Mallorca to Barcelona

Monday, May 14 - I was up at 7:00 or so. Boy was it good to get a full night's sleep. My room faced the empty courtyard so it was real quiet. This hotel had the regular breakfast buffet with tasty coffee con leche brewed with an espresso machine.

After breakfast, I wandered down to the waterfront and killed time until the cathedral opened. I took a picture of two bicycle policewomen which I'm going to send along to BAC Tom who, as a Berkeley policeman, ran the bicycle patrol for awhile. At 10:00, the cathedral opened and I went in along with German, English and Japanese tourists. The cathedral was started in the 11th century and took 300 years to build. It is supposedly the largest cathedral in Europe on the seaside. It is under constant maintenance. Gaudi did some work in it and again you can see his influence. I took lots of pictures.

I checked out of the hotel at 11:00 and took a taxi to the airport. I considered taking the bus, but the stop was too far away for me to tote my luggage. I checked in and ate lunch - a ham sandwich, olive oil chips and bottled water. I almost had to pay for extra weight for my luggage. Because I'm only going as far as Barcelona today, the allowance was 20 kilos. The clerk took pity on me and didn't charge me because my final destination is SFO.

I got here way early for my flight, so I'm taking the opportunity to update my notes.

Now I'm in my hotel in Barcelona. It's in an old building on the third floor. My room is small and clean. It appears to have been refinished recently. The floors have large yellowish-brown tiles and the walls are painted with wide yellow and white vertical stripes. I also have a small balcony with a table, two chairs and several potted plants. The only complaint that I have is that the shower doors are falling off. Oh yeah, and when I came in, the lobby TV outside my door was turned up real loud and the clerk was smoking next to the no-smoking sign.

time - about 5:30 - so I bought a package of very salty peanuts at a small store on my way. There were hundreds of people walking up and down. It was instant recognition from when we were here before. I even found the huge produce market just off of the I showered and made my way to la Rambla with the aid of my GPS. I was very hungry at thispromenade. I got a small glass of berry juice there. Further down la Rambla, I bought a large baked chicken and vegetable sandwich at a shop advertising that it is the best sandwich in town. I should have know better because there was a Subway just down the street. For dessert, I had a couple pastries from Dunkin' Donuts.

On my way back to the hotel, I walked past the square with the two fountains at the top of la Rambla. When I got into the hotel, there was a new non-smoking clerk and the TV was turned off. My attitude is much better. I'll reserve further opinion when I see a taxi at 6:00 tomorrow morning.

I'll be publishing this blog entry when I can. I know that there are internet zones in the Barcelona airport.

Mallorca Day 13

Sunday, May 13 - Last night's dinner was simple farm food. We started out with several kinds of salads. One was similar to the aubergine custard that I had a few days before. Another one had hardier vegetables and shrimp. They were all cold and tasty. This part of the dinner was serve-yourself. When we were done with the starters, they brought us several platters of barbecued food. The first was sausages and ground meat that could have been ostrich meat from a farm a few kilometers away. The next platter had lamb and pork chops. The last platter had fish. I gave up after the lamb chops. They weren't the best cut of meat and fish, but they hit the spot after a long day of cycling. Dessert was cake and torts.

We got to bed around 10:00.

Several people had early flights this morning and a few had later ones. The early people missed breakfast, but we got ours. It was a normal breakfast buffet but much less choice that at the bigger hotels. They cooked eggs to order for those who wanted them. Alison had already shuttled the early people to the airport. We loaded up the van with what was left and she took off with the later people. The rest of us road back to the Delta Hotel - our very first hotel - where we had left our bicycle bags.

I started riding at 9:15. The weather was warm so I rode in my shorts and jersey. I would have been back-tracking the end of yesterday's route if I had followed the route yesterday. The real route was mostly along the narrow roads that are designated as bicycle roads. They have very little motorized traffic.

