the highest point in all of Spain. We pack our bags in the van, negotiate with Merci for some of her artwork, say our goodbye (not really goodbyes because we will see them again on Sunday) and head for the hills. Marcos and Jose take us off into the bright sunlight and before we know it, we are up in the clouds at a lookout point directly in front of the glorious mountain. At this point, we are higher than the highest peak in South Carolina. What an amazing view. We take a few pictures and jump back in the cars. Driving up the road, our ears begin to pop as we are taken to higher and higher elevations. We reach our destination for the next couple of hours in the observatory or it’s more formal name… Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias. We meet Ruyman, Vanessa and Crystal who will be guiding us through the various telescopes up on top of this hill. 
We followed these astronomers around the area and learned many wonderful things about the stars and the planet. For what it is worth, Ruyman says that he doesn’t really care about what the scientist say about Pluto not being a planet…kids are still going to use the same play of words to remember the order of the planets. We learned that they have seven large telescopes in this area and scientists study the stars as well as solar patterns. At this point in the trip, we were higher than the highest peak on the East Coast…and we haven’t even gotten close to the top of El Tiede yet.After a wonderful tour, we were treated to lunch at a small little stop along the way to the top of the mountain. Marcos had packed us the lunch that Merci made and we found a spot at a restaurant to enjoy the wonderful sandwiches, fresh oranges, homemade bread pudding and cervecas that were packed for us by our host mom. With a small interruption from the waiter (they didn’t want us to sit there without ordering food) and some fun times with the lizards,
we were off to the higher sites and more fun. After a little bit of driving with Jose, who we learned is a mortgage/car loan broker who owns his own business that he took over for his father several years ago, we hear stories of how the area we were driving in is the inside of a large crater where lava bubbles up from the center several thousands years ago. The volcano is dormant at this time but has produced some great structures in its history. We arrive at the visitors center where we read some information about the olden days and how the aborigines used to live. There is a small chapel outside where couples can get married in front of some great views. As we walk a little further, we find the Roques de Garcia which is a beautiful set of rock formations that have formed over the years just for us to see while we are on the GSE trip. They tell us that District Governor Rich Waugh prepared this one just for us on his honeymoon several years ago on the islands. We are glad he planned ahead! The team poses for several group shots in front of the most gorgeous view of the inside of a volcano that I have every seen (in fact, it is the only inside of a volcano that I have ever seen but it is beautiful nonetheless) and then we take off for a walk. 
By the time, we get back to the car everyone has a red neck that would make our friends back in SC proud. We head back down through the valley and bid farewell to the highest peak in Spain and set our sites on highest elevated village in all of Spain. Coincidence? I think not.Marcos and Jose drive us to the small town of Vilaflor that is the birthplace of Hermano Pedro de Vilaflor who was recently named a saint by the Pope. This town is very proud of this honor bestowed upon their hometown hero and most houses have a tile commemorating this achievement. We walk around the town for a little bit (the people here are extremely nice and speak to us as we wander the street) and Marcos directs us to a small little bakery where we buy some of the freshest bite sized cakes that he swears are the best in the islands.
A little old lady takes our money and immediately we all agree with Marcos and buy more because we are told they keep their moisture until July…that is if they don’t get eaten before then. After we have sampled our tasty treats, we are driven to Los Cristianos and end up at the house of Luba and Rapheal. These two are hotel magnates in the area that would be hosting for dinner this evening. Rapheal owns five hotels on the beach in the south of Tenereife and Luba, his wife, owns one. So essentially, they own six hotels in the area. Their house is a 19th century house that has recently been renovated including a complete overall of the back yard which is now perfect for entertaining. Luba gives us a tour of this exquisite home and we are all amazed at how she has blended an old style house with modern trends. We meet Hugo, the cutest and most well behaved boxer (except for the lewd act that he performed on Bert’s leg), who is the third member of the family. The Rotarian couple treats us to wonderful conversation and appetizers while we stand under the Pergolas and take in the view of the city below. After some great conversation, we are led to the table and served a magnificent meal prepared by Teresa, one of their former staff members at the hotel who has recently started her own business and does most of their catering at their home. The meal was wonderful and we are thanked for helping with the christening of their new garden. 
We present Luba and Raphael with a few gifts to say thank you and then are off to meet our new host families at midnight.Tong, Catherine and Carla are dropped off at Paquita’s place and we are met by Alfredo and Manuel, both members of the GSE team that visited Greenville. The guys help the girls get their stuff upstairs and bid everyone good night. Bert, Chris and I head for Pedro’s house where we will be staying until Thursday of this week. We meet Pedro and his wife, Araceli and get settled into the penthouse at the top of the condo complex right off of the beach. Around 1 am, we decide to head for our beds as 7 am will come early tomorrow. We will be on a catamaran all morning tomorrow whale watching. I got the Dramamine…
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