Day 5 City Center & La Victoria
Buenos noches! My Spanish is progressing nicely, particularly cerveza, el baño and gracias. Similar to Day 3, Monday, we knew this morning’s weather would delay a ride. That provided for some extra sleep, which was definitely needed after yesterday’s tough day. After a later breakfast, several of us took the bus into Alcudia city center (the walled city) for some more sightseeing, pictures and shopping. I definitely feel more comfortable getting around using the bus, taxi and understanding the general layout of roads and distances.
With the wind and rainy weather, there were a host of kite- and wind-surfers out in the bay testing their skills! I took several photos and video, along with tips for when I try it myself (probably a different trip though; do you know of any good kitesurfing destinations?). Alcudia city center was great to find some gifts for the family and take some more photos.
Perhaps my favorite photo yet is a combination of a gift (a small bike made from a single piece of metal) and the outer wall of the city.
Once the rain cleared, I headed out for a solo ride to explore some places to the south and north of Alcudia. I’m in search for a good sunrise, which is a little hard to come by, since we are hidden in a bay north of southeasterly facing peninsula. I think I scouted out a good spot, but only time will tell if it works out. After my short trip south, I headed back to the north side of the peninsula to climb La Victoria. In general, much less difficult and less impressive than yesterday’s ride (Formentor Lighthouse), La Victoria is much steeper averaging 6-8 degrees, with certain areas up around 13-14 degrees, but not for very long. Overall, the whole climb is similar to doing a steeper Lapham peak driveway if it was twice as long, and had great views of the ocean. At the top, I was greeted by more goats, but the view was pretty obstructed by trees. That said, this peninsula would be great for hiking as La Victoria is a trailhead for many hiking trails throughout the rest of the peninsula.
After a quick ride down and back to the resort, I hopped in the outdoor (saltwater) pool for a quick swim. It was more of a way to loosen up and try to help the legs recover, since tomorrow (Thursday) is going to be another big day. We have planned an épico (spanish for epic) ride - Sa Calobra.
