Row #131 of my Mallorca To See/Do list, says "La Granja". I recently marked that one off.
I hopped on my moto and headed for the hills just outside Palma. About 15 to 20 minutes later I was winding through a beautiful small valley and came upon the village of Esporles...yet another charming town of tall maple trees forming an arched canopy over the main street, lined with blondish-colored stone buildings, and the requisite outdoor cafes. I could hear (in my head) my friend Stacey say "I could live here!!" but, she says that all time no matter where I go.
Anyway, La Granja is just a few kilometers outside the town of Esporles. But, it started to rain. So, I nixed the idea of going to 'LG' and headed back home. I'll try again another day.
Another day came.
So, what is La Granja? Using a multi-language brochure I picked up at the site, it tells me....
- 'La Granja' translates to 'The Farm'.
- Arabs, who ruled the island back in the 10th - 13th centuries relished the site because of it's natural springs. The flow from the springs was used to 'power' the grinding mills.
- For centuries, the water from this and one other spring were the main sources of water for the old quarter of Palma. Later on, in the 20th century, the force of the water was used to produce electricity for the main house.
- After the Christian conquest of 1229, the property was administered by Monks for the next 200 years.
- Since 1447 it has been a private house owned by various noble families; most of what you see today dates from the 17th century.
- In the 1700's, the owners of that time renovated the existing house into what we see today (aside from modernizing with electricity and plumbing).
I didn't want to take a formal guided tour, so I went for the self-guided option to view 64 exhibits. Paths are marked with arrows (like 'The Amazing Race') so they were easy to follow and exhibits are numbered so you can find the reference on the brochure that tells you what it is. Fine by me!!
Let's go!
Oh...just a reminder. Due to the large size of some of these photos, you might need to scroll right/left to see the whole thing...especially if you're viewing my blog on some dinky I-phone-like device versus your nice full-screen laptop or such.
Just sayin....
The main estate house, gardens, and a small cafe with outdoor seating for customers to relax and take in the whole scene.
Salt tubs for curing some poor animals' meat.
Lots of rock-walled terraces to make more flat surfaces for growing crops.
The iron ring you see on the left is what goes on the outer part of a wagon wheel.
She's got quite the view!!!
Small round fountains that overflow and send water cascading down the tiled slope, underneath a grape arbor.
Clusters of grapes dangle from another canopy just behind the main house.
Here, dyes are made from various plants which are then used to color yarn (also made on the site).
The 'Cave of Love'
Inside the COL....kinda hard to make out what is what. But, there are small stalactites forming.
Florentine drawing room with Louis XV furniture. (note: I don't see anyone drawing nothing!!)
Stately parlour with theater.
I don't quite get this one. It's a doll-sized mockup of a theater. Reminds me of Carnegie Hall (which btw I have performed in! hehehehe)
The games room. This particular game reminds me of a baseball (pinball) game I had as a kid, using side buttons to operate a bat and get balls into holes on the board. This one, they squeeze the red bulbs for bursts of air to move the balls toward the hole(s).
The beauty salon. I love the 'modern' blow dryer!!!
The family living quarters are on the upper floors. The bottom floor is where all the activities occur that keep the estate running.
Here, the wedge-shaped stone crushes the seeds as it goes around the circular bin.
A grape press. The spiral piece is made out of wood and is about 8" thick. The entire press stands about 8 feet tall.
The wine cellar.
Then comes several spaces where craftsmen make rope, tan leather hides, make shoes, fabrics, rugs, textiles, clothes, and a smelting shop for jewelry and metal household items. There's even a paper mill and crude 'machines' to pound and wash wool fresh off the sheep.
This gigantic stone wheel (approx 24" diameter) pulverizes the original product into flour.
Now for the fun stuff!!!
THE DUNGEON!!
(aka Torture Chambers)
I guess if some of the employees got out of hand, they would be punished right here on site. This was also used as a jail/prison/punishment/off-with-your head place for bad people from the surrounding area.
Remember, when you look at all of the tools, whether they be a loom, a grinding stone, grape press, or a skull crusher.....they all had to be designed, engineered, and made by hand in the first place!!
Clearly, they didn't care about decor and making the place (the dungeon) look nice!!
Want to be a little taller? Need a lower back massage? Just lie down and try our hand-dandy stretch rack!!!
Do you sometimes feel like you're sitting on pins and needles?
Women didn't have it so good back then. I think my friend Cherry would've ended up with one of these in a nano second!! Read the 3rd paragraph down.
The inner courtyard.
Outside, there are more work areas such as this 'cave' where candles were made. After all, before electricity they had to burn candles for light, right? Nearby were stalls for making earthenware pots , glass jars for storing olives, bottles for the wine, and the ironsmiths workshop.
A 100+ year old Yew tree.
At the end of the 'tour', before the exit, is the cafe and a little shop selling preserves, breads, spices, olive oils, etc. Bunelos were being made (these using mashed potatoes as part of the recipe) fresh for us to sample, along with fig and orange bread, butter cookies topped with apricot spread...as much as we wanted to enjoy. YUMMY!!!
In all, I took 84 photos and I passed on taking a snap of many things throughout the complex.
It's amazing what we take for granted today. Things are 'just there' and we generally don't think deeper than that. We don't stop to think the 'thing' we're using had to be designed and engineered somewhere and then machines created to build that 'thing' and that 'thing' might only be one small part of the overall 'thing' we use. Take a look at something next to you. Maybe the lamp on your desk, the clock on the wall, or the coffee maker in your kitchen. Notice all the 'things' that had to be made to make the end result.
Now, think back to the era of La Granja. Almost anything and everything they used to get through life had to be made by hand...a lot of it on the premises. It wasn't like they could run into town to the local Home Depot and just buy it, or order it online and have it miraculously show up on their doorstep.
For a family, understandably wealthy, to live on an estate such as La Granja, there had to be many workers on site as well. Just to list a few;
- Ironsmith to make tools, wagon wheel rims, cutting implements, horseshoes, etc
- Seamsters to make and repair and iron clothes
- Leather workers to make shoes and protective outerwear
- Workers to make dyes and threads and yarn and rope
- Those who manned the 'machines' to make oils, wine, flour, etc
- Someone to make and keep at steady supply of candles
- Grounds keepers
- Repairmen
- Cooks and Servers
- People to do laundry
- Housecleaners
- Dungeon Master!!
- Animal care
- Carpenter
- Someone to make bottles, jars, cookware, containers, glasses....
- Coal and wood supplier
...it goes on and on.
Til next time...
Dano
