Port Pollença and Formentor

A detail on the wall of the courtyard of the hotel indicated that the building dated from 1723. It was a venerable old hotel with old furnishings and decor, but the rooms were modern. It was a welcome touch of luxury after a few days in an economy Eivissa room.

There were two grand palm trees in the courtyard. It was a haven of peace; the hotel was metres away from a busy main street. Many lodgers elected to take breakfast there. I wished I could relax longer but I had only till midday.

With an hour to spare before checkout, I made a circumambulation of La Seu, the cathedral. This time I made it to the front portal but didn't look inside. There were many tourists, some in groups, as evidenced by leaders giving lectures.

I vacated my room and left my backpack at reception while I looked for lunch. At the patisseria I bought an empanada of beef and peas, an ensaïmada with apricot and some panellets. The empanada was basically a meat pie, the ensaïmada was similar to a danish and the panellets I saved for later. I ate the first two sitting on a park bench.

Then I recovered my backpack and caught the bus to the airport. It was fairly empty at my stop but filled up at Plaça de Espanya. I arrived at the collection desk at the car park on the dot, completed the paperwork and drove to Port Pollença, at the other end of the island, but only about 60 km away from Palma.

The hotel didn't appear on municipal signs so I spent some time driving around the small port looking for it. Eventually I parked the car in the free parking lot and searched for it on foot. It was a relief to find it, I wondered if it existed. It was spanking new with all the mod cons, furnished in modern style. I was glad that worked out; it was new enough to have no reviews on websites.

Before sunset, I took a drive up Formentor peninsula. At the mirador, there were stunning views of the sheer cliffs on one side and the bay on the other.

Here's another view, of the bay. But really a couple of pictures cannot do the location justice. You'll have to ask me to show you more photos when I get home.

Then a long drive up the thin peninsula to the cape. The road was tortuous and everytime I thought surely it must be around the next corner, there were more bends up ahead. But finally the lighthouse hove into view. It was dusk by now and the light was fading, but it was a good time for dramatic pictures.

The lighthouse had commenced operation for the night. Later I could see its flashes from the port.

There were 2 other cars coming to the lighthouse after me so I was almost but not quite the last visitor for the day.

Back at the port, diners were out enjoying their meal al fresco. Some hotels even had tables on piers extending into the water so you could dine surrounded on 3 sides by water.

A small night market was running, selling mostly handicraft and tourist souvenirs.

Oh the panellets? They were yummy. They are marzipan balls with pine nuts stuck all around it. Well worth the price; about 2.40€ for 50g.

I think I did well to pick Port Pollença as my base for the last few days.