Day Two - Palma de Mallorca, Spain
Basílica de Santa María
June 5 - This morning, Crystal Symphony is docked in Palma de Mallorca, Spain. My day begins with catching up on emails and working on my daily cruise blog. For this, I need two things: A good internet connection and a cup of coffee. Make that several cups of coffee. Unfortunately, this morning as we are pulling into port, the ship’s WiFi went dead and I had to rely on my iPhone as a hot spot. Thankfully, I have an Airalo eSim with data for Europe!
My workstation at The Bistro
After my blogging duties, I head to The Marketplace to grab a donut to take back to the suite for Rickee. There is a nice selection of freshly-baked pastries from which to choose.
Pastry selection at The Marketplace
Our plan for today is to explore Palma de Mallorca on our own. But, before we disembark, I grab a quick bite at Trident Grill. The Cheeseburger was cooked perfectly and the fries and onion rings were hot and fresh. Kudos to Crystal for offering onion rings!
Cheeseburger at Trident Grill
We disembarked Symphony at around 12:30pm and grabbed a quick photo of the ship from the gangway. Weather today is very pleasant, sunny and about 78 degrees (F).
Crystal Symphony docked in Palma de Mallorca, Spain
After exiting the terminal building, we find the complimentary shuttle buses that take guests to and from the city center. Complimentary shuttle service is one of the many benefits of sailing with Crystal Cruises. On many cruise lines, you would have to pay for a taxi or other transportation to get from the port into town.
Complimentary shuttle service every 30 minutes
The motor coach dropped us off within a quarter of a mile from the Basílica de Santa María Cathedral, which is massive (photo at top of page). Just outside of the cathedral is a large pedestrian street lined with restaurants, shops, and art galleries. We love walking around these European cities with the cobblestone streets and narrow passageways.
During our walk, we came upon the most beautiful orange tree next to a purple tree. Does anyone know the name of the orange colored tree? I don’t think we have ever seen one like it before.
Beautiful orange and purple trees
We spend about three hours exploring Palma de Mallorca, after which we returned to the shuttle and back to Crystal Symphony. We arrived back onboard just in time to enjoy Afternoon Tea at Palm Court. Crystal Cruises is one of the few cruise lines that still offers a daily Afternoon Tea service and it is excellent.
Afternoon Tea at Palm Court
This evening, we get dressed for dinner at Waterside Restaurant, the ship’s “main dining” venue on Deck 5. Time for a quick photo outside of our Sapphire Verandah Suite before dinner.
The standout dish for me at Waterside was the Butternut Squash cream soup (below). It was delicious and came with a very special presentation.
Butternut Squash Soup at Waterside Restaurant
Lemon Drop Martini at 5th Avenue Saloon
The evening ends with a cocktail at 5th Avenue Saloon on Deck 6. Rickee enjoyed her Lemon Drop Martini while I had Crown Royal.
Tomorrow, Crystal Symphony will be docked in Mahon., Menorca., Spain.