Category Archives: Out and about

Manacor Still in Lockdown

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It’s the news that people in and around the town of Manacor were dreading: a two-week extension begins today to the fortnight’s lockdown imposed a couple of weeks ago, to reduce the number of Covid-19 cases. The Balearic government has also brought forward the curfew time from midnight to 10pm.

Eat Outside or Takeaway

We feel particularly sorry for the restaurants, cafes, and bars, who are unable to serve people indoors during this period. Despite the lovely weather we’ve been having during the day, the cool evenings may not be conducive to dining on a terrace. The food would soon be cold (plates are rarely warmed first here in Mallorca), even if diners themselves were dressed to keep warm. A number of places are offering takeaway food and, for some in Manacor, this is the preferred alternative.

Hey, Mr Postman

Our list of things-to-do when Manacor re-opens is growing by the day. First will be a visit to Correos (the post office), where we have our apartado (postbox); no postie makes his way to our rural neck of the woods. We imagine our little mailbox will be stuffed with letters, bills, magazines we subscribe to, and cards sent for my birthday – which happened after Manacor’s lockdown started. My thank you notes for cards received will be somewhat delayed this year!

A main concern is whether our UK bank will have written to tell us we can no longer have an account with them after the end of this year, when Brexit is finalised. Several UK banks have already informed British customers living in Europe that this is happening. Our bank has not yet made any announcement or informed us of a decision and we hope they haven’t done this by post, as it’ll be a fortnight before we get our hands on our mail. And Brexit looms…

  • Porto Cristo. The large boat at the back belongs to tennis supremo Rafael Nadal
    Porto Cristo. The large boat at the back belongs to tennis supremo Rafael Nadal
  • One of several sculptures by Mallorcan artist Joan Bennassar - this is in Can Picafort. Others can be found in Soller and Cala Ratjada
    One of several sculptures by Mallorcan artist Joan Bennassar – this is in Can Picafort. Others can be found in Soller and Cala Ratjada
  • More sculptures by Joan at Can Picafort
    More sculptures by Joan at Can Picafort

Meanwhile we’ve found solutions to being barred from going into Manacor: we’ve eaten lunch in Porto Cristo and done our food shopping (and a local bank visit to pay a bill) in Can Picafort. Both excursions gave us a chance to enjoy being by the sea in the continuing good November weather.

But we’re looking forward to returning to Manacor and supporting the local businesses there.

Authors in Mallorca Podcast

During our time here, I’ve discovered there are many interesting foreigners in Mallorca who write books – of all types and genres. Why not talk to some of them and find out about their writing life and their works? Hence, the launch of my second podcast, Authors in Mallorca.

For the first episode I met up with British author Anna Nicholas, whose books about moving from a busy life in public relations in Mayfair to a rural home in Sóller have many fans around the world. I’ve interviewed Anna on radio before and she’s an entertaining guest.

If you’d like to listen, Authors in Mallorca is available now on Spotify and on Apple Podcasts. I hope you’ll enjoy it.

Jan Edwards Copyright 2020

Mallorca’s Countryside is Paradise on Two Wheels

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A wheely good way to see Mallorca – if you’re not head down!

Through the open kitchen window I heard a German-accented “Halloooo?” calling hopefully from the lane outside our gates. It was another group of lost Lycra-clad cyclists needing directions to the Mallorcan resort of Ca’n Picafort, which becomes the base for huge numbers of visiting cyclists at this time of the year.

The cyclists who find themselves lost in our rural haven mistakenly assume it’s possible to reach the appropriate main road by means of the enticing narrow lane through our picturesque secluded valley. Like their many predecessors, they freewheeled down the lane at great speed, yelling with exhilaration and shattering the tranquillity of our bucolic idyll. They are somewhat quieter on the return journey, having arrived at the lane’s dead end right down in the valley and had to slog all the way back up the hill. Sometimes I wonder if we should buy a defibrillator – just in case.

What? No Formula 1 Here?

Although it happened in our early years here, we still remember one strange Sunday afternoon encounter with a lone German cyclist, who spoke little English or Spanish. He was looking for a restaurant and became quite agitated when we explained that the nearest was some 10 kilometres away, in the town of Manacor. We gave him directions, but he seemed reluctant to leave.

