Santandria Playa Ciudadela

We arrived in Ciutadella just after 4 PM and will be anchoring here for the night. This town was once the capital of Menorca and was an important trading city in the middle ages. The influence of its trade center past are seen in the medieval old town with its many Italian-like style buildings lining the cities main square and its large cathedral.

At the mouth of the harbor is a tower/lighthouse and creates a scenic entrance ...

... just without the pounding surf.

The northern coast of the island is much more rugged and hilly than the rest of the island, with deep bays cutting in between the hills and the cliffs and sandy beaches lining the backs of the bays. We continued cruising along until we reached Ciutadella on the west coast.

Menorca has a much more rural feel then the other two large islands. The farms are lined with stone calls and if feels much less developed and less populated here too.

We arrived last night in Mahon, the capital of Menorca, Spain. It's an interesting towns since it has a large natural harbor, which was of interest to the British, the master sailors that they are. For this reason the British occupied the town three times during the 18th century. It’s a charming town with a flare very different from those of the other Balearic towns, with its British influenced architecture and its beautiful harbor. The one claim to fame that my ...

... only outside allowed
So everything biased towards them

Shopping lots of tat though lots of cheap restaurants selling food aimed at Germans (sausages, Wurst, et al) some good speciality restaurants, Chinese, Vietnamese, and a few English Pub bars serving English food.

The shops though were surprising that once they knew you were English they discounted lots of stuff from trinkets to scuba and fishing gear

... of a forum or a large building. Throughout the excavation, we have been taught methods and the history that goes with the site. Fairly interesting for a Roman history buff like myself. However, the next three days are a change of pace. Tomorrow is our tour of the island´s historical sites. Then we follow that with two rest days. I´m hoping to rent a scooter and climb the ¨mountain¨ at the center of the island.

... hills not far away. We always sleep well the night after an overnighter because you tend not to sleep too well while at sea. Zach did his first ever night watch and was very confident working all the radar and navigation equipment. It was nice to have someone who picked it up so easily. Also nice to share the watch with an extra person.....means shorter watches and more ...

The last week has been mainly one of traveling. After stops in Paris and Barcelona, I arrived in Menorca yesterday. Menorca is an island out in the Mediterranean. Compared to it´s neighbors Maiorca and Ibiza, Menorca is relatively undeveloped. This has allowed the island to retain a lot of natural beauty. That said, there are still plenty of tourists and, apparently, it has become ...

The beautiful holiday I ever had, despite the rainy weather and some jellyfishes when the weather was sunny. In Cala Ratjada there are a lot of beautiful beaches and a pretty "promenade" where you can find a lot of nice tapas bars if you want to eat something. Here you are some of my pictures... have fun.

... ligt voelen we dat er toch weer een engeltje boven ons zweeft. Het is nu 12 uur en omdat we los zijn hijsen we de zeilen en gaan door met ons plan om Menorca te bereiken. Voor ons ligt een grote plas water waar al een stevig windje staat, de lucht is strak blauw. We hebben 23 mijl om Canal de Menorca over te steken en dat moet niet al te lang duren, als we zien dat we binnen korte tijd 6.5 knopen op de teller hebben staan. De zee is rustig, maar de wind neemt steeds ...

... garnden in front of the hotel, the flowers were so colorful and alive. Initial Budget - $10,000.00 Round trip plane ticket - $1,784.00 Hotel for 8 nights - $2,544.44 Remainder $5671.56