Deia – October 11-13
By Leyla
The next day we had to move out of our luxury Pollença abode and be at Escola Global at 8:45 (an hour’s drive toward Palma) for the tour and shadow day we had scheduled months ago, in communication with Guido Hansen, who we assumed is the admissions director. Guido said that he was probably going to be on a business trip during our visit so we weren’t sure exactly whom we would be meeting with but he mentioned connecting Emily with Kurt, “her teacher”.
Our friend Jarrett had first mentioned this school. He and his family left Shining Mountain last year to spend the year in Costa Rica for Spanish immersion. A teacher at their school in Tambor, who had also taught at the Green School in Bali, had spoken very favorably about Escola Global. We had come to Mallorca for the express reason of visiting this school. And this was the day.
Guido’s directions brought us to a parking lot in what looked like a newly built complex of small modern buildings near the University. We crossed a bridge over a tree-lined creek, as instructed, and arrived at a beautiful building with lots of glass, abutting a vineyard on one side, and what appeared to be the school’s outdoor classes rooms and play ground, set in a grove of trees, on the other, and more attractive buildings on the other two sides. Next door was a building housing a company called Earthink. The receptionist was lovely and said Herve, who turned out to be the newly hired business manager, would be down shortly to meet us. In the short time we waited, we heard her speak at least 5 languages, including perfect English, French. German, Spanish and Catalan. We looked around the light-filled entry and spotted a photo on the wall of the electric car the students had built.
Herve arrived and explained that he would be giving us a tour of the grounds and answering any questions prior to connecting us with Kurt, the teacher of Level 10, who was busy at that moment. It was at this point that we explained that we wanted to discuss the grade levels and that we had a suspicion that Level 9 would be a better fit for Emily, a subject we had broached with Guido via e-mail. After touring us through the outdoor classrooms, the performing arts center (a huge, professional sound and live performance studio in the basement of the TV station next door that the school leases from the station) and taking us up to see the kids in their glass walled classrooms, we met with a few teachers. Herve explained that he came from the eco-tourist industry to handle the business affairs at the school, where his son is now a student, and since he had only been in his new role for a week, he couldn’t adequately answer our questions about the curriculum, so he arranged for us to meet with Neil, the head of the secondary school.
Neil, a 26 year teaching veteran from Great Britain, was super impressive in explaining the curriculum and the academic vision at the school. With Neil’s help we ascertained that indeed the better fit for Emily and the teacher, Elena Sanchez, someone we had met on our tour. It was determined that Emily would join this class for the rest of the day.
At some point in our tour, we also encountered a man who Herve introduced as the founder of the school. He was a larger-than-life German man, who in our brief exchange with him appeared to be a person of boundless enthusiasm and energy. We now learned that he was Guido, with whom we had been exchanging e-mails. Guido came bounding up, asking how the tour had gone. After Herve brought him us to speed, he asked if we had more time so he could show us a few things and spend time with us. He talked of the school’s history and his vision for the school. He wants kids to spend as much time outdoors as possible and he want to offer an engaging and thought provoking curriculum that sparks curiosity and ideas. He explained that he is an entrepreneur and a VC and that he created the school for his two kids, the oldest of whom is graduating this year. I asked why he chose Mallorca and he was quick to respond that it offers a vibrant international community and an airport with quick, affordable flight to anywhere in Europe. He said the school is in good financial shape and that he has hired the best people to now do the things he has been doing. He said he is a visionary and that managing people is not his strength, so he will now have time to focus his energy into manifest his ongoing dreams at the school (like creating a Butterfly Pavilion in one of the courtyard) and to open doors for his students and assist in manifesting their dreams. He said Herve is Swiss so the school will run like a Swiss clock. He then directed us to Earthink, explaining it as an incubator/start-up he established for a few young scientists/engineers, who we met, who were working with famous chefs and other scientists to create ink out of vegetables. He said students at the school worked with this fledgling company and also used the space to further their own entrepreneurial ideas. He led us around the tech campus, which appears to be in the embryotic stages of development, to the school’s restaurant, where the kids and teachers have lunch daily. We met the private chef and learned she sources local, organic produce and that the meat is from the cattle ranch next door. The make their own olive oil – Guido gave us a tin as a present, along with the school’s cookbook. He invited us to stay for lunch but we wanted not to be there when Emily arrived with her class, so we said our goodbyes and went in search of our Airbnb cabin in Deia, finding it a few hair pin turns up a hill past the Hotel es Moli. It was a rustic cabin surrounded by olive trees and sheep. After unpacking, we drove back to the school, checking out some places where we might live. The one drawback we could see to this amazing school was that getting there by foot or bike would require finding a place nearby. Guido connected us with a man who owns an estate (growing almonds, olives and sheep) with a handful of rental homes on the property. We also looked at the nearby local town of Esporles. Both seemed to be biking distance away, provided we can ride through the neighboring vineyard, which is sounds like we can. Guido mentioned that he does not have an office at the school, and that his office is his friend’s 1000+ hectare vineyard and cattle ranch, where he goes to walk and think.
Emily’s new friends from Escola Global
We arrived at school a few minutes early to catch the scene at pick-up. We observed 3 sets of parents holding hands en route to pick up their kids. We also witnessed a bake sale in progress to benefit the survivors of the flood and mudslide that had recently struck local families on the other side of the island. Everyone was very friendly and we saw pods of parents, speaking their respective languages (German, English, Catalan, Spanish). Emily walked out surrounded by a group of girls – new friends chatting and exchanging contact info. She reported she had a fun day at school and proceeded to recount stories about her day and the kids she had met. A successful mission!
Landing back in Deia, we looked for the nearest cove to take a swim and then went home for an early dinner and bed. I had read that by walking up our street in the hillside we would encounter the trail to Valldemossa, on the other side of the mountain. The following day, we ventured up to see if we could find the trailhead and before we knew it, we were sucked into an 8km hike without bringing snacks or sufficient water. It turned out to be one of the top 10 hikes of all times. After traversing the tree-covered hillside, terraced with stone walks and olive trees, we arrived at the most magnificent ridge top, with panoramic views in all directions. It was absolutely breathtaking, and if we had not been thirsty and hungry, we could have walked at that elevation, from ridge to ridge, for hours. But instead, we ventured into the town of Valldemossa, a charming historic town with beautiful architecture, famous for once being home to Frederic Chopin and George Sands. We found a great spot for lunch near the end of the trail, Es Taller Valldemossa, a former tire garage converted into a lofty space enclosed in glass walls with tasty fusion tapas. Yum! After walking around the historic town and getting our daily gelato, we chatted with a lovely English couple while waiting for a bus that never came due to the fact that it was a National Holiday (who knew?), finally arriving back to Deia by bus at around 6:30pm.
The next morning we packed up to fly to Barcelona but first, a tour through the historic old town of Palma, stopping first to check out the central market and have a tapas breakfast at the coffee bar, while chatting with a young Australian/German family who offered tips on where to travel in Australia (the undiscovered West Coast rather than the touristy East Coast).
