Mallorca

Various pictures of Santa Ponsa, Paguera and Palma.

My Experience Working on Mallorca

Eva  took a job with Rent a Car, for whom she had worked for previously on Mallorca.  It was a third generation family car rental business that profited mainly from the German tourists in the resort town of Paguera.  She was popular with the German customers who often made the trip every year, the same time and often stayed at the same place.  Eva had many customers who insisted on renting their car only from her.  Raul knew that with Eva he could count on a loyal German clientele which meant more money for his pocket.  Bringing Eva back into the business wasn’t even something he had to think about twice. 

When I first met Raul, I thought he appeared to be a bit of a Mafioso, macho type.  He was in his mid fifties with thick mustache and medium length salt and pepper hair, unbuttoned shirt revealing his gold chains.  He was maybe 5 foot 9 with a stocky build. 

Eva had arranged  a job for me in the lavadero washing cars.  Since I didn’t have a work visa this was the only way I could work without being detected as easily by the immigration officials.  My job was going to be delivering and picking up rental cars from the 14 offices Rent a Car had around the southwest corner of the island.  Raul felt that by being mobile, my chances of getting caught were slim.  If I were pulled over, I was to say I was a tourist.  I would bring the cars that were returned back to the lavadero to be cleaned and delivered back to the next office.  Raul had a pretty successful business going with over 500 rental cars and 26 or so employees.  I was to work with two other older Spanish gentlemen, Tito, who was in his early fifties from Valencia, Spain.  This guy was a real firecracker.  I say this for his passionate and sometimes explosive Spanish temperament.  The guy was full of energy and never seemed to tire.  I think in part because he had to prove his worthiness to keep a job at his age due to the younger competition.  Tito was a friendly, warm hearted guy who spoke some broken German.  He had told me that he was a licensed pilot, which is how he lost his two front teeth.  This was the result of a rough landing back when he lived in Valencia.  He had knocked his teeth out on the dashboard of the plane and refused to wear his dentures to work for fear of losing them so I was told.  The other man I was to work with was named Roberto.  He was a few years older than Tito and was brought into the family with the marriage of his only son to Selena, who was Raul’s daughter.  He was a stout man with wavy gray hair and at times, could be a bit grumpy depending on how much he had to drink the night before.  Roberto was hard of hearing in one ear, so a conversation with him could be a bit of a challenge at times in German.  I mention German here because my Spanish consisted of about 5 words of Spanish at the time.  I really only knew the essentials, hola, adios, cervesa and agua.  The rest of the time we either tried to communicate in German or spoke with hands and feet as the Germans would say.  I would also work with two younger guys.  Pablo, who I hardly ever heard say more than two words at a time.  He was about 28 and rather tall for a Mallorquin.  He stood about 6’1” and weighed about 195 with an athletic build.  The guy was always in a hurry to deliver cars from one office to another, often nearly taking corners on two wheels not to keep a customer waiting.  Antonio was about the same age.  He was the nephew of Raul and was a friendly guy but could suddenly turn quiet due to his struggles with depression.  Overall, he was quite a talker when he wanted to be.  He was interested in learning English and German and always wanted to practice when we were driving to deliver the next car.

Mornings were the most hectic part of the day.  All the employees met at the lavadero at 8:30 in the morning to speak with Raul about what cars they had reserved for the day.  It was already written on a notepad that Raul kept in his pocket, but they liked to discuss it all once again anyway.  Once the office employees took the car they needed that was reserved for their office, it was off to the races for the next two to three hours.   We had to go around and collect all the cars that were left at hotels from the clients that had left back for Germany.  We would all pile in to Raul’s four door Mercedez and he would drop us off one by one at different hotels.  We had to run in to the reception, pick up the keys and run back out to the hotel parking lot to find the car and drive it back to the lavadero to be washed.  There would be three of us in the back and two in the front.  Now one thing I will never forget is how the car would smell of garlic, fish and alcohol.  The Mallorquins eat a healthy diet of fish, garlic and of course, they like to enjoy their cervesa and vino tinto.  The smell was nauseating and at times, I thought I was going to suffocate from the deadly combination of the three together.  After a while, I realized that the only way to combat the smell of garlic on someone else, was to eat it yourself.  That was the only way I could sit in a car with my co-workers. 

We would bring the cars back to the garage to be washed and sent back out to various offices to be rented once again.  It sounded like a simple operation, but with the fiery Spanish temperament thrown into the equation, you would think we were doing something as important as launching the space shuttle for NASA.  You had Raul barking orders to Tito and Pedro as to what cars needed to be done first.  All Raul would have to do is snap his fingers and Tito would run himself into a frenzy.  I had never seen somebody so stressed out and worked up over such a simple job.  Pedro on the other hand, didn’t seem to care too much about anything and worked at his own pace.  There was one day when some party going tourist had left a half gallon of Jack Daniels in the back seat of a car.  Pedro tucked the bottle away for those days Raul was off running about to check on the offices.  Pedro one day looked at me with a smile as he pulled the half gallon from its hiding place in the garage.  He grabbed an ashtray and started to pour himself a drink using the ashtray for a glass.  He threw the drink down and looked at me with a half smile and a hearty yell, ‘vitaminas, Miguel, vitaminas.’ He gave out a healthy burp and rubbed his stomach in and then back to washing the next car. 

