Tessa's Thoughts on the Cruising Life . . .

Arrival

I arrived in Palma from Luton on Monday afternoon. Although the weather in England had been good in the run up to my departure, it was noticeably warmer when I stepped off the plane and caught my taxi. 

The transfer from the airport to Real Club Nautico (the marina in Palma) was very swift much to the horror I think of Chris and Elaine! Nonetheless they were ready for me at the end of the Pantalan (or was it Pantalon…?) with cheery smiles and eager to carry my bags onto the boat for me.

The marina at Palma was very large (just as I suppose you would imagine it to be) with boats ranging from fishing boats to super yachts. La Premiere looked by no means out of place. 

Soon after I arrived, we went for a quick walk around the city. My first impression of Palma was of a very old and beautiful Spanish city with plenty of North African influence and I looked forward to exploring it further later in the week. Later we returned to the boat for pre-dinner nibbles and a very large gin and tonic poured by Chris, the effect of which, for me, made the movement of the boat indistinguishable. 

Soller

The next morning we got up reasonably early (for C&E at least!) to catch the Touristico train across the mountains to Soller, a town on the North West of the Island. The wooden panelling of the rickety old train had a very grand feel to it. It reminded me of the train in the scene towards the end of "The Great Escape", which some of the escapees had caught, and from which James Garner and Donald Pleasance jumped. Or the trains in "Evita", travelling across the Pampas in Argentina.

The train pulled through the suburbs of Palma, and then out onto a flat plane of, we think, fairly young, silvery olive trees. The train then pulled up a hill and through a series of tunnels cutting through the mountain, one of which was 3km long! There was supposed to be 13 but on both the outward and inward journeys, I only managed to count 12. The view at the top of the mountain was spectacular, looking across from the terraced hillsides through to the sea in the North. The train arrived in Soller about an hour after leaving Palma.

Warmer climates are always so vibrant with colour in the springtime. The streets in the towns are lined with the purple Jacaranda trees, which are so unusual to us Brits, and bougainvillea is abundant. However, Soller also had several orange and lemon groves to add to the colour, which I'd never seen before.

We read in our book that it was easy to walk from the town of Soller to Port de Soller, at sea level, rather than taking the tram, so after lunch we set off. I'd certainly say, that despite what the books said, the lack of road signs certainly didn't encourage the tourist to do so. However, we were encouraged by the fact that there was a smattering of other fools making the same walk so we persevered. As we were just beginning to lose confidence in our decision to walk to Port de Soller, we turned a corner, and in front of us was the beach, so after all, it only took us about 45 minutes.

The Port didn't look much like a port, and in fact was a very pretty sheltered bay, with a wide stretch of beach, with lots of restaurants on the sea front and beach shops. We treated ourselves to an ice cream each, which is supposed to be a speciality of this part of Mallorca, and then sat on the wall adjacent to the beach front to admire the view. I have to confess, at this point, I fell asleep! Once we'd had our well-earned rest, we walked further round the bay to the marina, where needless to say, C&E were interested in the boats anchored in the harbour, before we caught the open tram back up to Soller.

We had an hour to spare in Soller before our train back to Palma so we had a look around the Cathedral in the town square and amblem around some of the back streets. At six o'clock we returned to the railway station for some freshly squeezed orange juice (presumably from local groves!) and caught the train back to Palma.

Palma

Later that evening, following my instructions to C&E to make sure that they fleece me at any available opportunity, at my suggestion we went out to dinner, and at Chris's suggestion, this was to the Royal Yacht Club in Palma. I have to say; I spent more that night than in the rest of the holiday put together! (It's OK guys…. you were very welcome!). 

The next morning we went on a walkabout of Palma through the old town and up to the north of the city to Placa Major, a large square with many outdoor coffee shops and street entertainers. Palma seems to be the home of the "living statue". Our first stop was the cathedral in Palma, a mix of Spanish and Moorish architecture. The most interesting feature from my perspective was the canopy suspended above the altar, which was designed by the Spanish architect, Gaudi. The canopy depicted the crown of thorns and was supposed to be made of cast iron, though my book said it was actually made of cardboard and cork. My book also said that the canopy was very controversial when it was first introduced in the early part of the 20th century and you could understand why. Perhaps Gaudi was a sort of Damian Hurst of that era. However, I liked it.

