As we briefly mentioned in our Binibeca general introduction pages, a visit to
the village of Binibeca Vell is often now included as part of the major tour
operators "see Menorca in a day" type island tours.
The whole village has been carefully designed to recreate a traditional
Mediterranean style fishing village, which in recent years has lead to a number
of awards for both its architectural and design features.
The most striking and memorable features of the village are undoubtedly its
narrow cobbled streets which lead down to a small picturesque harbour, along
with the enigmatic church steeple standing proudly above the rows of low rise
apartments.
However, don't be fooled as this steeple is purely for decoration purposes only
and no matter how hard you look you will be unable to find a church anywhere in
the village.
Many visitors to Menorca are often quite surprised to discover a thriving
cricket club on the island. Whilst mainland Spain may have not fully embraced
the sport to international standards, the Menorca Cricket Club based at nearby
Biniparrell certainly take their matches very seriously.
If you wish to see one of their regular matches held throughout the summer,
directions are from San Luis follow the road to Binibeca and take the second
turning to your right. After passing through S’Uestra & immediately after
passing the turning to Binibeca, there is a turning signposted to Biniparrell,
at which point keep a sharp look out for the sign to the cricket club. Contact
details for more information and match details are;
Menorca Cricket Club
PO Box 565
Mahon
07700
Menorca
Telephone and fax: +34 971 150 620
A short distance inland from the coast brings you to the village of San Lluis,
here you will find the Aero Club and Hippodrome. The aerodrome originally built
during the Spanish Civil War, as was until 1969 the island's only airport.
It still operates as an airfield and today houses the Royal Mahon-Menorca
Airclub, who throughout the year offer visitors leisure flights around the
island as well as private piloting courses.
The facilities on site include a bar/restaurant, along with a small karting
track. Contact details for more information are:
Real Aeroclub Mahon - Menorca
Carretera San Luis Km. 3
San Luis
Menorca
Telephone: +34 971 361 672
Adjacent to the Aero Club, and certainly worth a mention is the Hippodrome, who
hold horse trotting races at the weekend throughout the year.
Throughout all of Spain and the Balearic Islands there has always been a strong
association with the annual cycle of local fiestas. The traditions of the
Menorcan fiesta are possibly the strongest of all, with many tracing their
origins way back to the 14th Century.
To the local residents, the word fiesta conjures up images of beautifully
groomed horses, the drink “Pomada” which is a combination of gin and lemon, and
the traditionally baked cake “Coca amb Xocolati”, which is served with a sweet
chocolate drink.
A typical fiesta begins in the afternoon before the Saint's day with the horses
and their riders meeting and parading through the streets before congregating at
the church for Mass.
In the evening there is often live music and traditional folk dancing, and then
a magnificent firework display ends the celebrations at around midnight.
The annual fiesta of Sant Lluís is always held over the weekend closest to
August 25th each year, and features a parade of floats through the town along
with a varied selection of sporting and musical events to get the whole
community involved in.
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