Port of Monaco - EZE

The medieval village of Eze, France

EZE. PRONOUNCED: "Ezz," we learned from our French guide. Originally populated as a commune around 200 B.C., the current medieval buildings mostly date back to 14th and 15th Centuries. Alternately ruled by the Romans, the Moors, the house of Savoy, and others, Eze officially became part of France in 1860. The village is built high up into a mountainside, overlooking the Mediterranean.

Eze, France

THE HOUSE of Savoy deemed it a strategic location because of its "Eagles Nest" view of the surrounding area and its close proximity (about 5 miles) to Nice.

Eze, France

TODAY, THE village is mostly shops, hotels (including some 5-stars), art galleries and restaurants. Its primary draw is tourism, and it is said to be a favorite for honeymooners, among other things.

Eze, France, viewed from near the top of the Medieval Village

AT THE base of the Medieval Village, there is a parking lot, a couple restaurants, and a "perfume factory" (more on that later 😏). This is where the busses and tourist vans stop. There is also a railroad station that is served from Nice nearby (though we didn't see it).  There is a steep, switchback driveway just a very short way up to the village, which terminates in the parking lot of one of the 5-star hotels (reputed to be a favorite of celebrities). The rest of the way up is a steep, curvy walking path. As you ascend, it begins to weave between the medieval buildings. It is all cobblestone.

Eze, France

WE WALKED nearly to the top. You can see the surrounding residential and hotel accommodations in the distance from the image above - as well as the view down to the Mediterranean.

Eze, France

IN ADDITION to shops, galleries and hotels, there is a Church about halfway up, which it is said, can be seen from the valley below on clear days. It is a pretty little village with lots of more "intimate" photo-ops.

Church in Eze, France

I MENTIONED the perfume "factory" above. After seeing what we could of the medieval village, we made our way back down to the meeting point. At the base of the village, near where the bus parking was, was a single story building that presumably housed a "perfume factory." We had some time constraints and wanted to get on to - in our minds - the main event: Monaco, so nobody in our group had any particular interest in the factory. Just across the street were some other little shops that may or may not have been interesting. I made a few shots as we waited for the rest of the group to descend from the Medieval Village. Then, it was on (back?) to Monaco, where we completed our day, before returning to our ship.

Base of the Village; Eze, France

The Port of Monaco - Nice

The Principality of Monaco

OUR NEXT scheduled port was Monaco. This cruise was called "Spain and The Italian Riviera." According to most definitions, "riviera" derives from Italian and means "coastline." The term mainly references the coast of southern France (most often referred to as "The French Riviera") and western Italy (known as Liguria). I am not sure how often ships stop right at Monaco. This was certainly a first for us.

The Principality of Monaco

WE JOINED a private excursion this day and it was well worth it (in 2022, we would return to Monaco from Cannes by train for a different experience). Had we not done this excursion, I might have been disappointed in the 2022 visit. As it was, the two complimented each other quite nicely.

Somewhere between Monaco and Nice

AFTER TENDERING (Monaco is very small and is definitely going to be a tender port for any cruise ship that does stop there) to shore, we met our driver. Our group was 6 people. It is a nice sized group as you get a lot of one-to-one interaction with the guide. Our guide was really good. A French citizen, he was very knowledgeable about the area. Though we met our driver right in Monaco, most of our tour of it would ultimately be last part of our tour. There was a public transportation (train) strike that day, and he thought it would be a good idea for us to go to our other destinations first, because of anticipated traffic congestion.

Scenic Overlook outside Nice

OUR FIRST destination was Nice ("neese" - I mean yeah, it was nice, but it is Nice). 😎 On our ride west, we learned a bit about Monaco, the second smallest sovereign nation in the world (after the Vatican). Monaco is known as a principality (hence, the royal Grimaldi family, including among others, Prince Rainier and the current, Prince Albert). Bordered by both France and Italy, and situated in the heart of the French Riviera, it is also certainly one of the wealthiest nations in the world. There is no income tax and very low business taxes. It is said that approximately 1/3 of its residents are millionaires. Its economic growth was started in the mid to late 1800's with the construction of the Monte Carlo casino. Prio to that time, it was small and did not have many improvements. Along with the casino, a direct rail line to Paris was built. These two factors were the start of its transformation to what is perhaps the world's best known "playground for the rich and famous."

