Llevant de Mallorca is in Mallorca. Hills and mountains, fertile fields, cliffs with embedded bays and sandy beaches make the landscape a kind of Mallorca concentrate. Nowhere else on the island are all the elements combined in such a small space.
Wind, weather and rain have formed gentle hills of limestone rocks, overgrown by a macchia of mastic and gorse bushes, tree heather, wild or overgrown olive trees, pines and Aleppo pines, in the undergrowth lavender bushes, rosemary and rock roses. The garriga runs like a red thread through the east. High up from Cap Ferrutx you can see over the Sierra de Artàna, with the highest elevation (509 m from Son Salvador, down to the Coves del Drac dragon caves, which reach 25 m below sea level.
Towards the northeast, the Llevant has numerous bays, including the touristically developed Cala Rajada as well as a little further south the well-known beaches of Cala Millor, Sa Coma and S'Illot, which have now become the destination of mass tourism.
To the west of the Llevant are the vast agricultural fields in the area of Sant Llorenç and Manacor.
The history of the Llevant goes back over 3000 years. The original inhabitants of the island from huge slabs of stone houses, defensive towers and defensive walls built. Those towers are called talàia (Catalan) or talayot (Castilian), which goes back to the Arabic word atalaji (guard). In addition to the most important site, the Ses Païsses, there is another well-known settlement Capocorb Vell from the same period further south of the Llevant.
Most of the other buildings of the "Masters of Stone" have been used as quarries by invaders and rulers of the island over the years. Megaliths, large stones from prehistoric times, were used to build the Cathedral of Mallorca. There is still some uncertainty about the inhabitants of the talayots and their way of life.
The Mediterranean climate of the Llevant region is determined by short, mild and humid winters and long, dry and sometimes very hot summers.
In summer it is very hot and dry and the herbaceous vegetation withers. During this time, the temperature can rise to over 40 ° C during the day. Rain is extremely rare in the summer months. In July and especially in August it is high season on the beaches.
Autumn begins in September, initially muggy and thunderstorm. The autumn climate is already a bit cooler, but the sun still shines quite often and is occasionally interrupted by brief rain showers. Instead, the vegetation that has withered over the summer begins to green again.
The winter is quite mild. The temperatures are mostly around 10 degrees Celsius, and it can occasionally snow in deep areas.
Car rental companies can be found in almost every holiday resort. There are around 55 rental companies with around 35,000 rental cars. The prerequisite for the rental is: you are 23 years of age and/or have had a valid driving licence for 2 years.
All roads lead to Palma de Mallorca. The streetscape of the island resembles the spread of the left hand with the thumb pointing downwards: The main traffic arteries correspond to the five fingers:
Other main roads branch off from Manacor:
If you follow the ring finger as a signpost, you come to Sóller (MA-11). The little finger points to Valldemossa (MA-1110), where it directs to the MA-10, which follows the northwest coast from Andratx to Pollença. In addition to these approximately 1200 km of very well-developed asphalted main roads, the sometimes narrow cross-connections are also provided with an asphalt surface and are generally easy to drive on. There are only a few so-called white streets. No place on the island is more than 40 km from the sea.
Ciclismo is a Mallorcan passion. The streets and paths of the Llevant in the vicinity of Cala Millor, in the municipality of Son Servera, are particularly suitable for cyclists.
Mallorca has a dense bus network. Around 65 bus routes operated by various companies connect Palma with almost all places on the island. The main hub is the Plaça d'Espanya in the centre of Palma. The Oficina de Informatión turistica is also located there.
The main railway line Palma-Inca-Manacor runs every hour.
There is a ferry connection between Cala Rajada and Ciutadella (Menorca). It is operated by Cape Balear. The crossing takes about 55 minutes.
Around 600 recipes represent a great variety of Mallorcan cuisine. They are all based on the various raw materials that are harvested in the fields or fished in the sea.
With the virgin olive oil, the Aceite de oliva virgen, the protected designation of origin Oli de Mallorca guarantees the quality. Another essential ingredient is pork, especially the production of the famous sobrassada.
Bakery products: Ensaïmades, the yeast snail with a label, is a product with a protected geographical indication, which is known as "the lightest, airiest and most delicious pastries on the Balearic island of Mallorca". Due to its unique snail shape, the ensaimada already differs optically from all other types of pastry. Only raw materials that have been grown on Mallorca may be used. There are nine of the certified manufacturers in the Llevant area. The quality certificates are checked and reassigned every year.
Meat and sausages: The sobrassada is a sausage specialty , also with a protected geographical indication, a product of the Balearic island of Mallorca, made from raw, carefully selected and air-dried minced pork, which must come from the island. The same quality standards apply here as for the baked goods. Eight of the manufacturers are located in the Llevant landscape.
The sea fennel. What looks like inconspicuous grass at first glance and is called Fonoll mari in Mallorqui is still an aromatic side dish to Mallorcan cuisine. The sea fennel grows on the coast of the Llevant, in the area of the splash zone. Crithmum maritimumk, a yellow flowering shrub from the umbelliferae family, resembles wild fennel, hence the name sea fennel. The herb has leathery, one to two-pinnate, blue-green, fleshy leaves that can be up to seven centimeters long. Women walk along the rocky beaches with baskets and pluck this herb. The leaves are then preserved for many months by being inserted so that they can be carried on the ships in the seafarers' provisions. Due to the high vitamin C content and the preventive effect against scurvy, it was and is still a component of every duffel bag and travels the vastness of the oceans.
The island of Mallorca is an area with a long winemaking tradition, dating back to when the Romans cultivated wine.
There are red, rosé, white and sparkling wines as well as sparkling wines and fortified wines with designations of origin of recognized quality. The red wines are made from the following red grape varieties: Callet, Fogoneu, Tempranillo, Manto Negro, Monastrell, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah. White wines are made from the Chardonnay, Moll, Macabeo, Parellada and Moscatel varieties.
The ground consists of calcareous rock ( marl and dolomite ), as a result of which a calcareous and clayey soil with a slightly alkaline pH value has formed and the earth has tints that range from the red scale to almost white. These properties of the soil lead to good drainage, which also leads to rapid root penetration of the soil due to the little organic matter present, which means that viticulture can be carried out under very good conditions.
Traditional cultivation practices are used for viticulture, which overall results in grapes of greater quality being obtained. The planting density was limited to 2500 to 5000 vines per hectare. The training and management of the vines takes place according to the so-called "vasosystem" or on the trellis.
The white wines of the Chardonnay grape variety deserve a special mention here, with their very distinctive aromas of tropical fruits, which can also take on a milky, vanilla-like taste when fermented in wooden barrels. The dry Muscat wines provide a range of floral aromas, while the fresh, young wines from the Prensal Blanco, Macabeo and Parellada varieties are more reminiscent of tart fruits. If the wines are blended with one another, complex, aromatic compounds result that pleasantly refresh the palate.
With the red wines, very interesting taste variations are achieved due to the different grape varieties that are used here, which are characterized by their intense color and multi-layered fruit aromas. The tannin contained is gentle on the palate and has a balanced acidity and gives an overall impression of freshness.
One of the largest liqueur producers on the island of Mallorca, the Moya company in Artà, is in Llevant on the road to Can Picafort.