BERTY TRAVELS: EXPLORING THE ISLAND OF MENORCA
Since summer here is just a few days away (British summer officially starts on the 21st of June), I want to share my first summer getaway abroad.
Hola! Bienvenidos a Menorca España!! This was my first European travel outside England. It’s just over 2-hour flight from London. Menorca or Minorca is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. Its name derives from its size, contrasting it with the nearby Majorca (source https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Menorca)
The island has a mix of colonial and local architecture and has its share of pre-historic times like any other places in the world. It is surrounded by beautiful beaches though some were spoiled with big hotels and other commercial establishments, but this has been rectified now due to the council restricting the height of buildings. The island has nature reserve too, in fact it was declared as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve on 8th of October 1993. So if you want to see different species of local and migratory birds, this island wouldn’t fail you.
We booked this holiday as our anniversary treat. We rented a self-catering villa for 10 days located at Platges de Fornells. We chose self-catering accommodation because we just love peace and quiet (we’re not into crowded hotels especially during peak season). It’s just like staying at home. You don’t need to get up early and wash and change to make yourself look good before you queue on the buffet table and join other hungry hotel guests for breakfast.
Platges de Fornells is such a lovely place. Palm trees, bright coloured bougainvillea and adelfa or Nerium oleander and other tropical plants are present in every villa’s front garden. These bright colours were such a nice contrast of the white villas, very pleasant to the eyes and they reminded me of my home country the Philippines.
We chose a villa that was overlooking in the sea. In the balcony you can witness every sunrise and sunset and inhale the refreshing and calming sea breeze.
During our stay in the island, we did a lot of things like road trips (we hired a car), beach hopping and walking. We also tried a long hike from our place (Fornells to Faro de Cavalleria) the views were just spectacular. We also climbed the highest part of the island, Il Toro, where you can see the picturesque view of the whole island. Though Menorca is just a small island, but we were not able to explore it wholly. But hopefully, we will be back one day soon and will explore the other part of the island.
