Customs & Traditions
Even in Mallorca’s countryside, one does not often come across an old farmyard cart any more. These carros were frequently seen some thirty or forty years ago, being pulled by […]
Animals
If you don’t own sheep of your own, you may never have witnessed a sheep shearing procedure, unless you have holidayed in Australia, that is. Sheep shearing used to be […]
Farming
Mallorcan farmers are very concerned about their almond trees. Apparently, quite a number of almond trees are dying as a result of a tree pest which might be caused by […]
Customs & Traditions
The caper (Capparis spinosa) is one of the most characteristic plants of the Balearic islands. In its natural habitat this very useful plant lives in the walls of ancient city […]
Animals
Which one came first – the chicken or the egg? That’s the question. But in our day and age the real question seems to be: where do the eggs come […]
Customs & Traditions
If you want to order a beer in a Spanish bar you might be tempted to say ‘una cerveza por favor’ and you would be given a bottle of your […]
Animals
The month of May is usually a busy month for Mallorcan villages. It is the time of the Fires, the Fires del Maig. The weekend before last, the pueblos of […]
Animals
This pig in my photo is the biggest porcine animal I have ever seen, in Mallorca or anywhere else. Tradition and circumstance had it that pigs and pork played a […]
Animals
When we first came to live in Mallorca, we soon noticed the ubiquitous presence of sheep, coupled with a noticeable absence of cows. As a consequence fresh milk and other […]
Books & Authors
If you have been living in Mallorca long enough, or if you are a frequent visitor, chances are that you have eaten some Pa amb Oli (more about Pa amb […]
Customs & Traditions
For centuries, Mallorca used to be an agricultural community, reaping the fruit of the land: carobs, almonds, olives, oranges, wine, apricots, potatoes, tangerines, lemons, capers, you name it. But with […]
Animals
Years ago, the matança was an all important event in the calendar of the Mallorcan country folk. Sometime between November and January, the escorxador was booked to help with the […]
Animals
Thousands of chickens, cockerels, roosters, capons, turkeys, pigeons and the like were exhibited in Palma over the last three days in an international show of feathered animals of 150 different […]
Animals
Honey is one of the great quality products of Mallorca, together with local wines, olive oils or cheeses from the island. One estimates that there are some 500 beekeepers on […]
Daily Life
A century ago or so, the Mallorcan potato (Solanum tuberosum) evolved from being a traditional crop destined for local consumption to a product for export. Since then, Mallorcan potatoes turned […]
Customs & Traditions
Every year on the third Thursday of November, Inca stages its Dijous Bo market, the year’s biggest market on the island. This year, for some reason, Dijous Bo falls on the […]