We had what I felt was the perfect work schedule in Mallorca.  We showed up at 8:30, did our collection of cars at all the local hotels, brought them back to the lavadero to be washed and vacuumed, and then delivered them to whichever office needed a car.  Summers were pretty warm and humid, so you would work up a good sweat racing around to get the cars prepped for the next customer.  It was pretty hectic until about 10:30, then all would settle down and we would just sit in the garage and wait for the next delivery.  We could sit around doing nothing for 30 minutes at a time.  By now, Pedro would be coming to life and would start talking.  He loved food and would always ask me what I had for dinner the night before or what my plans were for lunch.  I carried a pocket German-Spanish dictionary to start trying to learn Spanish.  Slowly but surely, I was picking up a few words here and there.  We would work until 1 and then take off four hours for the siesta.  My German co-workers always complained about the long break.  Personally, I loved it.  I would walk home to my apartment and change into my workout clothes.  I found a small fitness center about a five minute walk from my apartment.  It was a quick stroll through the hotel garden, passing all the pasty white Irish tourists who were trying so desperately to get a tan, but to no avail.  These people looked whiter than a glass of milk.  Living in a place that rained 9 months or better out of the year made them desperate to get a little color.  I always laughed at how they would arrive to the hotel totally white and leave with a few random red patches.  It was as if they had no clue how to apply sunscreen.  If a spot on their skin felt hot, they would put a little sun cream on the spot and continue to drink beer until they realized they were getting scorched and then apply a little more.  I would see some of the funniest looking sun burns.  I would walk past the pool, noticing some of the topless girls laying out in their lounge chairs.  By this point, topless girls were something you just took for granted.  I would go for a 45 minute workout, come back and swim a good 20 minutes to cool off, then run up to the apartment for lunch.  I would take a 20 minute nap and head back to work shortly before five p.m.  Afternoon was another rush of cleaning cars and making the evening deliveries and then the day was done at 9 p.m.  It was the perfect schedule for me since I loved having the nicest part of the day to enjoy the nice weather.  Everybody in Mallorca would eat dinner around 11 p.m. or even later since it was so hot and a lot of people didn’t have air conditioning.  Most people wouldn’t go to bed until around 3 a.m.  They would get caught up on their sleep during the siesta. 

Living in Santa Ponsa

I spent the majority of the time I lived in Mallorca in the small beach town of Santa Ponsa.  It is a small town located on the southwest corner of the island.  It is a small harbor with a beautiful white sand beach bordered by a small park of pine trees providing a shady escape from the warm summer sun.  Santa Ponsa is a popular vacation destination for a bit younger Irish crowd.  The main street of town is lined with numerous Irish pubs and music bars.  The beer I found here is relatively cheaper which attracts the younger crowd as well.  One of my favorite Irish pubs is the Auld Triangle, which has a bit more of a family atmosphere with nightly live music.  You will find the pub on Calle Ramon de Moncada as you are heading into the town from the main road.  Of the many Irish pubs lined up throughout town, this is one definitely worth checking out.  Heading further down the road you will find one pub after another advertising Irish food, snacks and t.v.s showing a Celtic football match, or my favorite, bare knuckle fighting.  It sets the tone for late in the evening after a dozen or so pints of Guiness.  The town has a bit of a rowdy reputation if you are still hanging around in the early morning hour.  It still is a fun place to be at night with plenty of fun bars to check out.  Another bar that is quite popular with the Germans is the Bier Koenig.  This is owned by a famous German pop singer who I think looks a lot like Mick Jagger.  He is the self-proclaimed, 'King of Mallorca.'  The Germans really love this guy and come by to get a glimpse and maybe on autograph.  The music is not my favorite, but to each his own I guess.  Another popular place is Cafe Katzenberger.  This cafe has gotten quite a bit of t.v. publicity and is worth stopping by as well.  Lots of German celebrities usually stop by.  I often didn't know who they were, but I could tell they were of some kind of status from the reaction of the Germans.

Santa Ponsa is a great place to swim in the summer months.  I used to jump in around May and swim until about mid October.  It's also where I tough myself to windsurf.  I purchased windsurfing equipment off Ebay from Germany thinking I was getting a bargain, or at least until I paid the shipping costs.  I spent a whole summer trying to learn how to windsurf.  I ran into several million dollar yachts durning my learning curve.  I apologize for any scratched yachts.  By the end of my first summer, I was able to easily maneuver between any obstacles.   There is plenty to do here and a nice view.  Definitely worth a stop.