Monaco is perhaps the world's best known "Playground for the Rich and Famous"

AT THAT time, Nice was probably the nearest major city. Monaco's official language is French, and many of the day workers in the principality are French citizens and residents (most of whom could not begin to afford to live within Monaco, even if they could otherwise qualify for residency or citizenship).

Port of Nice, France

NICE, AS I noted above, was nice. A historically strategic port, Nice is best known for its status as a (probably at one time "the") premiere resort town on the French Riviera. The Cote de Azur' (the French description of the riviera - translated roughly: "the azure coast") is known for its temperate, warm year-round climate, and its beautiful beaches and shoreline. The so-called "French Riviera" is a stretch of seacoast from St. Tropez to the west, all the to the Italian border, including such notable locations as St. Tropez, Cannes, and Monaco (really, the beautiful seacoast and immensely popular French towns stretch even further to the west, at least to Marseille). To the north, there are natural mountains and parks that are spectacular. We would see some of that on our return to the French Riviera in 2022. For this trip, our visit was specifically to the "Old Nice" portion of the city - presumably where it all started. On the way, we did stop at an impressive overlook, which gave us a nice panoramic of the Nice Port/Harbor.

"Period" mosaic decorations on the building windows - Nice, France

"OLD NICE," as it is known today, it in the center of the municipality of Nice, down on the waterfront in the heart of the riviera. There, the old historical buildings and streets have been largely preserved. Today, what we might call "The Greater Nice" area boasts a population of nearly 1 million. About 8 miles from Monaco, I suspect the majority of commuters to Monaco for work probably live within this area. In 2022, when we took the train from Cannes to Monaco, I noted that there were 3 successive "Nice" stops on the way.

The Maison Auer Confectionary on the Main Street in Old Nice is said to be one of Queen Victoria's favorite places. We went in. I can see why. Yummy.

BY THE mid-1800's Nice - largely because of its mild winter climate - had become a popular spot for wealthy European families to spend their winters. These winter-vacationers also included European royalty, the most notable of whom perhaps were Queen Victoria, and her son, Edward VII, who often wintered there. But the area attracted other notables and celebrities, such as artists, Marc Chagall and Henri Matisse, and scientist, Henry Cavendish (noted for his discovery of Hydrogen). 

Plaza at the end of the Main Street - Old Nice

EVEN ROYALTY outside of Europe became aware of and developed an affinity for Nice. Both Prince Nicholas Alexdandrovich (heir apparent to the Tzar of Russia) and Princess Catherine Dulgorukova (wife of Tsar Alexander II of Russia) died and were buried in Nice. But these "modern" developments didn't happen until the late 18th Century, following some tumultuous history. Perhaps one of Nice' most famous landmarks is The Promenade de Anglais ("The English Walk"), a pedestrian walkway along the sea, named for its popularity with the British Royalty. Nice was at one time highly populated by Italian citizens and for many years, its official language was Italian. After the annexation by France in 1960, the language was changed to French, but not without some displeasure from the Italian denizens. Around 11,000 of them left Nice and moved to Italian towns near the border. During the many years since Nice was first founded, multiple ethnic and national groups populated the city, which it quite diverse today. Along with the diversity, sometimes comes unwanted attention and activity. Most probably remember the 2016 Islamic Terrorist who drove a truck onto the pedestrian walkway on a July evening, killing 86 people, and injuring more than 400. The area was more crowded than usual, as the residents were celebrating Bastille Day. Sadly, for me, when I learned we were visiting Nice, that was the one thing I knew/remembered about it. Thankfully, I have learned since, what a wonderful place it is. We walked part of the Promenade near the end of our visit to Nice. It is beautiful.

