Hallo Alle!
OIL Week has come to a close, leaving behind our time in a singular classroom. I'll miss my time refreshing my German, walking around Freiburg in a city tour, and trying not to trip in a Bächle in front of everybody..... Ahh what good times...
Not to fret though! After OIL, those of us in the Language Area of the program were taken to Berlin! A nice, fun, and educational trip is just what our brains needed to digest the two weeks of language intensive class. While we had the option to go to Berlin with the group, a couple of us decided to take advantage of being in Europe and decided to travel to another country!
I present to you... Mallorca, Spain!
While I am sure Berlin would have been a great trip to go on, I personally felt that I could easily go to Berlin on any other weekend and explore it myself. However, the time and opportunity to see and experience another country is not as easy as visiting a city in Germany. Therefore Seamus, Bekah, Erika, and I took the WEEK long break and flew to Palma de Mallorca.
The title reads, "Germany Away From Germany" for a specific reason, and its not because Mallorca is a German country but rather, its because the moment you land in Mallorca, you still hear German! Yes, its true. In a country that speaks Spanish and Catalan, we are running around the airport hearing everybody, and I mean everybody, speaking German. Now, don't get me wrong, people also spoke Spanish, but because Mallorca is apparently a popular destination for German speakers, its very German friendly.
Leaving the airport, we took a bus to our AirBnb in Palma. We met with our lovely host who led us to our flat and gave us the keys. Luckily for my friends, I speak Spanish, and was able navigate, negotiate, and find out more information about beaches and restaurants nearby. Later that day, after having settled in, we took a walk to check out the area of the city we were in, and stumbled across a beach front not even half a mile from our AirBnb.
Over the next couple of days, we explored the island of Mallorca. I was able to talk my way with some locals and find someone who could take us to other towns with beach fronts. Having a driver was definitely a plus because we saved money on buses/taxis and made a friend in the process. We did day trips alongside the south coast of Mallorca, stopping in towns like Cala Santanyi where we stopped at Mirador es Pontas, an observation platform on a cliff side. We visited a beach called Platja des Trenc and explored the nearby town, Faro Colonia de Sant Jordi. We also visited Port de Soller, a ship port in the town of Soller. And finally, we finished off in Magaluf for some music fun.
The trip was fun and definitely worth looking into if you're planning any trips when studying abroad! I would recommend you either bring a Spanish speaker or learn some Spanish on top of German, that way you get the full Mallorca experience.
That's all for now! Check out the video if you haven't already and see the beauty of Mallorca! See you on the next post!
Auf wiedersehen!
-Juan
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Juan Marin
<p>I've been told that I have a neutral accent when I speak, which I find interesting considering I grew up in GA/AL, go to school in Wisconsin, and speak both spanish and english fluently. I'll tell you what though, I can really bring out my southern accent when I want to.</p><p>My hobbies include: flying drones, tech, fishing, football (both soccer and american football), swimming, exploring (towns, nature,etc), video games, paintball, and a bunch more.... I guess you'll just have to ask me!</p>
