Bob Travel

Mallorca, a most beautiful and exquisite Spanish island is also known as the Mediterranean Lady. If you can dream it, you can probably find it on this fabulous island. Favorite of many distinguished and prominent persons throughout the world, Mallorca has something for everyone. You can’t find a more desirable climate, breathtaking panoramic vistas, beautiful beaches, historic landmarks, fascinating history, informative tours, native cuisine, nightlife, relaxation and serenity. It’s all there for your enjoyment. To make your holiday all the more pleasurable, plan to stay at one of the luxurious five star hotels Mallorca has to offer. You will be pampered and catered to by the friendly and courteous staff making you feel like royalty. You will also want to enjoy the numerous, delicious entrees offered by the restaurants.

Mallorca’s world wide reputation for its unbelievable beaches is understandable, what with the fine sand and crystal clear waters. There are so many fabulous beaches for your enjoyment it is difficult to name them all. Some of the more notable beaches include El Portixol, El Molinar, Illetas, Santa Ponca and El Arenal. The beaches are not the only attraction to Mallorca. There are architecturally beautiful, ancient buildings and structures to visit and are accessible by car, organized tours, bicycle or on foot. One such historic building is the Real Cartuja de Valldemossa where Frederic Chopin spent the winter of 1838/1839.George Sand was also a guest there. While visiting Mallorca, one must not overlook the ever-popular museums throughout this island. Both historic and modern museums display some of the world’s finest art pieces and interesting artifacts. Another fascinating tourist attraction is the very unusual cemetery of Deia, high in the Serra de Tramuntana mountains it sits on a hillside surrounded by majestic pine trees and has an amazing view of the sparkling waters below. Robert Graves once called Deia home. There are also many quaint fishing villages in Mallorca where the pace is slow and relaxing, the villagers warm and friendly, the native foods mouthwatering. During your exploration of Mallorca, you will see groves of olive and almond trees as this is a major part of the economic base and the produce is exported worldwide. The lushness of this island is rich with its many variety of trees, vegetation and flowers, all adding to the brilliant colors found on this popular island.

If the nightlife is what brings you to Mallorca, that can easily be found as well. There are numerous, very popular nightclubs featuring talented musicians where you can dance your favorite dances and enjoy your favorite foods and beverages. The cities of Mallorca are not lacking for excitement for those who relish the thrill of seeing the new day dawn while partying with friends and family. Other points of interest include the ruins of ancient fortresses and castles, stately mansions, beautiful churches and the romantic fishing villages where many honeymooners retreat. Mallorca is truly a paradise here on earth.

When it comes to luxury, Mallorca hotels are highly regarded the world over.  With a location that’s impossible to beat, and an age-old reputation for revitalizing the traveler, the island life will take you in like an old friend.  There are beautiful and brilliant restaurants here, amazing beaches that call out every moment of every day, and a lovely culture that’s been forming around the island for centuries.  Both local and expat communities here form the core of Mallorca, and their histories are fascinating.

One of the area’s most renowned residents is artist Cynthia Lennon.  She’s made this island her home, and has settled in here quite nicely over the years, being both a member of the community and an artist enjoying the solitude to get the energy to keep creating new work.  She lives in close proximity of her son, Julian Lennon.  With their shared last name, it’s difficult for both celebrities to leave behind their tie to John Lennon.  And not that they necessarily want to.  She was his first wife, and gave up her art school path to be the caretaker of their son, Julian, while her husband went on to become extraordinarily famous.  Somewhere in the middle of things, John met Yoko, and the rest is history.  Despite some of the bitterness surrounding the split, and the estrangement Julian has felt for his absent father over the years, Cynthia does speak freely about their relationship, and the influence they had on each other.  She is remarried now, having been through a couple of missteps, and is very, very happy.  She is painting, and sometimes recording music of her own, while her son, Julian, a brilliant musician in his own write, runs his own restaurant here.

Cynthia Lennon is not so much in touch with Yoko Ono, as might be expected.  But she has developed a friendship with May Pang, another other woman in John Lennon’s life.  When he and Yoko were temporarily apart, he spent 18 months with May, and refers to this time as a lost weekend.  May Pang released a book about this 18-month lost weekend, “Instamatic Karma,” and Cynthia even flew out to New York from her home in Mallorca for the release party.

Mallorca hotels are at the top of the world.  They are number one in relaxation, and number one in services and hospitality.  The casual or business traveler alike will find a hundred ways to get comfortable here, with an ambience and warmth that no other place can offer.  There is a fascinating influx of international celebrities here, vacationing or buying homes.  There is also a long and fascinating history about the people born here.

Ramon Llull is one famous local.  Born here in 1232, his life and martyrdom in this eighties, are a very curious biography.  Educated in the Court, and given to lots of romantic adventures, and a hobby of collecting troubadour songs, he had a very profound mystical experience when he was in his early thirties—though truth be told, he seemed to have been prone to mystical experiences.  This particular experience, however, lead him to move in a completely new direction.

For the rest of his years, which were considerable, Ramon Llull spent in attempts to convert non-Christians, and attempting to prove his great Ars Magna.  The Ars Magna was a machine that he had constructed which would prove the faith and reason are the same, or rather, never incompatible.  His proof, with the machine, was something that seemed to make him rather fanatical, and he did devote all of his time to attempts to convert, and writing about the meaning of his machine.  He was either stoned in Mallorca, or on his way back here, in a final mission.  After his death, the Church officially condemned his teachings, on the grounds that faith and reason should remain separate as philosophical systems, although he did have admirers who started chairs in his philosophy at universities, and his work is said to have had a great influence on the mathematician philosopher Leibniz.

Mallorca is the largest of the Balearic Islands that sit just off of the coast of Mainland Spain. All the islands together make up one of the most popular and most traveled vacation destinations around the world, and perhaps the number one for those living in the surrounding Mediterranean. Beginning in the 1960’s, development in the building industry was booming, with shopping malls, and apartment complexes and luxury hotels, Mallorca is being developed at a high rate. Most of Mallorca’s coastline is now lined with these buildings. Historical buildings such as the grand cathedrals and magnificent mansions are still prevalent in the islands capital city of Palma.

One of these buildings is the Castle de Bellver. The castle sits atop a small hill and was constructed in 1309. During the short time that Mallorca had Royal families, it was used by the kings for their summer castle. Proceeding that time period, it was used as a prison as it had fortified walls and was surrounded by two moats. Now, in current times it is an archaeological and historical museum. The only building that remains of the Moors in the capital is in the medieval district. It is an old bathhouse, with picnic tables and a garden terrace surrounding the grounds. And from the Gothic time period, the Cathedral el Seo stands and is one of the historical landmarks of Palma . The building overlooks the ocean and is dedicated to San Sebastian, the patron saint of the city. The construction of the cathedral began in 1300 and was not entirely finished until a large iron dome was built over the alter in 1909. So while there are many new buildings going up on the island today, there are still quite a few that represent the history of the city, and of the entire island of Mallorca.