 Toronto San Fran Las Vegas Catalina Ensenada Anchorage Tokyo Beijing Cairo 3/19 Petra 3/23 Prague 3/28 Munich 4/2 Madrid 4/6 Morocco 4/8 Barcelona 4/13 Rome 4/18 Athens 5/1 Helsinki 5/9 Stockhlm 5/15 Oslo 5/21 Dublin 5/27 Edinburgh 6/3 London 6/9 Paris 6/16 New York 6/25 L.A. 6/27
|
Mallorca (pronounced My-OAR-ka) Mallorca is the largest of Spainīs Balearic islands (like our Hawaiian islands), where Europeans come to vacation in the sun. Mallorcaīs similar to Oahu with its capital/city Palma (like Honolulu), the nearby Playta de Palma beach strip (like Waikiki) and hour-long drives across the island to see mountains and hidden beaches. I take a 2-hour Balearic boat (36 1-way) from Ibiza to Palma in Mallorca to check it out. Palmaīs the capital/port, with its obligatory European cathedral and castle. Both of which I skip to hit the day trips to Deia and the Dragon Caves. Dragon
Caves (Las Cuevas de Drach) from 3 inches to 10 feet. Dozens of other rock formations deserve names too: there are 20-foot high candle columns (look like melted candles) and rock drapes (look like hanging sheet or curtain of rock, formed by dripping water over the years). Itīs kinda eerie, waking along the winding path through the caves - I expect a Sleestack to jump out from around every candle column. A series of crystal clear lakes meanders through the caves. At the end, the cave opens up into a 300-person rock amphitheater where we 300 tourists all sit down to watch a show on the largest underground lake. The lights go off (kinda spooky) and three lit rowboats glide onto the lake, with the frosted needles of the cave above and reflected in the water below. The lead rowboat features an organist playing this classical music, composed just for the cave. Itīs a very surreal experience, and all 300 of us are dazzled. At the end, you can ride a rowboat to the cave exit, which is fun. Deia. Located a 45-minute bus ride north of Palma, Deia is a postcard perfect Mediterranean mountain cliff city. I had no idea what it was until I started talking to a local who said I MUST go to Deia because itīs beautiful. He even started drawing pictures of the views on the back of my map, saying ĻWhen you see it, you will understand what I mean,Ļ And yep, he was right. Deia is an old town featuring stone houses on a mountain cliff overlooking the blue Mediterranean waters. Forget words, hereīs a photo.
Playta de Palma. I get to the main beach strip at the end of the day, to walk around at night. There are a ton of hotels and bars. The beach strip is long, not too wide. The sand is good, some stones/shells and seaweed (not as good as LA or Hawaii beaches, but better than Nice and Cannes). Next stop: Seville and Morocco |
 Las Cueavas de Drach, or Dragonīs Caves, feature stalagtites and stalagmites which look a lot like dragonīs teeth. Walking down the windy caverns is kinda like walking down the throat of a dragon.
|
