{"id":1015,"date":"2025-07-05T15:13:56","date_gmt":"2025-07-05T15:13:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/?p=1015"},"modified":"2025-07-05T15:13:56","modified_gmt":"2025-07-05T15:13:56","slug":"sand-sea-spanish-sporting-greatness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/2025\/07\/05\/sand-sea-spanish-sporting-greatness\/","title":{"rendered":"Sand, Sea & Spanish Sporting Greatness"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

While having a simple breakfast on our room’s patio we went through the saved list of beaches to visit. Mallorcan cove beaches, while beautiful, are notorious for how busy they can get. But we were intending going early enough to beat the crowds. \u200b<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We also chose Parc natural de Mondrag\u00f3 a reserve so we hoped it would also attract the ‘right’ crowd. We were right in all fronts. We arrived there early with very few people on the beach so were able to amble along the walkway taking in the blue water and views of the bays and out into the Mediterranean. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Returning to the beach we selected a spot shaded by the reserve’s pine trees. The water was crystal clear and a warm 28.5 degree Celsius. While it worked for first thing in the morning I am not sure how refreshing it would be later in the day when the temperature was expected to reach 37 Degrees!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I went for a short swim doing a couple of loops to and from the neighbouring Cala S’Amarador while Nikki enjoyed a beach morning relaxing and people watching. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was then back to base for a short lunch and refresh before we headed off to Manacor and the real reason why we are visiting this beautiful Belearic Island, The Rafeal Nadal Academy and Museum. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After a short walk around the shop we entered the museum through a multimedia tunnel aimed to emulate those the players enter through at ATP tournaments. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then it was the experiential section where I tried and failed the F1 simulator dismally and Nikki had great fun playing the various tennis related games, think Nintendo Wii on sterolds with a very American sounding Nadal avatar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then the museum itself held an impressive collection of memorabilia from Rafa’s years playing on the circuit and Grand Slam wins. I am still unsure how he knew all those years ago to keep the pair of shoes he wore to win X slam. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were also displays of other Spanish sporting icons and their, for example, Olympic medals or in Fernando Alonso’s case World Championship winning F1 car.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After some refreshments Nikki made an obligatory purchase or two at the shop. We then strolled around the extensive grounds with 45 tennis courts (hard and clay). Nikki particularly envious of the many youngsters on Summer Tennis camp.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We ended the day in Manacor itself where we enjoyed tapas at a legitimate tapas bar. We know this as they had to call the bar tender who spoke English to assist us with explaining the menu. It was the perfect end to a memorable day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
Crystal clear waters at Cala Mondrago<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
The short walk back to Cala Mondrago from Cala
S’Amarador<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
The obligatory selfie<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Families enjoying the day at Cala Mondrago <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Reflexes being tested <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Hall of Fame<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Something for Roy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Some guys used racket going cheap <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Even the cappuccino is branded<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
The impressive indoor clay courts <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Parr\u00f2quia de la Mare de D\u00e9u dels Dolors de Manacor or as we call it Manacor cathedral <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Our first patatas bravas. The bar has been set high<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Started the day with coffee and cove-spotting, then scored big with a peaceful early swim at Parc Mondrag\u00f3 \u2014 crystal clear water, pine tree shade, and Mediterranean magic. After lunch, it was game, set, match at the Rafa Nadal Academy, where we geeked out over tennis legends, flopped at an F1 sim, and crushed some Wii-style tennis. Wrapped it all up with proper tapas in Manacor. Sun, swims, and Spanish sport \u2013 perfecto!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1032,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[9,91,6],"tags":[95,98,97],"class_list":["post-1015","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-royandnikki","category-spain","category-travelogues","tag-mallorca","tag-rafael-nadal-tennis-musuem","tag-spain"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_2911-1.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8Ocy4-gn","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1046,"url":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/2025\/07\/07\/saltwater-sangria-sunset-streets\/","url_meta":{"origin":1015,"position":0},"title":"Saltwater, Sangria & Sunset Streets","author":"Roy","date":"11 months ago","format":false,"excerpt":"The day started off earlier than usual. Nikki agreed to join me for an early morning sunrise swim at Cas Catala, a quaint little beach a few bus stops away from our hotel. Nikki was able to watch and chat to the regular bathers while I managed a fun swim\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Roy & Nikki"","block_context":{"text":"Roy & Nikki","link":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/category\/travelogues\/royandnikki\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3025-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3025-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3025-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3025-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1130,"url":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/2025\/07\/12\/adios-barcelona\/","url_meta":{"origin":1015,"position":1},"title":"Adi\u00f3s Barcelona","author":"Roy","date":"11 months ago","format":false,"excerpt":"Today was a farewell to Barcelona. Our train was only to leave late in the afternoon so we spent the morning down at Barcelonetta beach getting every last minute of our time in this fantastic city.\u00a0 Our train trip to Madrid literally whizzed by, at times at 300km\/h.\u00a0 Straight away\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Roy & Nikki"","block_context":{"text":"Roy & Nikki","link":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/category\/travelogues\/royandnikki\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3544-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3544-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3544-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3544-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1149,"url":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/2025\/07\/15\/palaces-parks-and-paella\/","url_meta":{"origin":1015,"position":2},"title":"Palaces, Parks, and Paella","author":"Roy","date":"11 months ago","format":false,"excerpt":"Today we had a visit to the Palacio de Real Madrid. Getting to these attractions a little early always pays dividends as it allows you to take in the surrounds and, in this case the Palace itself before entering. 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We might not know a Rubens from a Rembrandt, but two and a half hours later, we\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Roy & Nikki"","block_context":{"text":"Roy & Nikki","link":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/category\/travelogues\/royandnikki\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3658-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3658-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3658-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3658-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1066,"url":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/2025\/07\/08\/a-ferry-happy-birthday\/","url_meta":{"origin":1015,"position":4},"title":"A Ferry Happy Birthday","author":"Roy","date":"11 months ago","format":false,"excerpt":"Another early start today! We had a ferry to catch from Mallorca to Barcelona - another new experience for us. Despite being a long journey, we were comfortable in our pullman seats and it went remarkably quicker than expected. Barcelona immediately had an appeal which excited me(us). We navigated our\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Roy & Nikki"","block_context":{"text":"Roy & Nikki","link":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/category\/travelogues\/royandnikki\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3105-2-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3105-2-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3105-2-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/07\/img_3105-2-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1003,"url":"http:\/\/eishonline.co.za\/travel\/2025\/07\/04\/test\/","url_meta":{"origin":1015,"position":5},"title":"A whole new language","author":"Roy","date":"11 months ago","format":false,"excerpt":"Today was a travel day. Those always start with at least a touch of dread. Making our way to the airport nice and early meant no stress, even after we hit a small road(rail)block. 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