During the trip I took about 65 photos and 10 videos (which I'll compile into 3).
Here's the route I took. I started from the Genova neighborhood in Palma and followed a narrow road into the woods, passing through a large military zone, and headed for the town of Calvia. It's a fun ride on a moto for all the hairpin and switchbacks to navigate. Bicyclists seem to love it, too.
CALVIA
Referencing the name 'Calvia' can be the source of confusion. There's the TOWN of Calvia, located in the foothills of the Tramuntana mountains and there's the PORT of Calvia, obviously situated at the edge of the sea, and there's the MUNICIPALITY of Calvia which is like a 'County' if you're from the US and encompasses several towns.
The picturesque town of Calvia, with its relatively small number of shops and cafes, feels a lifetime away from the coastal resorts that fall within its municipality.
The municipality contains eighteen settlements....many of them lining the coast and based on tourism stemming from a huge hotel construction boom in the 1960's. In the municipality, the population is over 50,000, but in the town of Calvia, it only has about 2,400.
Here's some random shots of architecture in Calvia.
Church - Sant Joan Baptista
Notice the two different colors of the stones where one house ends and the other begins.
The farthest setting of the zoom on my camera distorts the foliage.
A short video of part of Calvia.
ES CAPDELLA
Es Capdella (S-Cop-Day-Yah) means 'at the end of there' in Catalan. At 375 ft above sea level it has a population of about 1,000. I was curious as to how much real estate costs here so I looked at a local real estate website. Of the 71 properties listed for the general area, prices ranged from 400,000 Euros all the way up to 4 million!! Most houses are built of stone with wood-beamed high ceilings, tiled floors, large patios, arched doorways, lush vegetation (bouganvilla, cactus, oleander, fruit trees), rock walls, and ironwork accents.
I love the etched planter in the lower right of this photo.
Lemons anyone? They're EVERYWHERE!!!
How can anyone use that many?
A closeup of a rock wall of the house shown above.
When you arrive you'll see this same type of sign, but without the red slash.
When leaving, you'll see this...informing you, you're no longer in that town.
Enroute to Galilea....
Castell Son Claret
The castle (now a high-end luxury hotel) was built in the 15th century. Renovated in 2013, it has 41 rooms and suites and sits on 326 acres. The driveway is nearly 1,000 feet long.
Wanna see more? CLICK HERE TO GO TO THEIR WEBSITE
Grove of Olive and Almond trees.
On the way up to Galilea, the road was sometimes no wider than 10 ft...for two lanes.
I could smell all the pine trees!
I came to a screeching halt when I reached this crest and overlook. I climbed the rock to get a few nice shots all the way out to the Med sea.
If you refer to the map at the top of this page, the peninsula you see is 'Cap de Sa Mola'.
GALILEA
Galilea sits about 1,500 ft above sea level in the Tramuntana mountains and it feels like you're sitting on top of the world. The small community of 300 or so apparently boasts a wide array of nationalities. There's not much here...a church (1806) and a few cafes but I didn't see any boutique hotels, grocery store, pharmacy, etc. However, all that is nearby in Calvia, Es Capdella, or Puigpunyent. That said, the topography, views, and tiny winding lanes lined with classic Spanish homes makes the whole area ooze with charm.
Of the 39 real estate listings in the Galilea area, 23 were between 300K and 750K. The top end was 1,200,000 Euros.
This isn't a dirt embankment.
It's actually a retaining wall made out of huge reddish blocks.
A courtyard cafe outside the church.
I noticed all the lanterns and streetlights were either new or well-maintained with a fresh coat of shiny black.
They also don't have lighbulbs. Instead, they have an LED strip on the underside of the hood.
This tree trunk was so badly split I was surprised it's flourishing so well.
A wee video from the village of Galilea.
I left my home at 12:30 and was back by 5:30, logging another 50 miles on my odometer.
What ever will I write about next??
Stay Tuned!!
Dano
By the way, if you're interested in viewing any of my past entries about travelling around Europe and where I live in Mallorca, simply scroll down past my signature to the end. There, you'll see 'Blog History'. You can click on any Month/Year to see the titles I published at that time. Simply click on the title you're interested in and it will take you to that page.
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