Promenade des Anglais at the Old Nice Seaside

DURING THE Middle Ages, control of Nice alternated between Italy and France. Near the end of the 14th Century, Nice became voluntarily under the protection of the Duchy of Savoy (eventually becoming part of the nation of France). Nice' history is interesting, and though too complex for here, worth a "Google," and "Wikipedia" read or two. In short, at the time they came within its control, Savoy was a county on the (now) French-Italian border. Originally a state of The Holy Roman Empire, Savoy's ultimate national affiliation would not come until many years later. The Holy Roman Emperor first deemed it a Duchy of the Empire in 1416. Savoy existed as its own sovereign country (subject, of course to the Holy Roman Empire) until 1860. During that period, its own control alternated mainly between Italy, France, Sardinia and Sicily. Under the 1860 Treaty of Turin, Savoy was annexed to France. Over those many years much warfare covered the area, including the town of Nice. In spite of its strong defenses and well defended port, it was pretty much demolished and later rebuilt, and there are medieval ruins (we did not visit them) in portions of the city.

Sidewalk Cafes near the Old City Outdoor Market - Nice, France

THE OUTDOOR market took up the middle of the main street for 3 or 4 blocks. Similar to many of the great European markets we have seen, it was small, clean, and very colorful.

Flowers in the Nice Outdoor Market

LOCAL, OFTEN colorful, shops and cafe's lined both sides of the street, making a very picturesque sight, perhaps just a bit reminiscent of "the old days." We spent the first part of a morning in Old Nice, and near the end of our time (just before we were to meet our guide back at the parking area), we took advantage of one of the quaint little French cafe's lining the outdoor market. Those of you who cruise frequently probably know the drill. Look for a cafe or shop that advertises "free" wi-fi. Buy a cappuccino, espresso, Americano (or at the appropriate time of day, a "more serious" beverage 😉), get the code, and catch up on your e-mail. Because the ship internet (all of them, everywhere, every cruise line) frankly sucks. 😒 And of course, when at sea, it is basically non-existent. This was one of those times for us, though my wife usually has more of that stuff she wants to do. Since retiring, I get (whew) very little e-mail, and will usually just do the occasional Facebook post. So, sitting with my camera, I look for stuff. I had the good fortune of seeing this shot, while sitting at our table. it is maybe one of my favorite "people" pictures (an "art" I am not good at and seldom practice).

Just another Morning - Cafe in Old Nice

WE ENJOYED Nice. It was a quiet and relaxing morning. On our later (2022), we ported in nearby Toulon. Our guide and driver lives in Nice. He was very high on the city. We will probably go back again, if the opportunity presents itself. Our next stop on this day would be the ancient city of Eze. Stay Tuned.

Another Visit to Barcelona

Barcelona from the aft deck of the Celebrity Edge

OUR NEXT stop was an overnight in Barcelona. This was our second visit to the city. Our first was in 2015, where we boarded the Princess Cruise Lines, Emerald Princess with our friends Paul and Linda, on their first cruise with us, and our "makeup" cruise for our first aborted cruise back in 2013. We spent several days in Barcelona on that trip. And we fell in love with the city. The people, food, history, culture and architecture are simply spectacular. Until our 2022 visit to Portugal, and particularly to the city of Porto, Barcelona was far and away my favorite European city. It still remains one of our favorites, and we know we will return many more times (including a stop on our 2022 Mediterranean cruise - for a future post).

Parc Guell; Barcelona, Spain

THE OVERNIGHT presented a couple opportunities. We had seen a lot of the city in 2015, taking the Gaudi tour, doing some food and beverage "walks," and of course, seeing the La Sagrada Familia. We also saw the spectacular Paleo de Musica, and of course, Gaudi's utopian village: "Parc Guell." But our Parc Guell visit was cut short by a massive rainstorm. So, for this trip we made a return visit to the park a priority on our first day. The next day, since we had already seen so much of the city, we would take a tour north into the mountains, to the abbey at Montserrat. I guess this was the official "Monastery Cruise" for us. 😀

Wall Details; Parc Guell; Barcelona, Spain

WE WERE able to see all of Parc Guell this time, with a guided tour, showing all of the parts of the self-contained community for the "rich and famous" of Gaudi's time. For all of its planning, it never did really catch on, and now in the current day, it is a park for tourists and visitors, showing off Gaudi's architecture and ideas. For those who may not have known, Gaudi had a huge influence in the architecture and development of Barcelona, and his work can be seen all over the city. His approach was unique and was based largely on the theory that nothing in nature was a straight line. For the most part, almost nothing in Gaudi's design is in a straight line.

