Mallorca - Day 4

Since the previous day had seen Carsten get carsick, we elected to do less driving and stick a bit closer to the hotel. So, we went to the aquarium that was right outside Palma, and Carsten was THRILLED. He was so excited he just kept going from thing to thing to thing. I'm actually not sure if I've ever seen him more excited than he was for that entire morning at the aquarium. The only thing that really put a damper on the morning for us was that there were throngs of elementary aged children on a field trip to the aquarium that day, and in addition, the outdoor cafe we had planned on eating at for lunch didn't open until 2 pm. The aquarium itself was very nice and it had electronic displays that you could read in your selected language assuming you weren't chasing after an excited toddler. We really didn't get any good photos of the inside of the aquarium because flash wasn't allowed, but here a shot of Carsten and I on the outdoor playground which was about 1/2-way through the aquarium:

sitting on a shark :)

We had planned (we really should stop 'planning') to try to have Carsten nap in his stroller so we could go back through the aquarium while he was sleeping and really take it in. However, between the noisy throngs of children and the excitement of the aquarium, Carsten was unable to nap in his stroller despite being extremely tired. He's never been a great napper in his stroller, but we keep trying :). So, we went to our car to try to go back to the hotel with my sole mission to try to keep him awake. Well, I failed at my mission because despite my singing songs, attempts at humor, and poking his face, Carsten fell asleep within a minute of leaving the parking lot. So, we needed to drive somewhere further away than the hotel and since we had missed our shot at Soller yesterday, we drove back while Casten napped in his car seat. We took the scenic route (meaning hairpin turns) rather than the tunnel to avoid a 5 EURO toll and to extend our time in the car. It was very pretty, and I must say this again: Andy is a champion driver :). We got to Soller with Carsten still sleeping so we pulled into a parking space and he woke up within minutes to the sound of an air-brake from a tour bus. When he woke up, he shouted 'TRUCK!', which was really cute :). We headed into the town of Soller and went through the pretty church at the center of town. It took us a bit of time to find the ice-cream shop we were looking for, but we did eventually find it :). The ice cream was pretty good, but we weren't super impressed. However, the glass of fresh-squeezed orange juice was AMAZING; Andy and I both agreed that it was the best we'd ever had. Soller is in a valley and the valley is famous for its oranges - hence the fresh squeezed orange juice. Carsten also enjoyed the orange juice, but I think he was more impressed with the straw that came with the orange juice. Here's a few photos of Soller:

In front of the church at Soller.

Carsten loved the cones, and didn't so much care for the ice-cream despite what this photo shows.

Andy with the amazing orange juice.

I think Andy's thinking: 'Don't spill my juice!'

We then went back to our car and drove back to the hotel via the much faster tunnel so we could hit the indoor pool. Unfortunately, the hotel did not heat the indoor pool or jacuzzi (who doesn't heat a jacuzzi?), so Carsten and Andy didn't stay in for very long since it was pretty chilly. We then had dinner at the hotel and a relatively early night in the hopes of getting more sleep during the night.

Andy and Carsten in the COLD indoor pool.

All in all, it was a great day! :)