Month: May 2007

Myself and some friends have just gotten back from a week’s hols on Mallorca – and had a fantastic time. We rented a villa in the hills outside Pollensa and kicked back. We also managed to fit in some yacht-shaped fun and spent some time cruising around the Island. Really, great fun. If you haven’t been to Mallorca, odds are you probably associate the place with Ibiza-style foam parties and cheap and tacky holiday resorts. It does have those things – and I’ve had the misfortune to end up there in a previous incarnation as a travel journalist.

However, on a different occasion, I stopped off in the Island’s capital city of Palma and discovered that there is an entire other side to this island that is simply fantastic, and I’ve been back to the island three or four times since.

Resorts like Magaluf and Santa Ponsa soak up 90 per cent of visitors to the island, with the result that many people will leave the island totally unaware that it boasts one of Europe’s most beautiful and cultured capital cities.

While Palma is a thoroughly Spanish city – complete with tapas bars, siesta, buzzing mopeds and authentic Spanish food – in ways it looks and feels quite different to other Iberian towns.

This is a walker’s city, and the old town features some of the most beautiful street architecture found in the region. Originally established by the Romans, the city was later conquered by Arabs, and even today influences from both these cultures can clearly be seen in its architecture.

Palma can really be split into two halves – the new and the old. Most of the city is relatively new, and the tree-lined avenues of La Rambla and Passeig des Born were built in the l9th Century. However it is the old town, or Casco Antiguo, and the Calatrava quarter, which starts directly behind the city’s famous seafront cathedral, that is likely to have most appeal for tourists.

The magnificent 13th century Gothic cathedral is a must see, as are the city’s 10th century Arab Baths, but it’s also possible to spend a highly enjoyable couple of hours simply wandering through the old city’s narrow winding streets. Many of the oldest houses are tall and constructed close together, providing welcome shade to the streets below. Other attractions include the beautiful harbour and marina, museums, theatres and a fantastic selection of restaurants and bars.

Palma is a bustling shopping city during the day, with plenty of bargains on offer and branches of all of Spain’s best known chain stores, but it is at night that the city really comes to life. Like most Spanish cities, it’s best not to venture out too early — locals tend to start their evenings at around 10pm, and will stay out until 3am, so to avoid sitting in empty bars and restaurants, do likewise and have a late supper. The local cuisine includes all the stables of Spanish cuisine, as well as regional favourites like scrambled egg and prawns, and Piemento de Padron, a dish of mild green chillies fried and salted.

Oh man, this is a head wrecker. See if you can see the trick being done. It’s genuinely amazing.

Somebody sent me a link to an article on the nature of how people present themselves on the internet. It’s interesting, and I know I’ve seen the behaviour detailed within the article continually over the years.

When people have the opportunity to separate their actions from their real world and identity, they feel less vulnerable about opening up. Whatever they say or do can’t be directly linked to the rest of their lives. They don’t have to own their behavior by acknowledging it within the full context of who they “really” are. When acting out hostile feelings, the person doesn’t have to take responsibility for those actions. In fact, people might even convince themselves that those behaviors “aren’t me at all.” In psychology this is called “dissociation.”

You can find the full article at

http://www.rider.edu/~suler/psycyber/disinhibit.html

It makes for interesting reading.

That’s what I thought when the press release fell into my mail box this afternoon. I get travel related press releases all the time, but I nearly dropped my coffee when I saw this one. There is a new company offering a bus service to take you from London to Sydney . . . by bus!

My god. Can you imagine? It takes 12 weeks and costs a massive £3750 sterling for the privledge, taking in England, France, Germany, Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, Nepal, China, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia East Timor and finally Australia.

It’s completely nuts. You could fly there business class in 24 hours for less than the cost of 12 weeks in a bus, camping and doing chores by the roadside. I also particularly like the way it takes in some of the World’s most dangerous hot spots on the trip. But wait, there’s more:

Duties can include: cooking, truck/camp cleaning, shopping and security watch; the tour leader may organise a roster at the beginning of the tour so that everyone does their fair share. The advantages of this are meeting local people when shopping in markets, helping the environment by keep campsites and nature spots tidy as well as meeting and getting to know all your fellow travellers. Flexibility is key, an open mind will introduce you to the local delights of the area you are travelling through as well as allow you to enjoy the tour to its fullest.

Ha ha ha – security watch! It sounds great – I’d love to do that. You can find out more www.oz-bus.com