The Gothic Quarter; Barcelona, Spain

WE RETURNED to the ship afterward but had a scheduled nighttime tour of the old Gothic Quarter (arguably the coolest part of the city). A few of our new friends from the ship, including Steve and Jan (mentioned in an earlier post) were on the tour. It was in interesting mix, in that it was architectural and history, bringing us through several centuries of examples as we walked around; but also mixed in with tapas food and wine along the way. It was an interesting opportunity to see some of the city after dark. Much of it matches the look of the period it was built in (even though electricity is present throughout), with "torch-like" lamps lighting some of the alleyways, giving it an eerie, but probably realistic feel for its time. Those who know something about photography will appreciate, and I hope the rest will understand, that I don't have any photos of this evening. Dark conditions and a fast-moving tour just don't create good shooting conditions. So, I didn't. 😐

Montserrat; Barcelona, Spain

THE NEXT morning, we met our tour guide on shore and a small group of about 12 of us took the approximately hour-long trip (just over 30 miles) northwest, into the mountains, to Montserrat. Santa Maria de Montserrat is a Benedictine Abbey in the Catalan region of Spain. The name "Montserrat" means "serrated mountain" in the Catalan language. From a distance on most days, it is easy to see how the jagged, multi-peaked mountain gets its name. Montserrat is part of the Catalan pre-coastal mountain range (on our visit in 2022, we were told by our guide that the range extends all the way west from Monserrat to the Bay of Biscay on the Atlantic Ocean).

Santa Maria de Montserrat; Barcelona, Spain

OUR TOUR was supposed to include about 1/2 day at the Monserrat Abbey, and the second half at a local Montserrat winery. There is a funicular from the parking main parking area, and a second one from the monastery up to the top of the mountain. I wanted to take that to the top. For reasons I will get into below, we weren't able to do so. I was disappointed and vowed to be back (and indeed we were back here again in 2022). When we did return, I learned that the view was inward between two close ranges, and not that spectacular; and that more often than not, fog at the top obscured a view of any kind. It was foggy in 2022, and having learned what I now know, I opted not to go up then either. One of the sights to see in the Abbey is the statue of The Black Madonna (Our Lady of Montserrat, a/k/a The Virgin of Montserrat), the patron saint of Catalan. The legend goes that someone discovered the Black Madonna (on of only a very few in the world) on the site of the monastery, and since they couldn't (or didn't want to) move it, built the monastery around it. We stood in a long line to see it.

Church; Montserrat, Spain

I AM sure every reader has heard the expression, "hangry." On this day, I had a version of "hanger," that was related not to food, but thirst. Our timing off the ship that morning and the concern about how long before a restroom facility had me planning my hydration poorly. There is a famous boys'-choir that performs each day a noon at the Abbey, and most of our group opted to purchase tickets and hear them. There was also a purportedly nice museum on the grounds. But I couldn't think of anything more than that I was dying of thirst. I went to the cafeteria to get water. Our guide had been there many times, so he opted to accompany us to the cafeteria and sat with us. At that time, he began to express some concerns about continuing the tour - and ultimately decided he would cut it short, returning to the ship as soon as the boys'-choir was finished. Thus, I also caused us to miss out on the museum, which we could have done during the boy's-choir performance. Something else to return for.

