Morning high (6.58am): 14.7C
Forecast high: 22C; UV: 7
Three-day forecast: 12 May - Sun, cloud, 22C; 13 May - Cloud, sun, 18C; 14 May - Sun, cloud, 19C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): West 3 to 5.
Grey morning once more. Rain is possible and may well be of the dirty variety. Brightening up through the day.
Evening update (20.15): High of 22.8C. Took a long time for the sun to really come out.
Wednesday, May 11, 2016
Are Podemos Getting Desperate?
David Abril, effectively the new leader of Més, speaks of an "humiliating agreement" if his party is eased into fourth place on the Congress list of deputies for the June general election as part of a pact with Podemos. The first three places would be for Podemos. In alliance with Més and the United Left, the total number of votes - based on the December election - would guarantee a third deputy to add to the two which Podemos secured before Christmas. But Més would find themselves without the deputy they covet so much and which would confirm their Madrid arrival as flag wavers for Mallorcan nationalism.
Alberto Jarabo, the Podemos leader in the Balearics, says that Més wouldn't have a presence in Madrid (in Congress) without an alliance with Podemos. He is absolutely right. Even if Més didn't have an actual deputy, they would have some presence thanks to an alliance. Or would they? Likewise, Podemos would be very hard pushed to gain sufficient support on its own (or with the United Left as even more junior partners) to obtain a third deputy. They need Més as much as Més need Podemos. But Més, unless things change, will not get their deputy. They might swallow the second prize of a senator but that would still represent a blow to their ambitions.
For Podemos, the end game (or the start of the beginning game) has always been about national government and so seats in Congress and the Senate if not in the Moncloa Palace of the presidency. They were less concerned about the regional elections, albeit they offered a good barometer of how things might go at the general election. Podemos would have been confident, and their confidence was not misplaced. They now have a second bite of the cherry. One might conclude that the fruitless negotiations with PSOE were all geared to having this second stab. But has there been a miscalculation?
The negotiations with Més can be viewed in different ways. One is that they have been about creating a firm pact of the hard left with the objective of ousting the Partido Popular (still far from being a foregone conclusion). The other is that they were designed to give Podemos what they crave - power. Més, without an actual deputy, would have been used as a means to an end: one belonging to Podemos.
For Abril to have referred to a humiliation has distinct echoes of how PSOE have suffered in this new era of Balearic and Spanish politics. They have been humiliated, forced into agreements and policies that one very much doubts they would have adopted had they been left to their own devices. Yes, there is supposedly a spirit of "dialogue and consensus", but there seems precious little sign of it being truly two-way (or three-way in the Balearics). Podemos. Power. And power that has seen PSOE trampled over. Més must surely have considered that their fate was being decided in a similar fashion.
Alberto Jarabo and Laura Camargo of Podemos have both referred to the "negative image" that the apparent failure of Podemos and Més to come to an accord conveys. Negative to whom? To the electorate? Possibly so, but while this will be styled as a failure to provide the "citizens" with what they supposedly have voted for - the government of change, to use the constant mantra - it can also be viewed as a negative reflection of Podemos. Their leaders in the Balearics continuously hector others. In the process they come across as unlikable. Més may have their wilder elements but they also have individuals that many, regardless of political persuasion, have a liking for: Biel Barceló, Miquel Ensenyat, Fina Santiago. Not everyone will feel this. Of course they won't. But Més (and PSOE) have a likability that Podemos do not.
At national level Podemos have a similar likability issue. Pablo Iglesias is the exception. He is likable, highly admirable in many ways. But he made a mistake with his attack on the media and the suggestion that the media should be state-controlled. He apologised, but did that set the alarm bells off? What truly lies behind his likability? Podemos, the polls suggest, have slipped. An alliance for the election has thus been formed with the United Left. Together they would, on the basis of the December election, get more votes than PSOE. The United Left might end up with eight deputies as opposed to the current two. That would represent a result for them, but for Podemos there is a feeling that it is an alliance of necessity. The United Left's Alberto Garzón gets good approval ratings; better than Iglesias. There's a likability factor.
But is it a sign of desperation by Podemos? If the polls are right and their support is leaking, they need to plug the hole.
Alberto Jarabo, the Podemos leader in the Balearics, says that Més wouldn't have a presence in Madrid (in Congress) without an alliance with Podemos. He is absolutely right. Even if Més didn't have an actual deputy, they would have some presence thanks to an alliance. Or would they? Likewise, Podemos would be very hard pushed to gain sufficient support on its own (or with the United Left as even more junior partners) to obtain a third deputy. They need Més as much as Més need Podemos. But Més, unless things change, will not get their deputy. They might swallow the second prize of a senator but that would still represent a blow to their ambitions.
For Podemos, the end game (or the start of the beginning game) has always been about national government and so seats in Congress and the Senate if not in the Moncloa Palace of the presidency. They were less concerned about the regional elections, albeit they offered a good barometer of how things might go at the general election. Podemos would have been confident, and their confidence was not misplaced. They now have a second bite of the cherry. One might conclude that the fruitless negotiations with PSOE were all geared to having this second stab. But has there been a miscalculation?
The negotiations with Més can be viewed in different ways. One is that they have been about creating a firm pact of the hard left with the objective of ousting the Partido Popular (still far from being a foregone conclusion). The other is that they were designed to give Podemos what they crave - power. Més, without an actual deputy, would have been used as a means to an end: one belonging to Podemos.
For Abril to have referred to a humiliation has distinct echoes of how PSOE have suffered in this new era of Balearic and Spanish politics. They have been humiliated, forced into agreements and policies that one very much doubts they would have adopted had they been left to their own devices. Yes, there is supposedly a spirit of "dialogue and consensus", but there seems precious little sign of it being truly two-way (or three-way in the Balearics). Podemos. Power. And power that has seen PSOE trampled over. Més must surely have considered that their fate was being decided in a similar fashion.
Alberto Jarabo and Laura Camargo of Podemos have both referred to the "negative image" that the apparent failure of Podemos and Més to come to an accord conveys. Negative to whom? To the electorate? Possibly so, but while this will be styled as a failure to provide the "citizens" with what they supposedly have voted for - the government of change, to use the constant mantra - it can also be viewed as a negative reflection of Podemos. Their leaders in the Balearics continuously hector others. In the process they come across as unlikable. Més may have their wilder elements but they also have individuals that many, regardless of political persuasion, have a liking for: Biel Barceló, Miquel Ensenyat, Fina Santiago. Not everyone will feel this. Of course they won't. But Més (and PSOE) have a likability that Podemos do not.
At national level Podemos have a similar likability issue. Pablo Iglesias is the exception. He is likable, highly admirable in many ways. But he made a mistake with his attack on the media and the suggestion that the media should be state-controlled. He apologised, but did that set the alarm bells off? What truly lies behind his likability? Podemos, the polls suggest, have slipped. An alliance for the election has thus been formed with the United Left. Together they would, on the basis of the December election, get more votes than PSOE. The United Left might end up with eight deputies as opposed to the current two. That would represent a result for them, but for Podemos there is a feeling that it is an alliance of necessity. The United Left's Alberto Garzón gets good approval ratings; better than Iglesias. There's a likability factor.
But is it a sign of desperation by Podemos? If the polls are right and their support is leaking, they need to plug the hole.
Tuesday, May 10, 2016
MALLORCA TODAY - Weather Alcúdia and Pollensa 10 May 2016
Morning high (6.55am): 14.2C
Forecast high: 21C; UV: 7
Three-day forecast: 11 May - Cloud, sun, 21C; 12 May - Sun, cloud, 19C; 13 May - Sun, cloud, 19C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): South-Southwest 2 to 4 veering Northeast around midday.
Some cloud around but also some sun first thing. Similar pattern during the day. A possibility of a shower. General outlook now suggesting that from Thursday things may be more settled.
Evening update (19.45): High of 23.4C. Sun never really burst out, but an ok sort of a day.
Forecast high: 21C; UV: 7
Three-day forecast: 11 May - Cloud, sun, 21C; 12 May - Sun, cloud, 19C; 13 May - Sun, cloud, 19C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): South-Southwest 2 to 4 veering Northeast around midday.
Some cloud around but also some sun first thing. Similar pattern during the day. A possibility of a shower. General outlook now suggesting that from Thursday things may be more settled.
Evening update (19.45): High of 23.4C. Sun never really burst out, but an ok sort of a day.
What's The Point Of A Blue Flag?
Four years ago, the town hall in Pollensa decided that it would not apply for Blue Flags for its beaches. Consequently, the town's beaches were flagless. The background to the non-application has echoes of the current delay with the contract for beach services, as it was a similar delay in 2011 that was blamed for the subsequent non-application. That background, however, is incidental. What is important was the loss of the flags, and the then spokesperson for the PSM socialists, Tomeu Cifre Bennàsar (now the deputy mayor councillor for the environment), stressed that it was necessary for the flags to be reinstated because of their prestige at international level.
But let us ask a question. Did the loss of the flags make any difference to tourism in the municipality? Well, did it? I will guess that it made absolutely no difference: that there weren't suddenly thousands of tourists ripping up their reservations or altering their holiday plans because there was no Blue Flag.
