The Pulpit

A couple of weekends ago, Harriet and I went over to my Parents' house in Rutland for the weekend. After seeing some dear friends on Friday night, we arrived at my parents ready for a day out on Saturday.

We went as planned to a place called Peckover House in Cambridgeshire (a Georgian property run by the National Trust) and ended up in Cambridge absolutely stuffing ourselves at a great restaurant called Cau. I massively recommend it - just don't eat as much as I did when I went there...

In between, we decided to head over to Ely, as it was nearby and Harriet had never been there before. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Ely, it lies on a raised area (known historically as the "Isle of Ely") in the middle of the Fens - a large area of low-lying drained marshland in the east of England. Because Ely is a few metres above sea level, it can be seen from miles around with its iconic cathedral sticking out like a beacon, drawing you in.

Most cathedral cities in the UK are really nice places. Harriet and I live in one (Lichfield) and walks down to the cathedral are not uncommon. Ely is no exception to this rule and has picturesque stone buildings all around the town, making you think you have gone back in time.

Once in the cathedral, we made our way round admiring the stained-glass windows and architecture. All around the building were little sheets of laminated paper, explaining different effigies and shedding some light on what things meant. One in particular stood out to me:

This sign made me think of our pulpit at our church (definitely less ornate!). It is interesting to see that the most uplifting things said from our pulpit are always the ones where the speaker expounds upon the gospel and how we can use it to better our lives and the lives of others. Whenever this is not the case, the spirit does not attend and no one goes away feeling uplifted or edified.

Having thought about this for the past couple of weeks since our visit, it has given me a determination to make sure whenever I am given a talking assignment at church, that I will seek to put my own musings aside and fulfil my responsibility to point others to Christ.

Menorca - The Windy Island

Having been to Spain but never before to the Balearic Islands, I had virtually no expectations of being impressed by the place. I went thinking that we were going to get the kind of sea, sun and ultra-touristy plastic-ness of the Costa del Sol. I didn't think it was going to be a holiday I would particularly recommend.

Goodness was I wrong! 

Read this blog - and then book your ticket. Menorca surpassed all of my expectations - and I'm sure you'll love it too.

Here's why: 

Beaches to suit everybody! 

Young kids? No problem. Some of the beaches have water that is placid and shallow until way way out. Ideal for kids, playing bat-and-ball games whilst in the water and generally floating whilst feeling totally safe.

Plus, it's easy to predict which beaches will be free of jellyfish: If the wind is coming from the South, go North - and vice versa. We had read this, but learned to trust it when walked the trail down the Cala Mitjana one day to find locals picking out the small brown stingers from the water. Needless to say, we went to a Northern beach and found the water was completely perfect. Though the jellyfish weren't everywhere, you don't need to risk getting stung. 

South Coast 

Cala'n Bosch (click for google maps)

Son Saura (click for google maps)

Es Talaier (click for google maps)

Cala'n Turqueta (click for google maps)

Macarelleta (click for maps)

Reach by walking over the cliff-top path from Macarella beach. Macarelleta was much more crowded than Macarelleta when we went to it but the water was absolutely beautiful. White sandy beach. We swam round to it from Macarella! (Don't try this if you're not a competent swimmer - it's easy to get tired as the current is against you.)

Cala Macarella (click for maps)

Perfect white sand and natural shade from the trees. A short walk from a car park. Toilets and a small cafe. 

Cala Galdana (click for maps)

Once reputed to be the most beautiful of the Menorcan beaches - I can't get over the horrible 70s-style hotels that surround the beach. Apparently lots of people still like it as there are lots of facilities.

Cala Mitjana (click for maps) 

After a bit of a walk downhill (and yes, you have to go back up!) to this beach you feel that you deserve it to be good. I don't think you'd be disappointed. It has beautiful white sand, clear waters (make sure you go on a day when the wind is blowing from the North) and even a very very high rock to jump off for the more daring. Personally, I enjoyed treading water and watching the locals showing off. No broken legs for me, thank you very much. A totally beautiful beach, though no facilities (locals come round selling drinks, skirts, fruit etc) so might not be ideal if you're fussy about where you pee! ;) 

Cala Fustam (click for maps)

Cala Escorxada (click for maps)

Cala Trebaluger (click for maps)

Binigaus (click for maps)

Cala'n Porter (click for maps)

Not far from the airport and with really easy parking. The day we were there a yellow flag was up to indicate danger swimming - which in reality meant big waves. It was great fun bobbing in them - but wouldn't have been good for little people. 

North Coast

Cala Tirant (click for maps)

Shallow waters until far out make this beach the perfect stop for families with kids. This beach is reached by parking along the road nearest Cala Tirant and walking across the first beach and over a wooden platform/bridge. The sand was less fine, but still beautiful and the water was still as a mill-pond and clear. 

Cala Pregondeta (click for maps)

I didn't actually know what this beach was called when we parked our bums on it - it was across the bay from Pregonda so I made an educated guess at it's name - and apparently was right.

This whole bay - with this beach and Cala Pregonda itself - was probably my favourite. It had all the ingredients for me to imagine Captain Hook's ship mooring up, mermaids underneath them and Tinkerbell spying nearby. Just idyllic.

It was a bit more difficult to get to - parking was a good distance away - but it was worth it to cross the first few beaches (one right next to a nature reserve) which were a little smelly and not very pretty to get to this gem.

We swam around the rocky island you can see to the far left of the picture.

Cala Pregonda 

It's easy to drive everywhere

Going to the island in June/beginning of July meant that we missed a lot of the busyness and traffic, I imagine. For us, it took no more than 50 minutes to cross the whole island from the East coast (the airport is in Mahon/Mao) to the West coast. There's only one road that runs from East to West, North and South roads come off these - and you do need to check if they're dirt tracks. Get a good map and go for it. It's well worth having a car, staying in one resort would mean missing out on the variety of beaches and landscapes you can see by moving to a new spot every day. We found Hiper rental cars relatively inexpensive. 

The people are friendly 

I don't know about you, but sometimes when I'm in a touristy place I feel like everyone is always trying to sell me something - and it can be unpleasant when people are dragging you into their restaurant or whatever. Yes, I get it - lots of competition, they've got to earn a living - but being less aggressive is more likely to make me come back another day, even if I'm doing something else today. In Menorca even people who were selling things seemed fairly laid back - they would talk to you, be informative and delightful and then step back and let you either walk away or make a decision to do what it was that they were telling you about. Island mentality maybe? They just seemed happy! 

Swimming, Boating, Jumping, Hiking, Snorkeling... 

Want to swim in a cave? See lots of fish? Jump from plateaus? Swim in perfectly clear water? Go on a boat ride down the coast? Hike around the entire island? Of course there are options for people who have a bigger budget and want to jet-ski, hire a boat etc. 

There's a horse-trail all the way round the island that you can walk if you are so inclined. We weren't - sounded like hard work! 

If you want a wander rather than a walk, Ciutadella is lovely for meandering. We weren't so keen on Mahon. 

We went on Amigos glassbottom boat on our second day - which is where I took all of the pictures of the south coast beaches - so it was great way of getting our bearings. We had lots of fun swimming in a cave and going down the slides off the back of the boat. 

Incredible Sunsets

Best places to see the sunset include Monte Toro, in the middle of the ocean on a boat and anywhere on the West coast. But, I'll let the pictures do the talking.

Convinced?