Alcúdia and Badia de Pollença

The headline news yesterday was that the European Union had been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. People suffering from austerity hardship from the European financial crisis, will not be cheering, but it's worth remembering Benjamin Franklin's words: There was never a good war, or a bad peace. Two generations were decimated in destructive wars until sense took hold.

Today's program was only to look around Alcúdia and the Bay of Pollença. The former used to be the Roman city of Pollentia but has passed through many hands since. The old city was easy to spot from the road and the city provides car parks nearby. However the medieval walls are restored and not actually that old.

Inside the old city are shops, restaurants and a town hall. It hosts a market twice a week and is a drawcard for tourists. In fact until a few decades ago, Alcúdia was an unloved backwater until it went for tourism in a big way. In the new city, huge resorts have been built. The port carries traffic from the mainland as well as to Ciutadella on Menorca. I would have loved to cross to Menorca by ferry, but services reduce to once a week outside the summer season.

An orange tree in a square, but most of the fruit was still green.

Waiting for compliant humans to give it some attention.

It is possible to walk on the wall for part of the circumference. From there you can see the surrounding plains, the Bay of Pollença and in the distance, the Tramuntana.

It was a short drive, though on a narrow road for part of the way, to the Mirador de la Victoria on the Alcúdia peninsula. From there you can see the mouth of the Bay of Pollença.

And Port Pollença at the head of the bay.

Along the way there there are some beaches, though too rough to swim at. There's that turquoise water again.

Back in Port Pollença, I waded into the water and found that it was too cold to swim. So I just cooled my heels for a while, satisfied that I had tried the Mediterranean water. On the way back I had a beer at this corner restaurant (in the afternoon) before calling it a day with a siesta.