A few days in Majorca...

2017 was a year when we spent most time at home. We were getting ready for welcoming a new member in our family (one that is now running around the house, smiling, laughing, dancing, doing hilarious things). Or so I thought. 

But then I started thinking about it. Considering all the trips near and far that we went on back then. January meant winter break near Ustka, Poland. March was a business trip to Stockholm. And a weekend getaway to London, let’s not forget about that. May meant a week spent in Mallorca, Spain. July – a weekend getaway to Frombork, Poland. And August – a few days in Sobieszewo, Gdansk, Poland. As for a year that I thought we spent mostly at home, it doesn’t seem that little. It’s just that we didn’t go on any major summer trip as a whole family that year. And that probably influences my perception of that year as a whole.

I did go to Mallorca with my parents and the kids though. We weren’t supposed to go there in the first place. My parents wanted to go with my brother and his family. But then it turned out that they couldn’t travel by place, so I stepped in with the kids and we took their places. Krzys had to stay home as there weren’t any free seats on the plane. Oh, well. Life’s brutal. He stayed home to clean certain parts of our home (like the attic) instead. Yup, life’s even more brutal ;)

From the start I have to admit that we didn’t see much of the island itself. The weather wasn’t too nice (most of the time. We had a rainy and windy day or two as well), and the whole plan was to rest. Our hotel was on the outskirts of one of the small coastal towns. It was more or less a half hour walk to the beach. But there was also a hotel minibus that was taking us closer to the beach area. 

Water in the pools was a little (a lot!) too cold to spend the time playing in the pools. Even in the kiddy pool, though this one was a little better (shallow water warms up faster). But the mini club was amazing. Kids had so much fun there. Artur could communicate easily in English, Paula still has a language barrier, but she could play with others thanks to her own wit and observations. The playground wasn’t maybe too big, but the constructions let the kids have their own kind of fun. They tried playing billard, too. And they still listen to and dance to the songs from the mini disco, which they loved a lot. Within a year, they had a chance to try three different mini discos in three different countries (Mallorca first, then Crete in Greece and finally Hurghada in Egypt). I haven’t seen the one in Crete (I wasn’t there and recordings don’t always pay tribute to the whole thing), but both the one in Egypt and in Mallorca were well organised and kids had a lot of fun taking part in them. They loved the one in Mallorca a little more, though. Or so I think. Primacy effect maybe? Novelty? Well, could be. 

Apart from spending time on the hotel grounds, where we had a lot of fun (some of us playing, some running around, some reading), we also went to the beach a few times. First time was already on our first day. Since we arrived to the hotel early in the morning, our rooms weren’t ready yet. We ate breakfast and still had some time to wait. We went to see the beach then. It was dark, cloudy and a little cold, so we were wearing long trousers and light jackets. That didn’t stop the kids from walking in their shoes right into the sea or falling down in the (shallow, but still) water. Half-dry half-wet, we got back to the hotel, where the rooms were already waiting for us. We unpacked and decided to rest spending the rest of the day either on the playground or sitting at the table right outside our rooms. And since our rooms were close to the hotel stage… it was a perfect place to see what was going on. That day started very early for us (or, to be truthful, in the middle of the night, as it was around 1-2 a.m., can’t remember precisely right now), we called the day quite early in the evening. Sadly, cause we missed the evening animations. As the kids loved them. Paula’s behaviour during this trip was a surprise to us. She was so open, so eager to play with others, to take part in various activities, to interact with others. The mini club was one thing. And the mini disco was yet another. We didn’t think she’d enjoy it. And every day she was waiting until the mini disco. Dancing like crazy, imitating every move. That was the first time I’ve seen her like that. Luckily, not the last. Artur is older and he was always more open to strangers than her. So him enjoying himself in the crowd was no surprise to us. It wasn’t his first time either. 

As I have already mentioned, we spent most of the time on the hotel grounds. By the pools, on the playground. We went to the beach a few times. But that was basically it. Except for one solo trip of mine, but I’ll share a word or two on it another time.