Ouch! I was about to dive into the ocean at my favorite beach in the world (or, at least on this island!), the Canteras. Well past 10 pm, the stretch of sand I had chosen was shrouded in darkness but I discerned in the water some pretty blue blobs that looked like tiny plastic shopping bags. This inflated figures were obviously jellyfish (the Canary people called them aguaviva although the RAE term is medusa).
Having no interest in testing their stingers, I moved along to another part of the shore but before I ventured into the drink, I asked a couple who were strolling along the sand if they reckoned I would run into more or these jellyfish. They just laughed and said "don't fret, it's just a little sting!" Indeed, I recall a friend being stung on the heel a few years ago. After a couple of days, his whole swelled up like a balloon! I think that unhappy situation lasted a while, too.
Although this is certainly not Australia where certain sorts of sealife can leave you dead or comatose before you have stepped onto the beach! But we do have more than our share of jellyfish and sea urchins this year. The September tides (the so-called Marea del Pino) brings lots of scary creatures up to our sacred shore.
Swimming amid all this sea life can be quite an adventure!
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