Around town in Paguera

The town of Paguera has a lot to offer.  It is a popular vacation spot for a lot of Germans, who many come to the same place, stay in the same hotel, the same exact time of year every year as they have for years.  I can see why they love it though.  The beaches are beautiful and a great place to swim and do other water activities such as windsurfing and paddle boarding.  Not too many windsurfers found here in the peak of the summer months.  You will get some good waves on occassion which brings in the surfers from all corners of the island.  Many of whom get frustrated with all the tourist in the water making obstacles for those trying to enjoy a good wave. 

Paguera is rather calm as compared to some other parts of the island as far as the crazy nightlife.  There are plenty of other locations for non-stop party life which I will talk more about another time.  Paguera is a mix of young and old, families with small kids and the groups of friends looking to enjoy the island.  As I mentioned, the tourist crowd here is mainly German.  From my observation, a lot of the Germans still forget they are on vacation and still have their rigidness and daily regiment that they cannot seem to break away from.  The older Germans will set their alarm clocks at 6 a.m., then go to the beach with their beach towel to put on the lounge chair they want for the day and then head back to the hotel for breakfast.  I have seen many arguements over the years break out from people that show up and move the towels laid over a lounge chair to claim a spot.  I thought many times I would see a couple senior citizens break out into a fistfight.  I sure it has happened before.

The Boulevard is the main street that runs through Paguera parellel to the beach.  It is full of the usual open air bars, restaurants and gift shops.  There are a lot of good open air bars that are great for people watching while enjoying a beer and listening to music.  One place I can recommend is a bar called Krummel's Stadl.  It is a good music bar with good music and more of a festive atmosphere.  They have a live performance everynight at 10 p.m. of some well-known German pop singer.  It's a little more lively here than any of the other places in town.  I would see posters all over town of who was going to be performing that evening.  They bring in people who are popular in Germany and they sing and dance around on the bar for a while.  I never knew any of them.  I saw one who was some celebrity from their Big Brother show who had become famous.  I was told they broke into singing party music and did a few pornos.  I had never heard any of their music or their movies for that matter.  They sing everynight, dance around on the bar and sign autographs later.  It's worth checking out, but get there early to get a table.  Later on after the foot traffic dies down, usually around midnight, there are a few nightclubs for the younger crowd.  There is one nightclub a little more for the older crowd called Rendevous.  It can get crowded on the weekends and later on at night.  They have had the same people working there for as long as I can remember.  It is more of a 30+ crowd and stays open until around 4 a.m.

All of the bars cater to the German tourists here.  If you are looking for experiencing a Spanish bar, there are a handfull along the Boulevard that offer the traditional Tapas and Spanish beer.  These are easy to spot.  Full of locals enjoying the cooler evening air sitting around talking about the tourists, soccer or day to day topics.  You can get some inexpensive food and better priced beer than the German bars.  They aren't quite as fancy as the bars that attract the tourists, but worth a stop to get a feel for the local culture.  The bars are usually full of a mixed Mallorquin crowd from small kids running around, family dogs, up to grandma and grandpa.  These places can get a bit loud since all Mallorquins like to talk at the same time and at high volume.  They t.v. is usually on full blast as well to add to the noise.   The bars are full of Spanish temperment.  Until I could speak Spanish, I thought that many times when two Mallorquins were talking, they were argueing and about ready to start throwing punches, only to suddenly start laughing and patting each other on the back.  I was told that every Spaniard has something important to say and they often do it loud, without waiting for the other to finnish talking.  In other words, no quiet candlelight dinners at the Spanish bars.  I enjoy it though. 

I really enjoy the town and would highly recommend making a stop there on your stay.

Paguera

I could write volumes about my time living in Paguera which is located on the southwest corner of Mallorca.  It is a quiet little town with a large population of expat Germans.  Many of whom had moved to Mallorca to get away from the hustle and bustle living in Germany, and most of all, the endless rain.  I had seen many Germans come to Mallorca to live the dream of sun, beach and ocean (as they say, Sonne, Strand und Meer).  Many come with a dream of opening a bar or a restaurant with high hopes of making it.  They come with their life savings to fullfil a lifelong dream, but unfortunately, I saw a lot of them fail and disappear practically overnight.  They often called it a 'Nacht und Nebel Aktion.'  A phrase that I heard frequently, which meant, night and fog maneuver.  In other words, they failed at their dream and got the hell out of dodge rather quickly.  There are many bars and restaurants that have made it.  Mostly through word of mouth marketing and a good business model.  There are several that I would like to mention over the course of my writing.  Many that are still going strong and well worth a visit.

My experience living in Mallorca

I was fortunate to live and work on the island of Mallorca from '01 to '05.  I had travelled to the Spanish island knowing very little about the country, people or local culture.  It is my intent to share my experiences and also help others discover the beauty of the island and give some advice as to where to go to make their visit an unforgetable experience.

Much more to come...