The Lion of Charco
Before arriving in Charco you will first see the ‘LION OF CHARCO‘. He stands as protector of the village.
The desert orchid has bloomed in full bloom. Much more abundant than in other years. The dunes are becoming more and more colorful. The mimosa is also in bloom now and so is the bougainvillea. Lots of sun so it really looks like the start of summer. Many winter guests have left; it is quieter in the village now. But the weather is very good. The whole month around 25 degrees.
Programme:
* 7 May Sunday afternoon guitar music and dancing at Lili’s Paradise 17.00-20.00 the last preformance by Theo. He goes back to Germany.
*5 May Atlantic Jazz Lab Orchestra 20.00 Teatro El Salinero Arrecife. Www.ecoentradas.com €10
* 5-7 May AGROCANARIAS San Bartolome. Market of local products such as cheese, meat and flour, etc.
* Moonlight concert in Charco by Stephan Holhweg.
*11-14 musical dedicated to Cesar Manrique. Jameos de Aqua. Www.ecoentradas.com €30
*May 12 Art Market at the Centro Comercial 17.00-22.00
*Cantina de Mala every Sunday afternoon brunch with open microphone with Gian Luca and Alan 13.00
*Don Quijote – Saturday: live music 20.00-23.00.
There is a WhatsApp (in Spanish) with all the events on the island: Eventos varios Lzt: 0034 647383181 or :
www.coolturalanzarote.com
www.culturalanzarote.com
LANZAROTE NEWS
Jameos de Aqua has a new exhibition: Home of the Volcanoes. A most interesting exhibition about Lanzarote’s volcanoes and there is a tribute to Cesar Manrique. It is free for residents to visit. It features the most advanced gadgets. Such as a three-dimensional experience of a trip through the caves created by the lava. There are videos and sounds of volcanic eruptions and a hall of mirrors.
IN THE PICTURE
HEINZ BOER (75) is a remarkable man who is the epitome of life in Charco.
When we arrived in Charco for the first time there was the rather new spectacle of someone walking naked in the street. It was ‘Heinz’. He is well known in Charco. Actually, he never wears any clothes but in the last few years he has used some protection against the fierce sun. He is a seasoned naturist and has lived in Charco since 2007. This time he is in the spotlight.
Heinz has been a naturist since childhood. He was the only one in his family. They lived outside in nature, which gave him plenty of opportunity to be naked. From a young age his parents taught him that you should never throw anything away but always try to recycle. His parents had been in the war and therefore he never wasted anything. This became a life motto for Heinz.
He has always cared for the environment. You do not pollute; you clean up your mess.
He worked as a cook for many years and when there was not much work left, he became a natural healer/naturopath. He has, among other things, worked with ‘Ozone – Therapy’. When too much technology came into play in that world, he dropped out and got a job as a driver for a theater company that travelled all over the world. That is when he came into contact with drums and rhythms from Senegal and was deeply touched. His conclusion was that he must have ‘Rasta – roots’. He still has that connection with drums. That’s his music.
Heinz is a kind of anarchist: he does not stick to rules or restrictions. As he ran into more and more problems and wanted to live in a warm place in winter, he discovered Lanzarote. He logically ended up in Charco del Palo, at ‘Obona’ where he was able to rent a house in 2007.
His drive to care for the environment led him clean up the entire Charco, Mala, Arrieta, Guatiza and Los Cocoteros areas. He cleaned up all litter during the first years. If waste had been dumped, he would call the municipality who would collect it. In the village he is still on the lookout for whatever can be recycled. You don’t throw away anything that someone else might use. So if you need anything: ask HEINZ. Along the coast he cleans up all the cigarette butts, hundreds of thousands of them, he said. If you see a plastic bottle somewhere in the bushes, it’s Heinz’. He uses them to put discarded cigarette filters in. A few years ago ‘Vanessa’ became his assistant, a Spanish woman, who labelled several boulders with the inscription: ‘the beach is not an ashtray’. This does have an effect, but we are very happy that Heinz still clears up what is left. And he also clears up fish remains or urine at the Monkey Rock. The three things that are most important to him in life:
ZEN, ORGANIC FOOD AND NATURISM
You can see him doing Yoga, Tai Chi or Qigong in nature and he shaves using a mirror stuck to a palm tree. For Heinz the natural life in the village is enough for him. He hardly goes to concerts, exhibitions or parties anymore. He seems to have a natural attraction to dogs. Right from the time we got to know him any dog would follow him. Although Chacho is not his dog people may think he is: he follows him around a lot.
