Starting the new year on the Canary Islands

March 16, 2021

It felt great to come back to Lanzarote which I had to hastily leave during the first lockdown in 2020. After spending Christmas on the mainland with great company, I mostly spent my first week on Lanzarote by myself. I really enjoyed working and relaxing next to a natural pool south of Arrieta.

Natural pool south of Arrieta

In my free time, I went swimming and explored the mountains with my bike.

Exploring Lanzarote by bike

It rained more often than it did during my previous visits which had a visible impact on the island.

Green gras and yellow flowers on Lanzarote

Gras, flowers, trees and other plants were growing everywhere.

Palm trees near Famara on Lanzarote

Enjoying the time with friends

I took the ferry from Lanzarote to Fuerteventura in mid-January to meet up with two friends from the farm in Bavaria. We parked our vans on the cliffs in front of Playa El Aljibe de la Cueva. It didn’t take much time until our small camp grew by a few more friends joining the crew.

Camper crew on the cliffs at Playa El Aljibe de la Cueva

The cliffs became our home-base. My friends regularly went on small excursions during the week, while I mostly stayed on the cliffs to work.

Sitting together at the cliffs at Playa El Aljibe de la Cueva

On the weekends I was able to join my friends’ vacation life: Surfing,

My friend surfing at the west coast of Fuerteventura

mountain-biking,

Mountain biking in the south of Fuerteventura

swimming in calm bays,

Swimming in the bay of La Concha

or having BBQs on the beach.

BBQ at Playa Punta Blanca

The weekly Gofio-pancake sessions became one of my personal highlights. Every Saturday morning, I prepared pancakes and invited the gang for a sociable breakfast.

Serving pancakes in my van

Although we spent most of our time near Playa El Aljibe de la Cueva, we regularly stayed a couple of days at other places like Playa de Sotavento de Jandía where my friend took this amazing photo of our vans and the stars,

Vans parked under the stars

La Pared,

Vans parked at the cliffs La Pared

or Playa de Vigocho,

Van parked in front of Playa de Vigocho

where my friend took great pictures of the cliff, the beach and our vans with his drone,

Playa de Vigocho

before we enjoyed yet another stunning sunset.

Playa de Vigocho

Although everyone had their own schedules and activities, we usually spent the evenings together having dinner, playing the guitar and drinking some beers. Time flew and the group seemed to grow together like a family. I really enjoyed our everyday life on the island. Everyone seemed to get along with each other, so the vibe in our group was really nice. I felt productive at work and relaxed at the same time while being surrounded by friends enjoying their vacation.

I couldn’t have imagined a better start into the new year! Great times!