Canarian holiday (Part 3 -Playa Blanca)

On the penultimate day of our holiday we took a trip to Lanzarote, another of the Canary Islands and very close to our resort of Corralejo - I had been keen to do this but first attempt we'd found that the Fred Olsen ferry was costly (€51 for a ferry that took about 45 minutes) and also that we needed our passports which we did not have with us so instead we booked for a later day(less than half the price) with an Armas Ferry.

The Armas Ferry at Corralejo

At the business end of the ferry

The journey was incredibly smooth and the boat not crowded although there was a little of a chill factor from the sea.

Once we landed we took a walk towards the residential area, seemed more Germans than in Fuerteventura but plenty of Brits too - there was even a chip shop frequented by Chris Gascoyne (The actor who plays Peter Barlow in Coronation Street) - for the more sporty we saw people learning some rudimentary board skills.

The actual Chip shop used by  Corrie's 'Peter Barlow'

Stand Up - Board training

Burger King Canary Style 

Generally I've not seen cats close to the sea but noticed them a few times while we  were on holiday.

Go on - Fetch!

You don't intimidate me.

I must confess that 'The guilty pleasure' that is a fast food  burger taken abroad was indulged in ( at Burger King). all in a all a nice trip and another island from the group visited.

The ferry's flag flying in the wind as we returned

Canarian holiday (Part 2 -El Cotillo)

Although we spent most of our time on recent holiday in Corralejo Fuerteventura we did manage to get out and about on a couple of adventures- the first was to to El Cotillo on the Monday of our holiday.

The trip was taken by public transport, bus (about 3€ each I think) and took about 40 minutes.
The place was really charming and as yet relatively unspoilt  - weather was good and we had a nice relaxing lunch overlooking the sea.

The area is popular with surfers and there were also dune buggies running around.

El Cotillo had something of an artistic vibe, photo's on display, statues and crafts everywhere- also a fine old tower used to defend against marauders (now a small museum and gallery)- great place to visit.

A defence against marauders

Ceramics were on display by..

The artist- Juan Antonio Sanchez

Riding the buggies looks fun

A work reflecting the nature of El Cotillo

As fish are gutted the seagulls wait patiently

Photo's on display

Reminded me of Picasso's Bull sculpture

It was hot enough for this

And this too.

And there was time for an enjoyable  'Al Fresco' lunch as well

Canarian Holidays (part 1)

Last week we took flight from Gatwick for a week in warmer climes - nothing lavish a small apartment in the resort of  Corralejo on the island of  Fuerteventura (that means, I gather in Spanish something like 'Strong Winds').

View from our balcony.

The sand on the island is golden

Flight in to the destination airport was a good one leaving slightly earlier (from Gatwick) and arriving ahead of schedule - somewhat surprised to be reminded (after some years I suppose) that they're in the same time-zone as UK.

Loads going on with visitors from Germany, France and mainland Spain too - strength of the pound and the fact that it's a 'Duty-Free' zone meant we actually didn't spend all our cash.

Plenty of places to eat and drink many had UK TV generally sport - not sure how it works with the satellite footprint and in case of Sky subscription.

This restaurant had trees going through the roof. 

Sadly Windy's was closed

Temperatures were  around 22- 24C and there was a  fair amount of sun- one of the local specialities seemed to be the intricate works on the beach made from sand. (more on the holiday later)

There were 2 or 3 guys who made great sculptures each day on the beach - this one even had candles  inside 

End of Philosophy (Class)

Ealing Springs Sprung

Something of a trial to change so many clocks, it happens each year (twice I suppose) but still manual for many devices and timepieces at Highview Towers - as we've  been away for a weeks holiday (more of that in the next day or two) I did them allyesterday.

Ahead of the break I had the final session of this batch of Ealing Philosophy classes.

A certificate to treasure 

Anyway last session covered a little about 'modern' philosophers  Dennett and Nagel- the perspective I got from the group was that they were both concerned with consciousness Nagel's view on Being a Bat seems to be available for interpretation as the thought we can't imagine others lives (human or other species) or that we can.

Dennett's thoughts are more around the human being more some form of a supercomputer with behaviour that can be predicted (a determinist in extremis  perhaps?).

The course was a great experience, with real live discussions, well led and something I looked forward to, so good I might resume in the autumn -well done to Daniel Williams who led the sessions so expertly and with a light touch too.

I'm always (overly) enthusiastic about certificates even as in the case it's only for attendance, I reckon they'd help with some of the CAB money sessions- not sure how this one fits into my general law of the less effort the greater the certificate?