Mareike is a traveler and my colleague in AIDA cruise, and we met in AIDAprima. I asked her to share her rich stories with us, and I am sure you will love her stories.
What languages can you speak Mareike?
- German
- English
- Dutch
- French
Tell us your Travel Journey.
When going for my exchange year to the USA in 2009/2010, I knew that I wanted to continue exploring the world. After m Fitness & economics college education, I joined AIDA Cruises to travel the world and motivate and push people with their workouts at the most beautiful places.
Starting in Western Mediterranean, my first contract took me to the Canary Islands. After that, I had the chance to experience selection Cruises and travel Iceland, Norway, Denmark, Great Britain, Ireland, and Sweden.
My third contract took me once around the world with the first world cruise for the AIDA fleet with AIDAcara. After that, I explored the Adriatic Sea and the Indian Ocean – my favorite is Madagaskar.
The people are so great and unique, it was a pleasure, and I have learned so much from them. On prima, I experience how open and welcoming Arabic cultures actually are, especially in Oman.
Your Country?
I live in Germany.
Five Things you can suggest people do in traveling Mareike?
- Hike the nature
- Skydive
- Local tour to experience the culture.
- Eat locally
- Explore anything apart from typical tourist attractions
Could you live in another country for the rest of your life Mareike?
Definitely, just not sure which one I would go for.
Describe the most interesting person you met on one of your travels.
Vévé, the Lokal tour guide in Madagascar (he worked with made best). He was such a welcoming Person, very eager to share his culture with us. He explained so many things without even asking about it.
What was your best trip?
Day trip to cabana beach on Seychelles – we had the whole beach to ourselves. Nobody else was there.
Have you ever gotten lost while traveling? If so, let us know about it.
I once went to South Korea to attend a friend’s wedding. However, they went on their honeymoon just days after the wedding. I stayed for a bit longer to explore the country. I read about a Great hiking track along the city wall and found the directions to get the starting point online.
However, I ended up not finding the starting point at all but ended up in the middle of bushes and woods. I decided not to turn around again (I already turned around twice, and the way always leads me there again) and just went through the bushes.
I ended up finding the starting point somewhere and finally could enjoy a wonderful hike along the city wall, with astonishing views above Seoul.
Mareike, What is the most exciting city to visit in your country?
I love Frankfurt because it is very modern and has a bit of the „American“ Flair which I like a lot
What are the famous tourist destinations in your country? Which would you recommend if you could only recommend one? Why?
Porta Nigra in Trier. Trier is the oldest city in Germany and a Roman city. In the middle of the city, you find the porta nigra, which is a city gate made of huuuuuuge bricks. Build-in roman age, it was man-made, which is very impressive.
Mareike, Please tell us your bucket list places?
- Table mountain
- Sansibar
- Uzbekistan
- Albania
- Montenegro
Which country do you want to travel to? (You never been to this country before)
South Africa
What was the best food you had on your travel? Tell me the country also or if possible the restaurant name where you had it?
Some very local restaurant in Oman, served typical Omani food. We ate sitting on the floor, no tables no chairs. Eating with out hands. I don’t remember the dishes name but it was delicious!
Mareike, How Many Countries have you been?
I have been to 76 countries so far and still counting.
If you had $100,000, where would you go on holiday? How about if you had $10,000? What about $1,000?
- 100,000: I would travel all of Africa and support local projects.
- 10,000: just a small world trip with 10-15 countries/places, visiting all continents.
- 1.000: Montenegro
Mareike, What was the best Travel Memory for you?
Speaking with locals to get to know the culture and understand the country
What do you want to suggest to us?
If you ever have the chance to go there, visit the Easter islands. They are just impressive!
What was the most exciting place you have ever visited?
North Cape! It’s just crazy how the sun not setting down really messes up your biorhythm, and you don’t realize it is that late yet. Your body doesn’t feel the tiredness.
Mareike, Where can we find you? Social media
You can find me on Instagram xix_i_mcmxciii