I got to the Delta at 10:45. I washed my bicycle and packed it in its suitcase. By the time I was done, Alison arrived with the luggage. I did a quick change in the men's room, said good-bye to everyone that was left and took a taxi into Palma and the Hotel Born.

The Hotel Born is and old building with very thick walls and a central courtyard. It is located in the oldest part of town on a very narrow street that my taxi could not go down. I had to lug my bags about 100 feet to the entrance. My room wasn't ready yet so I walked down the street and had my first and last tapas for this trip to Spain. I had two courses - potatoes with aioli sauce and white asparagus wrapped in ham. It was OK but not great. There are lots of other restaurants in this part of town so I am looking forward to tonight.

After lunch I caught the hop-on, hop-off bus to get a tour of the city. I asked if they had a senior discount and I got on for half-price. I sat on the upper deck and listened to a recorded narrative in English on small earphones. The temperature was in the mid 80's but a cool breeze from the sea kept me comfortable. The tour was interesting and I learned some history of Palma which I promptly forgot. This is another place where kings fought kings and brothers killed brothers.

So now I am in my room with no internet connection. It's strange that the little hotels way out in the rural areas have wifi, but some hotels in the big cities don't.

Final daily statistics:
Max speed - 29.6
Time - 1:26
Average speed - 14.8
Miles - 21
Elevation - 375

I couldn't stand being in my room, so I decided to wander along some side streets. One objective was to find somewhere to get a snack. The other was to take some pictures with a fresh battery in my camera. I accomplished. Banana and coconut gelato tasted real good and I found some picturesque buildings and other scenes to shoot. Gaudi spent some time here and you notice his influence right away on some of the buildings.

My wandering also took me to a popular restaurant area. After perusing many menus, I decided on La Palma and went there at the more appropriate hour of 7:30. The lamb shoulder I had this time was in a tomato sauce. It came with fresh green beans and a potato baked in foil. It was good. I remembered to take a picture of it.

After dinner, I meandered back to the hotel along some other side streets. It was lights-out before 10:00.

Mallorca Day 12

Saturday, May 12 - Last night's dinner was the farewell dinner for our group because one of the riders was leaving after today's ride. The dinner was held at Son Tomas - a restaurant up the street from the hotel. Typical of Spain, it started late. They conceded to us, though, and let us begin at 7:30. I had the house salad, fish ala Mallorca and chocolate cake with frozen yogurt. The fish was a thick white fish covered with kale, thin slices of leeks, tomato, raisins and pine nuts. It sat on slices of potatoes. It looks really good but it is a little bland. I've had fish cooked this way several times and have never been totally satisfied. The dinner was fun, though, and the wine flowed freely.

We were up this morning at 7:00, loaded our bags by 8:00 and ate breakfast again on the terrace overlooking the sea. I started riding around 8:45. The first few miles climbed up the same road I came in on the day before. At the top after the first turn, I heard some beautiful bird songs so I stopped and recorded them. I'll put the recording on our web site after I get home.

The rest of the ride was rollers and downhills. The weather was clear and the temperature got up to the 80's. I stopped in Algaida for cafe con leche and a banana. Some others in the group stopped there, too, and shared some of their bread and cheese that they bought at a farmers' market a few towns before. I missed the market. I was either off route or I had my eyes on the pavement. That little bit of nourishment held me until the end of the ride.

On the last several miles of the ride, I managed to misinterpret my GPS and the route sheet. It didn't matter, though, because I got to see more of the countryside. I also got to catch up to some of our group several times. They made the right turns. The GPS got me back on route more than once.

Five of us rode to the finca where we are staying. We had lots of trouble finding the sign for the turnoff, but after doubling back and asking directions, we finally found it at around 2:00. I immediately checked in and had a cerveza and a sandwich.

This finca is really rustic and not as nicely furnished as the places we staying in previously. I'm glad that I brought my own shampoo and soap. I am surprised and really pleased that even the remote, rural hotels have free internet connections (usually wireless) for their guests.

