Yesterday I was walking around the Islote del Francés and I was struck by how much the so-called Parking de La Rocar has expanded. Right now it occupies almost half of the islet, and threatens to continue growing indefinitely, as can be seen in the image:
Then I couldn't help but think how sad it seemed to me that such a privileged space is becoming this. I imagined that same place full of trees, conditioned dirt roads to walk on, seats, gardens... and the clash between my dreams and reality seemed of such magnitude that I almost felt like crying.
It is true that the area suffers from cheap parking. Not everyone can afford to pay the prices of Spínola and company to park in the center. And public transport is still not as effective an option as it is in many other places in the world... or in the Canary Islands, not to go far.
But there necessarily has to be another solution. We already sacrificed the Islas Canarias park in its day to let it be the business of a few and a parking roof for the rest. How many more sacrifices must we make to the car god?
I can think of few places, not only in Arrecife, but in all of Lanzarote, with so much potential to become an emblematic and enormously enjoyable space. Look at it well, a promontory surrounded by the sea, two steps from the center of the capital... and we plant a parking lot on it? What is wrong with us, the people of Arrecife, that we are not capable of taking advantage of the beauty and goodness that surrounds us? Sometimes I think that we are like that self-conscious character who wallows in his miseries and almost enjoys hurting himself, while pushing away any possibility of improving his situation, even if he has it right in front of his very nose.
P.S.: While I write this I can't help but remember César in that documentary, surrounded by scrapped cars and predicting the worst of futures for our Islands because of unbridled ambition.
