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The magic and majesty of Tenerife’s Mt Teide |
 In many ways the island of Tenerife is Mt Teide, because without it then there would be no island here. So it seems fitting that as you approach Tenerife by air the lofty peak stands out clearly and majestically, especially when it is covered in gleaming snow.
Mt Teide, or Pico del Teide, as it is also known, is a dormant volcano that is said to be 600,000 years old and it is also the highest mountain in all of Spain standing 3717 m above sea level and approximately 7000 m above the adjacent seabed. About 150,000 years ago on Tenerife as it then was, an immense explosive eruption occurred creating Las Cañadas, a large caldera at just over 2000 m altitude.
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Los Realejos - town in the mountains of Tenerife north |
The municipal borough and town of Los Realejos is situated in the foothills of Mt Tigaiga next to the La Orotava valley, on the border of San Juan de la Rambla in the north of Tenerife, and is worth a visit for a number of reasons. In actuality Los Realejos is made up of two towns – a high one (Realejo Alto) and a low (Realejo Bajo) but they merge into one.
Los Realejos takes its name from the royal encampment set up by Spanish conquistador Fernández de Lugo in 1496 after the Battle of Acentejo fought with the native Guanche people. The first parish church on Tenerife was built in Los Realejos as it then was and is known as the Church of Santiago Apóstol. It is said that Guanche menceyes (leaders) were baptised in this church.
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Medicinal herbs of Tenerife |
 Botanists and herbalists visiting Tenerife would very quickly be struck by the amazing wealth of medicinal herbs that grow here. Many are common throughout the island and include both endemic species like the Sowthistles (Sonchus spp.) and Houseleeks (Aeonium spp.) as well as introduced ones such as the Nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus).
The Milk Thistle (Silybum marianum) or Cardo Mariano as it is known in Spanish, is unmistakeable with its large prickly leaves veined and marbled in white and large spiky flower heads of magenta purple. Milk Thistle thrives on waste ground and roadsides and is especially common in the north of Tenerife where it is also found as a white-flowered variety. Milk Thistle is used in the form of an infusion of leaves and seeds and is especially good for the liver and helping detoxify the system. This herb is also used as a treatment for depression, coughs, travel sickness, piles, varicose veins, poor circulation and a digestive tonic.
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El Tanque – a charming village in Tenerife’s northwest |
El Tanque is a village and a municipality in the north-western part of the island of Tenerife and it is well worth a visit because of its traditional Canarian lifestyle, architecture, culture and charm. El Tanque is located in the mountains above the cliffs of La Culata, from where El Roque of Garachico and part of the coastline can be seen.
Farming is the main business of the local people in the El Tanque area and grapes, figs, potatoes and walnuts are among food crops you will see cultivated there. El Tanque sometimes gets covered in the swirling clouds that form around the mountain districts on Tenerife and these clouds bring the moisture the plants and trees thrive on.
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Vilaflor – highest mountain village in Tenerife |
 Vilaflor is a beautiful and unique village located high in the mountains of the south of Tenerife on the road, which ascends up to Mt Teide. Vilaflor is the highest village in Tenerife and the highest municipality in Spain with an average altitude of being 1,160 metres above sea level. Vilaflor has a small population of some 1,5000 inhabitants.
Vilaflor is well worth visiting or at least stopping off in on your way up to Tenerife’s Mt Teide. Vilaflor has a beautiful square adjacent to the Church of San Pedro, which was built in the 17th Century on the site of a former hermitage. Next to the church is the house of Brother Pedro Bethencourt, who was born there in 1626 and who went on to become a well known holy person of Tenerife and who was famed for his travels to Guatemala as an evangelist missionary who founded the Order of Bethlehem. On April 25 the festival of Brother Peter is held in Vilaflor.
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Results 26 - 30 of 41 |
Tenerife Island