Days 1 & 2 - Transportation Adventures

We flew from Charlotte to Newark at 11:30am - then began our trip from Newark to Mallorca at 4:30 pm ET. It's only a 7-hour flight, so we actually touched down in Palma at 5:30am (11:30pm ET)... which means we didn't sleep on the plane. The first rule of arriving in Europe is to stay awake the entire day, but that didn't happen today. We arrived at La Cala Boutique Hotel at 6:30am, and strolled around the property until breakfast at 7:30am. By 9:30 our room was ready, so we showered and crashed for a 3-hour nap. Then we went to the pool and just relaxed. The beaches are open to the public and they were slammed today... so wonderful to hear a variety of world languages swirling around us.

Today (and probably tomorrow) will be spent lounging around the pool/beach and reading. Looking forward to the relaxation.

Books Laura is reading: Eleanor of Avignon (we'll be in Avignon next week, and there's nothing like a great historical fiction to bring history to life); The Demon of Unrest (Erik Larson's non-fiction about the Civil War); and The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year (a fun mystery). I'm also working through The Official Agatha Christie Puzzle Book (not as hard as I prefer, but it will keep me busy).

Keith already finished The Demon of Unrest and has moved on to Bridge of Sighs (by Richard Russo).

Day 3 - A Whole Lot of Nothing!

We went to sleep last night at 9:30pm and got out of bed at Noon today. Almost 15 hours of rest... it's been a while :) 

So we moved down to the pool and rotated read/relaxed until 6pm so that we could get ready for our "late" dinner (reservations at 7pm). Hahaha... There was only 1 other couple in the restaurant at 7pm, and they were British. By the time we left at 9:15, the place was hopping. 

I've had enough of doing nothing, so I'm going to head into Palma tomorrow to do an escape room, then Keith and I will both explore the city on Wednesday.

Day 4 - Pool, Escape Room, and Old Town

Actually woke up in time for breakfast today (9am), then enjoyed the pool for a few hours before we left for the escape room.

The Mission:Escape room was a lot of fun! We did the Zarven room, and it was sufficiently hard but we escaped with 4 minutes left. From there we walked down to Old City/Old Town where we stopped for an early dinner at Cappuccino Grand Cafe. We then walked down through Old Town towards the harbor and grabbed a taxi back to the hotel.

Note: Don't fuck with Uber here. Uber quoted us $78 to go 3 miles to the escape room... but the hotel called a cab which arrived in 2 minutes and charged us $13.

Day 5 - From MEH to MARVELOUS (or, The Day I nearly Died).

We had read about the Drach Caves, and saw a tour that included a boat ride under the stalactites while musicians played classical music. So, naturally, I assumed it would be something like the IT'S A SMALL WORLD ride at Disney - relaxing and dazzling to behold.

The reality: It's not as large as Carlsbad Caverns, but the same feel. We joined the queue to walk in and grab our boat, but 15,000 other people walked in with us... and walked with us pretty much straight down 25 meters - winding through the stalactites and stalagmites (me, of course, looking for the damn boats). When we reached the bottom, we were all herded onto benches (with no instruction or direction) as to what was happening. The flow of people never stopped while we sat there for about 30 minutes. I have to think that there were at least 2,000 people. They finally turned off the lights (a claustrophobic nightmare, actually), and a boat with the musicians came around the corner playing Vivaldi's Four Seasons. They played for about 10 minutes, and then it was a mad rush for the boats. [As someone who appreciates efficiency in processes, I kept thinking that just about ANY other way of handling that many people would have been better than the complete neglect by the rangers.] Anyway.... We finally get on a boat and, I shit you not, it goes about 50 feet to a walkway exit. We were on the boat for less than 3 minutes. I was stunned. Then we climbed up out of the caves and boarded the bus back to Palma, a drive that took twice as long because the bus driver kept stopping at smaller towns along the way to drop people off at their hotel.

Long story short - if you've been to literally ANY cavern (at all - Carlsbad, Linville, etc.), there is absolutely NO REASON to visit Drach Caves.

Now to the MARVELOUS! When we returned to Palma we toured the Cathedral of Mallorca. It is absolutely STUNNING, with the largest rose window in the world. The conspicuous display of gold and 50' altars in the Cathedral were no match for the beauty of the view from the terraces. The only problem is that you have to climb up 140 steps up a steep, stone, circular staircase. It was hotter than hell, so the pics of me reflect that climb with the heat and moisture. I felt like I was going to die... but it was worth it.

Photo carousel of the day

Day 6 - Pool & Beach

After the antics of yesterday, we decided to completely relax today. So we ambled down to breakfast, then out to the pool, then down to the beach, then back to the pool for reading/puzzles, etc.

However, dinner tonight was simply fantastic! We ate at  Scratch Tapas Gourmet (@scratch.mallorca on Instagram), and had the most delightful meal of the week.  The food, staff, sidewalk seating in the shade with a cool breeze... couldn't ask for more!

Day 7 - Walking Tour of the Jewish Quarter (Converso Jews!) and a Sunset Boat Excursion

We went back to the city center for a tour of the Jewish Quarter, which goes deeply into the history of the Converso Jews - those who were forced to convert to Christianity to escape execution during the Inquisition and how they kept their faith alive in secret. It was an absolutely fascinating tour that took us down the winding, narrow streets of the Old Town to see beautiful architecture and hidden synagogues. Click here to see more about the group trying to preserve this history.

