Category Archives: Palma de Mallorca

Hen Nights, Mallorca Style

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If you spend enough hours at Palma’s airport like I did the other night waiting for a friend whose plane was delayed for two hours, you’ll be treated to all sorts of sights. Such as Kristen, the bride to be, and her female friends, quite probably heading for Magaluf on a Hen Night outing.

Over the last five years, Mallorca has come to specialize in Hen Nights and Stag Does, on a par with Ibiza, Barcelona, Benidorm, Amsterdam and Budapest. Mallorca may be less extreme in its offering when compared to Amsterdam and Budapest, but the sun and the sea more than make up for it, and there is always Sangria and sex. Hen Weekend packages are available from £ 69 (88 €) per person, excluding flights, with no upper limit for the more discerning hedonists. Mind you, there was not much discernment recognizable as far as Kristen’s cheerful troupe was concerned.

The photo was taken near Palma, Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: August 24th, 2012. The time was 20:11:04.

The Seduction of the Minotaur

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You may not believe me, but I have been trying to get into the Colisseu Balear, the Plaça de toros (Palma bullring), for at least five or six years, to no avail.

When there is no activity, the place is always closed. And when there is a bullfight, or a concert, or whatever, access is strictly limited to those with a valid admission. But I did not want to take photos of a concert, or a TV show or a bullfight. I was and still am interested in the place, the characteristics of the place, the aura, the architecture, the history, the true nature of the Macarena.

Well, yesterday I happened to drive past the Colisseu Balear and, lo and behold, the gates were open. I parked the car and sneaked in, expecting to be thrown out again by some busybody guards within no time at all. But no. I was unhindered and undisturbed and could spend some twenty minutes minding my own business and clicking away until my camera memory disk was completely full.

I am not much into bullfights. I have only ever seen one proper one in my life, one half proper one with young bulls, without any bloodshed, and a couple of corridas and bullruns in the south of France, with the bulls being chased towards the bull ring. But I can’t help associating the bullfight and the Plaça de toros with artists like Picasso or writers like Hemingway. Entering a bullring, even an empty one, confronts one with an air of temerity and a sense of carnage; there is blood in the air, want it or not, quite possibly in a seductive sort of way. The last bullfights were fought here, or should I say, staged, some two weeks ago (August 9th). Since then there had been a concert, and tomorrow (August 24th), a bull jumping show will be put on, an acrobatic kind of bullfight with no blood and with no loss of bulls’ lives.

The photos were taken in Palma, Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: August 22nd, 2012. The time was 15:33:31 and 15:28:16, respectively.

Slumbering Beauties

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I have occasionally been asked about, or sometimes even been criticized for, my intermittent reporting on matters of the Catholic church. There were suggestions that my blog entries on monasteries in Mallorca, on churches, chapels and the Cathedral, or on festivities related to saints and saints’ days amount to promoting the Catholic religion or something to that extent. I keep explaining that an exhaustive blog on the subject of Mallorca would be flawed if it did not include references to matters of church traditions in a country as deeply entrenched in the Catholic religion as Spain was and still is. No, I am not a Catholic, I never was and I never will be. If I did a blog on Japan, I would certainly have to include topics of Shintoism or Buddhism quite frequently, don’t you think?

Every time, I point out that I continuously aim to give equal attention to other religions such as Islam, Sufism, Judaism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Shintoism, Mormonism or Jehovanism. After all, there has been a time in Mallorca when Catholicism, Islam and Judaism coexisted in perfect harmony for a few hundred years, or so it is sometimes claimed.

Okay, I have never reported on Scientology and I am not sure that I will ever consider it relevant.

Allow me to talk about the Virgin Mary once more, on occasion of the recent Festivitat de l’Assumpció de La Mare de Déu (Ascent of Virgin Mary). The celebration is also called Dormició de Maria (Dormition of Virgin Mary).