Daily statistics:
Max speed - 32.8
Time - 4:18
Average speed - 13.5
Miles - 58
Elevation - 1700

Mallorca Day 11

Friday, May 11 - Our hotel is a pair of large Mediterranean style villas. Each room seems to be different. Bill and I have a large room with a full bath and a covered balcony overlooking a lemon grove and the sea in the distance. The hotel is family-run meaning that several generations work here. The same man who checked us in also showed us our room, served refreshments at happy hour and served us dinner.

Dinner last night was good. For starters, we had a choice of carrot soup or aubergine pudding. I chose the aubergine. It was cooked like a souffle and served cold. Very tasty. Our entree was a choice between fish cooked Mallorcan style or duck. I had the fish which was very good - moist and full of flavor. Dinner didn't start until 8:00 so we weren't in bed until 11:00. That was OK because breakfast didn't start until 8:00 this morning.

We awoke this morning to warm temperatures. Breakfast was served on the outside balcony. It was the usual buffet. No eggs were ready so I had a very good granola along with assorted pastries.

The ride started south along the coast. It had more of our previous long rollers high above the Mediterranean. I rode alone mostly because the other riders were doing various alternate routes. They were afraid of the mid-day heat and their legs were getting tired. I reached Andratx after 23km and turned inland. The rest of the ride was on narrow country roads with little traffic. The road went up and down through three different valleys. I passed several small villages. In Capdella, I went into a botiga (bodega in Mallorcan) where I spotted Alison. With her Spanish language skills, she helped me buy a freshly made salami and cheese sandwich with tomato. (It turned out that the shopkeeper spoke some English and I could have done this myself). I also filled up my water bottles with a large agua sin gas. The picture at the top of this page is from the store. I ate my lunch at the top of the next hill in the shade watching other cyclists go up and down the road.

The temperature was now varying between 85 and 92 so I was anxious to get back to the hotel and cool off. I did, though, go through some beautiful countryside. On one stretch as I was riding along a high wall, bird calls were echoing back and forth. I was going to record them, but I was too focused to stop.

I got back to the hotel at 12:30, showered, had a snack (bananas and dark chocolate) and drank lots of water.

Daily statistics:
Max speed - 35.7
Time - 3:30
Average speed - 10.9
Miles - 39
Elevation - 4470

Mallorca Day 10

Thursday, May 10 - For dinner last night, Bill, Steve and I walked to the other side of the port. I saw some restaurant reviews and one called El Pirata sounded good. When we got there, the menu didn't look very good. We looked at the menu at the restaurant next door and decided to eat there. I had a small dinner salad that had white asparagus, tomato, red and green peppers, corn, etc. in it. For an entree, we all had lamb shoulder. It was cooked what I call country style with potato, mushrooms and green vegetables. It was very hardy and tasty.

We walked back to the hotel, did our packing and went to bed around 10:15.

We got up this morning around 6:30 so that we would have time to eat and get our bags to the van by 8:00. I decided that I would like to ride with a group today, so we hung around the hotel until everyone was ready. We finally left just before 8:00.

Even though the sky was clear, it was a little cool so I started out with arm warmers and a light-weight jacket. This lasted about 10 minutes when we started the first climb of the day. The rest of the ride was in short-sleeve jersey and shorts. Temperatures rose during the day to the mid-to-high 80's.

After the initial climb, we reached the coast. Because we were riding at 600-700 feet, we got gorgeous views of the Mediterranean for the rest of the ride. Our first stop was at a grocery store in Deia where I bought two delicious local oranges for .25 Euros. Our next stop was at a scenic lookout where we ran into several bus loads of English tourists along with their guides leading them around with their little flags.

Our third stop was in the town of Valldemossa. This is a very touristy town with souvenir shops and cafes. We stopped there because Alison said that the hot chocolate was "to die for". Because the season was getting warm, there was only one cafe that served it. Needless to say, we all had some. I also had ham and cheese on a baguette to fortify me for the rest of the ride. It was only 10:30.

