Week 7 - Making the Most of the Final Weeks
Counting Down the Final Weeks
I can’t believe how fast time has passed — there are only two weeks left now! Realizing that made me much more active in exploring the area and trying to do as many things as possible before driving back to Berlin.
Work is still going well. I guess I’m actually pretty good at what I’m doing, because my boss here has asked me multiple times if I would consider staying and working here instead of returning to Germany. To be honest, the projects here are genuinely interesting, but spending another two or three years learning the language and settling into a completely new country would also be quite challenging.
Still… maybe someday I really will end up somewhere along the Mediterranean coast.
Since my internship is slowly coming to an end, I’ve started organizing my work and transferring ownership of the GitHub repositories to others for future development. But overall, I think I managed to complete pretty much every project they assigned to me.
As I mentioned before, I really want to make the most of these final two weeks, so I’ve been planning something after work almost every day.
Tuesday - Salses Fortress
On Tuesday afternoon, I drove to the Fortress of Salses and took a short walk around the area. I didn’t actually go inside the castle because they were closing in about five minutes, but honestly, I still had a great time because I met the cutest guy ever.
8-week-old Australian Shepherd — such a handsome boy!
Wednesday - Catalan Dinner
On Wednesday, we visited a local Catalan restaurant with a lovely atmosphere and amazing food. We ordered a variety of dishes to share, including Esqueixada de bacallà (a traditional, refreshing Catalan salad made from raw, shredded salted cod (bacallà), tomatoes, onions, olives, and olive oil). And of course, it ended with a delicious crema catalana for dessert.
Since we’re right by the coast, the sailing and marine-inspired decoration style fit perfectly.
Thursday - Change of Plans
Thursday was another public holiday (praise Jesus once again!).
Originally, my plan was to drive to Figueres — Salvador Dalí’s hometown — and visit the museum there. But after checking Google Maps and seeing a one-hour traffic jam, I quickly changed plans.
Weather was pretty nice
Instead, I drove north to Carcassonne, the famous medieval castle city. It was raining a bit, but I still got the chance to say hello to some local residents.
There were actually three of them.
Saturday - Wine & Spain
The weekend became even busier.
Saturday morning already started with a vineyard tour and wine tasting — something you definitely shouldn’t miss in southern France. The guide showed us the production area and explained the wine-making process. After the grapes are harvested and pressed, the juice is fermented inside large stainless steel tanks where temperature can be controlled carefully. Some wines are bottled directly afterward, while others spend additional months or even years aging in oak barrels. The oak slowly adds woody, vanilla-like flavors and softens the texture of the wine over time.
Here is where the magic happens
Then came the best part: the tasting itself.
Unlike some vineyards I visited before, the wines here were incredibly smooth. Since I personally prefer fruity and sweeter wines, their selection matched my taste perfectly. They also produce their own olive oil. It was a bit pricey, but the quality was excellent, so I bought a few bottles as gifts.
Weekend in Spain Again
Afterward, it was Spain time once again. Since the border is only around a 30-minute drive away, many French people actually go to Spain on weekends for groceries and gas because everything is much cheaper there.
And I must say, I almost had tears in my eyes when I saw gas prices at around 1.41€ per liter.
(Okay, maybe a bit dramatic — but the happiness was real.)
So this time I finally made it to Figueres, which is basically a tourist town centered entirely around Dalí. And of course, the Dalí Theatre-Museum was a must-visit.
The exterior already looks incredibly Dalí-style.
And of course, the famous Face of Mae West Which May Be Used as an Apartment
To complete the full Spanish experience, the day naturally ended with seafood paella.
Shrimp and fish paella
Sunday Safari
Sunday was amazing as well.
I am going to miss this so much
I had brunch while enjoying the sea view, and afterward drove to the Réserve Africaine de Sigean, where you can do a safari directly from your car. There were special bear and lion areas where you had to be extra careful.
Hi Bear
The savanna area, on the other hand, felt much more relaxed. Many people even rolled down their windows hoping for closer encounters with the animals. Technically it’s not recommended, but if the animals approach you calmly and you stay relaxed too, it usually seems fine.
The ostriches are actually so cute with their long eyelashes.