Beaches in Mallorca have all sorts of quality standards (including Pollensa's). There is one beach - Playa de Muro's - which probably has more certification for quality than you can wave a flag at, and this includes a Blue Flag. It is a beach with an excellent reputation, but then so are very many others and they are excellent because no town hall can risk that they are not. They have to answer, among others, to the national government if standards slip, so there are institutional control mechanisms for beaches in addition to non-governmental organisations such as the Foundation for Environmental Education which controls the Blue Flag programme.
When the flag concept was originated in the mid-1980s, it was an important initiative. As flags began to appear, people did take some notice. That was because an environmental awareness-raising campaign of its type was novel. It was the success of the Blue Flag programme in its early years that was to help engrain a culture of systems for beach maintenance and water quality that was then added to by the increasingly vocal environmentalist movement and by various organisations, such as the ISO (International Standards Organisation), which has its own systems for environmental management.
But in all this time have these various initiatives and certifications made any appreciable difference to tourist decision-making? Initially, they probably did, and that was because of the novelty. Nowadays, though, clean water, well-maintained beaches and various facilities are pretty much taken as being givens. Everyone is aware of the need for sound environmental control.
There are occasions when even the best control goes wrong. Oil spillages are one example. Another has to do with waste. Mallorca's waters faced a significant environmental issue last summer because of the plastic waste coming up from Algeria, but there was a constant clean-up, even if there was publicity given to odd examples where this debris was coming ashore and not being cleared. Where there needs to be greater control is over the isolated but repeated instances of pollution, such as in Palma when it rains heavily, as was the case at the weekend. It is no surprise that the two affected beaches have had their Blue Flags taken away.
The loss of the flags in the Balearics has led to a spat between the regional government and ADEAC, which is the Blue Flag organising association in Spain. Its president has demanded that the government withdraws remarks questioning the value and legitimacy of the Blue Flag awards. There is even a suggestion that its legal people will be considering damage done to it (and also to Spain's tourism).
The ADEAC appears to be upset by the suggestion by the tourism minister, Biel Barceló, that the flags which have been lost this year are because a payment has not been forthcoming. It hasn't in fact been paid since 2013, something that the ADEAC attributes to a "misunderstanding" as to how the adjudication process works. It is reasonable for the ADEAC to point to other coastal regions where a payment is also not made but where the number of flags has increased.
But how has a "misunderstanding" arisen? How is that there are other regions not paying? It's not as if the amounts are vast. Even so, is there a feeling that the flags are not worth it? From research I've found, conclusions are that the flags have little impact on tourist decisions, while in the Balearics there is a view that a "private foundation" is asking for financial contributions for something that creates bureaucracy and work but does not lead to more tourism, given that beaches are in any event of a generally excellent quality.
Each year the announcement of the flags is made with a blaze of publicity, which adds to the sense that they are all about marketing. In Mallorca, beaches can be marketed with or without a Blue Flag.
But let us ask a question. Did the loss of the flags make any difference to tourism in the municipality? Well, did it? I will guess that it made absolutely no difference: that there weren't suddenly thousands of tourists ripping up their reservations or altering their holiday plans because there was no Blue Flag.
Beaches in Mallorca have all sorts of quality standards (including Pollensa's). There is one beach - Playa de Muro's - which probably has more certification for quality than you can wave a flag at, and this includes a Blue Flag. It is a beach with an excellent reputation, but then so are very many others and they are excellent because no town hall can risk that they are not. They have to answer, among others, to the national government if standards slip, so there are institutional control mechanisms for beaches in addition to non-governmental organisations such as the Foundation for Environmental Education which controls the Blue Flag programme.
When the flag concept was originated in the mid-1980s, it was an important initiative. As flags began to appear, people did take some notice. That was because an environmental awareness-raising campaign of its type was novel. It was the success of the Blue Flag programme in its early years that was to help engrain a culture of systems for beach maintenance and water quality that was then added to by the increasingly vocal environmentalist movement and by various organisations, such as the ISO (International Standards Organisation), which has its own systems for environmental management.
But in all this time have these various initiatives and certifications made any appreciable difference to tourist decision-making? Initially, they probably did, and that was because of the novelty. Nowadays, though, clean water, well-maintained beaches and various facilities are pretty much taken as being givens. Everyone is aware of the need for sound environmental control.
There are occasions when even the best control goes wrong. Oil spillages are one example. Another has to do with waste. Mallorca's waters faced a significant environmental issue last summer because of the plastic waste coming up from Algeria, but there was a constant clean-up, even if there was publicity given to odd examples where this debris was coming ashore and not being cleared. Where there needs to be greater control is over the isolated but repeated instances of pollution, such as in Palma when it rains heavily, as was the case at the weekend. It is no surprise that the two affected beaches have had their Blue Flags taken away.
The loss of the flags in the Balearics has led to a spat between the regional government and ADEAC, which is the Blue Flag organising association in Spain. Its president has demanded that the government withdraws remarks questioning the value and legitimacy of the Blue Flag awards. There is even a suggestion that its legal people will be considering damage done to it (and also to Spain's tourism).
The ADEAC appears to be upset by the suggestion by the tourism minister, Biel Barceló, that the flags which have been lost this year are because a payment has not been forthcoming. It hasn't in fact been paid since 2013, something that the ADEAC attributes to a "misunderstanding" as to how the adjudication process works. It is reasonable for the ADEAC to point to other coastal regions where a payment is also not made but where the number of flags has increased.
But how has a "misunderstanding" arisen? How is that there are other regions not paying? It's not as if the amounts are vast. Even so, is there a feeling that the flags are not worth it? From research I've found, conclusions are that the flags have little impact on tourist decisions, while in the Balearics there is a view that a "private foundation" is asking for financial contributions for something that creates bureaucracy and work but does not lead to more tourism, given that beaches are in any event of a generally excellent quality.
Each year the announcement of the flags is made with a blaze of publicity, which adds to the sense that they are all about marketing. In Mallorca, beaches can be marketed with or without a Blue Flag.
Monday, May 09, 2016
MALLORCA TODAY - Weather Alcúdia and Pollensa 9 May 2016
Morning high (7.02am): 16.1C
Forecast high: 21C; UV: 8
Three-day forecast: 10 May - Cloud, sun, 20C; 11 May - Cloud, sun, 19C; 12 May - Sun, cloud, 19C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): Variable 2 to 3.
Fairly grey morning. Sun should be out later but there is a slight risk of a shower. General pattern at present is unsettled.
Evening update (21.00): High of 23.5C. Some spots of rain this morning, hazy sun through the cloud later.
Forecast high: 21C; UV: 8
Three-day forecast: 10 May - Cloud, sun, 20C; 11 May - Cloud, sun, 19C; 12 May - Sun, cloud, 19C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): Variable 2 to 3.
Fairly grey morning. Sun should be out later but there is a slight risk of a shower. General pattern at present is unsettled.
Evening update (21.00): High of 23.5C. Some spots of rain this morning, hazy sun through the cloud later.
The Colour Purple: Podemos
"All good socialist citizens of the Balearics, I call on you to lay down your red flags and follow the colour purple." These weren't the exact words of Alberto Jarabo but they catch the essence of Alberto's desire for the Purple Rain of Podemos to persist all over the Partido Popular and PSOE: a purple shower, one might say. "You say you want a leader, but you can't seem to make up your mind, I think you better close it, and let me guide you to the purple rain." These were Prince's words, and now the prince of Balearic Podemosism has recognised the doubts in voters' minds and so has sought to make their minds up for them: vote for the party with the purple colour, Vota Podemos!, Vota Iglesias! If you are a socialist, that is. Oh, and if you actually have a vote.
Neither PSOE in the Balearics nor PSOE nationally can overcome the Partido Popular and lead a government of change, our own Dave Spart droned on. These were his actual words: "We invite the socialists of the islands to vote for Podemos." Yes, all invited to the party - Podemos not PSOE. Whatever must Francina have been thinking? One of her partners in Balearic government of change had made it clear that PSOE cannot lead a government of change. Oh dear.
Somewhere in Francina's sweet and friendly land La Presidenta was waffling on about the stability of her government (of change or otherwise) and consensus, dialogue, blah, blah, but her left-hand woman, the newly installed minister for the presidency, Pilar Costa, had been having none of any possible Spartist socialist vote-grab. Ms. Coast, also now the chief government spokesperson, has in the past shown that her speaking can cause a slight issue, such as when she referred to José Maria Rodríguez, the boss of the PP in Palma as ... er, as the boss. But she specifically used the word "capo", as in mafia boss. José Maria was from impressed, and so off they went to a conciliation tribunal, a bit like a court for consensus and dialogue.
Anyway, Ms. Coast had, prior to the Jarabo purple revolution declaration, suggested that it would be a "serious mistake" were there to be an alliance between Podemos and the Més-ites which would have as its greater priority a defeat of PSOE rather than the PP. Subsequent to Alberto's socialist call to arms, PSOE, including Ms. Coast, went quiet other than for another of Francina's left-hand women, election campaign organiser, Bel Oliver, to assert that the "citizens" have a further opportunity (on 26 June) to put an end to the PP government. Yes, they do. By voting for Podemos.
Neither PSOE in the Balearics nor PSOE nationally can overcome the Partido Popular and lead a government of change, our own Dave Spart droned on. These were his actual words: "We invite the socialists of the islands to vote for Podemos." Yes, all invited to the party - Podemos not PSOE. Whatever must Francina have been thinking? One of her partners in Balearic government of change had made it clear that PSOE cannot lead a government of change. Oh dear.
