A quick half a day in Palma de Mallorca

Our week in Mallorca back in 2017 flew by way too fast. But that’s nothing new. Usually our travels don’t last as long as I’d love them to. As I have already mentioned, we spent most of the time on hotel grounds or on the closest beach. However, I also manager to squeeze in one solo trip.

We had a plan of going to Palma de Mallorca. For two reasons. First, that we see at least something in Mallorca. And second, that we leave the hotel for something more than just the beach. So, basically, that was one reason. But it looks much better if I say that there were two, doesn’t it? 😉

Anyhow, the kids felt great being able to spend the time doing nothing. Ok, it wasn’t like they were really doing nothing. They were playing, running around, playing some more, taking part in the kids club activities, running around some more. So they were doing quite a lot. And they didn’t really feel like going by bus for an hour or so one way. So they stayed at the hotel with my parents, while I decided to actually take that bus for a little more than an hour one way. That was my solo (half a day) trip to Palma de Mallorca. No rush, no nothing. Ok, not nothing. I had a map with a list of local delicacies to buy and a place where I could buy them. 

The day started ugly. It seemed like it was going to rain all day long. Right after breakfast, I went to the bus stop. I had to wait  little and it was wet and cold. By the time I got to Palma, it was sunny and hot. What a nice change for a day of sightseeing. At least I didn't mind. 

The bus stops right at the foot of the cathedral hill. It looks amazing. There weren't too many people there, yet, so I even got a chance to take a pic with no one in view. 

Cathedral, also called La Seu, being so close, was the first place I saw. It was... strange. On one hand, it looked amazing - mostly like a typical cathedral, the colours, altars and stained glass windows (so many of them and with the sunshine - they create a colourful performance). 

 

But then you get to that one place that looked to me like taken from horror movies. The window covered with black paint, as if souls (or corpses) coming out of the walls... It was spooky. And even though I know that it recreates the sea bed and was created by a famous artist Miquel Barcelo (I found out about it once I got back home, so I was neither ready for the experience, nor can I take the first impression out of my head), I still am a little scared of the images I have of it in my head. 

Once I got out of  the cathedral, I took a walk down the narrow streets. They were full both of shops and of tourists. Ok, most of them. Especially the ones closer to the market square. I got to some busier and wider streets, too. But then I got so exhausted with just walking in the sun (have I mentioned that I was pregnant back then? Yeah, I was, so even though sunny weather for sightseeing sounds like a blast compared to rain, it's not so great when you're pregnant). 

Anyway, I got back to the bus stop right off the cathedral hill. I took a look at the sea. Now the bus stop was much more packed with people. nd even though all the other buses seemed to be coming on time, mine had to be late. It arrived, at last. And after yet another hour and a half (or something like that), I was back to the hotel to spend the afternoon with my kids and my parents. 

And that was basically it for our few days in Majorca. Not much, but enough to make me want to come back and explore the island a little more. Ok, much more. 

A few days in Majorca...

2017 was a year when we spent most time at home. We were getting ready for welcoming a new member in our family (one that is now running around the house, smiling, laughing, dancing, doing hilarious things). Or so I thought. 

But then I started thinking about it. Considering all the trips near and far that we went on back then. January meant winter break near Ustka, Poland. March was a business trip to Stockholm. And a weekend getaway to London, let’s not forget about that. May meant a week spent in Mallorca, Spain. July – a weekend getaway to Frombork, Poland. And August – a few days in Sobieszewo, Gdansk, Poland. As for a year that I thought we spent mostly at home, it doesn’t seem that little. It’s just that we didn’t go on any major summer trip as a whole family that year. And that probably influences my perception of that year as a whole.

I did go to Mallorca with my parents and the kids though. We weren’t supposed to go there in the first place. My parents wanted to go with my brother and his family. But then it turned out that they couldn’t travel by place, so I stepped in with the kids and we took their places. Krzys had to stay home as there weren’t any free seats on the plane. Oh, well. Life’s brutal. He stayed home to clean certain parts of our home (like the attic) instead. Yup, life’s even more brutal ;)

From the start I have to admit that we didn’t see much of the island itself. The weather wasn’t too nice (most of the time. We had a rainy and windy day or two as well), and the whole plan was to rest. Our hotel was on the outskirts of one of the small coastal towns. It was more or less a half hour walk to the beach. But there was also a hotel minibus that was taking us closer to the beach area. 

Water in the pools was a little (a lot!) too cold to spend the time playing in the pools. Even in the kiddy pool, though this one was a little better (shallow water warms up faster). But the mini club was amazing. Kids had so much fun there. Artur could communicate easily in English, Paula still has a language barrier, but she could play with others thanks to her own wit and observations. The playground wasn’t maybe too big, but the constructions let the kids have their own kind of fun. They tried playing billard, too. And they still listen to and dance to the songs from the mini disco, which they loved a lot. Within a year, they had a chance to try three different mini discos in three different countries (Mallorca first, then Crete in Greece and finally Hurghada in Egypt). I haven’t seen the one in Crete (I wasn’t there and recordings don’t always pay tribute to the whole thing), but both the one in Egypt and in Mallorca were well organised and kids had a lot of fun taking part in them. They loved the one in Mallorca a little more, though. Or so I think. Primacy effect maybe? Novelty? Well, could be. 

