CANARY ISLANDS READING
History
The Canary Islands are situated 100 kilometres off the coast of West Africa, in the Atlantic Ocean.
The ancient Greek and Romans called them “The Fortunate Islands” and the philosopher Plato linked the Canary Islands with the lost continent of Atlantis.
The Canary Islands played an important part in the discovery of America, when Columbus stopped in La Gomera during his voyage in 1492.
The 8 islands
There are 8 islands in the archipielago. They are: Tenerife, La Gomera, El Hierro, La Palma, Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura, Lanzarote and La Graciosa.
The sun shines during the whole year. The weather is warm and the temperature has an average of 19ºC in Winter and 24ºC in Summer.
There are 4 important National Parks in the Canary Islands, which means that this is the Autonomous Community that has got more National Parks than any else.
Tourism
Tourists will find different activities to do and to see in the Canary Islands. There are many nature areas to visit, for example: forests, sand dunes, volcanoes, natural pools…
You can visit the Teide Volcano in Tenerife (the highest mountain of Spain), the Maspalomas sand dunes in Gran Canaria, the sand dunes of Corralejo in Fuerteventura, natural pools in El Hierro, the forest of the Garajonay National Park in La Gomera, volcano of Teneguía in La Palma of the Timanfaya National Park in Lanzarote.
Gastronomy
Canary Islands' cuisine combines traditional Spanish recipes with african and latin-american influences. We find here an incredible variety of recipes, with excellent fish, potatoes, cheese, fruits and vegetables.
Among its most famous dishes are wrinkled potatoes – papas arrugadas. This traditional dish of Canarian cuisine, is made with “pretty potatoes” – papas bonitas, a variety of small potatoes served with mojo sauce.
More important dishes are: escaldón (made with gofio), puchero, almogrote, sancocho, ropa vieja, etc.
If you have a sweet tooth, you will enjoy this part of the text. The most important dishes are the bienmesabe (almonds, sugar and egg), frangollo (millet flour, milk, lemon, sugar, almonds and raisins), Prince Albert (chocolate cream cake, with brownies dipped in coffee, with almonds ), rapadura (main ingredient is honey), quesillo (egg custard and condensed milk), the gofio mouse, mole eggs, banana pancakes, Canarian trout (specially eaten in Christmas), etc.
------
READ THE TEXT AND ANSWER THE QUESTIONS
1- Where are the Canary Islands situated? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
2- Who called them “The Fortunate Islands”? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
3- Who stopped in the islands in 1492? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
4- How many island are there? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
5- How many National Parks are there in the Canary Islands? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
6- What´s the weather like in the archipielago? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
7- What can tourists visit in the islands? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
8- What´s the name of the highest mountain in Spain? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
9- What is the most famous dish of the Canary Islands? ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. What are the main ingredients? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
10- What are the names of other important dishes? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
11- What´s the meaning of “to have a sweet tooth” in Spanish? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
12- What´s the name of a dessert that is specially eaten in Christmas? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
13- Rapadura is a typical dessert of an island. Can you guess which´s the island? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
14- What´s your favourite Typical Canarian dish? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
15- What´s your favourite Typical Canarian dessert? …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….