It was a surprisingly hot day and his red face glistened with sweat, so we offered him a cold drink, which he declined. Then he spluttered: “Schumacher! Schumacher!”. I peered at the lean face under the cycling helmet, wondering if we were indeed in the presence of motor-racing greatness. Then the centimo dropped: he wanted to know what was happening in the F1 Grand Prix race that afternoon. He was unimpressed to hear that we had no television or Internet (at that time), so couldn’t update him on his fellow countryman’s progress, and after spitting out a string of German words, he hauled himself onto the saddle and was on his way.

Most of the cyclists we encounter, though, are pleasant (and grateful to find someone who knows the area and speaks English).

A Wheel Paradise

Mallorca is a pedaller’s paradise at this time of year and it’s easy to understand why. The climate is better than in Northern Europe – where many of the visiting cyclists come from; Mallorca has a superb road network of 1,250 kilometres (just over half of which are secondary or rural roads, carrying little traffic), and an extensive network of cycling routes.

The terrain of the island offers something for every level of experience and fitness: from the flat agricultural plains at the heart of the island, through to the switchback roads weaving through the soaring Tramuntana mountain range. Everyone – from the holidaymaker who wants to see the island in a more environmentally way, to the amateur athletes competing in events such as triathlons, to top pro cycling teams, Mallorca has it all.

Slow Travel

Not everyone who comes here to cycle does so in Lycra. There are also travel companies catering for people who want a slower-paced holiday, cycling leisurely through glorious scenery on roads that are safer than back at home.

On one occasion, whilst pottering in the garden, we could hear English voices in the lane. We looked out of the gate and saw a middle-aged man and woman pushing their bicycles up the steep hill. They looked weary, so we invited them to join us for tea on the terrace – an offer they accepted with smiles on their faces.

We spent an agreeable hour or so chatting – during which we discovered that the man worked in Oxford (where I had worked in radio for ten years). Small world, eh? Although not serious cyclists, they’d been enjoying the beautiful scenery during their two-wheeled meanderings around northeast Mallorca. Like many cyclotourists, they intended to return to Mallorca. Perhaps the next “hallo” called from the gate will be theirs.

A Google search will produce details of numerous companies offer cycling holiday packages in Mallorca. If you’re coming to cycle here independently, here are three hotels geared up (sorry about the pun) to the needs of their guests on two wheels: Petit Hotel Son Arnau in Selva; Castell Son Claret in the Es Capdella countryside, and Finca Serena, in the rural heartland of Mallorca.

Jan Edwards ©2020

‘The Mallorca Files’ Open on the BBC

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The Mediterranean island we call home – Mallorca – is about to hit TV screens as the backdrop of another BBC series. It remains to be seen whether The Mallorca Files will do for interest in the island what The Night Manager did back in 2016, but I’d be surprised if those who come on holiday to Mallorca time and time again didn’t tune in to spot places they recognize.

Palma’s emblematic cathedral, La Seu

According to the BBC, The Mallorca Files is a “police caper” with a “rich humour and playful tone”, featuring the two chalk-and-cheese detectives Miranda Blake and her German counterpart Max Winter.

The Mallorca Files is scheduled for daytime viewing on BBC One, but will be available on BBC iPlayer for those who don’t or can’t watch TV during the day.  Ten 45-minute episodes – each involving a separate case – will be screened from Monday to Friday for the two weeks beginning Monday, November 25th.

Location filming for the series began in November 2018, just outside the town of Inca. Other locations include Palma de Mallorca, Pollensa, and Soller. Sadly, they didn’t choose our rural valley as a location. Perhaps next series?

New Zealand, Japan, Finland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Germany, the Benelux, France and Poland are among the other countries set to screen the latest BBC series set on our beautiful island of Mallorca.

You don’t need to wait for Death in Paradise to return (early in 2020) to the BBC for a fix of armchair-travel escapism: The Mallorca Files should fit the bill nicely, thank you.

Jan Edwards ©2019

Mallorca Hosts European Hot Air Balloon Championship

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Balloons over rural Mallorca

It’s been a while since I posted on this blog. We had a full-on – and fun – September, with family and friends who stayed with us at the finca; there were also other friends, staying elsewhere in Mallorca, with whom we met up to eat out. It was a thoroughly enjoyable month of good food, wine, company, and fun.

Back to work, I thought, as October began. Then wham! I went down with a heavy cold; barely recovered from feeling wretched, I launched into a project which took me out and about to interview and write about a few traditional artisans in Mallorca.