I left the group at this point because I wanted to take an optional out-and-back to Port de Valldemossa. This proved to be a beautiful and difficult ride. It went down several switchbacks from 1400 feet to sea level and back. The town was very small and kind of a dissapointment but the scenery was gorgeous. The ride back to the top was difficult and very warm but very satisfying. A picture from the top is at the top of this page.

After reaching the top, I continued on to Bunyalbufar, our destination for the next two nights. I showered and had lunch of a tuna salad and cerveza grande. We are eating at the hotel tonight.

Daily statistics:
Max speed - 35.2
Time - 3:20
Average speed - 9.4
Miles - 31
Elevation - 3800

Mallorca Day 9

Wednesday, May 9 - For dinner last night, we decided to skip pizza and have something better. Bill, Steve and I went to El Patio which was a few doors from the hotel. I had a large salad with a big, round slab of warm goat cheese, red and green peppers, cucumbers, corn, etc. I also had spaghetti with a creamy Gorgonzola sauce and peppercorns. Yummy and filling!

Bed around 10:00.

We were up this morning at 7:00 for our usual 7:30 breakfast buffet. Rides today were optional and since I came here to see as much territory that I could, I decided to take to Port de Soller to Jardins d'Alfabia round trip. To get to the jardins, we had to climb over a significant hill on a narrow, switchbacked road. The highway department has built a tunnel to get the cars through the hill so that left us with a nearly deserted route. The climb was not very steep but it did encompass 29 switchbacks up to the top and 23 down the other side to the jardins. When I arrived at the entrance, the jardins were closed and it looked like there was no tourist activity there for some time.

I began the ride at 9:15 and got to the jardins at 10:30. it was too early to turn around and go back, so I continued on to Bunyola about 5 km down the road. I stopped there for cafe con leche and a croissant at a small cafe. The picture is at the top of today's blog.

After my snack, I turned around and retraced the route. By this time, a lot of cyclists were out riding the same roads. I passed some at the start of the climb and was passed by a couple of others on the way up. A third cyclist was trying to catch me but couldn't quite do it before the summit. He gave me the thumbs-up sign.

On the way down, I caught up with Alison, John and Steve at about the 15th switchback. I cruised back into town around noon. I helped Rob with a bicycle repair, took a shower and had lunch. I ate a small thin-crust pizza with cheese, olives, anchovies and artichokes accompanied by a cerveza grande. Eating alone gave me a chance to relax and finish my book.

After lunch, I sat down in front of the hotel and had good conversations with others in the group.

Mallorca Day 8

Tuesday, May 8 - Sa Calobra

Dinner last night was very good. I went to a cafe a few doors from the hotel with George and Dorlene. It was the cafe with the blue place mats. We sat outside across the pedestrian walkway from the beach. For starters, I had a green salad with goat cheese (there are lots of goats on the island), corn and a creamy yogurt dressing. My main course was grilled monkfish with an orange-colored Mallorcan sauce, potatoes and cooked celery. The fish was perfectly cooked - crusty on the outside and moist on the inside. No dessert tonight. We were too stuffed.

We awoke this morning to bright, sunny skies. The standard breakfast buffet was at 7:30. We met at 9:30 to take the 10:00 ferry to sa Calobra. When we got there, we found that the ferry schedule had change and we couldn't leave until 11:00. This was just a minor glitch. The ferry ride was beautiful along the cliffs of this part of the island. We talked to a German cyclist about the ride and he he gave us some tips about the climb. He had been here a few years running and knew the route well. It is a "must do" for cyclists who visit the island.

In Mallorca, sa calobra means "the snake". The ride starts at sea level and rises 2400 feet in 10 kilometers on a twisty road with countless switchbacks. The picture above shows a small section of the road.

