What better way to start a ten day September holiday in Mallorca than in Bar Lorien, Palma? 
 http://sauep.com/
This small and unpretentious bar is tucked away in a quiet street in the old town.  Pep provides a range of local and international beers, which make a welcome change to the ubiquitous, mass produced San Miguel and Cruzcampo. 

Catapulte, a strong craft beer brewed in Catalunya, was enjoyed by my better half and is available on draft.  


.
My friend and I enjoyed Galilea, a flavoursome beer brewed locally in the Tramuntana mountains.   I am hoping that more and more microbreweries will appear in the Balearic Islands and mainland Spain.  

On our third visit we tried Domus, from Toledo and Tyris, a Valencian beer. The latter was gorgeous!

A good place for breakfast if you are staying near Placa España, is Cervecería 31 de Diciembre, situated in the calle of the same name.  We assume the street is so named to commemorate the fall of the the Moors to Jaime I de Aragón on 31.12. 1229.  
Paco provides a warm welcome, good coffee and fresh pastries including the local variation known as ensaïmada (on the left).

http://trescantpermallorca.com/restaurantes/cerveceria-31-de-diciembre/

It is still summer in the Balearic Islands in September.  How lovely to escape the early autumn chill and first fall of leaves.  Temperatures remained in the high 20s for the entire stay and not a drop of rain was seen. 

  

The Basilica de Sant Francesc, is a 13th century church and previous monastery.  It is typically Mallorcan,  a huge edifice of pale sandstone, untarnished by an industrial age and featuring  a delicately carved entrance and a rose window.

It has beautiful Gothic cloisters, the potential serenity of which were challenged by the sounds of children playing in a near by college.  Inside the church is the tomb of Ramon Llull (1235-1316), a Catalan celebrity who became a pious evangelist following a wild past and failed seduction attempt.  He was eventually stoned to death attempting to convert Muslims in Tunisia. 

Santanyí is a small town situated in the south east of Mallorca.  Although Northern European tourists and ex-pats have a presence in the town, it remains unspoilt and typically Mallorcan. 

The municipality has a variety of beaches popular for their scenic beauty. Cala Mondrago is a totally natural beach situated in a National Park with dunes and wetlands hosting many different bird species. Despite some cloud, a few waves and the sighting of one jellyfish, a good swim in warm water was enjoyed by all.

Central Palma features several examples of modernismo architecture.  Lluis Domenech i Montaner built the lavish Gran Hotel.  Today this is the home of the Fundacio La Caixa, which is free to enter and contains interesting exhibitions, a cafe bar and a video explaining the modernismo background of Palma.  

 Josep Cassayas built two exquisitely curvaceous twin apartment buildings on the Placa Mercat, just opposite the Gran Hotel.  See below.  

One of several Modernista shop fronts is shown above

The Fundació Pilar i Joan Miró is situated in the inner suburbs of Palma.  It is one of the few museums where visitors can see the artist’s creative surroundings and studios.  

 

In 1979, Joan Miró (1893 – 1983) and his wife, Pilar Juncosa, donated the Son Boter studios and another studio designed by J. L. Sert to the city of Palma. These buildings were the starting point for the creation of this foundation. Years later, in 1992, a new building by architect Rafael Moneo was added. All three buildings are surrounded by Mediterranean vegetation, with sculptures by Miró that blend skilfully into the natural setting.  The formula is very successful, we were bowled over by the surroundings and loved the gallery and the artist's work.



A turtle popped up and said hello as we relaxed in the cafe. 

Emerging from the tram, and discovering there was quite a walk to the hotel, we did the sensible thing and stopped for a beer and bocadillo

The hotel may have needed a bit of refurbishment but our rooms were comfortable and the sea view was beautiful.  Beers on the balcony and fish dinners at Es Reco, a chiringuito on the beach below, became the routine.  (Read about Es Reco here: http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g319794-d2097014-r118408254-Cafe_bar_Es_Reco-Soller_Majorca_Balearic_Islands.html )

Port Soller is beautifully situated in a cove shaped harbour, with the Sierra de Tramuntana rising up behind.  Along with the village of Fornalutx and the hamlet of Biniaraix they combine to form Soller.  The combined population is around 12,000.  The tram linking Soller and the port runs along the quiet beach side road. This has a marina at the eastern end and many good restuarants and bars.  The resort is sedate, tasteful and middle aged. Which suited us down to the ground.  There is a strong German and Scandinavian influence which tends to keep standards high.  