#AmWriting

With that project now finished, it’s time to crack on with my novel and catch up with posting here and on my Eat, Drink, Sleep, Mallorca blog – both of which have been rather neglected with everything else going on.

Until just over a week ago, we were enjoying an unusually warm and pleasant October, with only the occasional ‘off’ day. Then somebody flicked the ‘winter on’ switch and it was a hasty trip to buy logs for the Jotul stove.

A Glorious Autumn Saturday in Mallorca

Before we resorted to winter-weight curtains and socks, there was a wonderful autumn Saturday (October 26th). We got up early to go and watch hot air balloons. We do see the occasional distant hot air balloon from our home, because nearby Manacor is home to a company called Mallorca Balloons, run by Ricardo Aracil – but that day we were in for something special.

Ricardo was responsible for bringing the European Hot Air Balloon Championship 2019 to Mallorca – for the first time since the competition was launched in Skövde (Sweden) in 1976. The event is organized by the International Aeronautical Federation (based in Switzerland) and takes place every two years; 100 hot air balloons from 23 countries came to Mallorca to compete this year.

The European Hot Air Balloon Championship was as popular with spectators as it was with competitors and we were in a long line of cars driving towards the cloud of balloons rising over the countryside near Petra.

I find myself getting quite emotional when I see hot air balloons. It’s something to do with the tranquillity they exude: the slowness and peace (punctuated by the occasional burst of flame) as they travel. One day I shall try a hot air balloon flight – but I think I’ll wait for the warmer weather to return first.

Balloons over rural Mallorca

Going to see the hot air balloons in flight was just the start of a memorable October Saturday. Later that morning we went to have a Terragust experience – which you can read about here.

We’re now in ‘winter’ mode here in rural Mallorca, but can look back at these two events and be grateful for a very pleasant autumn 2019.

Jan Edwards ©2019

Mallorca’s Market Life

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Church in Sant Llorenc

The parish church in Sant Llorenc

Exploring local markets is one of the pleasures of living – or holidaying – on the Mediterranean island of Mallorca.  Every town and village has its market and some of the larger ones – such as the huge Wednesday market in Sineu, Artà’s on a Tuesday, and the Sunday one in Santa Maria – have become magnets for tourists.

Some markets are much larger than others. Once, not long after moving to rural Mallorca, we went to a village market which comprised a total of two stalls selling fruit and vegetables. Yes, only two. Having allocated a whole morning to exploring the potential treasures of this particular outdoor emporium, we were soon searching for a café.

Gastro Market beckons…

Last week we visited a market on Mallorca that we’d never been to before, even though we’ve lived here since 2004 and it’s not too far from home. The weekly Thursday market in Sant Llorenç has, in recent months, been given a new identity: the Sant Llorenç Gastro Market. There’s nothing like a name with foodie appeal to attract new visitors…

It’s not a large market but the stalls lining the traffic-free Carrer Major certainly fitted into the category of  ‘gastronomy’. We spotted organic local produce (including a contender for Mallorca’s largest cauliflower), gourmet salts, olive oils, home-made cheeses, and more. Some stalls were offering home-made Mallorcan dishes to take home, reheat and serve, and others had snacks to sustain market visitors whilst browsing.

An organic goods stall at Sant Llorenc Gastro Market
Colourful plants also on offer
Poster highlighting the day’s free entertainment
Interior of Hotel Can Solaies – our coffee stop in Sant Llorenc

In the square in front of the church, we found the more-usual fruit and veg stalls, and a van selling fresh fish (which had almost sold out by the time of our mid-morning visit).

We also bought some bread from the traditional bakery Forn de sa Plaça, where we had a sad little chat with the owner about the impact that supermarket in-store bakeries are having on traditional businesses like his own.

Recommended coffee stop in Sant Llorenç

A coffee stop is essential during a market visit and the delightful four-bedroom luxury B&B Can Solaies Hotelet (right at the heart of the Gastro Market action on Carrer Major) is our recommendation for a hot or cold drink in Sant Llorenç. We had delicious americanos there, after which we had a look at three of the rooms. They’re superbly decorated in Mediterranean style and we may go and stay a night so that I can write about the experience on http://www.eatdrinksleepmallorca.com.

