After reconnecting with my old friend Conny in Germany, we realized we would cross paths again – this time in Mallorca. We planned to meet up, spend lazy Sundays together in Santanyí or on the beach. As the last days of winter were wrapping up and spring was a mere hours away, we took our pup to Santanyí and met up with Conny for a lazy day of meandering through the markets and then on to Es Trenç to enjoy the long sandy beach.
Posts by Thomas
The forecast for día de las Baleares called for perfect spring weather, so we ventured out with our new friend Sylvia & (borrowed) pup Django for a long hike from Santa Maria to Orient. What was meant to be an easy 14 km trail turned out to be a day-long adventure, getting lost along the way but discovering some of Mallorca’s most beautiful landscapes.
Sylvia scoped out this route, and suggested the little treasures along the way – valley of the Coanegra gulley, a hidden cave and tucked away waterfalls – would make it a great way to see new parts of the island. After ascending most of the morning, we found the entrance to the Son Pou avenc cave, which opened up to a moon-like landscape inside. This fascinating spot, discovered in 1824, was covered in dripping water, stalactites and glimmers of sunlight peeking through the chasm above.
We then hiked up to the spectacular Es Freu waterfall, which marked the 6-hour mark of our hike. Thankfully, we made friends with some fellow exhausted hikers who took a liking to us and fed us casera tarta de melocotón (homemade peach cake). A sweet ending to a beautiful mountain trek.
Tagged: cave, Django, hike, hiking, Orient, Santa Maria, Sylvia, Waterfalls
Las luces se encienden y es acogedor en Palma. Saludos de las estaciones de la hermosa España!
Categories: Spain
In the Serra de Tramuntana, there are mountains that rise from 0 m to 1,436 m in just a few kilometres. Since arriving, we’ve wanted to be up in these mountains, on a hike where we could experience the Balearic Mediterranean forest and enjoy views of the sea & the island. This past Sunday, we had our chance with our new friend Emma.
We drove up to Valldemossa and set out to ascend to Puig del Teix via the Archduke path, a dry stone path built by Archduke Luis Salvador of Austria. The path wound along twisted holm oaks, strawberry trees, buckthorn and mastic. Below was a picturesque valley lined with ancient olive trees growing on beautifully maintained terracing. We climbed steeply out of the valley, enjoying the views of Valldemossa behind us and views of Deia & Soller once we reached the peak.
The rugged & scraggly landscape was stark & rough in contrast to the bright blue sea beneath. Despite the cold, we loved this first hike and look forward to many more when we return in 2015.
Categories: Spain
Tagged: Archduke path, Emma, hike, Mallorca, Serra de Tramuntana, Teix, Valldemossa
For us, the secret to discovering Barcelona’s artistic & architectural beauty isn’t about looking up – it’s about looking down. The ornate floor tiles are everywhere: sidewalks, inside simple cafes and of course the magnificently decorated Gaudi buildings.
We’ve been so inspired by these designs, so we decided to take a trek out to Can Tinturé, the first tile museum in Spain, which was in the small village of Esplugues. The museum itself was small and only included pieces from the 14th – 19th century, but certainly piqued our interest.
With a little more digging & with camera in hand, we learned the more modern tiles emerged in the 1850s. These were made from a cement compound that didn’t need oven baking, which was a lot less expensive and allowed for mass production. When installed, the tiles gave the illusion of being carpet and oftentimes did not match the residents’ furniture.
In the heyday of Modernism, Barcelona tiles were in great demand: geometric classical patterns, Celtic-style chains, stylish curves and flora & fauna explosions. Prevalent colors were brown, burgundy, green, black and, particularly pink. Nowadays, it seems new tiles are popping up in fashion boutiques, organic supermarkets and hipster establishments all around town.
All month we’ve been collecting photos across Barcelona and have become incredibly inspired. No doubt all this scouting will serve as reference for our own designs.
Categories: Spain
Tagged: architecture, art, Barcelona, Can Tinturé, Gaudi, patterns, tiles
Categories: Spain
Autumn had started on mainland Spain, so we decided to chase summer and hop on over to Mallorca. We stayed in the capital city, Palma, with its charming old town, gigantic castles and Arab architecture.
Each day, we drove out to a different part of the island to check out the diversity of beaches. Sóller and Port de Sóller are beautiful villages in the northern mountains of Mallorca. We enjoyed exploring the Saturday market, watching the historic train pass through town and playing on the beach.
Photos here capture our time at these remarkable beaches dotted along the hundreds of kilometers of Mediterranean coast: Es Trenç, Cala Llombards, Cala Formentor, Playa de Muro, Port d’Andratx and Portal Vells. We’re still a little in shock at how gorgeous this place is… We might just have to come back…
Categories: Spain
Tagged: beaches, Cala Formentor, Cala Llombards, Es Trenç, Mallorca, Mediterranean, Playa de Muro, Port d’Andratx, Portal Vells
We’ve moved south! After over 3 months in Germany, we’ve headed south to Spain and our first stop is Barcelona. This beautiful city is captivating with its medieval architecture, cobblestone walkways and stunning beachside location. We’ve been walking everywhere, exploring the Gaudi buildings, sauntering along the Mediterranean and getting lost in the Gothic quarter. The food is fantastic and the weather has been warm (maybe we’ll try to chase summer a bit longer?!). More to come from our time in this beautiful country…our road trip down the coast to Valencia is next!
Categories: Spain
Tagged: Barcelona, cobblestone, Gaudi
It was the first weekend of Oktoberfest, so we suited up in Bavarian garb, headed over to Wiesn and joined the throngs of people in the revelry. Melissa wore my mother’s traditional hat & jacket (they’re 60 years old and still in beautiful condition) and Frank’s Lederhosen were a big hit in the Bräurosl tent.
Over 7 million liters of beer are consumed during the festival, and we were happy to contribute to that with a few big Maß of our own. Traditional Bavarian foods like Hendl, Schweinebraten, Brezen, Knödel, Kartoffelsalat and Weisswurst are everywhere, so we had no choice but to eat our way through the festival as well.
Tagged: Beer, Frank, lederhosen, Oktoberfest
We’ve started our one week adventure in München for Oktoberfest with our favorite road tripping friend, Frank. In our first days here, we’ve spent a lot of time walking along the Isar River, admiring traditional Bavarian outfits and making our way through the gorgeous old town and its historic squares. Frank walked us through the Englischer Garten, which quickly became our favorite spot for people watching, lounging in the grass and soaking up the late summer sun.
One of the cool things we saw while in the Garten is ice brook surfing (Eisbach) in the Isar. The river forms a powerful current where surfers queue up for their chance to ride the meter-high wave. The water is shallow and cold, but the spot was still filled with adventurous sporty types lining up to practice on their boards. It was pretty cool & unexpected to see river surfing in the middle of this beautiful city.
Tagged: Eisbach, Englischer Garten, Frank, Isar, München, Munich, Oktoberfest, surfing
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