Architecture
The city walls of Palma de Mallorca are, in the main, not in existence any more. Most of the city fortifications were pulled down at the beginning of the 19th […]
Architecture
The Castell del Rei is one of Mallorca’s so-called rock castles. This fortress may well be the oldest of the lot, dating from approximately 975 A. D. Some sources describe […]
Architecture
Not much physical evidence remains in Palma de Mallorca of the Moorish period (902-1229) or on the island as a whole, for that matter. A great shame, really, I believe. […]
Architecture
The last time I told you about the Roman bridge in Pollença (blog entry September 25th, 2008), the Pont Romà was shown as spanning a dry riverbed, the Torrent de […]
Architecture
The Castell d’Alaró was called the castle of Hisn Alarun by the Moors, or so it is said. Rumor has it that the fortress may even predate the Moorish period, […]
Architecture
Along the Passeig des Born in Palma de Mallorca two pairs of Mallorcan sphinxes can be found. Originally, the passage was a dry riverbed occasionally filling up with water after […]
Daily Life
Hey, I’m not implying it’s time for a spring clean even though spring will be in the air very soon. A bit of dusting up might not be a bad […]
Animals
In my never-ending pursuit of introducing you to the image of bats in the city of Palma de Mallorca’s coat of arms, as well as some other unimportant snippets that […]
Mallorca
On my last trip to Palma, I was surprised by the number of groups of, I suppose, tourists, all trouping behind a tour guide and one or even two men […]
Architecture
In the midst of the massive set-up that is the fortress-like Palau de l’Almudaina in Palma de Mallorca there is a tower which used to serve for matters of vigilance […]
History
Twice a year, an awe-inspiring spectacle can be seen in Palma’s Cathedral when the reflection of the sunlight performs a Dancing Light on the walls of La Seu. The dates […]
Customs & Traditions
A new tourist attraction was created in Palma de Mallorca a few months ago, the recreation of a historical military changing of the guard. I went to Palma yesterday to […]
Customs & Traditions
The Sóller railway offers a daily train service between Palma de Mallorca and Sóller. This tren with its old wooden carriages has undoubtably turned into one of the most successful […]
Customs & Traditions
I have an admission to make: I have failed you. I am terribly sorry. This is about the event of the Winter Solstice. You may know (or you may have […]
Daily Life
Earlier this week, this Winter’s first snow fell in Mallorca, along with snowy conditions in mainland Spain and freezing temperatures in most of northern Europe. Snow was reported here in […]
Customs & Traditions
The Monestir de la Concepció in Palma de Mallorca can be proud of many things. Sadly, hardly anyone can ever enjoy or appreciate its architecture going back to the 14th […]