Somewhere in Francina's sweet and friendly land La Presidenta was waffling on about the stability of her government (of change or otherwise) and consensus, dialogue, blah, blah, but her left-hand woman, the newly installed minister for the presidency, Pilar Costa, had been having none of any possible Spartist socialist vote-grab. Ms. Coast, also now the chief government spokesperson, has in the past shown that her speaking can cause a slight issue, such as when she referred to José Maria Rodríguez, the boss of the PP in Palma as ... er, as the boss. But she specifically used the word "capo", as in mafia boss. José Maria was from impressed, and so off they went to a conciliation tribunal, a bit like a court for consensus and dialogue.
Anyway, Ms. Coast had, prior to the Jarabo purple revolution declaration, suggested that it would be a "serious mistake" were there to be an alliance between Podemos and the Més-ites which would have as its greater priority a defeat of PSOE rather than the PP. Subsequent to Alberto's socialist call to arms, PSOE, including Ms. Coast, went quiet other than for another of Francina's left-hand women, election campaign organiser, Bel Oliver, to assert that the "citizens" have a further opportunity (on 26 June) to put an end to the PP government. Yes, they do. By voting for Podemos.
Sunday, May 08, 2016
MALLORCA TODAY - Weather Alcúdia and Pollensa 8 May 2016
Morning high (7.52am): 12.8C
Forecast high: 22C; UV: 8
Three-day forecast: 9 May - Cloud, 23C; 10 May - Cloud, sun, 19C; 11 May - Cloud, 19C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): South 3 to 4 increasing Southeast 4 to 5 in the afternoon.
Certainly an improvement this morning, though the sun is set to disappear later. A mixed bag for the next few days, with tomorrow looking like rain.
Evening update (19.30): High of 22.6C. Some sun, some cloud, nothing special.
Forecast high: 22C; UV: 8
Three-day forecast: 9 May - Cloud, 23C; 10 May - Cloud, sun, 19C; 11 May - Cloud, 19C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): South 3 to 4 increasing Southeast 4 to 5 in the afternoon.
Certainly an improvement this morning, though the sun is set to disappear later. A mixed bag for the next few days, with tomorrow looking like rain.
Evening update (19.30): High of 22.6C. Some sun, some cloud, nothing special.
The Spirit Of Soller: Es Firó
It's one of Mallorca big fiesta days out tomorrow: one of the biggest in fact. Es Firó is how it's known in Soller. Many will just refer to it as the Moors and Christians, the grandest battle simulation between the two sides that Mallorca has to offer: grander than Pollensa in August because of its scope and length.
An aspect of both these battle re-creations is that neither of the original battles, in the overall scheme of things, was particularly special or important. Pollensa was in 1550, Soller 1561, and in the sixteenth century there were any number of attacks on Mallorca from different sources - north African saracens and eastern Mediterranean Turks among them. They can be classified as attacks by corsairs (or pirates), though such a classification can downplay any military and strategic element.
Why, given that there were repeated assaults, have the battles of Pollensa and Soller assumed such significance? In the case of Soller, and to a lesser extent Pollensa, a reason lies with the amount of documentary evidence. While there is some legend attached to the story (not least the role of the "Valents Dones" - the brave women), much of the re-creation is fairly true to what happened, even if the time of the day when the assault was launched has been altered (the landing was around four in the morning).
The events were written down. There was one report by the town hall's scribe, a second by the notary, Antoni Morell, and a third which was sent to King Felipe II. The commemoration of what took place on 11 May, 1561 was first established in 1615, but it wasn't to be until 1855 that a mock battle was staged. In the meantime, there was - in the eighteenth century - a "reinterpretation" of events by the community at Sant Bartomeu church and then, in 1833, a further embellishment by Franciscan monks. Through a process of redaction, therefore, the basis for the simulation was arrived at.
In isolation, the attack on Soller has gone down in history as a story of defiant bravery by the people of Soller, aided by units from other villages, against the invaders. And in isolation is how it tends to be considered, as is also the case with Pollensa. Missing is the back story.
Mallorca and the Balearics were of strategic importance. For the Ottomans, some control (never established) would have assisted in disrupting Spain's trade routes, while Spain was on their wider agenda of war against Christianity. Ottoman expansion and so the "Turkish menace" was to reach its limits in the later sixteenth century, but at the time of the attacks on both Pollensa and Soller, that menace remained real enough.
Some days before Soller was attacked in 1561, the Viceroy of Mallorca, Guillem de Rocafull, had sent two ships to launch attacks on the Algerian coast against pirates. This didn't achieve a great deal. By 10 May, there were 23 Turkish ships by Ibiza under the command of Uluj Ali, a one-time Italian galley slave who had converted to Islam and had risen through the ranks to join Turgut Reis (Dragut), the supreme commander of the Ottoman navy and the Moorish protagonist in the attack on Pollensa.
The viceroy knew they were coming to Mallorca but he was unsure where. The captains of the local villages were put on alert: those of Alaro and Bunyola were to come to Soller's aid. There would have obviously been great anxiety. Though Mallorca suffered its attacks, it had experienced nothing like the siege of Ciutadella in Menorca in 1558. The town was eventually sacked and well over 3,000 people were taken and sold into slavery in Istanbul.
Above the documentary evidence and the historical facts and legends of the attack, there is a further reason for the Soller battle having assumed the significance that it has, and that is the role of the people of Soller down the years. 1561 has remained a strong part of Soller identity, the Valents Dones having been described as characterising more than ever the spirit of Soller - a most authentic love for the homeland (that of the town).
Like Pollensa, the battle celebration went through its years of decline and was revived in the 1970s. In 1977, in an act of the fraternal bonding of two towns whose pasts are so associated with the heroic deeds of the sixteenth century, the Pollensa writer, Miquel Bota Totxo, closely linked with that town's cultural revival, gave the opening address for Es Firó. "It has a sense of immeasurable brotherhood ... rooted in the depths of the soul." It is more than just a fiesta.
An aspect of both these battle re-creations is that neither of the original battles, in the overall scheme of things, was particularly special or important. Pollensa was in 1550, Soller 1561, and in the sixteenth century there were any number of attacks on Mallorca from different sources - north African saracens and eastern Mediterranean Turks among them. They can be classified as attacks by corsairs (or pirates), though such a classification can downplay any military and strategic element.
Why, given that there were repeated assaults, have the battles of Pollensa and Soller assumed such significance? In the case of Soller, and to a lesser extent Pollensa, a reason lies with the amount of documentary evidence. While there is some legend attached to the story (not least the role of the "Valents Dones" - the brave women), much of the re-creation is fairly true to what happened, even if the time of the day when the assault was launched has been altered (the landing was around four in the morning).
The events were written down. There was one report by the town hall's scribe, a second by the notary, Antoni Morell, and a third which was sent to King Felipe II. The commemoration of what took place on 11 May, 1561 was first established in 1615, but it wasn't to be until 1855 that a mock battle was staged. In the meantime, there was - in the eighteenth century - a "reinterpretation" of events by the community at Sant Bartomeu church and then, in 1833, a further embellishment by Franciscan monks. Through a process of redaction, therefore, the basis for the simulation was arrived at.
In isolation, the attack on Soller has gone down in history as a story of defiant bravery by the people of Soller, aided by units from other villages, against the invaders. And in isolation is how it tends to be considered, as is also the case with Pollensa. Missing is the back story.
Mallorca and the Balearics were of strategic importance. For the Ottomans, some control (never established) would have assisted in disrupting Spain's trade routes, while Spain was on their wider agenda of war against Christianity. Ottoman expansion and so the "Turkish menace" was to reach its limits in the later sixteenth century, but at the time of the attacks on both Pollensa and Soller, that menace remained real enough.
Some days before Soller was attacked in 1561, the Viceroy of Mallorca, Guillem de Rocafull, had sent two ships to launch attacks on the Algerian coast against pirates. This didn't achieve a great deal. By 10 May, there were 23 Turkish ships by Ibiza under the command of Uluj Ali, a one-time Italian galley slave who had converted to Islam and had risen through the ranks to join Turgut Reis (Dragut), the supreme commander of the Ottoman navy and the Moorish protagonist in the attack on Pollensa.
The viceroy knew they were coming to Mallorca but he was unsure where. The captains of the local villages were put on alert: those of Alaro and Bunyola were to come to Soller's aid. There would have obviously been great anxiety. Though Mallorca suffered its attacks, it had experienced nothing like the siege of Ciutadella in Menorca in 1558. The town was eventually sacked and well over 3,000 people were taken and sold into slavery in Istanbul.
Above the documentary evidence and the historical facts and legends of the attack, there is a further reason for the Soller battle having assumed the significance that it has, and that is the role of the people of Soller down the years. 1561 has remained a strong part of Soller identity, the Valents Dones having been described as characterising more than ever the spirit of Soller - a most authentic love for the homeland (that of the town).
Like Pollensa, the battle celebration went through its years of decline and was revived in the 1970s. In 1977, in an act of the fraternal bonding of two towns whose pasts are so associated with the heroic deeds of the sixteenth century, the Pollensa writer, Miquel Bota Totxo, closely linked with that town's cultural revival, gave the opening address for Es Firó. "It has a sense of immeasurable brotherhood ... rooted in the depths of the soul." It is more than just a fiesta.