Catalan Separatist Protest

BARCELONA IS part of the region in Spain known as Catalan. There are a number of regions (e.g., Basque) in the diverse nation and a national unity came very hard for them. Most of the regions have maintained a high degree of autonomy and their own specific identity. No region is more attuned to this than Catalan, which still maintains its own language, along-side the official language of Spain: Spanish (of course). The Catalan Independence movement took root in the early 1900's as a nationalist movement for Catalan to separate from Spain. Over the years, there have been various and frequent demonstrations. To their credit, there has been only very rare episodes of violence. But it really goes back further than that. Catalan was originally a principality of Aragon, resulting from a union between Barcelona and the Kingdom of Aragon, in 1137. Late in the 15th century, the crowns of Aragon and Castile were united through marriage, and eventually became the Kingdom of Spain. All of the entities of Aragon became part of the new Kingdom, but for the most part, maintained a high degree of autonomy, maintaining their own laws and customs. But over the years there was a great degree of pressure to unify; and a great degree of resistance (amounting to several wars) as well. In 1641, Catalan seceded from Spain and sought the assistance and refuge of France. Mostly affiliated with France for the next several years, Spain regained control of Catalan, but again, it maintained its laws and customs for the most part. This history of Spain goes on, but is well beyond the scope of this blog. Suffice it to say that during all the occurred, the Catalan people maintained a fierce national feeling and even though at time "underground" the movement was never dead.

Catalan Independence Flag

IN 1922, the movement boiled again to the surface with the creation of the Catalan Independence Party: Estat Catala'. During this period, Spain as a nation continued to have "growing pains." By the 2000's, the movement had become much more vocal (though as noted above, rarely has been violent), with numerous referenda and protest demonstrations. We really knew nothing about it in 2015 when we were there, but we learned about it in an offhand sort of way. We had some free time during our several day stay in Barcelona, after a morning excursion. We found a nice indoor/outdoor bar near our hotel and sat down for a drink. The television was broadcasting the local news, showing a huge Catalan independence protest, and we learned from our bartender that we were there right around the official "Catalan Independence Day."

Newscast of Catalan Independence Day Protest/Celebration - 2015 - Barcelona, Spain

DURING OUR 2015 stay in Barcelona, we learned bits and pieces about the issues from our tour guides, so on this trip, we knew a little something about it. What we were not aware of, though, brings us back to why our guide was nervous about the Montserrat excursion. In 2019, demonstrators organized a "walk-in" from all over the Catalan countryside, scheduled for the day we were in Montserrat. He mentioned the news accounts as the genesis of his angst. He was not concerned about safety or violence, but about getting us back to the ship on time. As the afternoon wore on, it was expected that thousands of these marchers would completely clog the streets of Barcelona, particularly down near the port and in the old Gothic Quarter. At the time, we didn't appreciate his concerns.

The Catalan Flag is a very common sight in Barcelona; 

more common than the official Flag of Spain

CUTTING OUR trip short by a few hours ensured that he got us back to the ship with no problems. And consequently, we had most of the afternoon back on board. After freshening up and a quick lunch in the buffet, we headed back to my favorite spot on the ship: the cigar/smoking area of the sunset bar. The aft of the ship faced the city, and we began to see what his concerns were about. We got quite a show, as hour by hour, the streets filled with a mass of people and the colorful Catalan flags. It was complete gridlock - a mix of humans and vehicles. We knew others who were off the ship that day and over the afternoon, they (people we had met in the smoking area) straggled in and joined us for the "show." One couple arrived quite late and they told of their story. They were in a cab, and after sitting in traffic for over an hour, their cab driver actually told them they would have a better chance of getting back to the ship on time if they go out and walked. They did. 3 miles (and she was on a knee scooter!). Nobody was angry or put out. We all saw it as a bit of an adventure (of course, from the safety of the top deck of our ship; which departed almost on time - everyone aboard).

Port of Barcelona, Spain

THE ONE other virtue of the overnight stay was that it gave me a rare opportunity to make some nighttime images from the deck of the ship. Normally, by nightfall we have left the port and are steaming toward our next stop. There is usually little but the empty, black sea (maybe some stars sometimes), and our motion makes night photography a challenge. Shooting in very low light conditions usually means you must have long exposures. And long exposures are certain to totally blur any motion that occurs. I took advantage on our overnight, shooting the port from the rear deck of the ship and made a photo I really liked, to add to my nighttime image portfolio.

[Some of you may have noticed that I changed the banner here. When I first began writing this blog a few months back, I had a shot of the Celebrity Solstice (one of the older, "Millenium" Class ships) and it seemed to fit the theme and space. But on reflection (see what I did there? 😉) it occurred to me that we really don't cruise much on that class anymore. One ship that we have cruised the most times on - and has become one of our favorites - is The Celebrity Reflection, so I thought it made a good "thematic" banner image. I made this shot one night in San Juan Puerto Rico, shortly before we pulled away from the port].

