Palma de Mallorca

The very last trip we took was to Palma de Mallorca. Mallorca is an Island off the coast of Spain in the Mediterranean Sea. Justin and I left early in the day and met Megan, Sarah, and Shannon who were on a later flight. Justin and I walked along the coast and found a restaurant to eat at. It had a great view of the sea as we ate. Many of the restaurants had menus in German because Mallorca is a big tourist spot for German people.

The next day we met up with Sarah, Shannon, and Megan. We walked to the beach by our house. We relaxed on the beach and kicked around a soccer ball. It was a windy day and too cold to swim but I was able to dip my feet in the water. The water was really wavy which was great for all the kite surfers. It was really cool to watch them because the wind would pick up and the surfers would fly in the air.

The Beach

We decided to find a better beach on a different part of the island. To get to the other beach we hopped on a bus. We weren’t 100% sure if we were on the right bus. We got off where we were told to get off. It was kind of in the middle of nowhere. After waiting for a long while another bus came by and took us the rest of the way to our destination. 

Making Sandcastles

The wind had picked up even more and the skies were dark. This beach was in the shape of a horseshoe. The sand here was a lot nicer, but the waves were double the size. We hungout here for a while and then tried to find our way back. 

Us on the Beach (Minus Shannon who is taking the pic)

We got back, Shannon and I shopped around a little bit. Then we all got back together and found a Kebab place for dinner. Afterwards we played cards and monopoly deal. It was a great night filled with lots of laughs. 

Shannon on the Beach

Palma de Mallorca wasn’t what I was expected. Since it was an island and south of Spain I thought it would be a lot warmer. I expected to be tanning and swimming. Even though that didn’t happen I still think it was a great spot to go to as our last weekend trip

Spring Break: Budapest, Hungary March 27-31

At midnight we got on an overnight train in Prague towards Budapest. We stayed in the sleeping car. In each compartment of the car there was a bunk bed with 3 bunks, a sink, and a tiny closet. It was pretty cramped. On this train we met a guy from Chicago, who had relatives in Wisconsin. He spent the first hour or two of the train ride giving us advice on college and afterwards in the real world. He wasn’t preachy at all; he was actually really informative and interesting. Sleeping on the train was hard because the tracks were really loud.

We got off the train and went to breakfast with the guy from Chicago and afterwards we walked to the Jewish Quarter. We saw the “Great Synagogue” with the Chicago guy. He was Jewish so he answered all the questions we had about the synagogue and the Jewish religion in general. Afterwards we found our hostel and relaxed.

Great Synagogue

The next day we went on a free Budapest walking tour. The tour started in a square that was filled with booths. They were selling all sorts of handmade items and food in the booths. We then went and saw St. Stephen’s church. Afterwards we headed towards the Danube River. The river separates the Buda side from the Pest side of Budapest. Our hostel was in Pest. We also saw the Parliament Building.

Parliament Building at night

We crossed the river to the Buda side and climbed this big hill. We had an awesome view of the river and all the bridges from up there. We then saw the Royal Palace. Katy Perry’s “Firework” video was filmed here. We also saw the President’s Palace. It was a lot more formal and less flashy than the Royal Palace. We ended the tour by seeing the Matthias Church. This church is baroque style so it looks very interesting. The roof is made out of tile.

Royal Palace

Matthias Church

Since this was the end of our trip we did a lot of relaxing. We spent a lot of time reading books by the river or in coffee shops. One night we got really lost in the city but we found our way.

On our last day there we spent most of the day trying to figure out how to pack all of the stuff we accumulated throughout the spring break trip. There was no way we would be able to fit everything into our carry on backpacks. Our solution was to stuff two backpacks full to the seams and check them. Then we would use two brown paper bags as carry-ons. We looked a bit comical. The last things we wanted to do were see Margaret Island and climb the Gellert Hill to see the Lady with the Palm branch statue.

When we finally made it to the Island it was getting late. Margaret Island is in the Danube River between Buda and Pest. It is a pretty island with flowers and trees and a bike trail that goes around the outside. Afterwards we tried to book it to Gellert Hill but it was all the way on the other side of town, plus it was getting late. We decided to go anyways. By the time we got to the bottom of the hill it was getting pretty dark. We climbed the hill anyways. It wasn’t the smartest decision. The hike up the huge hill went through a wooded path. All the trees were cool to see but the path was a little steep. Then it started to sprinkle. We were cold from the rain, walking through the darkness, and tired from the steep climb but we finally made it to the top. This is the highest point in Budapest and from it you could see the whole city lit up. It was so worth it. We were also able to see close up the giant statue of the Lady with the Palm Branch, which at one point represented communism. It was a great way to end the trip.

