Travels in Lanzarote: Day 9. Meeting the Locals

This was another day when I only managed one sketch, because we were off sightseeing most the day. We went into an extraordinary cave-like system of tunnels - volcano tubes - which are caused when lava is pumping out in a channel. The outside cools and then acts like a pipe, through which molten lava keep pouring. Until, when it stops, the tube is left. They are gigantic:

Not only was it dark inside, but you had to walk round with a guide, so not great for on-the-spot-drawing. So, afterwards, we stopped off at a lovely little place just down the coast called Punta Mujeres.  We sat outside a little street café overlooking the water, while I did a quick sketch. I experimented with a coloured line, using one of my new Graphik Line Painters (another Christmas gift from Derwent). Then I tinted it with my Inktense pencils.

It's not the best sketch I've ever done, but it had the usual effect of introducing us to the locals. The owner got very excited and borrowed my book to show to the various punters I'd drawn. Some little girls then came over to practise their English, talking to me shyly about my sketch.

There was a little section of sea walled off with volcanic boulders, where people could swim, though there was nobody in there. It was full of little fish. It was a much warmer day and the water was so beautifully clear that, before heading back, I had to have a paddle. So I got my white, English legs out and went into the sea in my knickers!