We then walked up to the Hammam, which was a sort of Arabian version of the old Roman bathing houses in Roman cities. Rather worryingly, there were lots of signs telling visitors not to rest on the pillars (because they might collapse?). There were two rooms in the bathing house; one was effectively a steam room and the other a cold room. The house was also located in a courtyard, with beautifully maintained formal gardens and benches, where you could sit for a peaceful picnic.

The rest of our walk took us through the old part of the city, not dissimilar to some of the back streets of Oxford around Hertford College and the Bodleain Library. There were also plenty of designer dress shops, and many furniture shops and looked like a very elegant destination for the wealthy shopper.

Later that evening, C&E's friends, Jo and Ian, from Zephyrus, who were also moored up in Palma marina, came across and we spent the evening losing to Jo at Pontoon!

Cala Pi

The next day was my first taste of sailing. I found it ironic how for all the time C&E had La Premiere in England, my first experience of sailing in her was in the middle of the Mediterranean! 

The weather was excellent in my terms but probably not that great for sailing. Chris put the sails up once we got out of the harbour, switched the motor off and we coasted along at a very sedate speed, with occasional bumps from the wakes of other, larger boats. After a while, C&E let me take over at the helm and after confusing a couple of other ships with my course, I eventually got the hang of it and we progressed steadily round the south eastern shore line of Mallorca.

Cala is Spanish for cove. Cala Pi is a very picturesque and secluded inlet on the southeastern coast of Mallorca. The village of Cala Pi is situated along the cliff tops, with a steep set of steps down to a sandy beach. When we first arrived, there were several other boats already anchored but still enough room for us, so Chris picked out a spot and we dropped anchor (three to be exact!). Although it was a relief to have arrived at our destination, there was still a lot of comings and goings with other boats. Some of the crews were evidently quite inexperienced, so Chris had to keep a look out to make sure no one was trying to anchor too close to us. Or hit us! 

Eventually things quietened down and we were able to relax and enjoy our surroundings. I had obviously impressed C&E with my rowing skills so much when I was helping Chris to drop anchor, they insisted that I rowed them ashore so that we could have a look around the beach. We climbed the steep steps and discovered a rather exclusive looking hotel complex where we stopped for a beer before returning to the boat.

The next day many of the other boats left leaving only three of four along with us so we decided to stay another night. During that day we lazed around on the boat, we had a dip in the clear turquoise sea, walked along the cliff tops (for some good aerial views of La Premiere). Chris put the hammock up in a rather precarious position overhanging the edge of the boat and insisted that Elaine and I both try and get in it! At one point, a mega-yacht anchored at the mouth of the cove and we watched the owners, a family, playing around in the sea on their skidoos, which were stored in the hull of the boat. 

I think I am privileged to say that I was with C&E at what they later said was one of their favourite anchorage's to date on their trip!

Platje es Trenc

Sadly it was my last day. My flight home wasn't scheduled until 10.00pm so we still had the whole day to do something. Realistically, we couldn't have ventured further than the southern most tip of Mallorca so looking at the map, we picked a long sandy beach about 10km from Cala Pi to motor to for lunch before finding a marina for me to disembark.

The sea was still very calm as we travelled around the coast, weaving our way through some other sailing boats participating in a race. We headed straight across the bay towards the beach at Platje es Trenc, where the colour of the sea lifted from dark blue to turquoise, with the reflection of the sand in the sun. We picked our spot about 50 yards from the beach, dropped anchor and relaxed for a couple of hours, admiring the views and "the form" on the beach….! The water was slightly warmer than at Cala Pi (according to the temperature gauge, anyway) so we had a swim before lunch, then relaxed in the sunshine. A fine way to visit the beach! 

Finally, it was time for me to return home. We motored back across the bay to a small marina at S'Estanyol where we moored, despite the shallow depth of the harbour (I think we were within inches of the bottom of the boat!). Showered and dressed for the journey home, we celebrated one last gin and tonic together before I called for my taxi to return me to Palma airport.

Back home

So what were my lasting impressions of my trip to Mallorca? Well certainly, it was far more beautiful and full of interest than I had ever anticipated, and we were certainly blessed with the weather. C&E seem very happy and relaxed in their current lifestyle and were excellent hosts for the week. They certainly haven't put me off sailing, and I just hope that I haven't put them off having guests!

Tessa, May 2001.