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End of Day 4, Palma Mallorca

This has been an amazing trip so far. To go from rainy, chilly, elemental Ireland (don't get me wrong, I love it but we both needed a break from the rain and damp) to sunny, warm, vibrant Mallorca has been like going through the Looking Glass. A totally different world.

We left Dublin on Monday night after a long journey from Dunmore East, dropping Mitzi in the back-of-the-beyond pet hotel. Not to say that it didn't look like a great place, just that it was way more rural than I had expected. Several one-way lanes. We arrived at Dublin Airport with less than an hour before check-in, cutting it close in the Campbell way of journeying. Check-in was easy, the plane was only delayed half an hour. Again, in the Campbell-Ackroyd way of journeying, that wasn't bad. At least it took off and landed in Palma, where it was supposed to.

The so-called bus transfer from the airport was another story. We had already been informed (after we bought the bus tickets) that they wouldn't be driving us right to our hotel. Supposedly we would be let off about 2 miles from our hotel. Ummm, no, didn't happen. We had got on, were chatting amiably with another couple from Ireland when, after about 10 minutes, the driver pulled over and motioned to us to get out. Where? I asked. He didn't say a word, just pointed at his travel slip. Which meant nothing to us. After a few minutes of his motioning and our saying over and over that this was NOT where he was supposed to let us off, the other couple said that we had probably best get off because they and the other party were going several miles further than we already were, in the opposite direction to Palma.

So we got off and I called our hotel from my mobile (thank goodness for mobile phones!!) They sent a taxi and E 25,00 later we were in our lovely room. Before midnight, but not much before.

The days since have been magical though. We spent Tuesday wandering around the old area of Palma (our hotel is right on the boundary), taking so many photos, enjoying the sunshine and the whole ambiance. Wednesday we took a bus, train, tram and boat tour to the north of the island, Soller and Escobar. Then a hair raising bus ride down the mountain back to Palma.

We spent today in Valdemossa, which is one of the loveliest villages I have ever seen. We just sauntered along, taking so many photos again and then stopping in cafes for a lunch and then a mid-afternoon ice cream on a terrace surrounded by fragrant honeysuckle bushes.

It is difficult to put into words just how fantastic this holiday is. So I will just post photos on this blog page and on the next--these are examples of whatever met our eyes as we walked around Palma. It was under Arab control for several centuries and that influence is felt in the winding, winding streets. This group of photos is all Palma, the next blog will be the area outside of Palma.


















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