A small rock in the Atlantic: 09/08/09

Saturday is a Public Holiday

The 15th of August is a public holiday on La Palma. (Concepción Inmaculada, the Immaculate Conception) Most of the shops will be closed. If you can get to the village of Concepción, above Santa Cruz de la Palma, theyĺl be having their annual fiesta: lots of mobile bars blasting out salsa music, lots of stalls selling cheap toys, a religious procession, and probably a live band.

Labels: Concepción, fiestas, La Palma, Santa Cruz de la Palma

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La Palma's Annual Craft Fair

Traditional embroidery at the craft fair, Barlovento, La Palma

Traditional embroidery

Every year on La Palma they hold a craft fair. This year it's in Barlovento, in the large building on the main street with all the flags outside.

Jewellery made from dragon tree seeds at the craft fair, Barlovento, La Palma

Jewellery made from dragon tree seeds

There are over 80 stands, displaying a huge variety of products. Lots of traditional embroidery and baskets, of course, but also things I'd never seen before, like tied-dyed baby-clothes and ceramic-and-feather dragons.

Handmade glass beads at the craft fair, Barlovento, La Palma

Handmade glass beads at the craft fair, Barlovento, La Palma

Handmade glass beads

Several stalls have people working on their crafts, so you can see glass beads being made, or rye straw twisted into baskets.

Woven palm leaves at the craft fair, Barlovento, La Palma

Woven palm leaves at the craft fair, Barlovento, La Palma

Woven palm leaves

In some cases, it's fun to try to work out what traditional tools are for. The giant tongs are for picking prickly pears (they don't call them "prickly" for nothing). The wooden or metal tubes with air -holes at the end are for carrying a ferret so that you're both comfortable.

Handmade paper at the craft fair, Barlovento, La Palma

Handmade paper at the craft fair, Barlovento, La Palma

Handmade paper

At the entrance level, there are lots of stalls selling food and drink: biscuits, doughnuts, cheese, jam, wine and rum. Several offer free samples - decide who's driving before you sample the rum!

Sheet metalwork at the craft fair, Barlovento, La Palma

Sheet metalwork at the craft fair, Barlovento, La Palma

Sheet metalwork

The fair is open from 5 pm to 8 pm, Monday - Friday, and 11 am - 9pm Saturday and Sunday. Entrance is free.

Handmade tiles at the craft fair, Barlovento, La Palma

Handmade tiles

Labels: Barlovento, crafts, La Palma, souvenirs

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Where to find the Star Parties

Here's a Google map with the locations of the two star parties, at the top and bottom.

View La Palma Island in a larger map
Click on one of the blue map pins for details.

Labels: astronomy, Breña Baja, La Palma, Santa Cruz de la Palma

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Stargazing in aid of Fire Victims

Wednesday night (August 12th) should be the best night of the year to see shooting stars. Shooting stars happen when the Earth passes through a cloud of dust left behind by a comet's tail. To celebrate, the amateur astronomers on La Palma and Astrotour are holding two star parties.

You'll be able to observe the sun through a telescope (safely!) in Santa Cruz de la Palma in the Plaza España from 11 am to 1 pm.

And from 8 pm - 11pm there'll be nocturnal telescopes in the basketball court at La Polvacera in Breña Baja. And the residents' association will provide drinks.

In both cases, the Red Cross will be collecting for the people who lost their homes in the forest fire.

So you get astronomy and warm fuzzy feelings in one go.

Labels: astronomy, Breña Baja, La Palma, meteors, Santa Cruz de la Palma