Our last 2 islands…. The islands belong to the Balearic
chain of islands east of Spain. In spite of their proximity, the two islands
have very different personalities. The harbor in Palma de Majorca is full of
fancy yachts and 5-star hotels line the waterfront. Mahon, Menorca, on the
other hand, has a harbor full of small sailing and fishing vessels and small,
family-owned 3-star hotels.
The first picture is across the harbor in Palma de Majorca,
with the Cathedral in the background. The cathedral is huge with double flying
buttresses. Legend has it that the King of Spain was in a storm off the coast
of Majorca and prayed to be saved from the storm, promising to build a grand
Cathedral in Majorca. King saved and Cathedral built!
On Sunday we headed out of Palma, into the mountains to
visit the village of Valldemosa, shown in the next picture. It is full of
quaint little streets, as the second picture shows. Unfortunately, the town is
being “loved to death”. Streets are full of tourist and most buildings have
been turned into souvenir shops or restaurants.
The most interesting thing about Valldemosa (other than its
cuteness) is the imposing Carthusian monastery that sits above the town (shown
in the first picture below). It was never finished and, at most, housed 13
monks, but for 57 days in the winter of 1838-39 it housed 2 famous people. Frederic Chopin and George Sand
(characterized in the next picture) meant to have a romantic vacation in
Valldemosa. Unfortunately, the winter was cold and wet, Chopin became sickly
and Sand found the locals country bumpkins. She chastised the locals in her
“Winter in Valldemosa”. Chopin composed some of his lesser-known compositions
here. And the romance seemed to end following that winter. While Sand is
recognized, Chopin is almost revered. You can buy all of the typical souvenirs
with Chopin’s face on them. His bust even installed outside the monastery, as
shown in the 3rd picture, and locals rub his nose as they pass,
similar to St. Peter’s toe in St. Peter’s Cathedral in the Vatican.
Before returning to the ship in Palma, we indulged in the
best Paella we’ve ever tasted, shown in the next picture. It was preceded with
locally grown toasted almonds and Cava, and accompanied by a Mediterranean Salad
and some Spanish red wine. We didn’t go hungry….
Yesterday we got up to watch the 7:00 sail into the harbor
at Mahon, Menorca. The harbor is 5 miles long, with beautiful scenery. It was
pretty enough that we made sure we were on deck when we sailed away at sunset. The
picture below shows the down built above the marine terminal.
We then took a bus tour of the island and got a great
overview of a really laid-back place. We started at La Mola Fortress, which
guards the harbor entrance and is one of the grandest forts I’ve ever seen,
with triple moats (one shown in the picture below), lots of cannon sites and
big, thick concrete walls. It was never attacked and is best known for its
history as a prison—a very nasty prison, where prisoners never returned…. It
was also the site of a Quarantine fortress where visitors to the island from
1819 to 1919 were housed for their first 40 days. Spooky, but some spectacular
views of the island….
We then travelled to Fornells, a village of fishermen on the
north coast. It’s a lovely little whitewashed village, with no public
transportation and one beach that must be reached by boat. You don’t go for the
nightlife! The next picture is the view of Fornells from the island’s highest
“mountain” nearby.
We found a couple of interesting architectural elements in
Fornells. The next picture shows the exterior of one house (all houses are
white with green trim). You’ll notice a little metal door about 1-foot-square
next to the green door. That’s the water door. Northern Menorca is built on
granite and there’s no natural water supply. The southern part of the island is
limestone and provides the water supply for the entire island. Your water tank
is under the house and when you need water you ring up the water company and
it’s delivered in a truck and pumped into the water storage tank through the
water door.
The next picture shows an interesting downspout that we saw
on several houses. The zigzag line on the wall is actually a series of spouts
that drop from one to the next. There is little rain on the island, but what
does fall is collected and stored using a system of downspouts.
We then drove up to Monte Toro, the highest point on the
island (where the Fornells picture was taken). Legend has it that the people in
the nearest town below would see a light on the mountain at night. After
several attempts, the source of the light was found in a cave—light emanating
from a statue of the Madonna. The statue was removed to the town below, but the
next day it was gone and once again found in the cave. The locals decided to
build a convent and church on the site of the cave, which is shown in the first
picture below. During Franco’s regime many religious items from the church were
seized and burned. One of the local men, however, managed to save the Madonna
and it now has a place of prominence above the altar as shown in the second
picture. The crowns on the Madonna and Baby Jesus were added, with permission
from the Vatican, from the jewelry of local people when they couldn’t afford the
gold to create new ones.
Today is a day at sea and we just passed the Calanques on
Corsica—beautiful rock formations. For those of you who have followed us, we
visited these on the day we were on Corsica. We’ve now seen them from land and
sea. Unfortunately, as the picture
shows, the day is hazy.
Tomorrow we dock in Nice and then it’s home on Thursday.
Thanks for sailing with us.
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