My Oh Mallorca

Haha well. For a few more hours, it will be August 29. Which is an embarrassing day to be blogging about March/April of this year. But this summer has been a blur of sleeping, selling paper at OfficeMax, and catching up with friends. (Overall, that's the worst excuse on the face of the earth.)

But. I have two more trips to recap so that I can be officially "done" with this Euroblog. Let's see, where were we.

Oh yes.

I had just returned from Spring Break 2011, ready to buckle down for the rest of the semester. Kind of kidding about that. After the usual class schedule and a French test back in Genf, it was time to hit the beach again.

This time, we were off to Mallorca, Spain, a Balearic island located off Spain's eastern coastline in the Mediterranean Sea. A group of six of us went, Kristi and I ready to continue the tans we had begun in the Canaries.

Eden, Alexis, Ellen, Zach, Kristi

Ellen and me!

We arrived on Thursday, March 31st, and took a taxi to our hotel in Magaluf. Our hotel was gorgeous, spacious, and a three-minute walk to the beach. And, thanks to the off-season timing of our stay, it was dirt cheap. (By dirt cheap I mean reasonably affordable in Euros.) But we soon discovered it was overrun with enormous English- Irish- and Scottishmen who were competing in a rugby tournament being held nearby. We also quickly realized that these large men thoroughly enjoyed getting drunk and flashing each other from their respective balconies overlooking the courtyard. Some things apparently defy cultural borders.

View of the hotel pool from our balcony

We spent the weekend relaxing (as if Geneva is such an overwhelming place), sunning ourselves, and eating lots of delicious island food. Much of our time was spent at the Titanic, a bar/restaurant right on the beach, where we befriended the owner (whom we called our Pocket-sized Boyfriend for too many strange reasons).

I'm trying to reach back into my brain for any interesting facts or anecdotes that don't involve 1) nights of partying, 2) inside jokes, or 3) other things that might be irrelevant to this blog-for-school.

Whether it's the time that has passed or the nature of this particular weekend bender to Spain, I'm having trouble coming up with reasons why traveling to Mallorca was an educational experience. There was, as always, the lurking annoyance that comes from not being able to speak the local language (which was, in this case, Catalan, so I guess I'm not too embarrassed about not knowing that). It will never cease to amaze me, though, how ignorant North Americans are when it comes to language. I still can't believe the amount of people who asked me if I knew how to speak Swiss when I told them I was going to study in Switzerland. No, I do not know how to speak Swiss, but I don't feel bad about it because NO ONE ELSE DOES EITHER. BECAUSE IT'S NOT A LANGUAGE.

But I am getting away from the real point of this post, which is to explain to everyone just how gorgeous Mallorca is. Which I think would be better understood through pictures..

Hello, Mediterranean!

What up tiny island

Can't wait to look at this picture in 20 years

Magaluf

Eden and Ellen!

Gorgeous water

These are my favorite pictures

Possibly my favorite picture from all of Europe

Paradise

When the sun goes down...

Self explanatory

Best blue ever

That person might be topless..

I love sailboats immensely

LBDs minus Ellen! Haha

On Sunday morning, we were all more than a little depressed to leave such a breathtaking place. Anywhere I can wear a bikini in April is more than okay in my book.

That day, I took my final journey on an easyJet flight. At this time, I'd like to congratulate easyJet on providing an affordable and efficient way to travel around Europe. And for anyone who is fortunate enough to get across the pond at some point, I highly recommend easyJet (in most situations) as the premier way to travel from country to country. The staff is excellent and the simplicity of the easyGroup company is commendable.

Next up, Paris, France (where I had an actual cultural experience and did more than just lie on the beach all day)!