Chopin, crowds and a special first visit, this was the excursion of the King and Queen, Leonor and Sofía to Valldemossa

• Palma You to the movies and I to sail: King Felipe and Queen Letizia enjoy their hobbies in Palma

The mountains of the Tramuntana hide treasures with centuries of history to which the Mallorcan orography still makes it difficult to reach today.

At an altitude of 400 metres, where the humidity is lower and the temperature much more bearable than in Palma's torrid summer season, stands the

, the Majorcan palace built by

for his son Sancho, which this Monday, August 1, by in the afternoon he visited the Royal Family, on the annual excursion they make around the island.

It was half an hour after seven in the evening when King Felipe and Queen Letizia, accompanied by their daughters, Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofía, arrived at the Carthusian gardens.

The family appeared in two vehicles, one that transported the Monarch and his wife and another in which Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofía were travelling.

The Queen chose

by Mallorcan designer Pablo Erroz, who made it exclusively for her.

The Princess of Asturias chose a short summer

style white dress with sleeves.

For her part, the Infanta Sofía opted for a

The King, on the other hand, opted for a light blue guayabera and jeans.

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The Royal Family's holidays in Mallorca, in pictures

• Writing: ANGELA GAGO

The Royal Family's holidays in Mallorca, in pictures

Upon arrival at the garden of the charterhouse, where the four agreed together, Don Felipe commented on the change in temperature that was noticeable with respect to Palma: "

," he said smiling.

Later, he was very happy because on the first day of regattas of the

in which he had participated in the morning, his sailboat, the

, came second.

After strolling through the gardens, the Royal Family was received by the president of the Balearic Islands, Francina Armengol;

the Government delegate,

;

the mayor of the town,

, president of the Balearic Parliament and

, president of the Consell de Mallorca.

This appointment is the first and only one that the four members of the Royal Family have scheduled on their agenda this week, and it is the

in a month, after the presentation of the Princess of Girona Awards and the visit to Santiago de Compostela a week ago.

It is also the first time that Doña Leonor and Doña Sofía visit the charterhouse, which their parents toured when they were Prince and Princess of Asturias and

with the current heiress, something that the Queen recalled during the tour.

Don Felipe then pointed out that his eldest daughter "had already been", in reference to the pregnancy.

The Kings and their daughters appeared very smiling at the viewpoint of the Cartuja, from where incredible views of the valley can be seen, with which

After the greetings to the authorities and the corresponding photograph, the Art History professor

explained to the Family the history of the palace, which was inhabited by the Mallorcan kings until

ceded it to the Carthusian monks in 1339. It later passed into private hands in the 19th century after the confiscation of Mendizábal, when it was expropriated from the religious because there were less than a dozen monks residing in the palace converted into a convent.

Then, those cells

for people who, in turn, rented it to others who came across that place, creating one of the first vacation rental systems.

One of those cells belongs to the

family , who have greeted the King and Queen and their daughters because they were there at that time and have known the Borbón family

Many people have passed through those apartments, but

, who spent the winter of 1838 at number 4. Attracted by a climate that he believed could improve his delicate state of health, the Polish master he composed pieces such as his Prelude or his Second Ballad.

All with

for his stay in Valldemossa.

Chopin was not only inspired by the landscapes and sounds of the Tramuntana, but also made the town fashionable as a visiting point for artists, after assuring in a letter that it was in

.

His companion,

He captured the memories of that stay in the book A winter in Mallorca, the first copies of which are in the Charterhouse together with the piano that Chopin bought for his stay in Valldemossa.

The Kings and their daughters knew that cell, which continues in private hands but

They also admired the piano that Chopin used and that the current owner of the cell managed to buy back from the people who had kept it after the composer's departure.

The Royal Family was also able to

the collection of instruments and jars in the pharmacy of the Carthusian monastery, one of the most complete in Europe and one of the oldest in Mallorca.

Later they crossed the Plaza de la Cartuja to enter the

where at that moment a pianist was playing part of La Polonaise.

Several dozen people were enjoying a dinner on the terrace of the square at that time and

which the Royal Family reciprocated with greetings and selfies as they left the palace.

The same thing happened when the King and Queen and their daughters traveled the 100 meters that separate the Cartuja from the cars that had to return them to Palma.

From Plaça Ramón Llull and for a block on Calle Blanquerna,

applauded the Family, who returned greetings to everyone they could, as well as their requests for photographs.

The Queen and her daughters even entered some of the shops on the street, although they did not accept gifts but were interested in some bags of the

.

Doña Letizia was

barely six years old with whom he chatted for a few minutes.

The little girl, who was holding a phone in her hands, took a picture of the Queen posing with her daughters.

Ten minutes after nine at night, the King and Queen, the Princess and the Infanta got into their vehicles to applause to return to Palma.

The visit to Valldemossa confirms the

.

Before the pandemic, the Kings and their daughters began the summer with an inn in Marivent and after that moment, they made an excursion to some point on the island to promote it.

In 2020, the summer of covid, that initial perch was eliminated to

imposed by the Government and a visit to Petra was chosen, wearing a mask.

The same thing happened in 2021, when the Family visited the

.

This year, the excursion to Valldemossa is a new location in a summer full of changes.

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