I have visited a number of church exhibitions of the Slumbering Beauties over the last number of years and this year, was all intent on filling in the gaps that I might have missed in the past. Easier said than done. When I was in Palma last Friday, I approached six churches plus the Cathedral but, I found myself locked out in all of them but two. Saturday and Sunday, the same happened in the pueblos. Of seven churches, only three were open for visits at the time of my arrival. For your perusal, I am offering you reclining Mare de Déu Dormida examples taken in – from top to bottom – La Seu (Cathedral) and Sant Miquel in Palma, and Campos, Felanitx, Santanyí and Porreres in the Part Forana (the hinterland). I was told that the most beautiful Virgin Mary statue was laid out in the parish church of s’Arracó (Església de Sant Crist), but I did not get there before time and the display there is now no longer on view, until next year.

This year, some installations will be on display until August 22nd. The parish church in Santanyí will show its sleeping beauty (above) until August 21st, the parish church in Muro, until August 23rd, and the church in Alaró, until August 25th. In Palma, the exhibition at the Església de Sant Francesc comes to a close on August 22nd, as will the one at La Seu de Mallorca. An exhibition Mostra de la Mare de Déu d’Agost will be open at the Monestir de la Puríssima Concepció until August 23rd. A Funeral Procession of the Ascending Virgin will be held on August 22nd at 19h00 at the Església del Monestir de la Concepció.

The photos were taken, from top to bottom, in Palma de Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: August 17th, 2012. The time was 15:28:09 and 13:34:54, Campos, August 18th, 2012, at 11:05:14, Felanitx, August 15th, 2012, at 11:56:02, Santanyí, August 18th, 2012, at 12:09:45, and Porreres, August 19th, 2012, at 20:28:38.

The Slow Decline and Fall of Bullfighting in Mallorca

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There was a bullfight event in Palma’s Coliseo Balear the other night (Thursday) with three Toreros. The event will have been the only corrida this year in the island capital. There won’t be a bullfight in Felanitx this year either, for the third consecutive year, and Inca has also cancelled its annual bullfight. The anti-taurine movement may slowly get the upper hand in Mallorca after all. There were close to one hundred animal rights protesters outside Palma’s bullring on Thursday night making their voices heard, whistling and shouting insults at the pro-bullfight spectators. The bulls, it seemed, were not perturbed, even though in the end not a single bull survived the spectacle.

One bullfight was staged in Alcúdia earlier this year, and another one in Muro. That was it, as far as I know; three bullfighting corridas in a whole year when in the past there may have been ten or twelve. Times they are a-changing.

The photos (top and centre) were borrowed from the Internet, courtesy of diariodemallorca.es and the photographer, Manu Mielniezuk. The photo (bottom) was taken in Felanitx, Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: July 26th, 2012. The time was 19:36:48.

Muchas gracias.

Pneumatic Rubbish Collection in Palma

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A pneumatic rubbish collection was installed in Palma some ten years ago at a cost of 23,000,000 Euros. Subterranean tunnels would normally suck the waste to central collection points from where the basura is being transported to the Centre de Tratamiento in Son Reus, the massive incinerator plant just north of Palma. Alas, all is not well with Emaya‘s pneumatic collection system; a number of technical and electric breakdowns seem to have occurred over the last few months. Currently, some 380 pneumatic rubbish collection bins in Palma’s historical centre have been sealed off and were rendered unusable. Emaya Empresa Municipal d’Aigües i Clavegueram S.A. is the municipal water and waste refuse company in Palma, currently in debt to the tune of some 35,000,000 Euros.

Whilst the pneumatic collection system is inoperable, traditional waste containers have been brought out of retirement and dustbin lorries are now sent out periodically to visit the pneumatic bin areas and collect the rubbish from the deposit bins, to ensure that rubbish does not accumulate in the streets.

The photo (top) was taken in Palma, Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: August 7th, 2012. The time was 14:15:12. The photo (bottom) was borrowed from the Internet, courtesy of diariodemallorca.es and the photographer, Lorenzo.

Muchas gracias.

The Palau March in Palma

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The Palau March in Palma, near the Cathedral and the Palau de l’Almudaina, belongs to the Fundació Bartolomé March and was built in 1975. Tomeu March was the son of Juan March Ordinas, the founder of Banca March and erstwhile contrabandist, by many considered a crook. As it turns out, his younger son made a career away from the world of finance and became a philantropist, bibliophile, art collector and a generous patron of the arts.

