Work, Save, Travel, Repeat...

 Friday. Goodbye Menorca! We have loved our week on this beautiful island.  The Port Mahon Hotel has exceeded our expectations in every way. The weather has been perfect for walking and the scenery stunning.  The hire car returned and the journey back home was incident free.  Now for a family weekend. 

 Thursday.  Not a cloud in the sky today so breakfast outside on the terrace.  Our 10 mile hike started in Cala Galdana on the south west of the island. Soon we were at the idyllic Mitjanita cove, quickly followed by the larger Mitjana beach but we were not here to sunbathe.  We followed the Cala de Cavalls through the trees, the paths were thankfully mostly in the shade but very rocky so glad we had walking poles. The walk we planned was circular but rather more arduous than we had thought so we made it one way and opted for a taxi from Sante Tomas.

 Wednesday  The weather app has forecast rain for today all week and it wasn't wrong! It was very wet at breakfast but beyond that the outlook was showery all day. We decided to stay local and walk the harbour of Mahon-6km long! One of the deepest and longest natural harbours in the world.  The walk started at the steps right in front of our hotel and around Figuero Creek  aka as Englishman's Creek as the Royal Navy used to moor and get fresh water here. Straight away we were off the tourist trail and soon we were heading up some steps through front gardens to the scrubby hilltop until we passed through another residential area and sheltered under some trees from a sharp shower. For a while the walk didn't look too promising along a minor road, passed the military museum until we got to the delightful  Cala Estive- St Stephens Cove. Here we joined the Cami de Cavalls which apparently incorporated a Roman Rd. This opened out into more scrubby land and some disuse...

 A little cooler today but still a sunny 22°. We did the longest drive across the island to the old capital Ciatudella. There are a plethora of beautiful old buildings tucked in narrow streets, one of our favourite spots was the Bishop's Palace  (we even went back and ate our picnic here). The harbour is much narrower here which is why the British abruptly moved the capital to Mahon however this narrow inlet is much prettier and well worth the walk to the Castell de Sant Nicolau.

 Monday  We did our rescheduled drive to Monte Toro today, we could see the mountains on Majorca and not quite the whole island of Menorca but the North and South coasts. We had a picnic lunch in Fornells a working fishing village although it all felt very sterile,  very pleased we are staying in the hustle and bustle of the City. After lunch we did another walk along the Cami de Cavalls to the sandy beach Arenal Devon Saura and return. 

 Sunday  Today was going to be a lighter walking day,  we were planning to drive to Monte Torro the highest point of the island,  however the 1st Sunday in May there is a festival celebrating the miracle of the Virgin Mary and Bull so we decided to change our plans. We did a great walk from Es Migjorn Gran to Sante Tomas where we spent our honeymoon 37 years ago.  The walk was along a good track if a little rocky at times. There were lots of wild flowers,  butterflies and birds. We ate a picnic lunch next to the honeymoon hotel before making the return journey via the enormous cova colom (the cave of pigeons). The town of Es Migjorn Gran is the most sleepy of places but maybe that's because it's Sunday.  After a rejuvenating beer and a shower at our hotel we headed out for dinner in the commercial heart of the City which being Sunday was all shut up including the Real Ale bar so we headed back to where we ate last night.  Another beautiful day....

Saturday  Blue sky today and a very pleasant 22° with a sea breeze, perfect walking conditions.  S'Albufera Nature Reserve is just a few miles from Mahon. Our walk was mainly along part of Cami deCavalls (a coastal path encircling the island) to some stunning remote beaches.  A detour to the salt water lagoon on the return to the village was pleasant level walking. A cheeseboard and a beer for lunch back at the hotel 

Friday Day 1 An early wedding anniversary break to the Island where we spent our honeymoon 37 years ago.  An early wake up call to make sure we cleared security @ Birmingham Airport which meant we had plenty of time for breakfast.  The flight was on time and just 2 hours which meant we had picked up our hire car (a nearly brand new Peugeot) and arrived @ our hotel in time for a lunchtime beer and snack. Our room is a rather grand suite with a terrace overlooking Mahon Harbour.  We regrouped and explored some of the city via the waterfront before heading back to the room for a siesta.  There are plenty of bars and restaurants along the waterfront and we chose an Indian restaurant which was absolutely superb. 5 stars and we will go back! A crafty pint in Mahon's only real ale bar rounds of a perfect day.