La Seu - Palma de Mallorca Cathedral
Any visitors approaching Palma by sea cannot help but be impressed, even astonished, by the graceful Gothic cathedral as it gradually emerges into view. Its upward-reaching lines seem to rise endless as the boat gets nearer, until they merge into its protective shield of palm trees in front, the old quarter houses behind it, and the colorful fishing boats and their undulating reflection in the calm waters of the bay. The Seo, as it is called here, was build on the site of a preexisting Arab mosque. One night in 1229, as Jaime I was on his way to recapture Majorca, his fleet was struck by a terrible storm. He vowed the and there to the Virgin Mary that if he survived nature´s fury, he would erect a church in her honor. And after the storm had blown over, finding himself safe and sound, he immediately undertook the project. It was a vow that was to take an inordinate amount of time to fulfi...