The Fundació Bartolomé March was inaugurated in 2003 as a museum and as a library. The museum owns a collection of scultures by contemporary artists such as Henry Moore, Eduardo Chillida, Max Bill, Barbara Hepworth, Auguste Rodin and others, a collection of maps and portolan charts by Mallorcan cartographers from the 15th and 16th century, a beautiful 18th century nativity scene from Naples composed of 2,000+ pieces (photo bottom), as well as some imposing Mudéjar coffered ceilings (photo centre). It also houses some impressive salons and ceilings designed by Josep Maria Sert with impressive murals by him (photo top). There are also some prints by Salvador Dalí which I don’t consider of great importance.

The museum is certainly worth a visit. Opening hours are Mondays to Fridays, 10h00 to 18h30 (slightly shorter during the Winter months). Admission has gone up to 4.50 €. The library is in the same building but has a separate entrance and also, distinct opening hours: Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 09h30 to 14h00, and Tuesdays and Thursdays, 16h00 to 20h00 (slightly shorter during the Summer months; August is closed altogether). The visit to the library is free of charge; admission is granted for the asking.

One more word on palaces in Mallorca. Many stately houses call themselves Palau or Palacio or are called so by the public, such as the Palacete in the case of a former president. But strictly speaking, there are only two palaces in all of Mallorca entitled to that denomination, that of the Spanish king and that of the Mallorcan bishop. So, Palau March is a bit of a misnomer.

The photos were taken in Palma, Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: August 7th, 2012. The time was 13:42:30, 14:21:29 and 14:25:26, respectively.

Monthly Lunchtime Organ Concerts in Palma’s Cathedral

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One of the finest organs in Mallorca can be found in Palma’s Cathedral. Sadly, there are not many opportunities to hear the sound of this instrument. For the last ten or twelve years, a Festival Internacional de Órgano en la Catedral de Mallorca was celebrated during the four Sundays in October. There is a possibility that this Festival may have to be suspended this year. La Crisis.

Tomorrow, however, there will be a chance to listen to the Gothic organ at the occasion of a series of lunchtime concerts performed by Bartomeu Veny Vidal, the Cathedral’s organist. These half-hour concerts will be given every first Tuesday of the month at 12h00, with the exception of December and January. The concerts will be given for free, but there is an admission charge to the Cathedral of 4 €, unless you are a resident with proper documents in which case admission is granted free of charge.

The organ in Palma’s Cathedral was built in 1477, rebuilt in 1795 and restored in 1993; in 2006 it was declared a Bien de Interés Cultural (Cultural Heritage).

The photos were taken in Palma, Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: July 10th, 2012. The time was 12:29:48 and 11:04:23, respectively.

The Bench of the Lazybones

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Outside Palma’s Cort building (Ajuntament de Palma; Palma town hall) there is a beautiful hard stone bench inviting passers-by (and tourists) to sit down and have a break from the rushing around, or seek some shade on a stifling hot day such as yesterday. The bench is commonly called Banc dels vagos (bench of the layabouts) by the locals, or Banc de Sinofos, from the expression si no fos per… (if it weren’t for…), referring to the capital’s affluent heirs who had the means to not be obliged to work. Of course, this mockery originated during the 19th century when plenty of rich layabouts were living in Palma but, the term is still being used today, often in reference to the civil servants working at the town hall.

The photo was taken in Palma, Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: August 1st, 2012. The time was 15:21:46.

Jaume el Conquistador

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Jaime I de Aragón el Conquistador died 736 years ago today (July 27th, 1276). He led the Catalan conquest in 1229 when he was only 21 years old, taking Mallorca from the hands of Arabs or rather, the Berbers. He conquered Menorca in 1232 and Ibiza in 1235). I can’t tell you much more about him. Please allow me to quote from Wikipedia:

James I the Conqueror (Catalan: Jaume el Conqueridor, Aragonese: Chaime lo Conqueridor, Spanish: Jaime el Conquistador, Occitan: Jacme lo Conquistaire; 1208 – 1276) was the King of Aragón, Mallorca and Valencia, Count of Barcelona and Urgell, and Lord of Montpellier from 1213 to 1276. His long reign saw the expansion of the Crown of Aragón on all sides: into Valencia to the south, Languedoc to the north, and the Balearic Islands to the east. By a treaty with Louis IX of France, he wrested the county of Barcelona from nominal French suzerainty and integrated it into his crown. His part in the Reconquista was similar in Mediterranean Spain to that of his contemporary Ferdinand III of Castile in Andalusia.