We began the climb immediately after we got off of the ferry. I rode with Tom Grant, Rod Harmon and Peter Krichman. The weather became very warm so the grade of 6 - 10% was a good workout. There was very little traffic coming up the hill and a lot of traffic going down the hill. The downhill traffic included a lot of tour buses. Apparently, the buses take people on tours and end up in sa Calobra so that they can take the ferry back to Port de Soller. Once they empty out, the pick up people that have arrived by ferry and take them back up the hill to where ever. This works out well because buses couldn't pass each other in opposite directions. I had to stop a couple of times so that buses could make it around the corner.

It was a terrific climb with lots of scenic lookouts. At the top of the climb, we dropped down a few hundred feet and stopped at an outdoor snack shop where we merged into yesterday's route. I ate a sandwich, a banana and a Snicker's Bar and drank an orange Fanta. After that, we traced the end of yesterday's route climbing another 1000 feet and dropping 2400 feet back to Port de Soller.

After showering, washing my cycling clothes and catching up with email, I bought some lemon yogurt and peanuts and sat with other people from my group at an outdoor cafe and had a cerveza grande. Bill and I might go for pizza tonight and splurge for a good dinner tomorrow night.

Daily statistics:
Max speed - 37.0
Time - 2:42
Average speed - 10.1
Miles - 27
Elevation - 3450

Mallorca Day 7

Monday, May 7 - I need to mention dinner last night. It was much better than the night before. I started with chicken crepes. The filling was like a sweet chicken salad and the crepe was thin and tasty. My main course was fish cooked in Mallorcan style. It was nice and moist and had a spinach wrap. Dessert was Mallorcan custard which turned out to be creme broulle (sp?). Bed was at 10:00 or so.

This morning we had the standard breakfast buffet at around 8:00. The van was leaving at 9:00 so we packed up and hit the road at 9:00 or so.

The first 1/3 of the ride was back tracking the end of Day 5. We rode a fairly flat 6 miles through olive groves and then did a moderate climb for another 6 miles through the forest up to the gas station/cafe where I had lunch on Day 5. This time I picked up a Snicker's Bar to take with me. We then left the Day 5 route and climbed some more through the forest and alongside craggy cliffs. I stopped about halfway up the climb to visit with Peter, another rider in our group, and to eat my candy bar for extra energy. Climbing again, we passed a couple of lakes and many tourists starting our on their hikes in the high country. Traffic was picking up as we got closer to 11:00 with a lot of buses and rental cars. It was a little tense at times on the narrow roads.

Once we reached the summit, we started downhill and rode through two tunnels. They were not as bad as the Day 4 tunnels probably because they seemed to have more light. We then stopped at a viewpoint to take pictures of the Harbor of Port Soller - our destination- and of the surrounding hillsides. The picture at the top of this page was taken there. That's me on the left and Rod on the right. Peter, Rod and I were leapfrogging down the hill on our Bike Fridays.

We got to our hotel at about 12:30. Alison arrived with our luggage soon after. I took a shower and then ate lunch with Alison and George and Dorlene Root in an outdoor cafe next to the beach. I had raviolis Bologna-style along with a cerveza grande. While eating we couldn't help but admire the view of the harbor - beautiful blue water with lots of sailboats surrounded on shore by little cafes and small hotels. It really looks like post-card Mediterranean.

Daily statistics:
Max speed - 35.5
Time - 3:03
Average speed - 11.2
Miles - 34
Elevation - 3400

Mallorca Day 6

Sunday, May 6 - We got up today at 7:00 for our breakfast buffet at 8:00. The usual eggs, meat, cheeses, cereals, bread, pastries and fruit were available. The hotels try to cater to all nationalities and customs for breakfast. I concentrated on protein and carbs. The coffee was tasty but not as strong as the last hotel.

The ride today was a loop from the hotel and back. It started out and finished in sunny skies and warm temperatures. Most of the ride was in country lanes so narrow that a bicycle and car had very little room to pass. Two cars couldn't pass each other. I had only one incident that was close.

