A landscape from an eclogue, as Llorenç Villalonga described it in The Ferrets (1967), but cultural, after all, "because behind these things is, in their rawest form, the man who created them." We're talking about Oriente, this hamlet in the municipality of Bunyola, declared a joint historical site (BIC), which stretches across a hill strategically located in the middle of an elongated valley, between the Honor and Bosque passes, with two exits towards the Raiguer region, via Solleric and Freu. It's dominated by some of the great mountains of the Serra de Tramuntana, a World Heritage Site. We set off on foot from the TIB bus stop (L-331 Alaró-Orient/check schedules and availability on the website). tib.org), opposite the houses of Cals Reis, heading towards Bunyola on the Ma-2100 road. Pay attention, because the first part of this route is on asphalt; whether there are few or many people, always try to walk single file and on the left side of the road.

On this route, we explore the second line of coastal defense along a portion of the southern coast of Mallorca. One of the least known architectural and ethnological treasures of the municipality of Llucmajor is the defensive system formed by the towers of the manor houses. These, along with the watchtowers and lookouts built from the mid-16th century onwards along the coast, constituted the main guarantee of survival for the population inhabiting this area. This itinerary draws upon all the information provided by Joan Clar Monserrat (1952-2023) in his work. Interior defense towers of LlucmajorPresented at the first Llucmajor Local Studies Conference, held on November 10th and 11th, 2017, this route also incorporates the insightful guidance of Llucmajor-born historical researcher Cels Calviño. Public transport is available on line 519d (Cala Pi-Llucmajor).

Next Saturday, November 8th, the ARA Baleares has scheduled a visit to Sant Carles Castle and the Portopí Lighthouse. This activity is part of the program. The secret heritage of the ports of the Balearic IslandsThe initiative, launched a year ago, has been guided from the outset by Fita a Fita – a cultural and family-friendly hiking program – and complemented by articles published concurrently in the newspaper, both in print and online. Supported by the Balearic Islands Port Authority, the initiative's main objective is to explore the archipelago's main ports on foot to understand the land-sea relationship that has developed around them throughout history. It offers a different perspective on ports as strategic hubs for the exchange of people, goods, and culture—a daily reality today, but one that has shaped the waterfronts of Palma, Alcudia, Maó, Ibiza, and La Savina.

On this excursion, we're not aiming for any great peak; we're simply guiding our steps along the paths of memory. Old layers and ancient broken lands speak to us of a hard-fought agricultural past and also bear witness to the harsh repression exercised in Mallorca following the coup d'état of 1936. On one side, we'll cross the fine border separating the municipalities of Calvià and Andratx to reach Les Rotes Llargues, within the lands of So n'Hor, where all traces of harsh subsistence were erased by the domination and productivity of the territory. On the other, we learn of the existence of a prisoner-of-war camp at the Sa Coma estate, a short distance from Capdellà in the direction of Andratx. This camp was operational between January 1937 and June 1938. Republican prisoners, mostly Majorcans, from the Can Mir and Capuchinos detention centers participated as slave labor in the repair and expansion of the sections of road that currently constitute the Esteve and Peguera roads through the Valle Verde. In total, more than 800 people passed through this camp, according to Maria Eugènia Jaume, PhD in History, in her book Forgotten Slaves: The Concentration Camps in Mallorca (1936-1942), published in 2019 by Documenta Balear. Line 107 of Mallorca's intercity public transport connects Palma and Capdellà (information on lines, timetables, and availability on the website) tib.org).

This route runs along the eastern slope of the Bay of Palma, along the first line of a coastline occupied mostly by Palma's coastal neighborhoods. We walk along a seafront developed for residential purposes starting in the 1920s and exploited for tourism to the point of exhaustion starting in the 1960s. In between, we find historical heritage and natural areas protected from urban speculation, such as the Carnatge. In this context, we find the Torre de Pau, built in 1667 to replace an old 14th-century watchtower. In the mid-19th century, it was part of the military optical telegraph line linking Mallorca and Menorca. Significant and extensive renovations were carried out in 1892. Since 1975, it has been owned by Palma City Council. We have public transport to Coll d'en Rabassa, the start of the route, with EMT lines 18, 27, 28, and 35 and from Can Pastilla, the end of the route, with lines 31, 32, 35, A2, 23 and 25 (emtpalma.cat).

[00 min] The starting point of our walk is the Torre de Pau, on Josep Mascaró Passarius Street in Coll d'en Rabassa. Before heading off to work, we have the option of making a quick visit to this ancient fortress. It's a path located above the beach that we follow to the left, facing east. We're on the newly named Penyó beach, near the tip of the tower [05 min].

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