Saturday, May 07, 2016
MALLORCA TODAY - Weather Alcúdia and Pollensa 7 May 2016
Morning high (7.30am): 14.4C
Forecast high: 19C; UV: 7
Three-day forecast: 8 May - Cloud, 22C; 9 May - Cloud, 20C; 10 May - Cloud, sun, 19C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): East 4 to 5.
Well, this is pretty miserable. Persistent rain, low cloud, and this may be how it is for most of the day. For the Ironman competitors, poor cycling and running conditions. At least there seems less threat of an actual storm.
Evening update (19.15): What a rotten day. The rain was never heavy, just constant, and only let up around mid-afternoon. A high of 16.1C.
Forecast high: 19C; UV: 7
Three-day forecast: 8 May - Cloud, 22C; 9 May - Cloud, 20C; 10 May - Cloud, sun, 19C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): East 4 to 5.
Well, this is pretty miserable. Persistent rain, low cloud, and this may be how it is for most of the day. For the Ironman competitors, poor cycling and running conditions. At least there seems less threat of an actual storm.
Evening update (19.15): What a rotten day. The rain was never heavy, just constant, and only let up around mid-afternoon. A high of 16.1C.
No Celebrations For Cruise Ships
There were eight cruise ships in port on Tuesday, a record in terms of the number of ships at one time. The president of the Balearic Ports Authority, Juan Gual de Torrella, said that they were happy because this reflected all the work that has been going into promoting this type of tourism. Not everyone was happy though.
Gual de Torrella noted that there won't be many days similar to Tuesday, when there was a total of 22,000 passengers: not a record, as there were 23,000 one day last summer. Of the eight ships, it should be noted that three were at the end of their cruises. Their passengers, both embarking and disembarking, were less likely than the passengers of the other five to have been wandering around the centre of the city. Wandering around and spending, by all accounts, comparatively little.
This was partly because there were coaches whisking passengers off to other parts of the island. The passengers are damned if they do, damned if they don't. If they do go into the city, then there are the complaints about human saturation, a factor that provoked the anti-tourist graffiti. If they don't, then the hostelries complain they're not making enough. No one, apart from the ports authority, seems particularly happy.
Getting hard and fast information about the benefits of cruise shipping for Palma is not easy. There needs to be more systematic evaluation. But according to some numbers from a few years ago - so they will have changed to a degree - the economic impact of cruising for the Balearics as a whole was put at 115 million euros. That's quite a lot of euros, but it was less than for golf tourism and under a quarter of the impact generated by nautical tourism.
The issue of spending by cruise passengers has long been argued about, often on the basis of no more than anecdote. But if a city - and not just the port itself, which clearly has its own benefits - is to admit several thousands of passengers on certain days and fewer on others, then should there not be a realistic and hopefully accurate assessment of the costs and benefits? Rather like statistics for airport passengers, it can seem that all that anyone is interested in are the human numbers (and the number of planes or ships) rather than figures for the costs - services, resources, environment - and for benefits, i.e. the wealth generated.
Tuesday's ships arrived against a background of Barcelona's mayor, Ada Colau, intimating that the city is looking to charge a tax on tourists who don't stay overnight. Among them would be cruise passengers who are currently exempt from paying Catalonia's tourist tax if ships are in port for under twelve hours. The city council argues that there are costs incurred because of cruises, such as those of cleaning, security and general infrastructure, as well as a social cost in terms of the impact on residents.
There was the further background of the announcement by TUI Cruises regarding its ships coming into Palma. What better way of demonstrating TUI's investment in its product and customer experience, the company's statement said, than unveiling a new addition - TUI Discovery - and introducing all-inclusive as standard? This apparent self-congratulation can be interpreted as insensitive. All-inclusive as standard? Would this be beneficial to Palma? There again, here is a tour company which, via its First Choice brand, once promoted all-inclusive hotels with the slogan of leaving your wallet at home, something for which there was an admission that this wasn't terribly sensitive in a BBC documentary about all-inclusives with which I was involved.
Announcements of all-inclusive cruises and record numbers of ships might be cause for celebration where some are concerned, but they are not for others. Given the political and social issues as they obtain at present, it might be wise to quieten the celebratory noises.
Gual de Torrella noted that there won't be many days similar to Tuesday, when there was a total of 22,000 passengers: not a record, as there were 23,000 one day last summer. Of the eight ships, it should be noted that three were at the end of their cruises. Their passengers, both embarking and disembarking, were less likely than the passengers of the other five to have been wandering around the centre of the city. Wandering around and spending, by all accounts, comparatively little.
This was partly because there were coaches whisking passengers off to other parts of the island. The passengers are damned if they do, damned if they don't. If they do go into the city, then there are the complaints about human saturation, a factor that provoked the anti-tourist graffiti. If they don't, then the hostelries complain they're not making enough. No one, apart from the ports authority, seems particularly happy.
Getting hard and fast information about the benefits of cruise shipping for Palma is not easy. There needs to be more systematic evaluation. But according to some numbers from a few years ago - so they will have changed to a degree - the economic impact of cruising for the Balearics as a whole was put at 115 million euros. That's quite a lot of euros, but it was less than for golf tourism and under a quarter of the impact generated by nautical tourism.
The issue of spending by cruise passengers has long been argued about, often on the basis of no more than anecdote. But if a city - and not just the port itself, which clearly has its own benefits - is to admit several thousands of passengers on certain days and fewer on others, then should there not be a realistic and hopefully accurate assessment of the costs and benefits? Rather like statistics for airport passengers, it can seem that all that anyone is interested in are the human numbers (and the number of planes or ships) rather than figures for the costs - services, resources, environment - and for benefits, i.e. the wealth generated.
Tuesday's ships arrived against a background of Barcelona's mayor, Ada Colau, intimating that the city is looking to charge a tax on tourists who don't stay overnight. Among them would be cruise passengers who are currently exempt from paying Catalonia's tourist tax if ships are in port for under twelve hours. The city council argues that there are costs incurred because of cruises, such as those of cleaning, security and general infrastructure, as well as a social cost in terms of the impact on residents.
There was the further background of the announcement by TUI Cruises regarding its ships coming into Palma. What better way of demonstrating TUI's investment in its product and customer experience, the company's statement said, than unveiling a new addition - TUI Discovery - and introducing all-inclusive as standard? This apparent self-congratulation can be interpreted as insensitive. All-inclusive as standard? Would this be beneficial to Palma? There again, here is a tour company which, via its First Choice brand, once promoted all-inclusive hotels with the slogan of leaving your wallet at home, something for which there was an admission that this wasn't terribly sensitive in a BBC documentary about all-inclusives with which I was involved.
Announcements of all-inclusive cruises and record numbers of ships might be cause for celebration where some are concerned, but they are not for others. Given the political and social issues as they obtain at present, it might be wise to quieten the celebratory noises.
Friday, May 06, 2016
MALLORCA TODAY - Weather Alcúdia and Pollensa 6 May 2016
Morning high (7.27am): 14.6C
Forecast high: 20C; UV: 7
Three-day forecast: 7 May - Rain, 20C; 8 May - Cloud, sun, 20C; 9 May - Cloud, 21C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): East-Southeast 4 occasionally 5.
Grey and a bit blowy with some rain around. Not due to improve during the day, with the forecast suggesting a storm could come in overnight and into tomorrow. The general outlook at present is not particularly good into the middle of next week.
Evening update (22.15): A high of 21.8C. Not much sun. It tried but failed. Tomorrow looks distinctly iffy.
Forecast high: 20C; UV: 7
Three-day forecast: 7 May - Rain, 20C; 8 May - Cloud, sun, 20C; 9 May - Cloud, 21C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): East-Southeast 4 occasionally 5.
Grey and a bit blowy with some rain around. Not due to improve during the day, with the forecast suggesting a storm could come in overnight and into tomorrow. The general outlook at present is not particularly good into the middle of next week.
Evening update (22.15): A high of 21.8C. Not much sun. It tried but failed. Tomorrow looks distinctly iffy.
Taking Family Tourism For Granted
Family tourism. The bedrock of Mallorca's tourism over decades. A market for which the sale was simple. Cheap, very cheap destination. Hotels of sufficient standard, assuming they had in fact been built. Sun, water and adventure for the kids. Bars with ten peseta shots for mum and dad and some dabbling with "foreign" food. So sophisticated.
In the days when holidays came in standard packages, there was no tourism market more standardised than the family market. One size fitted all. Families were families: 2.4 and all that, lifted from some standardised middle to lower middle class estate in middle England or the middles of other European countries - a few countries at any rate.
Somewhere along the line, between the 1960s and the present day, the standard family split into various branch lines. But even allowing for the changing nature of family units, the products had remained largely unaltered. Until, that is, hotels and tour operators realised that branding, theming, internet were as applicable to families as to other tourism markets. Mallorca has a pirates village and will have more. Mallorca has Katmandu. Mallorca has Vivas with their ships and an increasing abundance of watery themes involving models of animals and more ships. Mallorca still has Flintstones, positively Stone Age now in terms of theming but a remarkably enduring theme nevertheless. A bedrock of Mallorca's tourism: Bedrock in Palmanova.
For all its centrality to the tourism industry, the family tourism market had tended to be overlooked. It had remained a comparatively simple market to sell to. It hadn't required massive amounts of innovation. It was solid, dependable and, in purely marketing terms, unexciting. Various things happened: recession, heightened sophistication, greater demands, ease of cost comparisons, children guiding the purchasing decision. The family was back in marketing vogue after years when the tourism industry had focused its efforts and demographic segmentation on ever more defined niches, pandered to and pampered by the all-powerful nature of The Brand.