The most beloved king of Mallorca was father of eight male children from his second wife Violante of Hungary, daughter of King Andreas II of the Árpád dynasty.

As a legislator and organiser, he occupies a high place among the Spanish kings. James compiled the Llibre del Consulat de Mar, which governed maritime trade and helped establish Catalan-Aragonese supremacy in the western Mediterranean. He was an important figure in the development of Catalan, sponsoring Catalan literature and writing a quasi-autobiographical chronicle of his reign: the Llibre dels fets.

I don’t think any official celebration will mark the occasion in Palma today. Jaume I is rather commemorated on September 12th with the Diada de Mallorca (Mallorca Day) and on December 31st with the Festa de l’Estendard (Festivity of the Ensign).

The photos were taken in Palma, Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: March 23rd, 2012 and May 17th, 2012. The time was 11:31:13 and 13:13:33, respectively.

The Sad and Cruel Fate of Chuetas in Mallorca

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For centuries, Jews, Muslims and Christians were living together in peace and harmony in Spain, and here in Mallorca, pursuing their cultures, customs and religions. Their coexistence is said to have been beneficial to the island’s society and all was well in history, or so we are told, up to the late 14th century.

Jews had settled in Spain as early as 500 BC and if not, they certainly had made their way to Iberia with the Romans (approx. 200 BC). First massive confrontations with and assassinations of Jews were documented in 1360, and the Semitic tribe in Spain suffered massacres in 1366 and 1391. By 1406, Jews were obliged to live in Juderias (ghettos) and to wear a badge identifying them as not having been baptized. Forced conversions were imposed in Murcia, Lorca, Ocaña, Illescas, Valladolid, Tordesillas, Salamanca, Toledo and Zamora under the Dominican Vincent Ferrer in the name of Juan II de Aragón, the infant king, during 1411 and 1412.

An Edict of Expulsion was issued against the Jewish community of Spain by Fernando el Católico and Queen Isabella in 1492, and they were forced to convert to Catholicism, or were expelled or killed.

In Mallorca, similar atrocities occurred. The Jews of this island faced several waves of violence. During the 14th century, hundreds were killed in pogroms. In 1435, thousands converted or went into exile as their lives were in grave danger. But there was a twist. Some Jewish community members who had earlier been baptized to Christianity were suddenly accused of secretly celebrating their faith and worshiping the Torah. These Conversos (subjects of forced conversion) were now labelled as Chuetas (Catalan: Xuetes or Juetes) or hidden Jews. The Mallorcan chuetas suffered recriminations over the next 500 years. They were forever branded and persecuted, stigmatized and segregated. Thus, they could never blend in, and, until the first half of the 20th century, they had to practice strict endogamy. Today, between 18,000 and 20,000 people on the island are carriers of one of the 15 or so surnames that are said to be of Jewish Conversos or Chuetas. Earlier this year, a leading Israeli rabbinical authority, Rabbi Nissim Karelitz formally recognized the Chuetas of Mallorca as Jews. This momentous development may open the door for a good number of Chuetas to return to their roots and rejoin the Jewish people.

One of the eminent Mallorcan experts on the subject of Xuetes is Francesc Riera Montserrat (Felanitx, 1923). I had the pleasure to converse with him recently for which I am much indebted. As it happens, senyor Riera will be honoured with the Medalla de la Ciutat de Felanitx today, July 22nd, in recognition of his tireless dedication to matters of historic relevance. Enhorabona!

The photo (top) was taken in Deià, Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: July 4th, 2012. The time was 15:15:39. The photo (bottom) was borrowed from the Internet, courtesy of internacional.elpais.com.

Muchas gracias.