Snow in Mallorca

People often ask us, “so what’s it like in Mallorca in the winter, does it ever get cold?” Yes, very. But I absolutely love winter here. It’s often gloriously sunny and warm or just chilly enough. Until the last week of January. And then everything changes.

Storms, even typhoons on occasion, batter the island and the mountains nearly always get snow. This weekend, temperatures plummeted to -8 in some parts of the island and there was even snow in the streets of Palma, roads across the island were closed. 

As soon as the road to the Lluc monastery re-opened yesterday lunchtime, we grabbed our snow togs and a thermos of hot chocolate and headed up into the sunny, snow-filled Tramuntana mountains and spent two idyllic hours playing in the snow. It was magical and the steaming hot Arros Brut ‘dirty rice’ (a delicious stew made of chicken, rabbit, rice and mountain mushrooms) that we devoured afterwards has never tasted so good!

Capdepera Medieval Market - a winner!

OK so it wasn’t a yoga retreat in Formentera but the Medieval market of Capdepera (El Mercat Medieval de Capdepera) was a lot of fun!

The market has been held on the third weekend in May since 2000 when it was launched to celebrate the 700^th anniversary of the village’s castle.

I had no expectations and frankly little enthusiasm when we set out to drive for almost an hour (a long time in Mallorca) to get to the hilltop village 8km from Arta. But ‘Talk of the North’ described it as ‘the best festival on the island’ so we decided to give it a shot.

According to stall holders, the festival has been a huge success since the outset. The event lasts three days and takes place inside the Castell de Capdepera overlooking the sea and in the narrow streets and pretty squares just outside the ramparts.

Sun, Sea & Relaxation in Formentera

One of the best bits of living in the Balearic islands is the ease and relatively low cost at which you can travel within Spain.

Since living here P and I have loved exploring, from road-trips across the mainland to island hopping in the Balearics, and have really enjoyed all our adventures.

This weekend we decided to take some time out from recent stresses and head across to the country's best kept secret and the smallest of the Balearic Islands, Formentera. I booked myself in for a weekend yoga retreat, whilst P hired a Vespa to explore and photograph the island.

Evening in Ibiza Town

On thursday evening we arrived in Ibiza after the short 20 minute flight from Palma - not being a fan of small planes I had a strong drink and then distracted myself with the latest (Royal Wedding Edition!) of Grazia until we touched down on the party island.

As it is still pre-club season with the opening parties a few weeks away, the town was peaceful and we had a lovely evening pottering around the beautiful fort within Ibiza Town, Dalt Villa, reminiscing about time spent there in our teens, drinking cocktails in a rooftop bar with mutual friends. I simply adore Ibiza and particularly the old town, which never seems to change or age and always has a fresh supply in interesting and diverse restaurants, bars and boutiques.

We spent the night in Hostal Talamanca, which was basic and budget but in a wonderful location right on the beach with only a short walk into town or to the port. The next morning we set off to catch the 11am ferry to Formentera, which is only 30 minutes away from Ibiza. We had always heard wonderful things about the island, but were not prepared at all for quite how unspoilt and beautiful it would be!

The beaches were stunning and the sea looked more Caribbean than Mediterranean - white sands, turquiose waters and plenty of chiringitos make this the perfect place to come for a relaxing beach break. We hired a cute blue Vespa from the port, which was brilliant - brand new and the perfect way to get around this beautiful island.

The yoga retreat organised by Formentera Yoga was the perfect addition to an already perfect weekend - after three hours of dynamic postures each day I felt extremely calm and energised as well as much fitter and toned (just in time for the summer and bikini season!). The teacher Jacqueline was fantastic and incredibly inspiring; I came away with a selection of her DVDs and am determined to keep up daily practice back at home.

Gecko Beach Club, Formentera

We stayed at the Gecko Beach Club which is on one of the best beaches with lovely rooms, great cocktails & food as well as incredibly friendly staff.

I can't thank all involved enough for making it such a perfect weekend on a truly magical island...the best bit is that it is only a short hop away from Mallorca, so we'll definitely be heading back soon!

Lx

{Photography by Patrick Butler-Madden}

Best of Britain

We lucked out big time and spent the ten day Easter holidays in England where incredibly the sun shone every single day and temperatures reached an April record of 28 degrees.

It was an idyllic time. We stayed with a very good, old friend and her family in the beautiful village of Bosham, near Chichester. After enjoying an al fresco lunch including delicious West Sussex strawberries (the best I have ever tried) we walked around the estuary and past The Holy Trinity church which dates back to the tenth century. Canute the Great’s daughter apparently drowned nearby and is supposedly buried in the church. Legend also has it that Bosham was where Canute commanded the waves to “go back” to show his courtiers the limits of a King's powers.

We then spent three days ‘glamping’ at Canfields, an organic featherdown farm near Horsham www.featherdown.co.uk . I held a chicken, the girls were able to bottle-feed lambs, search for eggs in the chicken coup, attempt to catch and hold baby quails, watch newborn calves feed from their mothers and help cook breakfast, lunch and supper on an open fire. On the Thursday night the farm owners lit a bread oven where we cooked joints of organic beef from the farm, corn on the cob and piping hot jacket potatoes. The tents were lit with candles and lanterns and had proper beds with duvets.  The fridge was a large chest which you kept cool with frozen hot water bottles.

A wild beach, Mallorca’s salt mountains and some very hungry cows - a day in the South East of Mallorca

Few places look good on a cold, wet and windy day. But the last time I visited Es Trenc beach, it looked truly desolate. The weather had changed from being vaguely sunny to a cold, wet and windy April day. The concrete bunkers on the beach looked hideous and there was so much seaweed and sea debris strewn everywhere that after an hour or so sat shivering in towels, we made a swift exit. My mother who was visiting at the time, still talks about That Day.

Three years later, we decided to give it a second chance. After all, it is frequently voted Mallorca’s number one beach. I also did careful weather check on http://www.wetter.com/! 

Top five things to do in Palma on a sunny Spring Saturday

We’ve been spending quite a bit of time in the big smoke recently, partly to research a project I’ve been working on (producing iphone apps walking tours of Palma) but also because if it’s cloudy and damp ‘up North’ then you can almost be guaranteed sun in Palma.  The city has a great vibe, is very cosmopolitan and bursting with things to see and do. Plus it has the added bonus of being next to the sea. Palma's harbour is one of Europe's largest and the second deepest in the world (after Sydney).  


Here are my top picks for this time of year... 

1. Do a Marco Polo boat trip around the Bay of Palma.  www.crucerosmarcopolo.com. This wooden boat is thankfully a far cry from the ‘glass bottomed boat’ tours which give you the choice of ‘a lazy day or a crazy day'. Painted pretty shades of blue, the boat is immaculate and run by a couple of jolly seafarers, serving generous shots of hierbas and offering impromptu commentaries but not via a megaphone or recording which makes it more personal – even if you only catch snippets of what they are saying. We passed Gucci’s yacht (worth €30million) and the place where the King of Spain moors his boat whilst holidaying in Palma. It's ideal for children! 10€ a head and children are free.

Mallorca Pictures: Super Moon

{Photography by Patrick Butler-Madden}

The super moon over Pollensa Bay on 19th March - such a beautiful sight.