Like traditional bakeries, street markets are also losing business to supermarkets – which is why initiatives like Sant Llorenç’s Gastro Market are important. If  I hadn’t spotted the magic words ‘gastro market’ on a social-media post, would we have visited this weekly market? Probably not. But with its new name and concept, and free live music to entertain visitors, this market has reignited its appeal and is offering foodies a good reason to visit the small town.

During our visit last Thursday, we didn’t see many obvious tourists – but plenty of locals were supporting Mallorca’s market life in Sant Llorenç. We’ll be joining them again in the future.

©Jan Edwards 2018

Authentic Flamenco in Mallorca

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¡Olé! If there’s such a thing as having a previous life, I reckon I was probably Spanish. I’ve been a huge fan of Spain since I was 18 and had my first holiday in the country. With a group of friends, travelling in a titivated old Transit van, we transited through France and into Spain (the vehicle breaking down only once). Although I didn’t take to camping (how grim were those loos!), I was captivated by Spain and its culture…except the bullfighting.

The Boss and I moved to Mallorca because, after holidaying separately and together here, we’d both fallen in love with the island – particularly its rural heart. Once we’d settled into life here, we discovered Mallorca’s own distinct culture. But because of tourism, Mallorca also attracts people from the Peninsula and other countries to work in the hospitality industry – which makes for an interesting cosmopolitan mix of people and cultural activities. An example: I’m told that in the 1960s, Palma once had 18 tablaos – flamenco bars with a stage. Eighteen! Presumably this was due to the influx of Andalusians who came to work in the island’s hotels, restaurants, and bars.

The Real Deal

When we visited Seville a few years ago we spent an evening at a locals’ flamenco bar – and loved it. But we didn’t expect to find anything as authentic back on our island. We had the impression that flamenco here was something just for tourists to enjoy in the evenings after dinner in their resort hotels; only recently did I find out that the Balearics has a flamenco culture association which has organized the Festival de Flamenco ‘Ciutat de Palma’ for the past four years.

The tablaos may be almost non-existent in Palma, but interest in flamenco certainly hasn’t died out; the art form just needed a bit of ‘oomph’ to generate more interest and broaden awareness.

Thanks to some flamenco aficionados who are on a mission to “restore the spirit of tablao to Palma”, you can now see a rather thrilling and authentic show in Mallorca’s capital. Flamenco and local history expert Julio Piñeiro and chef Björn San Pedro founded Flamallorca, which launched this spring with the participation of some talented performers (and some generous sponsors). I’ve seen the show twice and can heartily recommend it if you are visiting Mallorca in the coming weeks – or next year.

Gothic Setting

The venue, Teatre Sans, is an intimate café-theatre in Palma’s Old Town – a former palace that an olive-oil trader built in the 14th/15th centuries; his coat of arms is still in the courtyard. A Mallorcan family eventually bought the Gothic building, owning it for 300 years before Franco confiscated it – believing the owners to be Republicans. Post-Franco, the palace was back in the family, who eventually sold it for a reasonable price to the current owners, who wanted to restore it to its former use as a small theatre.

It’s an atmospheric venue for Flamallorca and audiences see the show in parts, in different areas of the building. It all begins with wine and tasty home-made tapas in the courtyard (check out that coat of arms), where a guitarist plays and sets the scene for what’s to come. I shall not reveal more, but share a few photos I took during my two visits to give you a flavour.

Guitarist Jose Cortes performing during Flamallorca’s show
The energetic but elegant dancer Aurora Recuero
Not a black-and-red spotty dress in sight
Aurora in action on stage, with guitarist Juakinito ‘el Seco’ in the background
Mesmerising dancer Juanky Montero giving his all on stage
Some of the Flamallorca cast on stage

Thanks to the diversity of this island, we can enjoy the tranquillity of living in rural Mallorca and experience Andalusia’s most vibrant art form just an hour’s drive from home. ¡Olé indeed!

For more information, or to book, check out Flamallorca. And don’t forget to call out ¡Olé! a few times during the show…

©Jan Edwards 2017

Mallorca 312 Passes Our Rural Finca

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Earlier this week a placard was tied to a post near our home in rural Mallorca, warning us that the lane would be closed yesterday for about five hours from 14:00h because of a sporting event. The event in question was the Mallorca 312 – the most international of all cycling events held in Spain. Of the 6,500 cyclists taking part, 33 per cent were from the UK; presumably Mallorca had greater appeal to these Brits than Yorkshire, which had its own racing event (Tour of Yorkshire) happening yesterday.

