A brief overview of our first trip to PP
Had booked the early Easy Jet flight from
Gatwick which meant a Taxi pick-up at 3-00am and arrived at check-in at 3-45am to find an unbelievable queue. We had checked in on-line so went directly to the “Fast Bag Drop” which of course it isn’t but at least our line was only two-thirds the length of the luddites queue and it probably moved a fraction faster too so actually within 30 mins we were on the “far side” and drinking a welcome cup of coffee.
True to their word Easy Jet boarded on time and we rolled back from the stand (no nostalgic walk across the tarmac for us this time!) but the first words from the pilot were “Sorry” and your heart sinks. A Thunder Storm over Palma meant that they had not been given permission to take off and the pilot reckoned he would have to park up on the perimeter somewhere for about 30 to 40 mins. “Only joking” he said 10 mins later as permission to take off arrived and because of tail winds we landed exactly on schedule.
Luggage arrived on the belt remarkably quickly (we guessed that the Sangria hadn’t taken effect on the ground crew yet at that time of the morning) and my wife’s case appeared in the first few cases and then mine in the last few. Seeing as they were checked in and despatched at Gatwick together I’m constantly amazed at how often this happens and it happened too on the way back at Gatwick. I think I will apply for an EU grant to study the phenomenon – should be good for a few million € in research aid.
Straight out of departures and up to find the Centauro
car hire bus and there it was – two in fact – waiting. Cases in and we were arriving at their depot within minutes of being reunited with our cases. Because their check-in desk is off site and big there was no queue and paperwork was completed in record time. Reaching for the keys the helpful lady at the desk said “Oh, it’s being refuelled for you now and so it might be a few mins before we can release it”. As this was 9-30am and we couldn’t get into our
apartment until 1-30pm I politely said no worry we aren’t in any hurry. At that she said “No, I will get you another car and upgrade you”.
Now you always feel good when someone says that and of course I was pleased – at least at that time. We had booked a ford Focus type model because there was just the two of us. When we got to bay 23 we found a Ford S-Max, fitted with double seating in the back to seat 7 people in total! It was a lovely car and only had 5000 Km on the clock and of course driving away from the airport to PP you are on motorway standard road all the way so sitting up high in a “big old bus” seemed like a winner.
Arrived at PP and did the usual – find the apartment first so you know where it is; find the Supermarket next so you know where to fill up with beer and wine; then down to the beach to take a butchers. It was still only 11-00am by this time so we found a little café where we could park outside to keep an eye on the car and all our worldly goods it contained and had some excellent coffee and a toastie. Everything had gone brilliantly and we couldn’t believe our luck. But it changed.
The wife then says that we have a couple of hours to spare before we can get into the apartment so why don’t we take a drive out to Pollenca old town and take a look. No problem, followed the road signs and a few mins later arrived at the big roundabout on the outskirts of Pollenca. Well at this early stage I hadn’t looked at any maps or planned anything and so having to make a snap decision I took the first exit towards Lluc and sure enough after about half a mile there was a signpost to “Pollenca”. Turned left into it and followed my nose. The roads got smaller and smaller and steeper and steeper; the cars parked outside terraced houses got more and more and there was me driving a bloody great bus that I had only just picked up and hadn’t fully got the width of yet! With “her” hanging out of the passenger window shouting “you only have a quarter inch of gap this side” and me replying “and I’ve only got a quarter inch my side too” we nudged our way for an hour and a half around the top part of Pollenca trying to find a way out of the maze of streets with no signposts and no way to turn round. In fact, even trying to turn left or right meant doing three-point turns!
When eventually we did emerge, unscathed but sweating profusely, I vowed never to visit the place again. But of course we did a few days later once we had visited the Tourist Information office at PP and got a map and made the nice lady point out where the CAR PARK was - and we loved the place enough to go back several times during our fortnight.
Back at the apartment we couldn’t believe how great it was and so well equipped. We were staying in the Boquer development just off the Calle de Formentor and right alongside the Bosquet de Boquer. Being a third floor apartment we had the roof terrace as well and this was a great place to sun bathe and read especially in the wonderful evenings. Only a two min walk and we were on Pine Walk and most evenings we would stroll along; grab a beer and people watch. It’s a delightful place and as long as PP doesn’t get any more commercialised, it should remain a beautiful enjoyable resort.
The Bosquet de Boquer fascinated me. It had signs up saying “Public Park” but I bet even Robin Hood wouldn’t have been able to find his way out if he ventured in! It’s just an uncultivated mess and it seems as if its only purpose in life is to wind up the developers who presumably aren’t allowed to build on this prime piece of real estate.
The weather was gorgeous during our first week – mid 20’s and light fluffy clouds – so being our first trip to Majorca never mind PP, we toured a bit. Drove along Formentor to the lighthouse – cursing the big bus again because it’s very narrow down there and the coaches love to run at you. Drove up to Lluc to hear the Choir sing – cursed the big bus again but not the choir who were excellent. Drove around the east side to reach the Caves of Drach at Porto Cristo, quickly driving through Alcudia Beach area which is totally spoilt and thanking our lucky stars that we were at PP and not there!
We nearly took the Train and Tram to Port Soller but then decided to drive across the mountains ourselves to see the sights and also so we could call in on Fornalutx on the way. This was really worth doing. The drive was good (Bloody big bus aside!) and Fornalutx was just beautiful. We were a bit disappointed with Port Soller – nothing special and the worse lunch of the holiday – but the overall day was worth the effort.
We found Alcudia old town and fell in love with it, visiting three times in all but this was mostly driven by a) my wife finding a jewellery shop that she just “had to” make a second trip to see and b) me not being able to find the Roman Remains. All the guide books say go see the Roman ruins but actually, the signing at Alcudia is virtually non existent. However, eventually I tracked them down and whilst not “stunning” they were interesting if you have a bent that way and I was pleased to have visited them.
Eating out and Restaurants – yes we tried a few. But generally our modus operandi is to have a light lunch whilst we are out somewhere exploring and then to chill out with a beer or two and a nice bottle of Rioja back at the apartment5 in the evenings. Some will think I’m daft but I actually enjoy cooking and one of the treats being on holiday is to pick up some of your wonderful local food and “knock-up” a simple but tasty meal. Nothing too adventurous – made a great Moussaka one day and then some Prawns with a provencale source. The prawns from the Supermarket were amazing and more like mini Scampi than the thin things we get over in the UK.
One of our favourite stops was the Can Pescador just along the Pine Walk. We had lunch there most times when we were in PP for the day and ate there in the evening too. We found the service good; the setting was amazing especially if you could grab a table right on the edge of the beach; the menu was sufficient even if not challenging and the food we had was always first class and reasonably priced when compared to some of the other restaurants along that strip.
Overall our two weeks in PP was one of the nicest European holidays we have had for many years. Everything came together (I even learnt to love the bus in the end!) and it was a simple, no fuss holiday – exactly what we needed. I’m confident we will be back.
Richard