Tag Archives: Royal Caribbean

October 14, 2022 · 5:35 am

Fun Photo Friday — Transatlantic 2022; Palma de Mallorca and Valldemossa Favorites 1

The sights of Palma de Mallorca would not be our sole purpose on this tour. We would also make our way to a charming village of Valldemossa. As such, this and next week’s Fun Photo Friday will feature images from both destinations:

Comments Off on Fun Photo Friday — Transatlantic 2022; Palma de Mallorca and Valldemossa Favorites 1

Filed under Fun Photo Friday, Photography, R. Doug Wicker, travel, vacation

Tagged as cruise vacation, Fun Photo Friday, Palma de Mallorca, R. Doug Wicker, Royal Caribbean, Spain, transatlantic cruise, travel, travel photography, vacation, Valldemossa, Vision of the Seas

October 12, 2022 · 5:35 am

Transatlantic 2022 — Palma de Mallorca; Royal Palace of La Almudaina

The next stop on our tour was the Royal Palace of La Almudiana. Originally a Roman structure, then a Moorish alcázar, La Almudiana was modified and rebuilt in 1309 by the same architect (Pere Salvà) who built Monday’s blog subject, Castell de Bellver.

West side of Royal Palace of La Almudiana

There’s more to La Almudiana than just the royal palace. Also on the grounds, running along the west side of the palace, are the S’Hort del Rei garden and fountain:

S’Hort del Rei public garden and fountain

While you’re enjoying the garden, look around for various views of the palace:

Interestingly, there are other nearby buildings also sporting some fun imagery. Zooming south of the garden gave me this palm-framed view of the Regional Customs and Excise Unit:

At the northwest corner of the palace, just north of the garden, runs Plaça de la Reina:

Plaça de la Reina becomes Calle del Conquistador. It was along this street that our group would head east as we made our way slowly toward the cathedral along a meandering but fun route with much to see:

Слава Україні! (Slava Ukraini!)

Comments Off on Transatlantic 2022 — Palma de Mallorca; Royal Palace of La Almudaina

Filed under Photography, R. Doug Wicker, travel, vacation

Tagged as cruise vacation, Palma de Mallorca, R. Doug Wicker, Royal Caribbean, Royal Palace of La Almudaina, Spain, transatlantic cruise, travel, travel photography, vacation

October 10, 2022 · 5:35 am

Transatlantic 2022 — Palma de Mallorca; Arrival and Bellver Castle

Ursula and I visited Palma de Mallorca, Spain, twice in May. Our first arrival was on 12 May during our transatlantic cruise. The second was during our eight-day Mediterranean cruise just five days later. On that first visit we took a tour, and on the second we hoofed it off Vision of the Seas for a brief walk out of the port area and back. We’ll get to the 12 May tour in a moment, but first I’m going to show you some images taken on 17 May from aboard Vision:

Royal Palace of La Almudaina (left); Catedral-Basílica de Santa María de Mallorca (right)

Catedral-Basílica de Santa María de Mallorca (left); Diocesan Museum of Barcelona (right)

The cathedral and palace imaged above? We’ll be getting to those starting on Wednesday. As for today, we’re heading out to the first stop on our 12 May tour — Castell de Bellver (Bellver Castle).

If Bellver Castle looks round in the photos below, that’s because it is. Here’s a Google Maps aerial view of Bellver Castle:

Bellver Castle (Google Maps satellite view)

Construction of Bellver Castle began in 1300 and was completed in 1311. I would have enjoyed photographing the open space in the center of Bellver, but visitors were barred from entry on this visit as the castle was being readied for an event.