For Mallorca, a redefinition of family tourism created themes and gave the all-inclusive hotel a quantum leap. Long since cheap as chips and faced with competitor destinations that had managed to combine higher standards of hotel offer with cheapness, the all-inclusive provided Mallorca with a new front line in the family tourism battle.
All this did, however, was to reinforce what had long been known. Once Mallorca ceased to be the cheap destination of the earlier years of mass tourism, it was appreciated that family tourism wasn't terribly profitable. In general terms, it still isn't. But given its size, it is not a market that can be ignored: hence, the greater attention now paid to theming and branding. There again, how big is big?
In November last year, there was a further recognition of the revival of industry interest in the family market when the first international congress for family tourism was held at Port Aventura, the Tarragona holiday world with its multiple themes of a variety and scale unimaginable in Mallorca. Representing the Balearics was the tourism minister, Biel Barceló. He made the observation that the family market accounts for 25% of the whole Balearic tourism market. It sounds on the low side, but one trusts that the minister has his statistics correct.
Barceló also noted that the family market poses something of a handicap. It does nothing to address seasonality, and for an obvious reason: schooling. He then added that it is, however, a market that is very loyal. Families have been coming to the Balearics, he said, for more than fifteen years.
Official announcements from local authorities, be they government or municipal, constantly refer to family tourism as a virtuous market. Calvia is always harping on about it, for example. And yet here is a market which accounts for at least a quarter of all tourism that doesn't fit with another constant mantra - the desire to address seasonality, for which we have all the various niches that are promoted (cycling, food, birdwatching and so on). Strategically, therefore, it isn't given the level of emphasis that other markets are, while that loyalty is going to be sorely tested by the tourist tax. Precisely because the family market is less profitable than others, owing to it having a generally lower spending power, precisely because nowadays any destination is only as important as its security and convenience but is otherwise chosen on price, the tax threatens that very loyalty.
The point is that family tourism has always been taken for granted. The industry has identified that it no longer can be. Therefore, it invests in themes and branding. The government, however, does take it for granted. It doesn't promote to it, it is a market of value only in summer, and the government is going to tax it. The gap between how officialdom talks about family tourism and how officialdom treats it is great.
In the days when holidays came in standard packages, there was no tourism market more standardised than the family market. One size fitted all. Families were families: 2.4 and all that, lifted from some standardised middle to lower middle class estate in middle England or the middles of other European countries - a few countries at any rate.
Somewhere along the line, between the 1960s and the present day, the standard family split into various branch lines. But even allowing for the changing nature of family units, the products had remained largely unaltered. Until, that is, hotels and tour operators realised that branding, theming, internet were as applicable to families as to other tourism markets. Mallorca has a pirates village and will have more. Mallorca has Katmandu. Mallorca has Vivas with their ships and an increasing abundance of watery themes involving models of animals and more ships. Mallorca still has Flintstones, positively Stone Age now in terms of theming but a remarkably enduring theme nevertheless. A bedrock of Mallorca's tourism: Bedrock in Palmanova.
For all its centrality to the tourism industry, the family tourism market had tended to be overlooked. It had remained a comparatively simple market to sell to. It hadn't required massive amounts of innovation. It was solid, dependable and, in purely marketing terms, unexciting. Various things happened: recession, heightened sophistication, greater demands, ease of cost comparisons, children guiding the purchasing decision. The family was back in marketing vogue after years when the tourism industry had focused its efforts and demographic segmentation on ever more defined niches, pandered to and pampered by the all-powerful nature of The Brand.
For Mallorca, a redefinition of family tourism created themes and gave the all-inclusive hotel a quantum leap. Long since cheap as chips and faced with competitor destinations that had managed to combine higher standards of hotel offer with cheapness, the all-inclusive provided Mallorca with a new front line in the family tourism battle.
All this did, however, was to reinforce what had long been known. Once Mallorca ceased to be the cheap destination of the earlier years of mass tourism, it was appreciated that family tourism wasn't terribly profitable. In general terms, it still isn't. But given its size, it is not a market that can be ignored: hence, the greater attention now paid to theming and branding. There again, how big is big?
In November last year, there was a further recognition of the revival of industry interest in the family market when the first international congress for family tourism was held at Port Aventura, the Tarragona holiday world with its multiple themes of a variety and scale unimaginable in Mallorca. Representing the Balearics was the tourism minister, Biel Barceló. He made the observation that the family market accounts for 25% of the whole Balearic tourism market. It sounds on the low side, but one trusts that the minister has his statistics correct.
Barceló also noted that the family market poses something of a handicap. It does nothing to address seasonality, and for an obvious reason: schooling. He then added that it is, however, a market that is very loyal. Families have been coming to the Balearics, he said, for more than fifteen years.
Official announcements from local authorities, be they government or municipal, constantly refer to family tourism as a virtuous market. Calvia is always harping on about it, for example. And yet here is a market which accounts for at least a quarter of all tourism that doesn't fit with another constant mantra - the desire to address seasonality, for which we have all the various niches that are promoted (cycling, food, birdwatching and so on). Strategically, therefore, it isn't given the level of emphasis that other markets are, while that loyalty is going to be sorely tested by the tourist tax. Precisely because the family market is less profitable than others, owing to it having a generally lower spending power, precisely because nowadays any destination is only as important as its security and convenience but is otherwise chosen on price, the tax threatens that very loyalty.
The point is that family tourism has always been taken for granted. The industry has identified that it no longer can be. Therefore, it invests in themes and branding. The government, however, does take it for granted. It doesn't promote to it, it is a market of value only in summer, and the government is going to tax it. The gap between how officialdom talks about family tourism and how officialdom treats it is great.
Thursday, May 05, 2016
MALLORCA TODAY - Weather Alcúdia and Pollensa 5 May 2016
Morning high (7.01am): 11.2C
Forecast high: 20C; UV: 7
Three-day forecast: 6 May - Cloud, rain, 20C; 7 May - Rain, sun, 17C; 8 May - Sun, cloud, 20C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): Northeast 2 to 3 increasing East 3 to 4 during the afternoon.
Another good morning, but things due to go downhill somewhat this evening and overnight. Rain likely tomorrow and into Saturday.
Evening update (20.00): Clouded over later on. Good earlier. High of 23.8C.
Forecast high: 20C; UV: 7
Three-day forecast: 6 May - Cloud, rain, 20C; 7 May - Rain, sun, 17C; 8 May - Sun, cloud, 20C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): Northeast 2 to 3 increasing East 3 to 4 during the afternoon.
Another good morning, but things due to go downhill somewhat this evening and overnight. Rain likely tomorrow and into Saturday.
Evening update (20.00): Clouded over later on. Good earlier. High of 23.8C.
The One-Eyed Monster Of Tourism
Ada Colau is the mayor of Barcelona. In 2001 she appeared in a comedy series called "Two Plus One". It was to mark the start and end of Ada's acting career. The critics panned it, no one watched it and a second series was not commissioned.
Apart from this brief excursion into television, it is hard to identify what Ada has ever done. There are plenty of politicians of whom one can ask this, but career politicians are generally sustained and promoted via a political party system. Ada, on the other hand, appears never to have operated via such an apparatus. She's a professional activist.
One doesn't question her good intentions. She was propelled into public view not by television but by her having been the driving force behind the association for those affected by mortgage difficulties and evictions. Ultimately, and as part of the new wave of political formations in Spain, she was involved with the founding of Guanyem in Barcelona and stood as mayor for Barcelona En Comú, an amalgam of groupings that included Podemos, at last year's election.
Given her activism in relation to housing and so also social and living conditions, one can understand that these subjects are to the fore of her agenda in the city. Related to them is the whole issue of accommodation for tourism - holiday lets, if you like. Earlier this month the city's council approved one of its latest prohibitions. Under this, no more tourist apartments can be made available unless existing ones are made unavailable, and then only in areas away from the centre of the city. (In Barcelona, as in the rest of Catalonia, private apartments can be openly and legally marketed for holiday rental under Catalonian legislation.)
The issue of tourist apartments and so of a sense that parts of Barcelona are being overwhelmed by tourism is of a scale that is far greater than in Palma. It is very much a political issue, with the more extreme elements to both left and right making capital out of it. The new prohibition is not totally unreasonable, given the rapid growth of tourist accommodation. If nothing else, it offers some potential breathing space.
However, it is part of a wider policy on tourism, and it is this which betrays an impression that Ada, a product of her activism, is one-eyed. The eye which is turned towards tourism doesn't like what it sees.
Barely a week seems to pass without there being some announcement from the city council that concerns tourism. In the middle of March, for instance, it was stated that a moratorium on any new tourism development would be extended by a year. Against the backdrop of prohibition and moratoria, it is said that a total of 38 projects have been put on ice or abandoned at a loss of some 3,000 million euros of investment. It might be noted, though, that not everything has gone by the board: Meliá expects to open its five-star Me by Meliá hotel in the city centre in 2018.
But it is the latest announcement which exposes Ada's touristic myopia more than others. She is planning on taxing visitors to the city - not for staying in accommodation, as they are already taxed for this, but for simply entering city limits. It would be a tax on sightseeing. So, while tourists are all seeing in Barcelona, Ada sees nothing other than a further way of extracting a tithe from them and of demonising tourists because of her one-eyed view of reality. More than this, it is a crackpot idea. Ada might believe that logistically tourists on excursion coaches can be fleeced for a euro a day (or whatever the tariff might be), but what of other tourists? Discriminatory her tax would most certainly be.