Mediterranean 2019 - Mallorca

Palma de Mallorca, Spain

I MAY have mentioned before that this cruise was a bit "spur of the moment." It came up and we booked it, much closer to its departure than we normally do and without much of the pre-planning. It was scheduled to go to some places we had never been, and it sounded like fun, as well as getting ourselves introduced to a new ship.

Palma de Mallorca, Spain

OUR NEXT port was Palma on the Island of Mallorca (Majorca), Spain. Mallorca is the largest of 4 islands of the eastern coast of Spain, in the Balearic Sea (part of the Mediterranean). These 4 islands (Mallorca, Menorca, Ibzia and Formentera) form the chain of islands known as the Balearic Islands, which together are an autonomous region of Spain. Palma is the capital of the region, and is a large, modern city with great seaports and a busy airport (one of the busiest in Spain).

Palma de Mallorca, Spain

ALL FOUR of these islands are popular vacation spots for Europeans - particularly from the U.K., Netherlands and Germany. Mallorca translates (very roughly) from the original Latin as "Largest Island." Being geographically about 4 times the size of the largest other, Mallorca is perhaps the most popular.

Palma de Mallorca, Spain

ORIGINALLY SETTLED by natives of the Iberian Peninsula around 2500 B.C., the islands were later "discovered" by the seafaring Phoenicians, who colonized parts of them. When Roman conquerors dominated the world, they eventually controlled the islands, around 123 B.C. They founded Palmeria (Palma), among other cities. Over the next few hundred years (like much of Europe, western Asia, and the North African Continents), control changed hands several times, first being invaded and very briefly controlled by the germanic Vandals. The Romans regained control but suffered constant raids by Muslims (mainly from North Africa). Eventually, in around 900 A.D., the Muslims gained control. They made may changes and improvements to the cities - particularly Palma, during their rein. Other than a brief period where the islands were overrun by a group from Catalon and Pisa, the Moors (Muslims from primarily Spain and Portugal) ruled until 1299, when King James I of Aragon invaded and established Mallorca (and presumably the other islands) under the Kingdom of Aragon. The islands remained under Spanish rule of various forms from then on.

Palma de Mallorca, Spain

WHAT MAKES the above information pertinent in my mind is how the different cultures contributed to both the architecture and the current culture of Mallorca. During our day in port, we had a hired guide/excursion. We met another couple that we have become friends with on this excursion (and they were among the group in yet another excursion in Barcelona later in the week), Steve and Janice Disbrow. It has been fun for us to keep up with the others' travels on Facebook, and we hope to find ourselves on the same ship again soon. From the port our guide took us up to Bellver Castle, high above the city. The castle was impressive enough, but what I really appreciated were the views down to the water and the city from up there.

Palma de Mallorca, Spain

AFTER SEEING the city from this viewpoint, we traveled north out of the city and up into the mountains to visit the town of and a monastery: Valldemossa. In addition to the very old buildings and architecture.

Valldemossa; Mallorca, Spain

ORIGINALLY BUILT the site of a summer palace by King James II (Jaume II - Catalonian) of Aragon in 1310, Valldemossa is a place of architectural wonder. The original "Palau de Rei Sanxo" has many rooms of medieval architecture, which were full of old, period furniture and other items of the day.

Palau de Rei Sanxo; Valldemossa, Spain

IN SPITE of its intended grandeur, the palace was abandoned in only a few short years. Today best known for the Carthusian Monastery, in 1388, the area was taken over by the Carthusian Order of monks and served as a monastery until 1835. It is said that the goal of the Carthusians was total withdrawal from the world to serve God by personal devotion and privation. Each living in their own "cell," Carthusians were rarely together, sharing meals communally only occasionally. You can see from some of my photos, the examples of neoclassical architecture of the monastery church building.

