Mallorca - the beauty of the Mediteraneean

Mallorca (and not Majorca! - if it's one thing you remember from this post, remember that - always Mallorca and never ever Majorca!) was a really different experience within our travels. I cannot speak for Ben, but I both loved and hated Mallorca. It is such a beautiful island, with some breathtaking beaches and so much to offer despite its relatively small size, but, unfortunately for it, it attracts way too many tourists - and we went in May!

Our first destination was a small town named S'Arenal, near Palma de Mallorca. It was an ugly experience. S'Arenal is your typical beach resort town, attracting youngsters wanting to get tanned all day and drunk all night. Whilst there, we got the chance to experience Germans on holiday and that was not a pretty sight, coming very close in terms of disgustingness with the Brits (enough said!). Two of the memorable drunksters included the girl with the top split down the middle (and no bra underneath!) and the guy who couldn't remember his room number so he tried unlocking every door in sight, including ours!

S'Arenal beach.

Another thing we did not like about Mallorca in general and S'Arenal in particular was the fact that on a Spanish island, the two most spoken languages were German and English. Also, most restaurants were advertising  English breakfasts, fish and chips, bratwursts and German breakfasts (what the hell is a German breakfast anyway?). Why go to Spain to have fish and chips, when there is a lot of perfectly delicious Spanish food around? Hearing and seeing all the signs written in anything but Spanish gave the island a weird feeling, like a sort of inbetween land, lacking all authenticity.

Luckily for us though, we didn't spend too much time in S'Arenal. On the second day we hopped on the bus and went to visit Palma de Mallorca, the capital of the Balearic Islands, which include, apart from Mallorca, also Menorca and Ibiza. The city finds its origins in Roman times, but, similarly to most of Spain, it has been at some point conquested by the Arabs. Palma is quite a nice city to have a wander around, and is best explored by foot, given that it's not that big.

The main sightseeing attractions include the Cathedral, which is very nice and in a great location, next to it you have Palacio Real de La Almudaina (a former Arab castle), the Castell de Bellver, a fortress situated atop of a hill, 30 minutes walk away from the old centre and a nice hike up to the top - some lovely views from the fortress!, the Pueblo Espanol, an outdoor museum which displays typical Spanish villages from each region, and Palma's port, a very nice area to have a wander in. There are also several museums, and we visited Es Baluard Museum of Modern Art, which has a good size collection.

La Almudaina Royal Palace

The port and the Cathedral seen from the fortress.

The highlight of our visit to Palma, however, had less to do with sightseeing, and more to do with culinary experience. Whilst we were there, we went to a bakery (recommended by a local) and we tried the ensaimada, the staple pastry of the island, traditionally made with pork lard and sugar coated. It was gorgeous, and, as a result, until we left the island, I had one ensaimada a day, to keep the doctor away, obviously!

Ensaimada.

The day after our really different experience began. Rather than backpacking we decided to do the posh thing and rent a car, a little Fiat 500! How very grown up of us. This way, we learnt the ugly side of car rentals - the hidden costs that doubled the price we thought we'd have to pay, the pushy officers who kept trying to get us to buy extra insurance, and the time wasted in the office, arguing with them. The whole experience left us feeling like we've been ripped off and stressed and that made us think we wouldn't want to rent a car ever again. On the plus side though, the car was lovely and a pleasure to drive and it proved to be very useful actually, as we wouldn't have been able to visit many of the things that we visited without it.

Me and the lovely Fiat.

Once we had the car, we drove to Cala Figuera, where our second accommodation was - a really lovely looking apartment. On the way there we wanted to visit Playa Es Trenc, a very nice beach, but the parking price put us off. However, the drive there was not wasted as we got to see the salt mountains and Colonia de Sant Jordi, which were nearby.

Salt mountains.

Lovely waters of Mallorca.

One other thing Mallorca is renowned for is its caves. Out of them the Caves of Drach (The Dragon Caves) and, as it wasn't that far from our apartment we decided to pay them a visit. The caves themselves are stunning. They are extremely big and beautiful, with a massive underground lake with crystal clear water. At the end of the tour (lasting around an hour) there is a classical music concert over the lake. All the lights go off and lighted boats appear, carrying the orchestra. It makes for a really beautiful sound and light spectacle. It truly is beautiful. Once the concert is finished, the boats unload the musicians and they come pick up the visitors to sail them to the exit.

Part of the orchestra.

Inside the caves.

There is a however though. As most things in Mallorca, the caves are very popular with tourists. This makes the entrance fee quite pricey, but also spoils the visit, as the 1 hour tours herd in hundreds of people at the same time. Therefore you are stuck walking behind slow walkers, or feel like you have to rush to move on so other people can see the view, or avoid walking in everyone's picture etc., you know, all the annoying things that happen in very touristy spots. The most annoying thing was the young children screaming and crying during the concert, despite the fact that all the staff asked them to be silent. That really destroyed the atmosphere! But, all in all, it was an interesting and worthwhile visit.

After visiting the caves, on the way back, we drove to another Mallorcan tourist attraction, Sanctuary of San Salvador. Situated at over 500 meters altitude, the sanctuary itself is not the highlight of the visit, but more so the view from it, given that it is surrounded by plains. Also, it made for a very nice but challenging drive up, with lots of tight bends, as it went in about 10 km from sea level to 500 meters. But once at the top, the view was absolutely stunning, all around.

The sanctuary seen from the road

View from the top, with the sea in the background.

The following day we left the car home and went to explore the beautiful beaches around us by foot, as there was a little footpath following the coast. One thing I can never get bored of is looking at the blue and green and clean waters and beaches of Mallorca. Unfortunately for us, the weather was not on our side during our week in Mallorca, as most days it rained. However, we did manage to squeeze in a couple of sunbathing and swimming sessions, and they were great! It was such a (albeit cold) pleasure to be in such beautiful waters. Pictures don't really do it the justice it deserves, and neither can I. *brace yourself for seeing real beauty*

Cala Santanyi

Cala Mondrago

 

For our last couple of nights in Mallorca we moved on to the south west of the island, in Camp de Mar. From there, we headed north towards Soller, following a very beautiful road that went through the Serra de Tramuntana, Mallorca's mountain range. The road was gorgeous and such a pleasure to drive on, with amazing views around every bend. It was slow progress as the road was very bendy, and we also stopped a lot to admire and take pictures of our surroundings. We stopped for lunch in Port Soller, and then continued the ride until we reached a nice and enormous lake we just saw on the map. It was a slight detour, but it was worth seeing. Afterwards we headed back, this time taking the quick route, which cost us 6 euros in toll fees! - not going to complain that QE2 is expensive anymore!

Next time, we will find ourselves in Gaudi's playground, Barcelona.

Until then, stay happy,

Carmen