This Is Exactly the Place You’ll Want to Visit Next

And here’s why

You probably decided to click on this article because the place from the image seemed that beautiful. And you must also be wondering where on Earth this picture could have been taken. The color of the lake seems otherworldly, and this green, this emerald green, seems so unreal, right? That’s exactly what I thought when I first saw a picture of this place too.

How exactly did I stumble upon this corner of the world?

Well, I read a lot. And I have a lot of favourite authors. At some point in time (almost 15 years ago) I discovered Jose Saramago (a Portuguese writer who won the Nobel Prize for literature) and I was so enraptured by some of his books at the time that I didn’t stop at only reading them… I also had to see the one documentary which was out there about him. And guess what? This man had chosen to move to a Spanish Island (this particular one) to spend the last years of his life with his wife Pilar.

I was very impressed with the images from the documentary and with how he talked about the weather, but I then forgot and moved on from my Saramago obsession… and discovered many other authors. However, when some 12 years later one opportunity arose to go on a trip there, I felt strangely compelled to do it.

You’re probably wondering what the name of this island is and I keep delaying writing it as if I’m trying to create some suspense, but I’m not. Or at least, I wasn’t doing it on purpose.

Lanzarote is one of the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean, the one that is most often overlooked. Whenever I mention Tenerife or Las Palmas, people nod in recognition, while if I happen to mention this name, most people frown in confusion.

I visited Lanzarote in December 2019 and I can still remember the caressing breeze quite well. I can even almost feel it on my skin whenever I try to conjure the memories of that trip. This was one of the details that made me understand why an old Portuguese man would decide to move house in his old age (of course he had more reasons than the weather) and choose this particular place. Yes, Lanzarote is definitely that pretty, the weather is that friendly and the food is that good. Not to talk about the wonderful beaches! And, of course, sangria (yum!!!).

When I sat down to write this article I had a totally different idea in mind of what it should be: I was going to list some places whose terrain impressed me most to answer Anne Bonfert’s writing prompt. And then, I was going to describe those many locations I had in mind in short paragraphs and even post some pictures, exactly like Jillian Amatt - Artistic Voyages did in her article that I really enjoyed reading (added below).

My mind however seemed to have a mind of its own and it needed just this one picture to let the words flow of their own accord and choose a totally different direction to focus on.

The cinematic lake from my picture is called The Green Lake/El Lago Verde (well, obviously!!) from El Golfo and that unusual shade of green keeps changing depending on where you take the picture from, the moment of the day, and how sunny or cloudy it is.

If you are on a higher viewpoint so that you could also see the blue of the ocean at the same time as the green of the lake, then all these colours seem even more strikingly intense. The contrast between the green, the blue and the dark brown (russet or maybe sienna, I could not really tell which shade applied) of the cliffs around make all the pictures you are going to take seem inadvertently photoshopped. Rest assured, mine aren’t.

Lanzarote is really amazing and it has many sights that stayed with me for quite some time. Whether you decide to do a volcano trekking tour or go to Cueva de los Verdes, one of the most fascinating caves that I’ve ever seen, or go to the Timanfaya National park, you will definitely be very impressed with the terrain.

When I wrote about Jordan here I said several times that the landscapes there seemed Martian. This is the only other place I visited where this comparison applies.

My article sounds as if I am trying to sell the place to tourists and hell, yeah, maybe someone should. So, it’d better be someone who’s both seen it and was impressed with it.

If you’re not convinced that the spectacular and diverse terrain you can find on this island has enough wonders in store for you, then what’s underwater is spectacular and worth exploring also (according to Stacey Cass’ article that I will add below). So, I do hope that if you’re looking for places that are worth seeing in the future, you’ll consider including this island on your list also.

If you want to know more about the writing prompt I mentioned, you can find the details in the article below:

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