Carthusian Monastery; Valldemossa, Spain

THERE IS always some history to be learned on these excursions and stops. The history and drama, here, involves the Polish classical musical composer and artist, Frederic Chopin. In 1835, the Spanish government confiscated the monastery at Valldemossa and sold the properties of the monastery and palace private owners. The former monastery grounds - known as the Charterhouse - were used for visitors to come to the island for its comfortable "Mediterranean" climate particularly during the winter months. During a perhaps chance meeting at the home of contemporary Hungarian composer, Franz Lizt, Chopin met and became romantically involved with the sometimes controversial, Amantine Aurore Lucile Dupin, a French journalist and novelist, who wrote under the pen name: George Sand. Chopin and Sand spent the winter of 1838 -39 in Mallorca, with all but the first few weeks spent at the Charter House in Valldemossa. While waiting for their accomodations in Palma, Chopin caught a cold. Rumored to have tuberculosis (years later found to be false), Chopin and Sand were not particlarly welcomed by the inhabitants of Valldemossa. In fact, their left-behind belongings and furniture were burned out of fear of transmission of the disease.

Carthusian Monastery; Valldemossa, Spain

HISTORY HAS been more favorable to Chopin. During their stay, Chopin had ordered a piano to be shipped from England, and due to multiple circumstances, the piano's arrival was delayed until just a few weeks before they departed from Mallorca permanently. Rather than hassle with additional shipping, the piano was left behind, donated to a banker (perhaps in settlement of some debt). It can be seen today in the museum that was once the Charterhouse. Years later, Chopin's history is more favored. Since 1930, a Chopin Festival has been hosted in Valldemossa at the monastery. The entrance fee to the museum includes a short piano performance which is a similated Chopin performance. We saw it and it was quite good.

Carthusian Monastery; Valldemossa, Spain

I FOUND some of the small, quiet spaces in and around the monastery to be very photogenic. I could see how the monks might find these spaces inspiring for their contemplations.

Carthusian Monastery; Valldemossa, Spain

Carthusian Monastery; Valldemossa, Spain

Carthusian Monastery; Valldemossa, Spain

WITH THE expected austerity of a Monastery Church, the interior of the church was still impressive.

Church - Carthusian Monastery; Valldemossa, Spain

Carthusian Monastery; Valldemossa, Spain

WE FINISHED our visit in Valldemossa in the small downtown village, at Sa Foganya: a small cafe where our guide recommended a local almond cake pastry that was extremely popular. After trying it, with a cappuccino, we could see why. The restaurant is highly recommended (with four-star ratings on Tripadvisor and Foursquare).

Restaurant in Valldemossa, Spain

AFTER OUR snack, we had a few minutes to walk the tranquil streets of the small village before boarding our van to head back to the port city.

Valldemossa, Spain

Valldemossa, Spain

BACK IN Palma, our guide took us on a walking tour of the city center area, which was very near the port.

Palma de Mallorca; Spain

THE ROMANS had made Palma (and Mallorca) a primarily Christian nation, but during the Moors' reign, there was also a significant Muslim influence, which can certainly be seen in some of the architecture.

La Seu, Palma Cathedral; Palma de Mallorca, Spain

THE GOTHIC Palma Cathedral (La Seu) is impressive. With one of the tallest knaves in the world, it is built on the site of a Moorish Mosque. Originally begun by James I of Aragon in about 1229, it was never fully completed until 1601. In the mid-1800's a major restoration was begun, and once again, years went by. In 1901, the famous Antoni Gaudi was commissioned to work on it. Only some of his ideas were accepted. Like many such projects, time, money and personalities conflicted with completion, and in 1914, following a dispute with a contractor, Gaudi abandoned the project. Today, the interior spaces are impressive.

Palma Cathedral

Palma Cathedral

OUR TOUR and our day ended at the cathedral. From there it was a short 2-3 block walk, through the beautiful park fronting the Cathedral, which faces the Mediterranean Sea, back to our cruise ship. As we walked, this scene caught my eye (reminding me of our time in Tokyo, a few years back), and reminded me that not all is sober history, but that whimsy and fun can be found anywhere you go. 😁

Palma de Mallorca, Spain

WE LOOKED forward to our next stop, a return visit to Barcelona, one of our favorite cities in Europe!