Week 2 in Palma de Mallorca

Greetings from the city of Palma on the island of Mallorca in Spain! We have been in the country now for 15 days and in Palma for 13 days. The city is actually called Palma de Mallorca. I am dictating this letter so hopefully the grammar and spelling will be accurate.

We are becoming more and more comfortable with all of the changes and the different lifestyle here. Because our time in Barcelona was so short on that very first day –  we were only in the Mission office for about one hour – we didn’t really receive a formal mission orientation. So, we are having to learn a lot of things on our own, which has been an adventure. Being out on the islands, we feel pretty remote, but that is also a plus in that we are having to figure things out on our own.

We have enjoyed two Sundays here on Mallorca. Our first Sunday we attended meetings for the three branches that meet in the chapel here in Palma. This past Sunday we drove to the town of Manacor where there is a very small branch. Sister Taylor and I along with Elder and Sister Dyer were able to speak in sacrament meeting. We had a beautiful spiritual experience in that small branch. Manacor is about 45 minutes away and on the way back we drove through a few small towns. There is an incredible amount of history on this island as over the centuries different countries and different groups of people have had power on this island. As we experienced in Latin America, there are beautiful cathedrals in every one of these small towns. Many of these cathedrals are over 1000 years old. The architecture of the buildings, the history, the culture, and the stories from the past are absolutely amazing!!! We feel as if we were living in the middle of a history book.

We are getting to know more of our young single adults as we meet every Wednesday night for Institute class and every Friday night for our family night. On these Friday nights we begin with an English class for those who desire to learn English, then we have about a 30 minute meeting with a spiritual message, then we feed the group and spend the rest of the night with activities. So far, sister Dyer has done all of the cooking, baking and preparing of the Friday night meals. Sister Taylor has helped with the last two Friday nights. Our apartment has a very old gas oven and stove that we just barely lit for the first time tonight. All of the marks on the knobs for temperature have been rubbed off so we will begin to cook by trial and error.

We have a very nice car to drive. It is called a Hyundai IONIQ, a hybrid that I believe is a European model. I may have mentioned this last week, but driving in this city is nerve-racking and a bit crazy. The streets are very narrow and there are many one-ways. Perhaps this is like other cities in Europe, but these people are able to parallel park in tiny spaces where there is only inches in front of their front bumper and behind their rear bumper. It is staggering how they can park in such a tiny spot..We feel bad that a set of elders had this car before us but they had to give it up when we got here. Elder Blackburn and Elder Westra are awesome missionaries and we are happy to give them rides as needed or let them use the car. We also work closely with two sets of Sister Missionaries: Sisters Hadfield, Smith, Fitt and Ewing. There are a total of 14 young missionaries and four of us senior missionaries on these three islands. These young missionaries are incredible! We are so impressed with their dedication, their work ethic, their faith, and their willingness to work hard. All of them are able to communicate very effectively in Spanish.

Speaking of languages, Mallorca has a combination of traditional Spanish, Catalan, and a local dialect called Mallorcin. We also hear lots of different languages as we walk up and down the streets. Sister Taylor and I are getting better at understanding and speaking Spanish, but we have a long ways to go. The influx of seasonal tourists from around the world has already begun as the population on this island will more than double during the summer. 

We have enjoyed two wonderful P-Day excursions. Both times the Dyers and us drove our cars and we took a companionship of sisters with us. There are numerous beautiful places and amazing scenery on this island. We have already been able to see two of these places. Last week we drove west to the coast to the old town of Banyanbulfar and yesterday we drove north to a long peninsula that extends out into the Mediterranean and has staggeringly beautiful views from the tops of rocky cliffs., called Cap de Formentor. I will try to include a few photos of these beautiful places. This island has so many of these scenic destinations, perhaps one of the reasons why it is such a popular tourist destination. We have also learned quickly that Mallorca may be the road biking destination for thousands of bicyclists. Everywhere we drive outside of the city, we see and pass hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of bicyclists, many of them wearing their team or club jerseys and riding in the spirit of training and the use of drafting. Those of you who are road bike enthusiast would absolutely love it here. The scenery and the opportunity to go up and down mountains is amazing. Our trip yesterday to the Cap de Formentor included a very steep, windy, and sometimes treacherous drive up the mountain. Hundreds and hundreds of bikers were pedaling up and then back down this mountain. It appeared very much like the Tour de France.

As we stated in our earlier post today, Sister Taylor and I were very touched on Sunday with the hymn, “A done me mandes, ire” or “I’ll go where you want me to go.” When we sang the words in the chorus after the first verse, “a montañas o islas del mar” we knew that this “island of the sea” is where we are to be. We desire to follow and serve the Lord in all aspects of our life. We are amongst Heavenly Father’s special children here. It is a blessing, a privilege, and an honor to be here. We love these people! Jesus Christ is our Savior, Redeemer, and King. We are here to serve Him! 

Elder and Sister Taylor

Palma de Mallorca, España