Mallorca is back on Yellow alert today with more snow expected in the Tramuntana mountain range, but also at sea level from around lunchtime today. Temperatures will be below zero at their lowest today, with high temperatures not exceeding 6° C to 8° C anywhere here on the island, today. This might be the day for another big snowdrift.
The year of the really big snow in Mallorca was 1956. I did not live here, then, so I must rely on other sources to verify the information. From photos on the Internet, one can gather that, indeed, the amount of snow must have been unusual and almost staggering for an island in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea. I offer you two of those photographs, taken in 1956, for your gratification. The Siberian cold spell then came in three stages, over a period of three weeks: February 2nd to 4th, February 10th to 12th, and February to 20th to 22nd. Temperatures in 1956 went as low as -3,5° C in Palma, -10,0° C at the airport and -13,5° C in Lluc. There were 30 cm of snow in Manacor, and 50 cm in Alcúdia y Formentor. The worst affected were the military personnel at the barracks on Puig Major who were cut off for days as there were now snowplows available in Mallorca at that time. On the mainland, at that time, the lowest temperature was recorded in Estany Gento, Pallars (Lleida) with -32° C.
Better put another log on that fire, today, just in case.
The photos were borrowed from the Internet, courtesy of talkkoncorners.blogspot.com, Old_Eyre and the photographers.
Muchas gracias.
via Mallorca Daily Photo Blog.
Mallorca is back on Yellow alert today with more snow expected in the Tramuntana mountain range, but also at sea level from around lunchtime today. Temperatures will be below zero at their lowest today, with high temperatures not exceeding 6° C to 8° C anywhere here on the island, today. This might be the day for another big snowdrift.
Filed under Articles, photos by on Feb 12th, 2012. Comment. 
magaluf new hotels
Four new hotels to be built in Magalluf Palma.—The 144 million euro investment in building four new hotels in Magalluf has been given the go ahead by the Balearic government.The Marina de Magaluf scheme, which has been on the table for the best part of a decade, is finally going to become a reality and at yesterday’s weekly cabinet meeting, the project was declared of maximum public interest.Government spokesperson Rafael Bosch, explained that the government has taken such an approach in order to fast track the developer’s applications for permission etc. so that phase one of the massive project can get under way as quickly as possible.The site of the development, which will be built in two phases, is the waste land in front of what was Agualand and where the flea markets used to be held.Once completed, the four hotel complex will have 2’000 bedrooms, be accompanied by a 15’000 square metre commercial centre and create 730 jobs – hence the government is keen for the project to be got off the ground as quickly as possible.The developers, Promociones Vistarga, will build a 500 bedroom hotel and a 3’000 square metre commercial centre as part of phase one, which has a budget of 40 million euros.The company will also redevelop the entire area in preparation for phase two which will include the construction of three more hotels, again with 500 bedrooms each and the completion of the commercial centre at a cost of 104 million euros.As agreed with the local council, the developers will also create green zones and landscaped areas for public use.The government considers that this project will perfectly complement the one planned by the Sol Meliá International group in the resort.At the end of last year the leading Majorcan hotel group unveiled its plan to link up most of its hotels in the resort and create the Sol Calvia Coast Resort.This too has been declared in the public interest in order to get work on the project, which will involve new commercial centres, hotel renovations, the installation of wave parks and new attractions, as quickly as possible. The Sol project is also going to involve a major investment and will create hundreds of new jobs in the resort which has been struggling for the past few years.
check out hotels in Majorca
source majorcadailybulletin
Filed under News by on Feb 11th, 2012. Comment.
Mallorca has just had the most snow I have seen in 25 years of living on this island. Newspapers reported that, at least in Palma, there has not been as much snow as last Saturday since 1956. Twenty-five roads had to be closed in the Tramuntana mountain range, as well as on the Puig de Randa and the Puig de Sant Salvador. Four roads still continue to be closed as per this morning, at Coll de Sóller, between Bunyola and Alaró, Puigpunyent, and at Coll de Sa Batalla. There were delays of up to four hours at Son Sant Joan airport, and there was some disruption with ferry crossings. The Orange weather alert has now been reduced to Yellow for today and will return to normal (Green) as of tomorrow.
Daytime temperatures are slightly up again and will hover around 10° to 11° C today and for the rest of this week. From my experience I would say that there might be one more cold snap with snow before the beginning of March.
The photo (top) was taken near Algaïda, Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: February 5th, 2012. The time was 15:01:09. The photo (centre) was borrowed from the Internet, courtesy of diariodemallorca.es and the photographer, Xisco Sastre. The photo (bottom) was borrowed from the Internet, courtesy of riowang.blogspot.com.
source: the fantastic photo blog: http://mallorcaphotoblog.com/
Filed under News, photos by on Feb 6th, 2012. Comment.
It may not be a phenomenon specific only to Mallorca, but there are a large number of underground passages and tunnels burrowed into the island’s underbelly. Think of the Roman aqueducts, part over- and part underground, or the Quanats and wells of Moorish origin. Think of the coal mines and the underground Marès quarries. Think of tunnels and shelters built by resistant citizens during the Guerra Civil, the Spanish Civil War. Think of tunnels and caves burrowed by prisoners of war during the Guerra de la Independencia Española (also known as the Peninsular War) below the Castell de Bellver or simply think of fresh water channels and waste-water tunnels built 200 years ago, before the start of the industrial revolution. The Military burrowed extensive tunnel systems into the coastal defense set-ups during the Forties. In Palma, there were extensive underground tunnels for trains of goods and chattels. Nowadays, you have a vast hydraulic waste collection system crisscrossing Palma’s underbelly. I suppose I could go on and on.
Yesterday I had the opportunity to descend into part of the intricate water tunnel system beneath the town of Felanitx. There are two distinct channel systems in Felanitx, both dating from 1830 or thereabouts. One is a grid of water tunnels starting from the Font de Santa Margalida (well) opposite the parish church and reaching to well below the Plaça d’Espanya. Until 25 years ago, these shafts could be accessed and traversed whilst nowadays one can only go as far as the entryway of the tunnelled system. The other grid is a network of tall tunnels for waste water sewage, running the length of both, Passeig d’Ernest Mestre and Carrer de Ses Eres.
I hold an invitation to explore a mile-long tunnel system of Quanats not far from here, in Ses Aigues. I have been there and seen the entry ducts but, as yet have not descended into the tunnel system. If and when I do pluck up the courage and overcome my unease about feeling claustrophobic, I will report back to you.
The photos were taken in Felanitx, Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: January 30th, 2012. The time was 10:08:04 and 10:11:02, respectively.
via Mallorca Daily Photo Blog.
Filed under Articles, photos by on Feb 4th, 2012. Comment.
