Island of Eternal Spring - Tenerife

Tenerife has held a fascination for me since my first visit in 1974. I came on holiday with mum, dad and three siblings. At that time there was almost no infrastructure but there was glorious sunshine, glorious glorious sunshine. Bucket loads, cart loads, shed loads, vast acres of daily sunshine. English weather has depressed the life out of me for as long as I can remember and Tenerife had blue, blue sky, every day!

No place is perfect and Tenerife has its problems but honestly, you might as well be miserable in the sunshine as in the rain. Tenerife does sunshine.

There is a clarity of air and a special blue to the sky that gives me a lift every single day. There is a smell of sea air and a sense of unpolluted air molecules that makes every breath an event. Even a mundane drive down the motorway gives glimpses of sea and sky at every twist and turn that makes me buzz with life energy.

The night sky of Tenerife is a revelation in comparison to the light polluted, dismal drabness often experienced on a miserable british night. Right now, tonight, I can see the shining star that is the Mia space station clear as bell in the west. Years ago a friend of mine said "at night Ive, keep your eyes up not down", great advice.

Many people associate Tenerife with the lager lout, nightlife, micro-skirted, tattooed, cheap-booze, lazer nightclubbed, seedy, tawdry, 2 for the price of 1, Lucky Looky?, image that accompanies the "Tenerife Uncovered" disservice.

Well it certainly exists but in an area of about half a square kilometer!

The rest of the island is a delight. There are soaring mountains, dramatic scenery, dense forests, mountain trails, picturesque villages, bustling towns, a modern and vibrant capital and a whole playground that is the Atlantic Ocean.

I make it a habit to walk regularly in the mountains. Now this does not mean any sort of journey. You can begin walking straight out of the back of the resorts of Playa De Las Americas, Los Cristianos or Los Gigantes. You are straight into it.

The flat topped mountain called "Conde" or "Montana Mesa (Table Mountain)" is visible and accesible directly from anywhere in Las Americas. It's about 3,000 feet high, challenging but not a killer and will give you views from the top that will stay with you forever.

The sea here teems with life, is a fabulous temperature and is clean, yes clean. It is easy to just buy a cheap fishing rod, get some bread, prawns or baby squid for bait and quietly slope off to sit on a rock in the sun with your feet in the water and switch off your head.

No nasty insects, snakes or anything that will bite, pester, sting or generally interfere with your well being. Tenerife is not in the Hurricane zones, has a stable government and an infrastructure that has improved immeasurably in the last ten years. Crime is relatively low and it gets Sky TV, all only about four hours from the UK, ace!