Apart from spending time on the hotel grounds, where we had a lot of fun (some of us playing, some running around, some reading), we also went to the beach a few times. First time was already on our first day. Since we arrived to the hotel early in the morning, our rooms weren’t ready yet. We ate breakfast and still had some time to wait. We went to see the beach then. It was dark, cloudy and a little cold, so we were wearing long trousers and light jackets. That didn’t stop the kids from walking in their shoes right into the sea or falling down in the (shallow, but still) water. Half-dry half-wet, we got back to the hotel, where the rooms were already waiting for us. We unpacked and decided to rest spending the rest of the day either on the playground or sitting at the table right outside our rooms. And since our rooms were close to the hotel stage… it was a perfect place to see what was going on. That day started very early for us (or, to be truthful, in the middle of the night, as it was around 1-2 a.m., can’t remember precisely right now), we called the day quite early in the evening. Sadly, cause we missed the evening animations. As the kids loved them. Paula’s behaviour during this trip was a surprise to us. She was so open, so eager to play with others, to take part in various activities, to interact with others. The mini club was one thing. And the mini disco was yet another. We didn’t think she’d enjoy it. And every day she was waiting until the mini disco. Dancing like crazy, imitating every move. That was the first time I’ve seen her like that. Luckily, not the last. Artur is older and he was always more open to strangers than her. So him enjoying himself in the crowd was no surprise to us. It wasn’t his first time either. 

As I have already mentioned, we spent most of the time on the hotel grounds. By the pools, on the playground. We went to the beach a few times. But that was basically it. Except for one solo trip of mine, but I’ll share a word or two on it another time.

A Roman Aqueduct and a Moorish-Gothic Castle

Seeing Avila wasn't the only thing we had in mind for the day. We wanted to spend the night in the nearby city of Segovia, so we still had some driving to do.

We got to Segovia in the quite early afternoon. We set up our tent, had a little swim in the pool and still had enough time for an evening walk in the town.

First things first. A thing you can't possibly miss in Segovia is the Roman aqueduct. It's huge and kind of pretty. You can walk under it, you can climb up the stairs to see it almost fromthe top. You can see it from the distance, you can see it from up close. From the side or directly. Many options to choose from. Whichever you choose, though, just spend a minute capturing its size and beauty. Try to find that beauty if you can't see it at first.

Once you're done, keep walking towards the main town square looking for signs of the undergroung aqueduct. What signs? Where too look for them? Just look under your feet, on the ground, where there are bronze (?) signs with the symbol of aqueduct on them. I can assure you, once you find them, you'll know it.

By the way, why did they have two aqueducts? The one over the ground and the one under it? The answer is simple. As I havealready written, the big aqueduct can be seen from the distance. Easily. If I can see it, you can see it, citizens of the town can see it and their enemies could see it, too. It was relatively easy to poison the water running in the aqueduct in an attempt to poison the citizens of the town. That's why they were actually using the water from the underground aqueduct. It was much safer. At least the nobility was.

Once you got to the main town square, you can't miss the cathedral. If you have a chance, take a glimpse inside. I bet it's pretty. Look at it. Appreciate it. After all, European history is heavily based on Christianity, startin with Catholicism. The vast majority of catholic churches and cathedrals tell the history of the place. And are really pretty (church was rich and had an important role in the society. A powerful role, too).

When we got to the cathedral, it was already closed. So we couldn't get inside. So I can't say for sure that it was magnificent, richly ornamented and worth visiting, but I'm not expecting anything less of it.

There's also one more place in Segovia that's worth visiting, but we didn't get there either. Even to see it from the outside. It's the alcazaba, the fortress. It was already too late, too dark. Next time we'll try to catch up on it.

The next day, we wanted to hit the road and get as close to the border as we could. However, first we wanted to visit one more place.

Castillo de Coca or Caste of Coca is a 15th c. castle on the outskirts of a town called Coca, 45 km north of Segovia. Its a peculiar combination of Moorish design and gothic architecture. You can't get there by chance. You have to want to get there. It wasn't easy to find. It looks impressive, though. Like no other place we could imagine or no other place we've ever seen.

The place, unlike Castillo de Butron, is publicly owned and open for sightseeing. But... Yes, again, there's always a "but" when we're travelling. And there's always at least one place we can't see due to construction works, renovations, or simply some festivities. That happened with Arc de Triomphe in Paris, baptistery in Florence, Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, to name a few. And same was here, in Coca. The castle was closed for sightseeing (we were not the only ones wanting to see it, fyi), cause the previous night there was a huge party just outside of it and they were just starting to clean up the place. There was no passage to the castle.

We got back to the car, got back to the main roads and managed to drive up to Saragossa. We saw nothing there, though. We spent a very lazy afternoon and evening by the pool, sipping drinks and having a lot of fun. Lazy fun. We all needed it. It was our last stop in Spain. It was time to say good bye to delicious Spanish food and drinks and its wonderful sights. The following day we crossed the border. But it wasn't the end of our trip. We still had two places outside of Spain that we wanted to see.