Our lane hasn’t been closed since our first few years of living here, when the Manacor Rally used to come through the valley. We were forced to be either at home all afternoon or out somewhere for the duration. It was a noisy but entertaining spectacle and we could watch some of the action from our terrace, so we always stayed home. Souped-up rally cars and old stone walls occasionally had brief encounters and, after the local council had invested in building new walls for the community’s shared watercourse in the valley below us, the rally was moved to a new route.

Road Closed!

Our lane closure yesterday wasn’t much of an inconvenience to us or our relatively few neighbours, but many people across Mallorca were cursing the event because main roads through the mountains and in the north and northeast of the island were closed to vehicles. Social media was buzzing with complaints and stories of delayed journeys, as well as triumphant messages from race finishers.

I certainly felt sorry for any holidaymakers who arrived on the island yesterday morning only to learn that the road to their destination was closed for several hours. Or those staying in places like Deià, forced to leave the village before 7am for an afternoon flight home, because the road was part of the race route and vehicular traffic was suspended for the morning.

Looking at Lycra

Meanwhile, The Boss and I walked up to the corner of our property during the afternoon for a prime view of cyclists coming up the hill. It’s a steep haul on foot and several of the cyclists evidently found it tough to negotiate.

One of our Mallorcan neighbours was already spectating with her son, seven-year-old grandson, and a couple of his friends and we joined them in clapping and encouraging the participants as they passed us. Also there were a female marshall (who must have been desperate for a pee by the end of the event) and an official photographer. We offered to make them tea or coffee, but they’d come prepared with their own food and drink.

I had my own camera with me and, having reviewed my numerous shots, I can tell you I won’t be changing careers anytime soon to become a sports photographer. Respect to those who manage to take sharp photos of sportspeople on the move…and look good in a hi-vis vest.

During our time as Mallorca 312 spectators we saw Lycra in every hue imaginable; it’s certainly a colourful sport. We heard quite a few English-speakers and, as we bystanders shouted out  ‘Ánimos‘  (which means encouragement), I did later wonder whether they might have thought we were calling them ‘animals’…

Text and photos Jan Edwards©2017

Up at Six for the ‘Spectacle of the Eight’ in Palma Cathedral

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Waiting in line to enter the Cathedral

Waiting in line to enter the Cathedral

Today, February 2nd, is the Christian festival of Candlemas and, in Mallorca’s capital, Palma, it’s one of two days a year when the city’s majestic cathedral – La Seu – opens its doors early allowing thousands of people to witness something known as ‘the spectacle of the eight’.  It’s something I have been longing to see for several years; today we finally managed it.

It did mean an early start: I was still dreaming sweetly when the alarm burst into life at six o’clock. I’m no stranger to early mornings – having spent six years of my life getting up at 3.30am to work on a breakfast radio programme – but I generally prefer a little more duvet-time during the dark winter mornings.

‘The spectacle of the eight’ happens when the sun shines through the cathedral’s large rose window, and projects an image of it onto the opposite wall, directly underneath its smaller rose window, thus creating the ‘8’. The alignment works perfectly on February 2nd and on November 11th (the Feast of St Martin) – but only if the sun shines. We drove through quite a bit of fog on our journey to Palma and were relieved to see clear skies over the capital.

The large rose window – for those who like a few stats to drop into conversation – has a surface area of 94m2 and a diameter of 11.85 metres. The 14th-century window has no fewer than 1,115 pieces of coloured glass, that sparkle like jewels in the sunshine. Looking at this, the other stained glass windows, and the cathedral itself, one can only marvel at what could be achieved in the days before CAD, construction plant, and regular breaks for a cuppa.

We joined a long queue of people waiting to file into the cathedral, which was already about three-quarters-full when we found our spot inside shortly after 8am. And then we all watched as the spectacle unfolded above us. Shortly after 8.30am there was a little applause as the alignment came into place. It was a magical moment we shared with young and old, locals and visitors.

If you’re visiting Palma at this time of the year (or in mid-November), it’s something that shouldn’t be missed in the beautiful ‘Cathedral of Light’.

My only regret? I didn’t take my Nikon camera (brain not in gear so early in the morning) and had to reply on Mr Apple for these images.

Almost at the door . . .

Almost at the door

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The large rose window welcomes in the sunshine.

The large rose window welcomes in the sunshine.

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Jan Edwards Copyright 2016