (It usually gives me indigestion.) People drink champagne, and town halls let off fireworks.
I hope 2012 brings all my readers whatever they most wish for. It should finally bring my first e-book to market – “The Dodo Dragons and Other Stories” followed by “A breathtaking Window on the Universe: a guide to the Roque de Los Muchachos observatory”
Happy New Year!