The mere announcement of an intention to tax ratchets up further the noise directed towards a perceived villain - tourism. Ada's idea might well appeal to certain politicians in Mallorca with equally negative perspectives that pander in no small part to a xenophobic minority. Such attitudes exist because, as with Ada, these politicians are blinded by their activist philosophies.
Yet the narrative emerging from elements of the left reveals nothing of an appreciation of where tourism in its mass form came from. Of course tourism is now corporate and capitalist. Of course it is a long, long way from the 1950s, but the origins of this mass movement of people were firmly socialist, developed by pioneers such as Gerard Blitz and Vladimir Raitz, the latter especially. Tourism was for the ordinary man. It was to be affordable and cross-cultural, a means of fostering understanding in the aftermath of war and persecution.
Yes, there are excesses. Yes, there probably should be limits. Yes, there should be co-existence between visitors and residents, but this becomes less achievable because of a wilful, one-eyed ignorance of tourism.
Apart from this brief excursion into television, it is hard to identify what Ada has ever done. There are plenty of politicians of whom one can ask this, but career politicians are generally sustained and promoted via a political party system. Ada, on the other hand, appears never to have operated via such an apparatus. She's a professional activist.
One doesn't question her good intentions. She was propelled into public view not by television but by her having been the driving force behind the association for those affected by mortgage difficulties and evictions. Ultimately, and as part of the new wave of political formations in Spain, she was involved with the founding of Guanyem in Barcelona and stood as mayor for Barcelona En Comú, an amalgam of groupings that included Podemos, at last year's election.
Given her activism in relation to housing and so also social and living conditions, one can understand that these subjects are to the fore of her agenda in the city. Related to them is the whole issue of accommodation for tourism - holiday lets, if you like. Earlier this month the city's council approved one of its latest prohibitions. Under this, no more tourist apartments can be made available unless existing ones are made unavailable, and then only in areas away from the centre of the city. (In Barcelona, as in the rest of Catalonia, private apartments can be openly and legally marketed for holiday rental under Catalonian legislation.)
The issue of tourist apartments and so of a sense that parts of Barcelona are being overwhelmed by tourism is of a scale that is far greater than in Palma. It is very much a political issue, with the more extreme elements to both left and right making capital out of it. The new prohibition is not totally unreasonable, given the rapid growth of tourist accommodation. If nothing else, it offers some potential breathing space.
However, it is part of a wider policy on tourism, and it is this which betrays an impression that Ada, a product of her activism, is one-eyed. The eye which is turned towards tourism doesn't like what it sees.
Barely a week seems to pass without there being some announcement from the city council that concerns tourism. In the middle of March, for instance, it was stated that a moratorium on any new tourism development would be extended by a year. Against the backdrop of prohibition and moratoria, it is said that a total of 38 projects have been put on ice or abandoned at a loss of some 3,000 million euros of investment. It might be noted, though, that not everything has gone by the board: Meliá expects to open its five-star Me by Meliá hotel in the city centre in 2018.
But it is the latest announcement which exposes Ada's touristic myopia more than others. She is planning on taxing visitors to the city - not for staying in accommodation, as they are already taxed for this, but for simply entering city limits. It would be a tax on sightseeing. So, while tourists are all seeing in Barcelona, Ada sees nothing other than a further way of extracting a tithe from them and of demonising tourists because of her one-eyed view of reality. More than this, it is a crackpot idea. Ada might believe that logistically tourists on excursion coaches can be fleeced for a euro a day (or whatever the tariff might be), but what of other tourists? Discriminatory her tax would most certainly be.
The mere announcement of an intention to tax ratchets up further the noise directed towards a perceived villain - tourism. Ada's idea might well appeal to certain politicians in Mallorca with equally negative perspectives that pander in no small part to a xenophobic minority. Such attitudes exist because, as with Ada, these politicians are blinded by their activist philosophies.
Yet the narrative emerging from elements of the left reveals nothing of an appreciation of where tourism in its mass form came from. Of course tourism is now corporate and capitalist. Of course it is a long, long way from the 1950s, but the origins of this mass movement of people were firmly socialist, developed by pioneers such as Gerard Blitz and Vladimir Raitz, the latter especially. Tourism was for the ordinary man. It was to be affordable and cross-cultural, a means of fostering understanding in the aftermath of war and persecution.
Yes, there are excesses. Yes, there probably should be limits. Yes, there should be co-existence between visitors and residents, but this becomes less achievable because of a wilful, one-eyed ignorance of tourism.
Wednesday, May 04, 2016
MALLORCA TODAY - Weather Alcúdia and Pollensa 4 May 2016
Morning high (8.08am): 14.9C
Forecast high: 19C; UV: 7
Three-day forecast: 5 May - Sun, cloud, 20C; 6 May - Rain, 17C; 7 May - Rain, 17C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): North-Northeast 3 to 4.
A fine, bright morning and an excellent day to come. Tomorrow, cloud is due to come in later in the day and both Friday and Saturday are looking as though they might be a bit wet.
Evening update (21.00): Very pleasant. High of 21.1C.
Forecast high: 19C; UV: 7
Three-day forecast: 5 May - Sun, cloud, 20C; 6 May - Rain, 17C; 7 May - Rain, 17C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): North-Northeast 3 to 4.
A fine, bright morning and an excellent day to come. Tomorrow, cloud is due to come in later in the day and both Friday and Saturday are looking as though they might be a bit wet.
Evening update (21.00): Very pleasant. High of 21.1C.
Dead Woman President Walking
When the next election comes round on 26 June, the Balearics will provide its own little sideshow. The region contributes eight deputies to the national Congress - 2.3% of its 350 total. This might seem unimportant but 26-J could prove to be very important for the Balearics.
At the pre-Christmas election, the Partido Popular, with the highest share of the regional vote, secured three seats. There were two each for Podemos and PSOE and one for Ciudadanos (C's). Excluded from Congress, therefore, was Més. It polled worse than the party had hoped, though its 7% share of the vote put it in the mix for potentially gaining a seat: parties have to secure a minimum of 3% in order to be considered under the proportional representation system.
Més is this time more confident of getting itself into Congress, though a pact with the United Left and Pacma (the party against animal mistreatment) would, on the basis of the December vote, still leave it short. What would change its fortunes would be an alliance with Podemos, and the chances of there being an alliance of what one might describe as the hard left in the Balearics are strong.
Were there to be this alliance, it would - again using December's vote - be the main force in the Balearics, polling higher than the PP with 33% of the share of the vote. With the PP staying more or less where it was in December (it surely won't lose votes), PSOE would be relegated to one Congress seat. If things went really badly for PSOE and exceptionally well for the hard left pact and for the C's, PSOE could find itself with no seat (an unlikely outcome though).
The alliance with Podemos is not yet a done deal. Podemos will insist that it has the first two names on the "list", i.e. its two current deputies. Having gained 23% of the share of the December vote, it holds the aces in negotiations with Més. But granting Més the third name on the list would have some appeal because of the way in which the hard-left alliance would become the number one force.
Why should this really matter? It would matter a great deal to the government of the Balearics. Here would be a situation in which two partners in government (one actually in it, Més, and one not, Podemos) gang up against the leadership of that government - PSOE. If for no other reason than psychological, it would be a blow to Francina Armengol and to her party.
But it could prove to be more than just psychological. Podemos has remained outside the government. It might decide that, emboldened by a June performance, it would seek entrance. Though the regional government was determined by the regional and not the general election and though PSOE got the greater share of the vote and the greater number of regional parliament seats, Podemos and Més together have a higher parliamentary representation. Armengol isn't forecasting any threat to the "stability" of her government, but she would be weakened if the Més-Podemos general election alliance were to be realised.
The fact is that she was already weak. In the run-up to the regional election last May, she and PSOE shifted more to the left. It was clear which way the wind was blowing, and it was steering a leftward course. It didn't do PSOE much good. It was sufficient to enter government but into a government with its hands tied. Armengol isn't a puppet as such, but she is no puppet master. Podemos is perpetually hovering, threatening to hang her out to dry. After 26-J, she will hang on to the presidency, but her credibility will be less than it already is: a sort of dead woman president walking, constantly bleating the lines about consensus and dialogue, when in truth the dialogue is all one way.
So rattled is PSOE that its number one on the December list, Ramon Socias, is to be ousted. What difference his removal will make is hard to fathom, though his position as number one in December was also difficult to comprehend. A former national government delegate to the Balearics, he has some substance, but he's in the "veteran" category, tarnished by old failings and something of a non-entity when pitched against the likes of the PP's number one, Mateo Isern, or the judge, Juan Pedro Yllanes, the Podemos number one. Changing him for another non-entity doesn't make much sense. PSOE is up against it whoever it has on its list.
Though further weakened, Armengol should survive. Despite PSOE's weakness, it does have some strength. If Més and Podemos have in mind an alternative president (one from its combined ranks), PSOE would surely block it. But why would they? They'll just tell PSOE what to do, and the president will agree. There's consensus and dialogue for you.
At the pre-Christmas election, the Partido Popular, with the highest share of the regional vote, secured three seats. There were two each for Podemos and PSOE and one for Ciudadanos (C's). Excluded from Congress, therefore, was Més. It polled worse than the party had hoped, though its 7% share of the vote put it in the mix for potentially gaining a seat: parties have to secure a minimum of 3% in order to be considered under the proportional representation system.