When he turned 75 last year, his friends surprised him with a party on the Monkey Rock. Everyone brought some food and he was pleased as punch.
HEINZ, THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING YOU DO FOR CHARCO AND THE SURROUNDINGS¡
WALKS. Mala ‘Cathedral’
An interesting walk to caves with cathedral-like pillars and vistas.
It is best to take the car for the first part. Duration of the walk: half an hour to get there, half an hour to survey the caves, half an hour back across slightly sloping terrain.
From Charco: turn right at the Don Quijote restaurant. Turn left past the school in Mala. The street this will later turn into a dirt road. Cross the bridge over the lz-1. Drive up left along the dam. It is a rather steep, unpaved track. Park near the dam. Walk up left of the dam. Continue on the unpaved path. Past a cluster of houses another 800 meters up.
On the left you will see a chain. Don’t take the first one, a little bit up there is an other on your left. Take that one. Pass the fields until you see a narrow path up between them. Walk up there and higher up keep left and walk up diagonally. At a pebble hill is the entrance to the cathedral. You may go back via the other hill, and then you will end up at the first chain.
Good luck, Tineke
A DOLPHIN TRIP MYSELF
To celebrate my 65th birthday in March we went on a dolphin tour. We chartered a small, 12-seat boat from Puerto Calero. The first hour there was not a dolphin to be seen. However, suddenly they appeared in large numbers around the boat. What an experience to be so close to these special animals. What a great gift. Later we saw four other species a little further away.
Seasafari Lanzarote. Warmly recommended…
Mother and baby dolphin
SUZETTE
Another instalment of Suzette’s book Written with Love
*One is filled with such a feeling of well-being in the presence of these wonderful animals’
An unexpected surprise *
Early one evening a friend phoned me to say they were going out in their boat and we would be welcome to join them. A pod of dolphins had been spotted. My daughter and I gathered our snorkelling gear together and set off to the harbour. We were soon in the boat heading out into the blue ocean. Very soon we could see splashes in the distance, tell-tale signs that dolphins were quite near. They came swimming towards us. Then the engine was turned down. We were then with the music of the ocean. A gentle splash and a sound of their blow as they surfaced around us. One is filled with such a feeling of well-being to be in the presence of these wonderful animals.
Sadly nowadays in the Canary islands it is forbidden to swim in the water when wild dolphins are present and one must be content with them visiting your boat, which is still the most wonderful present and one is uplifted beyond words by their joyous energy. This was a different time and we were not aware of such a law soon to be passed.
My daughter and I prepared to go into the water. The boat was now surrounded by dolphins. As we put our heads below the surface of the water we could hear their beautiful high-pitched sound. It seemed that they had a total communication between themselves. We were sharing their world and we realised that there were thousands of sardines and large tuna fish. The fading sunlight caught their silver bodies, and amongst them were the dolphins, some with their babies swimming so close to them in their miniature form. We all seemed in harmony even though they were feeding. The feeling was so exhilarating, their shapes so graceful. They touch and caress each other while they swim. Love seemed to flow from them to each other. We could learn a lot from these wonderful animals. A breathtaking present of beauty. We felt such a privilege to be part of them and we felt so grateful.
To be continued.
Im away to Holland for a month so no news from Charco next month, but maybe a special addition.
I wish you a very good month.
Greetings Tineke
