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| The City of Palma |
We took a journey to Spain in the
beginning of May. For me that was quite an emotional journey and a shining
light, keeping in mind that at the time in England the temperatures were around
5 degrees and it was raining every day. By the way, Palma de Mallorca has been
the only place I could wear my summer T-Shirts, flip-flops and short pants… for
now. Because the summer in the UK
is the biggest myth – everyone speaks about it, but very few have actually seen
it…
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| Old, small typical streets in Palma |
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| L'Arenal, Mallorca |
We traveled with the low-cost EasyJet
and stayed in the resort L’Arenal in a 3 stars hotel for 3 days. The total
amount of money we spend for the plane tickets and the hotel was 76 pounds /breakfast
included/. Yes, no kidding. It’s very cheap. You could find hotels in L’Arenal
from 15 to 40 euros per night. There are, of course, more expensive ones, but
here I am speaking about an experience connected with sightseeing, emotions,
nice company, local food, sun, beach and fun, not a hotel experience in a Spa
resort.
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| Palma Cathedral |
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| The City of Palma |
Once you land at the airport there
is a local bus which takes you to L’Arenal, the price of the ticket is 2 euro.
The hotels at the resort are not that posh but good enough for a week stay and
the breakfast is quite delicious. Local buses run for 24 hours every day and
connect the resort with Palma,
the cost of the ticket is 1.30 euro or 1.50 euro, depending on the line you
take.
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| Food markets in Palma |
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| Variety of Refreshing Drinks in Palma |
The biggest impression I had from Palma is that the life
there is really chilled out. You can rarely see people eating sandwiches on
foot or carrying a take away coffee – everyone sits in small, very charming
restaurants and enjoys the Sun. If you become a regular customer in a place you
will receive very nice green olives as a gesture of attention from the owners
and never forget that you SHOULD drink Sangria - it’s something like a wine
punch typical for Spain and Portugal. It’s
usually made of wine, chopped fruits, some kind of sweetener like sugar or
orange juice and a small amount of brandy could be added sometimes..
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| Sangria |
For the girls – if you want to
introduce yourself to a German guy and can’t go in Germany – Palma de Mallorca is your
place, most of the tourists there are German. The only thing is that most of
them are at a middle age… You basically hear German speech everywhere and in
many places can see signs and adverts in German language also.
But anyway, great sand, long
beaches, crystal clear water and once again quite cheap prices. For example a
dinner or lunch in a small restaurant in Palma,
let’s say a pizza, a big sangria, coffee and tapas or paella will cost you
around 12 euro.
Things in my opinion you should
definitely do:
- Visit the Cathedral in Palma, a project
taken over by Antoni Gaudi, built between 1229 and 1346/ the entrance fee
is 6 euro/.
- Drink Sangria
- Get lost in the old small streets in Palma
- Go to a local market and try the local
food – there is a variety of very delicious olives, fruits, wine, pastry
and the typical Tapas – small bites
of cheese, fish or meet which is a perfect match to a beer
- Eat paella – I personally prefer the one
with shrimps
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| A German bar in L'Arenal |
- Visit another small town close to Palma, for example the medieval Valldemossa, which is
very romantic, 1 hour away from Palma
and the journey costs 4 euro, return ticket. The famous American actors
Catherine Zeta Jones and Michael Douglas have a house there, and that fact
will be mentioned many times from the local people. ;)
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| Valldemossa, Mallorca |
And more important, wake up as early
as possible, close your eyes and feel the Sun, the vitamin D and the happiness
should be appreciated…
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| Rubbish Bins in Palma |
P.S. Pay attention to the Spanish
rubbish bins, they look like an E.T.
The London
Eye is going to be the center of the New Year’s fireworks again this year on 31st
of December. That was announced by the Mayor of London earlier this week.
