Our city break to Palma was exactly that with the emphasis on break. We didn’t do much except eat, drink, sunbake and perhaps my most favourite activity of all, wander.
It’s as if the medieval streets of Palma’s Old Town were made for wandering. I was mesmerised by Old Town’s rich history, variety of shops and plethora of restaurants.
The maze of narrow, winding streets are just perfect for exploring. I love how they wind around pretty squares and showcase Renaissance, Baroque and Gothic architecture.
And let’s not forget the cool, quiet courtyards. We could not resist a sneak peek!
We even met some of the local residents! Palma was very pet friendly – we saw so many dogs out for walks, relaxing at cafes and even in department stores (all with their owners of course!)
I became quite obsessed with these doors within doors – a feature of traditional Mallorcan architecture. The double doored entrances were most often found in grand houses and palaces and combined both practicality and style. The outer larger doors would be used for carriages and other large items while the smaller, inner door would be for everyday comings and goings and also to enhance security.
Old buildings and new artwork – Palma fusion at it’s finest.
We walked along this street on our Voicemap tour. In Medieval times, this street was built to connect two important streets in the then Jewish Quarter. If you look at the end of the street, you can see it was built to the side of an existing building with the windows above what looks like a tunnel.
Horse drawn carriages traditionally have been a big attraction in Palma offering tourists a nostalgic way to see the city. In recent years, there have been been concerns over the horses’ welfare particularly with regards to the heat and traffic. There were plans to ban the horse drawn carriages and replace them with electric vehicles but we didn’t see any evidence of that. I can’t understand how anyone would want to support this cruel and outdated practice but as my mum would say “there’s none so strange as folk.”
Anyhoo rant over. It’s hard to get your knickers in a knot in a place this pretty.
Thanks for joining me on this virtual stroll through the streets of Palma’s Old Town. What do you like to do when you’re on holiday? And would you ride in a horse drawn carriage?