I ended up riding alone the whole day. Many of the group decided to hang out at the hotel or do short, flat rides. I started at about 9:30. The ride wandered through acres and acres of olive groves. It was fairly flat for the first 14 miles. Then it kicked up for the next 10 miles into the steep hills. The vistas were not as spectacular as previous days, but they were good. I stopped in a small village called Orient at a restaurant. It was Sunday so they weren't serving a full menu. Instead, they gave me bread drizzled with olive oil and layered with thinly sliced ham and a slab of cheese. This seems to be a common lunch because some of the group had the same thing a couple of days ago.

After eating, I rode off downhill and then reached the final uphill. The uphill had a bunch of switchbacks. The other side of the hill began a decent of 26 miles back to the hotel. There were a few short uphills, but nothing major.

I took pictures today of the hotel in the early morning sun. On the road, the pictures were of very old olive trees and wildflowers.

It's now 4:30. Bill isn't back. I'm going over to the main hotel and get re-hydrated.

Daily Statistics:
Max speed - 34.5
Time - 3:53
Average speed - 13.0
Miles - 51
Elevation - 3100

Mallorca Day 5

Saturday, May 5 - It was moving day again today. After our English breakfast buffet (did I mention that the hotel was filled with Brits?) we packed up the van and headed out on our bicycles. Some of us decided to do a longer route combining one of yesterday's options with today's longer option. We started by doing a flat ride to Cala Sant Vincenc. This is a small village on the sea that looks like it is supported by the tourist trade. We then went back along part of the same road and continued on today's route. I stopped to take pictures and lost the group I was riding with. This was OK because I could do the things that I wanted to do like poke around the small, picturesque town of Pollensa. I was sure happy to have my GPS on. It was able to reroute me several times so that I could get back on route.

The next part of the ride was hilly. We passed through forests and craggy, limestone hills over at least four summits. At the last summit, I stopped at a gas station/restaurant for lunch - a meat pie, a banana and my annual coke. The outdoor seating area was filled with dozens of cyclists.

I continued on downhill on very poor surface to our agri-hotel called Monnaber Nou. It looks like an old estate with several acres of olive trees. We have a huge room with a separate kitchen. There are pools, spas and many other features including wireless internet. After everyone arrived, we had a huge thunder storm with hail and heavy rain for about 15 minutes.

After happy hour we had dinner here. I had asparagus with a truffle sauce, hake and almond cake with almond ice cream. The first two things were very bland but the cake and ice cream were good.

Daily statistics:
Max speed - 31.3
Time - 3:21
Average speed - 11.8
Miles - 40
Elevation - 2760

Mallorca Day 4

Friday, May 4 - We had the option to sleep in a little because of the short ride today and the hotel didn't serve breakfast until 8:00. We didn't do it, though, because we left the door to our balcony open during the night and some mosquitoes sneaked in and buzzed us. So we got up around 6:30 and lazed around until it was time to eat.

Then it was off to our ride to Cap de Formentor. This was a fabulous ride with several climbs and decents through forests and along high cliffs overlooking the sea. There was even a tunnel to go through where I freaked out. I couldn't see the road surface until a car came up behind me with its lights on. I felt like I was riding blindfolded. It was worth it, though. The views were amazing.

When I reached the top, there were several other cyclists there and more coming. Many nationalities. Apparently, this destination is a rite of passage for cyclists.

The ride back was on the same route. Because the morning was getting later, there were lots of cars, buses and even more cyclists on the road. All the drivers were courteous and patient. Going downhill through the tunnel was much easier.

Bill was back from his ride when I reached the hotel so he and I went to lunch together. I had a good pasta carbinerra was filled me up until happy hour. No mid-day snacks.

To top off the day, we found a small restaurant on the town square where we had some good pizza.

Off to bed around 10.