Més is this time more confident of getting itself into Congress, though a pact with the United Left and Pacma (the party against animal mistreatment) would, on the basis of the December vote, still leave it short. What would change its fortunes would be an alliance with Podemos, and the chances of there being an alliance of what one might describe as the hard left in the Balearics are strong.
Were there to be this alliance, it would - again using December's vote - be the main force in the Balearics, polling higher than the PP with 33% of the share of the vote. With the PP staying more or less where it was in December (it surely won't lose votes), PSOE would be relegated to one Congress seat. If things went really badly for PSOE and exceptionally well for the hard left pact and for the C's, PSOE could find itself with no seat (an unlikely outcome though).
The alliance with Podemos is not yet a done deal. Podemos will insist that it has the first two names on the "list", i.e. its two current deputies. Having gained 23% of the share of the December vote, it holds the aces in negotiations with Més. But granting Més the third name on the list would have some appeal because of the way in which the hard-left alliance would become the number one force.
Why should this really matter? It would matter a great deal to the government of the Balearics. Here would be a situation in which two partners in government (one actually in it, Més, and one not, Podemos) gang up against the leadership of that government - PSOE. If for no other reason than psychological, it would be a blow to Francina Armengol and to her party.
But it could prove to be more than just psychological. Podemos has remained outside the government. It might decide that, emboldened by a June performance, it would seek entrance. Though the regional government was determined by the regional and not the general election and though PSOE got the greater share of the vote and the greater number of regional parliament seats, Podemos and Més together have a higher parliamentary representation. Armengol isn't forecasting any threat to the "stability" of her government, but she would be weakened if the Més-Podemos general election alliance were to be realised.
The fact is that she was already weak. In the run-up to the regional election last May, she and PSOE shifted more to the left. It was clear which way the wind was blowing, and it was steering a leftward course. It didn't do PSOE much good. It was sufficient to enter government but into a government with its hands tied. Armengol isn't a puppet as such, but she is no puppet master. Podemos is perpetually hovering, threatening to hang her out to dry. After 26-J, she will hang on to the presidency, but her credibility will be less than it already is: a sort of dead woman president walking, constantly bleating the lines about consensus and dialogue, when in truth the dialogue is all one way.
So rattled is PSOE that its number one on the December list, Ramon Socias, is to be ousted. What difference his removal will make is hard to fathom, though his position as number one in December was also difficult to comprehend. A former national government delegate to the Balearics, he has some substance, but he's in the "veteran" category, tarnished by old failings and something of a non-entity when pitched against the likes of the PP's number one, Mateo Isern, or the judge, Juan Pedro Yllanes, the Podemos number one. Changing him for another non-entity doesn't make much sense. PSOE is up against it whoever it has on its list.
Though further weakened, Armengol should survive. Despite PSOE's weakness, it does have some strength. If Més and Podemos have in mind an alternative president (one from its combined ranks), PSOE would surely block it. But why would they? They'll just tell PSOE what to do, and the president will agree. There's consensus and dialogue for you.
Tuesday, May 03, 2016
MALLORCA TODAY - Weather Alcúdia and Pollensa 3 May 2016
Morning high (6.39am): 11.7C
Forecast high: 22C; UV: 7
Three-day forecast: 4 May - Sun, 19C; 5 May - Sun, cloud, 17C; 6 May - Cloud, sun, 17C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): West 2 to 4 veering North 2 to 3 around midday.
A fine-looking morning as the sun comes up. Much like yesterday - so sunny but with lighter breezes.
Evening update (21.00): Lovely day. High of 24.5C.
Forecast high: 22C; UV: 7
Three-day forecast: 4 May - Sun, 19C; 5 May - Sun, cloud, 17C; 6 May - Cloud, sun, 17C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): West 2 to 4 veering North 2 to 3 around midday.
A fine-looking morning as the sun comes up. Much like yesterday - so sunny but with lighter breezes.
Evening update (21.00): Lovely day. High of 24.5C.
Very Many Drunken Tourists
Johanna, 20. Never having been to Arenal, she went off with a friend to take a look. When she returned (to Playa de Muro), she reported, with the slightly mangled English that Germans sometimes betray, that many tourists were "very drunken" (German for drunk is "betrunken", so it's an easy mistake to make).
Drunken tourists are flavour of the month once more. German ones predominantly. Playa de Palma - Arenal and all - is German sunbedsraum land. And German bierkeller land. It celebrates a drinking culture, one in particular of Bavaria, where I used to live. Drink, beer most obviously, is engrained into this culture. Yet it is not like a British drink culture.
Of course, it is perfectly acceptable to get legless. Indeed, when it comes to the annual "Kirchweih" (the peculiarly named village and town fiestas for dedication to the church), local businesses will have their tables at the bierfest. They positively insist that everyone gets rat arsed. But what is not acceptable is to get "very drunken" and out of control. Nor is it acceptable to treat the institutionalised nature of drinking as bingeing. The line might seem fine, but bingeing it is not.
While British drinking culture can appear to have no control and no limits, Germany's has both. But transport an element of the nation's tourists to Mallorca and it's that old rivalry all over again. Very many drunken tourists. Which side is the winner?
There's a newspaper headline. Spanish. "Mallorca declares war on drunkenness in public areas." This, specifically, is tourist drunkenness, though not exclusively; tourists are not responsible for the drunkenness of Santa Catalina's "tardeo". The war has been declared nevertheless, and it is on account of drinking events in public areas: in Playa de Palma with its manifestations of German drinking culture. Controlled for the most part, it is - all the same - inclined to spill out onto the streets with its pants down and its voice at high volume. Bingeing is being organised. In public areas. War has therefore been declared.
It has happened before. Last year, for example. On two weekends in early season, the drunken tourists were of sufficient number to have brought traffic to a standstill. Videos were posted. There was no mistaking the national origin of this drunkenness. Yet little was said or done. The mood has now changed. Or appears to have. Palma has caught the Calvia bug. Tough on drink, tough on the causes of drink. Supposedly, anyway.
Perpetually smiling mayor, José Hila, was joined by the ray of sunshine at the tourism ministry, Biel Barceló. They strolled along the prom in Playa de Palma, the latest head of police walking with them. Why? They were examining the general area where another public-area drinking event (unauthorised) was scheduled for the following day. Would a stroll on the day in question not have been of greater value? See for themselves; that sort of thing. Or, as with other wars, do the chiefs prefer to absent themselves from the front line - Playa de Palma's in this instance - and only learn about casualties via dispatches?
The very drunken tourists of Arenal are not alone of course. Remember Magalluf? Heard about Santa Ponsa? Ah yes, Santa Ponsa, only now coming into Calvia radar distance. You'll surely remember Magalluf though. All those determined to provide the resort with touristic gentrification. Such as tour operators. Such hypocrites. Is TUI, German TUI, alone in its type of publicity? The company has removed it, following a complaint from one of the war chiefs, i.e. Barceló. It was advertising fun until the doctor comes (that was one of the slogans). For 390 euros, 4-star. Yes, you can up the star rating, as Mallorca pursues its up-marketing, but it doesn't mean that you remove the drinking. In the lower part of the season there are rooms and planes to be filled, niche markets to be attracted. The fine words of tour operators and others count for very little. Hypocrites.
Where will the battle lines of this war be? Barceló intimates that there are to be continuous inspections in tourist resorts. Continuous? Inspections? Who by? Which resorts? Shall we guess? The resorts of political necessity, namely Magalluf and Playa de Palma. The war chiefs are largely unaware of the existence of others. Santa Ponsa they are now learning about, but what of Cala Ratjada or Alcudia? In the latter the incidents are minimal, but there have been incidents nonetheless and of an entirely Spanish origin.
In Catalonia they've declared their own war: official disassociation from any company - tour operator, whatever - which promotes drunken tourism, a move driven partly by the promotion of spring breaks, such as that of Salou ("the premier orgy in Spain"). Tough on drink, tough on the causes of drink: the organisers, the promoters. Mallorca should do likewise. It's war, Sr. Barceló.
Drunken tourists are flavour of the month once more. German ones predominantly. Playa de Palma - Arenal and all - is German sunbedsraum land. And German bierkeller land. It celebrates a drinking culture, one in particular of Bavaria, where I used to live. Drink, beer most obviously, is engrained into this culture. Yet it is not like a British drink culture.
Of course, it is perfectly acceptable to get legless. Indeed, when it comes to the annual "Kirchweih" (the peculiarly named village and town fiestas for dedication to the church), local businesses will have their tables at the bierfest. They positively insist that everyone gets rat arsed. But what is not acceptable is to get "very drunken" and out of control. Nor is it acceptable to treat the institutionalised nature of drinking as bingeing. The line might seem fine, but bingeing it is not.
While British drinking culture can appear to have no control and no limits, Germany's has both. But transport an element of the nation's tourists to Mallorca and it's that old rivalry all over again. Very many drunken tourists. Which side is the winner?
There's a newspaper headline. Spanish. "Mallorca declares war on drunkenness in public areas." This, specifically, is tourist drunkenness, though not exclusively; tourists are not responsible for the drunkenness of Santa Catalina's "tardeo". The war has been declared nevertheless, and it is on account of drinking events in public areas: in Playa de Palma with its manifestations of German drinking culture. Controlled for the most part, it is - all the same - inclined to spill out onto the streets with its pants down and its voice at high volume. Bingeing is being organised. In public areas. War has therefore been declared.
