Santa Cruz de La Palma

Walked around the capital of La Palma today. Bumped into a few Brits off a cruise ship - "doing" the island in 3 hours. Some were bored and just killing time until they could get back to their ship. The attractions of an all-inclusive bar/restaurant clearly outweighing the land-based delights.

I loved peeping into the cool inner courtyards of the old houses. This one was open to visitors, and had magnificent carved wooden pilaster, balconies, doors, shutters and ceilings. The climate allows the wood to be preserved outdoors in a way that we could never achieve at home.

Incongruously, there was an exhibition about a La Palma Holywood actress, Maria Montez. Life-size photographs of her were lounging around behind potted plants on the ground floor, so I mounted the stairs to ensure I just got the building.