BarrieMahoneyLighthouses and Lime Kilns
"There are many lighthouses in the Canary Islands and locals and many visitors will know that there is a particularly fine one at Maspalomas in Gran Canaria. The lighthouse, or Faro in Spanish, helps sailors to navigate their ships and is an integral part of sea-life. Usually, they are cylindrical towers with a light on top, and emit a fixed sequence of beams that is unique to a particular lighthouse. Built in 1980, the Maspalomas lighthouse is still operational and, for those who like full details, provides 3 white flashes every 13 seconds. Before lighthouses were invented, sailors were warned of hazards by the lighting of fires along the coastline..."
www.barriemahoney.com and www.thecanaryislander.com
BarrieMahoneySince arriving in Gran Canaria, I have been fascinated and impressed by the politics of the small municipality of Aguimes, of which Arinaga is part. Locals tell me that, in the time of General Franco, Aguimes was one of the few municipalities in the islands to put two fingers up to the fascist dictatorship in Madrid and continued with their fiestas and other celebrations as normal. These flamboyant events had been generally banned by the General and his regime at the time - and totally contrary to the Canarian spirit. By all accounts, this local opposition was mostly ignored and the locals were able to get on with their fiestas as normal. The group in power in the Town Hall at the time were mostly young idealists of communist/left wing socialist persuasion and it is these young “firebrands” of yesterday who continue to advise and mentor the new generation of politicians in the municipality.