It has happened before. Last year, for example. On two weekends in early season, the drunken tourists were of sufficient number to have brought traffic to a standstill. Videos were posted. There was no mistaking the national origin of this drunkenness. Yet little was said or done. The mood has now changed. Or appears to have. Palma has caught the Calvia bug. Tough on drink, tough on the causes of drink. Supposedly, anyway.
Perpetually smiling mayor, José Hila, was joined by the ray of sunshine at the tourism ministry, Biel Barceló. They strolled along the prom in Playa de Palma, the latest head of police walking with them. Why? They were examining the general area where another public-area drinking event (unauthorised) was scheduled for the following day. Would a stroll on the day in question not have been of greater value? See for themselves; that sort of thing. Or, as with other wars, do the chiefs prefer to absent themselves from the front line - Playa de Palma's in this instance - and only learn about casualties via dispatches?
The very drunken tourists of Arenal are not alone of course. Remember Magalluf? Heard about Santa Ponsa? Ah yes, Santa Ponsa, only now coming into Calvia radar distance. You'll surely remember Magalluf though. All those determined to provide the resort with touristic gentrification. Such as tour operators. Such hypocrites. Is TUI, German TUI, alone in its type of publicity? The company has removed it, following a complaint from one of the war chiefs, i.e. Barceló. It was advertising fun until the doctor comes (that was one of the slogans). For 390 euros, 4-star. Yes, you can up the star rating, as Mallorca pursues its up-marketing, but it doesn't mean that you remove the drinking. In the lower part of the season there are rooms and planes to be filled, niche markets to be attracted. The fine words of tour operators and others count for very little. Hypocrites.
Where will the battle lines of this war be? Barceló intimates that there are to be continuous inspections in tourist resorts. Continuous? Inspections? Who by? Which resorts? Shall we guess? The resorts of political necessity, namely Magalluf and Playa de Palma. The war chiefs are largely unaware of the existence of others. Santa Ponsa they are now learning about, but what of Cala Ratjada or Alcudia? In the latter the incidents are minimal, but there have been incidents nonetheless and of an entirely Spanish origin.
In Catalonia they've declared their own war: official disassociation from any company - tour operator, whatever - which promotes drunken tourism, a move driven partly by the promotion of spring breaks, such as that of Salou ("the premier orgy in Spain"). Tough on drink, tough on the causes of drink: the organisers, the promoters. Mallorca should do likewise. It's war, Sr. Barceló.
Monday, May 02, 2016
MALLORCA TODAY - Weather Alcúdia and Pollensa 2 May 2016
Morning high (6.53am): 12.7C
Forecast high: 19C; UV: 6
Three-day forecast: 3 May - Sun, 20C; 4 May - Sun, 16C; 5 May - Sun, cloud, 17C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): Northwest 4 to 5 occasionally Variable 2 to 3.
Sunny but quite breezy day in store. Week's outlook - fine until Friday.
Evening update (20.45): That was more like it. Good sun all day. Fresh. High of 23.3C.
Forecast high: 19C; UV: 6
Three-day forecast: 3 May - Sun, 20C; 4 May - Sun, 16C; 5 May - Sun, cloud, 17C.
Sea conditions (northern Mallorca; Alcúdia and Pollensa bays to 20.00): Northwest 4 to 5 occasionally Variable 2 to 3.
Sunny but quite breezy day in store. Week's outlook - fine until Friday.
Evening update (20.45): That was more like it. Good sun all day. Fresh. High of 23.3C.
When Anger Takes Over: Mallorca and cycling
Saturday was the Mallorca 312 cycle race, so-called because it involved covering a course of 312 kilometres in length. On an island that is nowhere near this length in any one direction, that meant a fair old amount of road needed to be covered. Covered and closed. In fact, it wasn't a race as such. The term "prueba" explained much: a trial. One that tested the over 4,000 cyclists and tested the patience of many people on the island.
Some municipalities which were affected were more upset than others. Mayors and the Council of Mallorca are now said to be going to get together in order to try and limit the inconvenience caused by various sporting events. They will identify ones of major importance, thus implying that those of lesser importance might have to be ditched.
The argument goes, and it's reasonable, that it is only one day. A problem with this argument, however, is that isn't only one day. Not if another event follows hot on the heels. While Mallorca 312 affected a wider area of the island than this coming weekend's Ironman, there are parts of the island affected by both. Playa de Muro was more or less closed on Saturday. It will be again on Saturday. Access to Alcudia was virtually impossible for some hours on Saturday. Alcudia will be shut next Saturday.
So, one day only for each event, but two days in the course of a seven-day period, to which can be added the inconvenience of the closure of the road into Alcudia's port from Magic all next week. It is understandable if some people get rather hacked off.
Both 312 and Ironman bring in good business. I am well aware of the fact that there are certain businesses which suffer because of Ironman (a Saturday's trading is in effect lost because clients cannot get in to the port area), but in general there is an economic advantage. This shouldn't be under-estimated and nor should the benefit to Alcudia as a sports tourism destination be under-played. There is a lot of good that comes from such events.
But try telling some people this when they will perceive legitimate reasons for being annoyed by the inconvenience, loss of trade and inability to move around freely. There is also, one cannot help but get the sense, an increasing resentment of cycling - one element of Ironman, the reason for Mallorca 312 and the source of so much early-season tourism.
This resentment comes from different sources, one of which is other tourists, such as those who were left with luggage searching for their hotels at the weekend. But most of all it comes from residents. Looking at comments on Spanish newspapers, it was very clear that those defending the Saturday event were in a minority.
Perhaps it is a reflection of social media and the ease with which people can vent their frustrations, but the level of resentment shown towards cyclists in general (the regular tourist type as well as those taking part in the events) has not been like it is now. Saturday may have represented a turning-point. Or it should do. The island's authorities (and many businesses) are treading a thin line between reaping the benefits of cycling and the attitudes of the island residents. Cyclists are increasingly characterised as some form of foreign invasion force. Why should the island shut down just to let foreigners ride their bikes?
How can there be a reconciliation? It's difficult to know. But one fears that the resentment is going to boil over at some point. There is a great deal of irrationality voiced by cycling opponents, just as there is a great deal of obnoxious behaviour by cyclists. The passive actions of the Council of Mallorca and others in issuing advice and recommendations are insufficient. The local authorities have to be aware of this irrationality and this behaviour and take measures to prevent there being ugly incidents and matters getting out of hand.
There is a great deal of good from cycling and from cycling events and others. But there is a downside, a significant one. In a word, it is anger. And anger does no one any good.
Some municipalities which were affected were more upset than others. Mayors and the Council of Mallorca are now said to be going to get together in order to try and limit the inconvenience caused by various sporting events. They will identify ones of major importance, thus implying that those of lesser importance might have to be ditched.
The argument goes, and it's reasonable, that it is only one day. A problem with this argument, however, is that isn't only one day. Not if another event follows hot on the heels. While Mallorca 312 affected a wider area of the island than this coming weekend's Ironman, there are parts of the island affected by both. Playa de Muro was more or less closed on Saturday. It will be again on Saturday. Access to Alcudia was virtually impossible for some hours on Saturday. Alcudia will be shut next Saturday.
So, one day only for each event, but two days in the course of a seven-day period, to which can be added the inconvenience of the closure of the road into Alcudia's port from Magic all next week. It is understandable if some people get rather hacked off.
Both 312 and Ironman bring in good business. I am well aware of the fact that there are certain businesses which suffer because of Ironman (a Saturday's trading is in effect lost because clients cannot get in to the port area), but in general there is an economic advantage. This shouldn't be under-estimated and nor should the benefit to Alcudia as a sports tourism destination be under-played. There is a lot of good that comes from such events.
But try telling some people this when they will perceive legitimate reasons for being annoyed by the inconvenience, loss of trade and inability to move around freely. There is also, one cannot help but get the sense, an increasing resentment of cycling - one element of Ironman, the reason for Mallorca 312 and the source of so much early-season tourism.
This resentment comes from different sources, one of which is other tourists, such as those who were left with luggage searching for their hotels at the weekend. But most of all it comes from residents. Looking at comments on Spanish newspapers, it was very clear that those defending the Saturday event were in a minority.
Perhaps it is a reflection of social media and the ease with which people can vent their frustrations, but the level of resentment shown towards cyclists in general (the regular tourist type as well as those taking part in the events) has not been like it is now. Saturday may have represented a turning-point. Or it should do. The island's authorities (and many businesses) are treading a thin line between reaping the benefits of cycling and the attitudes of the island residents. Cyclists are increasingly characterised as some form of foreign invasion force. Why should the island shut down just to let foreigners ride their bikes?
How can there be a reconciliation? It's difficult to know. But one fears that the resentment is going to boil over at some point. There is a great deal of irrationality voiced by cycling opponents, just as there is a great deal of obnoxious behaviour by cyclists. The passive actions of the Council of Mallorca and others in issuing advice and recommendations are insufficient. The local authorities have to be aware of this irrationality and this behaviour and take measures to prevent there being ugly incidents and matters getting out of hand.
There is a great deal of good from cycling and from cycling events and others. But there is a downside, a significant one. In a word, it is anger. And anger does no one any good.
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