Lady with Palm Branch

The view from the hill

Overall, our Spring Break Trip went really well. We were able to live out of a backpack for two weeks. We were a pretty great travel group that only got on each other’s nerves every so often. But honestly, it was great traveling with these people. We were able to see and learn so much in such a short period of time. And most importantly, we all got home in one piece.

Spring Break: Prague, Czech Republic March 24-27

To get from Berlin, Germany to Prague, Czech Republic we decided to take a train. It was a relaxing ride through the countryside; some of us even napped. We knew we were getting close to Prague because of the announcements over the intercom. All of a sudden our friend Sarah woke us up and told us to grab our backpacks and get ready. We hopped off at one of the stops at the last minute and looked around. We had gotten off at the wrong station. Luckily we quickly found a taxi and got out of there fast. It was kind of a scary place.

Old Town Square

We made it to our hostel. On the first day in Prague we went to the Old Town Square. In the square there was a bunch of booths set up. This was because they were celebrating Easter. In the Easter market they had all sorts of good food and were selling souvenirs. They had the yummiest hotdogs there. Also they have these really good pastries called Trdelniks. They are kind of like a cross between a donut and a soft pretzel. The dough is rolled in a spring shape around a piece of wood and then cooked. On the outside they put on sugar and nuts. We also saw St. Nicolas’ Church. 

Trdelniks

 

On one end of the square they had the Church of Our Lady Before Tyn. The reason this church is so interesting is because of the two towers. The towers were supposed to be exactly the same but the architect messed up and one of the towers is noticeably bigger.  Also in the square is the Astronomical Clock. This ancient clock not only tells the time but shows the position of the sun. It also has a calendar dial that shows the months. Every hour on the hour the little figures around the clock move. When this grand clock was built, the person who built it was killed so that no one else in the world could have a clock like this one. Later that night we were able to climb the tower above the Astronomical Clock and look over this square. 

Astronomical Clock

On our way out of the square we saw the Estates Theatre, which was where Mozart conducted his first world premiere of his “Don Giovanni”. We walked further down the street and saw Kinsky Palace. We also saw the Powder Tower, which are the old city gates of Prague. Next we saw the Art Nouveau Municipal House, where works of art from some of the greatest Czech artists are held. We also saw the Museum of Cubism.

After this we went to Wenceslas Square. This square is in the New Town of Prague. They also had booths for Easter here. After this we went to the Jewish Quarter. Here we saw not only where many of the Jewish people lived but a Jewish graveyard. The reason this quarter was preserved was because Hitler wanted to turn this area into a “museum” or “exhibit” that showed the destroyed race. We ended our tour at the Rudolfinum. This is a big concert hall. The statues on top are of famous sculptors and musicians. When Hitler came to Prague he ordered that the statue of the Jewish composer be taken off the Rudolfinum. The men ended up taking the wrong statue off of the Rudolfinum by accident. This made Hitler mad because it was his favorite composer.

The next day we rented a paddleboat and paddled up and down the river. It was a beautiful day and it was really cool to see all the buildings from the water. Later we went back to the Old Town Square. On our way out of the square a man ran past us. A little bit afterwards a lady ran up. It turns out that the man stole something of hers. Sarah decided to chase after the man but he must have ducked into a building because we were unable to catch him. Then later in the day we crossed Charles Bridge. This is not just any bridge. When the bridge was built everyone thought that it would sink into the river because it was made of rock. They were pleasantly surprised to find that this wasn’t the case. The bridge is beautiful with guard towers on both sides and statues up and down the edges. My friends woke up early and went down to the bridge to watch the sunrise but I didn’t go with them because I was too tired. It turns out that I didn’t miss much because it was cold, early, and not a great sunrise. But all in all, I was extremely impressed by this bridge. 

Paddle Boat on the River

Charles' Bridge

The next day we decided to climb up this big hill and go to Prague castle. Like all good travelers, we got lost. That wasn’t the worst thing though, because we ended up finding a place that sold some pretty cool paintings of Prague. We had a nice lunch on the steps outside of the castle grounds. When we entered the grounds we saw the St. Vitus Cathedral and also St. George’s Basilica. We also saw some of the halls and palaces. My favorite part of the castle grounds was “Golden Lane”. This is where many of the medieval armory workers and textile makers lived. The street contains many little tiny houses. I even had to crouch to get through some doorways. Some of the houses were the size of my room at home. This is called “Golden Lane” because it is where the goldsmiths lived. 

St. Vitus Cathedral

Golden Lane

Another thing we did was see the Lennon Wall. This is a big wall that is full of graffiti. In the 1980’s the graffiti was all lyrics from Beatles songs. In 1988 the wall was used to write bad things about the communist regime. Today the wall is used by people to write about love and peace. 

Lennon Wall

We had a really great time in Prague. Since we had more days here we were able to relax a bit more and catch up on some much needed rest. Prague is a really beautiful and interesting city. It has been one of my favorite places that I have visited. I also feel like I learned a lot about the Czech people.