We ended the day with a sunset boat tour on the north side of the island. There was a total of 8 people on the boat, and we had the opportunity to jump into the Med and swim or paddleboard. My super power is floating - I can literally fall asleep while floating on water - so I jumped in and enjoyed floating around for a bit. Keith has too much lean mass to float, so he contemplated paddleboarding... then decided "that's a young man's game." 

We then sat together and watched the sun set behind the mountains, turning the sky beautiful colors that were simply not caught by the camera. A perfect day to end our stay in Mallorca. 

Days 8 & 9 - Villa in France and a 3-Star Michelin Restaurant

 - OR "That feeling when you know - with certainty - that the dining event you are experiencing will be the best dining event in your life."

We spent most of yesterday flying from Mallorca to Marseille in order to meet up at a villa for a week in Cabannes, hosted by Lis & Simon Martin. We were neighbors with Lis and Simon in California, and then they moved to Boston and introduced us to their friends there (most of whom we really got to know during COVID during Zoom calls). Here is a link to the villa, since my photos simply don't do it justice. 

Last night, Lis & Simon prepared vichyssoise and bouillabaisse for dinner (sadly, no pictures!), and then each day dinner will be arranged by different couple. Today's meal was planned by Jen & Wilson Schunemann, and I know without a doubt that I will never experience anything like it ever again. L'Oustau de Baumaniere is a 3-star Michelin restaurant in Provence that prepared a 10-course tasting menu for all 14 of us, paired with wines from their 60,000 bottle cellar. For more than 4 hours, we sat on the terrace eating the most amazing food ever imagined. Neither Keith nor I have ever eaten at even a 1-star Michelin restaurant... so we know, without a doubt, that we will never eat at another 3-star. We will never forget this day.

Photos of the food are below...  but please visit the website to read about the restaurant. (The experience was far more clever than the pictures portray.)

Day 10 - Avignon - Palais des Papes (Palace of the Popes)

As someone who loves Medieval history, visiting Avignon was my only priority while we are here in Southern France. (Yes, I am aware that there is a lot to see here, but we kept this week entirely free so that we can visit with friends.) Thankfully, a lot of the group also wanted to tour the Palace of the Popes (the seat of the vatican for 400 years), so we set out. I am glad that we visited it, but it - sadly - did not live up my expectations. The history of the palace is more exciting than the reality. The office of tourism has tried to bring the history to life by providing a guided tour by iPad that shows what the palace looked like in its prime, but the iPads were irritatingly glitchy. So, it was a once-and-done for us, made palatable by the fact of being there with friends and enjoyed a nice lunch (people-watching) in the square.

David and Brigitta were responsible for dinner, and we had a lovely time at Chez Paulette in Eygalieres. Great food, cool evening, and a lot of laughter.

Day 11 - Châteauneuf-du-Pape & Our Turn to Host Dinner

The scheduled activity for the day was a wine tasting tour of the Châteauneuf-du-Pape region. So while Keith joined that group, I picked up some supplies for our dinner. We had a local chef come to the villa to prepare the meal, so all we had to do was prepare fruit and cheese appetizer trays - and decorate the table with fresh flowers. The  chef was the owner of Maison Druout, and the meal was incredible.

Simon and I went into St. Remy for the groceries, and then I walked to a florist in Cabannes for the flowers. Every street in these small villages looks like the setting for a fairy tale, so if you want to host a large group in this area of France, I highly recommend this villa. 

Day 12 - Saint Remy-de-Provence & Dinner at La Reine Jeanne

We started the day visiting the weekly market that is set up in the center of town every Wednesday. In addition to food, there are linens, leather goods, clothing, etc. We walked around the non-food market for a bit, then had coffee at a sidewalk cafe with Jen and Wilson. From there we wandered over to the food section, and -- HOLY COW -- what an amazing sight! I hope my pictures do this venue justice. After exploring this town that looks like Belle should come singing down the lane, we met up with the rest of the group for lunch at Le Cafe la Place for lunch on the terrace.

After lunch we visited the Carriers de Lumieres - caves that have Monet and Rousseau paintings brought to life on the walls. It was a beautiful experience.

We returned to the villa with time to relax a bit before heading to dinner at La Reine Jeanne in Les Baux de Provence  [<<<click that link to see an aerial view!]. We had a fun time with lots of laughter.

Days 13 & 14 - Van Gogh's Asylum & Dinner Under the Stars in the Middle of a Vineyard

Saint Remy-de-Provence is famous for its market and for having the asylum where Van Gogh painted quite a few of his masterpieces (The Starry Night, etc.). A visit to the asylum is quite enchanting because they've staged it to look as it did when he was there 1889 - 1890, and they've put replicas of his work in front of the scenes he painted.  After that visit, we returned to the villa for an afternoon of relaxation and a wonderful meal prepared by a different chef brought in by David and Ruthy.

For our final day at the villa, Keith and I just stayed here and relaxed by playing petanque, sitting by the pool, and reading. Then tonight, Simon and Lis had the chefs from earlier in the week prepare a magnificent meal for us under the stars in the middle of a vineyard. 

To say it's been an incredible week would be a gross understatement. We truly understand that we will never have another week like this - and we are grateful.

At 3:15am we begin our journey home.