Tenerife; Sunday, 13 March, 2016

Another early wakeup call from the sun and another early breakfast. I headed down into town and wandered along to the stunning Auditorio. The structure is partly modelled on the Sydney Opera House, with a single curved arch that tapers to a point above the centre of the building (looking not unlike a scorpion about to strike!)

I had a wander around the outside of the building, taking in the views of both the Auditorio and the neighbouring Castillo de San Juan, an 18th century fortification that was one of a number built to protect the Canary Islands from, amongst others, the British.

The whole area around the Auditorio had previously been very run down, with my next point of interest previously being the city’s land fill dump until it was closed, landscaped and converted into the Palmetum, a large botanical garden dedicated to Palms and related plants. Hundreds of examples grow on what used to be an eyesore and is now a green a pleasant part of the city.

Having taken in both the palms and the stunning views over the city and surrounding mountains from the top of the site I headed back down into town and stopped for a light lunch, before wandering over to the main museum in the city to have a look around.

The museum is located in a large building with two wings. On the ground floor there was a very interesting exhibition on the geology of the Canary Islands and how they were formed and shaped by volcanic action. On the upper two floors one wing of the museum is dedicated to the Archaeology of the island and the other to the Natural history of the island – it’s an eclectic collection and at times a little confusing when you don’t realise you’ve wandered from one area to the other.

In the end there was almost too much to see in the museum and they were starting to close for the evening and usher people out of the building as I reached the last displays.

I headed back to the hotel to drop off my stuff and freshen up before heading out for another lovely dinner.