Mallorca

18.4.2013.

Glenn carefully drove our rental car to the coast today and we lazed on the sand at Sa Rapita ( beach) and had a wonderful swim in the ocean. The water temperature was very pleasant...someone said about 18c but it was warmer than that and clear as crystal. We took a picnic and ate it on the sand. We had access to a beach umbrella and beach towels courtesy of our house exchangees which makes life easy. It was a pretty spot with a marina at the end of the beach and an ancient turret dwarfing the masts of the yachts. On our return we had a cold beer and then ate Tapas for dinner.

Next day we ventured further afield and drove through tiny Medieval villages, down narrow lanes flanked by stone walls and with sharp, blind, bends. It was a bit hair-raising when a car coming the other way suddenly confronted us but people are very careful and tolerant and back up when necessary. It was very picturesque and rural.

The island is famous for leather goods and has a factory outlet for Camper shoes in Inca. I was disappointed with the range on offer and I didn't find anything exciting but Glenn got a beautiful pair of casual shoes. Lately he has found great shoes and is fast becoming known as 'Mr Centipede'! Maybe Barcelona will have more choice.

Cold change blew in last night and today and we are back in long pants and another layer. We drove to Cala Pi on the south coast of the island today and walked along the cliff tops and around narrow inlets. There were some beautiful yachts moored below in the stunning blue water. The white sandy bottom creates patches of turquoise water in the deeper blue and the colours are striking under the blue sky. Along the cliffs are closely built homes and hotels, mostly without acces to the water below, but there is a sandy beach at the end of the large inlet where lots of people were swimming and sun baking. Topless swimwear is very common and children largely naked.

Raining today and quite cold so we holed up and played with our computers, read books and planned the next day.

Tuesday. 23.4.13. Palma.

We caught the bus into Palma which was easier than driving into the city. We had a great day wandering around the city which was vibrant and so interesting.

 

We meandered down narrow alleys looking for a second-hand English bookshop we'd read about because we wanted to buy a decent guide book for Mallorca. We found the shop number but it had closed down. We found another book shop with English books and bought a 'Lonely Planet' which gave us all the help we needed.

First stop was the famous cathedral, Le Seu, which is the city's major architectural landmark. Originally predominantly Gothic, the facade was damaged by earthquake then repaired in the neo-Gothic style, described by the Lonely Planet as "startling, quite beautiful and completely mongrel". Only an Australian publication ( printed in China of course )... could be so succinct!

The cathedral has seven rose windows and some say the 20th century restoration of this windows's colours was too strong. This one is said to be the largest rose window in the world.

The cathedral is known as the 'Cathedral of Light' because of the way in which the light from the Meditteranean is reflected through the windows. It also has the most space with the least stone of any cathedral in the world.

It is notable also for the renovations made by Antonio Gaudi which improved the lighting, but particularly the strange Baldachin which hovers over the main altar like the gaping jaws of some oversized prehistoric shark. This was a temporary version of the final one which was never made and which hopefully would have been different.

Interesting large urn in a courtyard of the cathedral with suture clips!

The next interesting place was the Arab Baths, all that remains of the 10th century Arab city of Medina Mayurqa. They were probably part of a nobleman's house and this esction most likely the tepidarium or lukewarm room. There would also have been a hot room and a cold plunge.

The adjoining courtyard was cool and scented with orange blossom and a pleasant place to linger after a relaxing wash.

Street musicians in Palma.

Street scenes

Seafood paella

Extremely old olive tree with wonderful trunk and handsome man eating icecrem!

23.4.13. Valldemossa.

Today we had a big day out. We drove to the small, picturesque town in the mountains which is in the NW of Mallorca. That meant negotiating the motorways around Palma which Glenn did admirably, assisted by navigator Jenni who can now read a map in a moving vehicle without being car sick. We parked the car and started to explore.

There were a lot of tourists and the town was beautifully decked out in flowers and shops with merchandise spilling onto the pavements. It was made famous as the place where the composer Frederic Chopin and his lover George Sand lived in rooms rented in the former monastery. They were shunned by the locals and had a miserable time as portrayed in her book 'A winter in Mallorca', which is now sold in every shop.

We explored the monastery complex which includes the church, cloisters, pharmacy, library, Prior's cell as well as cell #4 where Chopin and Sand lived, and the Palace.

Floor tiles in church

Finely carved ivory altarpiece.

Loved this candle!

Lunch in the square with beans instead of flowers. Novel and creative I thought.

On the walls of the Monastery complex beside us were about 15 of these heads which would be surrounded with ivy when the spring has completely sprung.

We walked the old town which spills down the hillside, surrounded by farming terraces and stone walls built a thousand years ago by the Moors.

Near the bottom of the old town is a rustic, Baroque church built in 1245, and nearby the birthplace of Spain's only saint, Santa Catalina Tomas. Almost every doorway has a decorative ceramic plaque which translates as "St. Catherine, pray for us".

Last week we met Jutta when we were having coffee just below our apartment. She and her husband live in Hamburg but regularly come to Llucmajor for holidays to escape the German winters.

A few days later we met them for dinner at Cafe Joan and had a really interesting and enjoyable time with them. Maximillian is a surgeon in accident and emergency in Hamburg and was enjoying some time away from work. He and Junta introduced us to a very tasty and potent drink called Hierbas Secas, a bit like Raki or Ouzo. The restaurant was jammed full of diners watching the soccer match between Real Madrid and Dortmund, a German team, and the support was good humoured and rowdy. We ate pizza, squid and lamb chops, all washed down with a local red.