Daily statistics:
Max speed - 34.6
Time - 2:15
Average speed - 10.8
Miles - 24
Elevation - 2800

Mallorca Day 3

Thursday, May 3 - We were up at what is becoming our normal time of 6:30. The breakfast buffet was the same good one as the previous day. Today I had some yummy bacon with my eggs. I'm now convinced that protein helps quell hunger pangs at mid-morning.

(This is a photo inside the monastery that I visited yesterday).

Today was moving day. We left the Delta Hotel for the Hotel Miramar in Port de Pollensa. This meant that we rode from the southeast of the island to the northwest. The ride gave us a good cross section of the island. It was mostly level with a few rollers - not very difficult. Our suggested lunch stop was in Dineu, but I was there too early. I rode on to Llubi where I stopped at a bakery and bought a really good pastry to supplement the tiny lunch from the hotel. We got bananas today which were good but not quite as good as the oranges yesterday. I stopped by the side of the road in a date tree grove to eat. While there, I watched dozens of cyclists go by. Some were in their fancy clothes and high-priced bicycles while others were in their street clothes riding English-style upright bicycles. Apparently Port de Pollensa has lots of English tourists. This became obvious when we checked into our hotel. Lots of Brits and very few Germans.

We had a good happy hour with a couple of cheeses, prociutto, wine, etc. We also had a birthday cake for Lois. After that, three of us went to a paella restaurant. It was good but not great. One of these days I'll find a good dinner restaurant with local cooking.

Bed was around 10 after playing around for a while with my laptop.

Final Stats:
Miles - 50
Time - 3:34
Average speed - 14.0
Max speed - 34.2
Elevation Gain - 1331 feet

Recovered Blog

When I started using this blog site in Spain, all of the headings and instruction were in Spanish. This was OK for basic posts, but editing old posts became a guessing game. After deleting a major post, I got the bright idea to look at the help pages. It showed me how to change the language from Spanish to English. So now I have no excuse for messing up. Here is the post that I deleted. It's out of chronological order, but at least it is here:

Sunday, April 29 - I'm sitting in the international terminal at SFO waiting for my flight to Frankfurt. Everything has been easy so far. BART was pretty slow but it dropped me off about 100 feet from the United check-in counter. There were almost no people in line there and at the security checkpoint. If it took me more than 15 minutes to get through everything, I'd be surprised. I guess that I'll fly more often in late afternoon. The downside of this is that I have a long wait before my flight leaves. I'll see what I feel like after I get toMallorca.

Monday, April 30 - Now I'm sitting in the Spanish Air terminal in Barcelona waiting for a couple of hours for my flight to Palma. The flight from SFO to Frankfurt was pretty smooth. Some chop from time-to-time but nothing serious. The landing was a little rough, though. Lots of wind. I managed to read a couple of chapters of my book, watch a movie, eat two meals - some decent pasta and an awful breakfast sandwich - and get 3-4 hours of sleep. Afternogotiating the maze in the Frankfurt airport, I finally found the gate to the flight to Barcellona . While the Frankfurt flight was full, the Barcelona flight was about 1/3 full. I had lots of leg room. They fed us a sandwich and chocolate bar. I started to read, but kept dozing off. I got hungry again and ate a meal of veal steak and fries. The beer that I had with it really made me sleepy.

The weather here and in Frunkfurt is lightly overcast and warm - in the 70's. I hope that this is a good omen for Mallorca.

I got to Mallorca at about 10:30 and waited around for my bags to arrive. When they didn't show up, I was pointed to a different baggage area in an enclosed customs area. I found my bicycle suitcase right away but my regular suitcase wasn't there. I made a claim at the lost luggage desk and then decided to take one last look in customs. I found the bag. It had fallen off of the belt and was hidden behind it. That was real good news. I taxied to the hotel (E26), checked in, took a shower and went to sleep around midnight. I slept fairly soundly until about 8 in the morning.