Two lighthouses sit on the headlands on either side of the bay, La Badia de Sóller. Development on the east headland has been prevented by the area being used as a training ground by the armed forces.

A view from the far side 

The best thing about Port Soller is the beach.  Swimming in the warm, calm and clear sea is wonderful.  The next best thing is the walking.  And of course,you do the the walk first! We broke ourselves in by walking to Soller and back on the first day.  Well marked rocky paths took us through orange trees was we ascended gradually, passing farmhouses with brightly coloured gardens 

Suddenly, as we rounded a corner on a hillside, a man popped up offering us zumo de naranja (freshly squeezed orange juice).  He charges 2 euros which is slightly more than most bars but he does have a captive audience! 

The focus of the town of Soller is the Plaça Constitució which is surrounded by cafés and has trees and a fountain in its centre. The tram passes through the Plaça on its way to and from the main station (shown below) which has been restored to incorporate a museum of Picasso porcelain (he's having a bit of a laugh) and prints by Joan Miró. 

The church of Sant Bartomeu facing the east side of the Plaça is flanked by the town hall and the Banco de Sóller, a Modernista building, designed by Joan Rubió i Bellver, a follower of Antoni Gaudí. 

The church dates from the 13th century but the current interior structure is now largely baroque.

When we arrived the square was heaving with tourists and very hot.  

(We later discovered that the most quiet and peaceful spot for a snack is the inexpensive and tasteful bar at the station.  Presumably most people head straight for the town or the tram to the Port.)

Josep Rubio i Bellver, also designed the modernista house called Ca'n Prunera (completed 1911) which is now a museum,  situated about 2 minutes walk from the placa. Ca'n Prunera boasts a permanent art collection with works by national and international artists such as Picasso, Miró, Matisse, and Magritte, as well as local artists. We didn't have the inclination to visit on this occasion so cannot comment. 

Ensaïmadas in the pastelería.  

But for us, a picnic lunch on the station platform!

Here is a photo of the train resting at the Station

And here is a tram in the square

We ambled back to Port Soller

Enjoying the view from our rooms before swimming, then having a beer as the sunset

Pondering on how many obreros it takes to hook up a tram

Deià is a small coastal village in the Tramuntana,  located about ten miles south of Soller, known for its literary and musical residents. It is hyped for it's idyllic landscape of orange and olive groves on steep cliffs overlooking the Mediterranean, which has served as a draw for German, English, and American expatriates since the first world war.  Although, the village is unspoiled and quiet, for us it did not quite live up to it's expectations, sprawled as it is along the main road.  However the peace was a welcome change from the crowded Soller. 

The English poet, novelist, and scholar, Robert Graves was one of the first foreigners to settle in the village. 'I Claudius' is one of my favorite books, so I was interested to visit this village.  Graves stayed here till his death in 1985, and is buried in the church. 

Anaïs Nin visited the village in the 1920s, and wrote a short story set on the village's beach. We took the bus from Port Soller (there are several per day) and after coffee dropped down to the pebbly beach of Cala Deià.  It was truly lovely to swim there. 

The town is also the unnamed setting of the Uruguayan novelist, Cristina Peri Rossi's The Ship of Fools (La nave de los locos). The Nicaraguan poet and novelist, Claribel Alegría, lives in Deià today. 

In recent decades, the stars of literature have been eclipsed by the stars of rock and roll. Richard Branson, has a luxury residence in the town, and his label's stars have often visited the village and sometimes jammed at the local bar, Sa Fonda.   Mick Jagger, guitarist Mark Knopfler, and Caroline Corr have played here.  

All in all, it was just a bit too posh for us.  

The walk up from Cala Deià is very beautiful. 

We found a welcome picnic spot 

Then continued towards Soller and it's port









We descended into Port Soller via the refugio Muleta, part of the ruta de pedra en sec.

Above is the view of the Port from this site, and below is the lighthouse

These photos were taken only moments apart from different angles, note the micro climates!

We descended to the port

After the swim. beers on the balcony!