Spanish/Canario for Travellers

Desayuno – Breakfast
Comida (de Mediodia) – Lunch
Cena – Dinner
Camarero/Camarera – Waiter/Waitress
Non comprendo – I don’t understand
Cuanto vale/Cuanto cuesta? – How much is it?
Escribamelo, por favor – Please write it down
Si – Yes
Non – No
Buenos dias – Good morning
Buenas tardes – Good afternoon
Buenas noches – Good night
Por favor – Please
Perdóneme – Excuse me
Habla usted Inglés? – Do you speak English?
Dónde está?- Where is?
A qué distancia? – How far?
De nada – You’re welcome
Gracias – Thank you
Adios – Goodbye
Bien venido – Welcome
Bueno – Good
Aeropuerto – Airport
Cerrado – Closed
Abierto – Open
Officina de Correos – Post Office
Farmacia – Chemist
Finca – Farm
Calle – Street
Ciudad – Town
Gasolina – Petrol
Alquilar – to hire
Alto/Pare – stop
Camino cerrado – Road closed
Ceda el paso – Give way
Carro – Car
Cruce – crossroads
Cuidado – Warning
Derecha – Right
Izquierda – Left
Arriba – Up
Bajo – Down
Good – Bueno
Bad – Malo
Salida – departure/Exit
Semaforo – Traffic lights
Farmacia – Chemist

The last “s” in a word is not usually pronounced and the “z” is not pronounced “th” as is Spain, but as an “s”. A “c” before “i” or “e” is pronounced “s”.
Words are often curtailed, and are sometimes run together in a sentence, making the individual words difficult to understand.

The Spanish Conquest

500 years ago the spanish conqueror Alonso Fernández de Lugo arrived at the bay of Añaza (todays harbour of Santa Cruz). The royal house ordered him to submit the last bastion of the canary natives. But the Guanches proved themselves as very brave and audacious as related by some chronists.
Bencomo, the king of Raoro (today La Orotava) the mightiest of all nine kings, congregated all his warriors and enticed the intruders to the Bay of Acentejo. 2.000 compatriots of the spanish crown fell and ‘de Lugo’ was seriously injured.

This happend on the 31st of May of 1494. Since then the town of the massacre is called La Matanza (the slaughter). Today besides the motorway there is a huge stone wall painting with a Guanche blowing the victory signal through a horn in the place of the massacre. One and a half years later, the 25th of December of 1495 and after the stench plague which weakened the Guanches the spanish crown finally conquered Tenerife.

For a long time the extermination of a nation and all it’s culture was held in secret and always denied. Under the mandate of ‘Franco’ it was even forbidden to talk about it. A few years ago a Rennaisance started and now even Guanches names are being registrated on streets. Families with the surname ‘Oramas’ are proud again of their name and tell about their ancestor ‘Juan Oramas’ a grandson of the King ‘Doramas de Guanarteme’ who was killed in Gran Canaria.

In Candelaria, the memory of the last nine Kings was kept alive by Lava made statues at the beach in front of the Basílica. The pass of time and especially the erosion corroded and destroyed partially these statues.

A few years ago the native artist ‘José Abad’ from ‘La Laguna’ made 7 bronze statues with royal sceptres, stone weapons, wood spears, slings and other symbolic objects. The proud Menceys as witnesses of the polemic times of discoverers.

After the victory over the Guanches, de Lugo constructed in 1496 the Metropolis of ‘San Cristobal de La Laguna’ beside a lagoon which was about seven kilometres away from the bay of ‘Añaza’. In 1723 the government’s mandate changed to the harbour city of Santa Cruz. The colonialist city from late Middle ages which would be later the University and Bishops city remained uncommunicative to foreigners. All the modern tourism ran into the walls of the city each time – but not in real walls because La Laguna was the first spanish establishment without citywalls. Short before it’s 500th birthday La Laguna woke up, remembers the historical values, and opens it’s doors; untill now the events of the Guanches Era have been obscured and since last year the Museum of History of Tenerife is open to visitors. This collection is placed in a renovated villa from the nobleman Lercaro.

More informations about your next holiday destination: www.la-victoria.eu