Tuesday, May 1 - The breakfast buffet was excellent - like the ones you see in Germany. There were lots of fruits including figs, melon, oranges, etc., cereal, meats, cheese, eggs, potatoes, breads..... I sat at a long table with otherBAC people and got to know some of them. After breakfast, some of us put our bicycles together at the hotel's bicycle area. They have a rental shop with a bike mechanic and a large storage area where you rent a space so that you can lock your bike. After I got my bicycle fixed up, I changed rooms to the one I am sharing with Bill Todd. Then I went to the computer area where the free wireless access was located. Trouble is that the wireless connection didn't work, so I had to postpone posting my blog. I was able, however, to use their pay-forinternet computer to read and send some emails and post a brief blog. Lunch was in the same restaurant as breakfast. It was a E20 buffet. Very good but a little over priced. I had several dishes including fish, seafood salad, potatoes, vegetables and others. Dessert was coffeeflovored flan, a baked, purple pear and lemon sorbet. After wandering around the hotel for a while and taking some pictures, I came back to our room and Bill was there having just arrived fromHeathrow.

Our Happy Hour/Group Meeting began at 6. We introduced ourselves to the group and Allison went over the BAC ground rules and safety procedures. After the meeting, we had dinner in the same restaurant. The food was the same as at lunch. It's getting very monotonous. Lights out for Bill and me were at 9:30. Because he had just arrived, he was pretty tired and slept very well. On the other hand, I had a lot of trouble falling to sleep - the second day jet lag problem. Tossing and turning into the early morning hours, Ifanally got to sleep around 2 or so.

Wednesday, May 2 - We were up at 6:30. Bill went to get his rental bicycle squared away while I reviewed my email. Breakfast was in the same restaurant. I stoked up on protein because of the long ride that was planned. The hotel gave us lunches of a mini-baguette with cheese, three figs and an orange. I left the hotel a little after 9 and rode with George andDorlene for the first few miles.Their pace slacked off after awhile so I began riding by myself. The first part of the ride was fairly flat. The route was slightly inland along lightly traveled roads. The weather started in the high 60's and eventually got up to the mid 70's. It was partly cloudy with moderate winds (at least they were moderate as tail-winds). We dropped down to the coast for a bit atSa Rapita and rode past crashing Mediterrainian waves. Then we turned inland again. Not many roads in Mallorca follow the coast. I intercepted other BAC cyclists on the way into Campos and several dozen non-BAC cyclists throughout the ride. Mallorca is a haven for cyclists.

else wanted to do the option. It included a After Campos, I took the optional ride extension. I was now totally on my own because noonemoderate climb of about 1200 feet over 3.5 miles to a monestary called Monestir de Sant Salvador. The monastary turned out to be a tourist destination including a bar/cafe. It also had several framed cycling jerseys and pictures of a local cyclist who won races in the 1940's. The views from the monastary were spectacular. You could see a panarama of almost the entire island. It was worth the climb for me and several other cyclists that I saw there.

The rest of the ride was working my way back to the hotel along mostly lightly traveled roads. Because it extended route met back up with the shorter route, I caught up with some otherBAC rider going back to the hotel.

The ride was very nice. There were lots of wild flowers, sheared sheep and fig trees. Auto drivers were very courtious and waited to pass until the road was clear. My GPS worked flawlessly and helped tremendously in following the route.

Final stats:
Miles - 71
Time - 05:05
Average speed - 13.9
Max speed - 35.4
Elevation gain - 2768 feet

Our Happy Hour/Group Meeting began at 6 with an agenda of normal administrivia. Dinner was at 7 with a slightly different menu. I had a non-seafood paella made with noodles instead of rice. It was not too bad - lots of salty sausage in it. Bedtime is going to be right after I finish these notes.

Tuesday in Mallorca

Wireless Problems - I am having trouble getting connected via my wireless card. I´ll try again tomorrow and give a full update.