La meva mare vol preparar un viatge després de l'examen.

In Catalan, it is very common to use the definite article with possessives when talking about family members and other familiar nouns.

So:

• la meva mare = my mother
• el meu pare = my father
• la meva germana = my sister

This is different from English, which normally does not use the in front of possessives.

So although la literally looks like the, in this sentence la meva mare is simply the normal way to say my mother.

Catalan word order with possessives is usually:

article + possessive + noun

So:

• la meva mare
• el meu llibre
• els nostres amics

This is the standard structure. English does it differently:

• my mother
• my book
• our friends

So in Catalan, the possessive does not usually stand alone before the noun without an article in this kind of sentence.

Vol preparar is a very common Catalan structure:

• vol = (she) wants
• preparar = to prepare

Together:

• vol preparar = wants to prepare

This is similar to English:

• She wants to prepare...

The verb vol comes from voler = to want.

Here it is in the 3rd person singular because the subject is la meva mare:

• jo vull = I want
• tu vols = you want
• ell/ella vol = he/she wants

In Catalan, after many verbs such as voler (to want), the next verb goes directly in the infinitive, without a separate word equivalent to English to.

So:

• vol preparar = wants to prepare
• vull menjar = I want to eat
• volen sortir = they want to go out

English needs to before the second verb, but Catalan does not add an extra word there.

Yes, it is understandable and natural enough. Preparar un viatge means something like:

• to prepare a trip
• to plan a trip
• to get a trip ready

Depending on context, Catalan can also use verbs like:

• organitzar un viatge = organize a trip
• planificar un viatge = plan a trip

But preparar un viatge is perfectly reasonable and common.

Un viatge usually means a trip or a journey.

In this sentence, un viatge is best understood as a trip.

Examples:

• Fer un viatge = to take a trip
• Preparar un viatge = to prepare/plan a trip

So here, la meva mare vol preparar un viatge means that your mother wants to make plans for some trip.

Després means after / afterwards, but when it is followed by a noun, Catalan normally uses de:

• després de l'examen = after the exam
• després de classe = after class
• després del sopar = after dinner

If nothing follows, després can stand alone:

• Ho farem després. = We’ll do it later / afterwards.

So in your sentence, because l'examen follows, de is required.

This is because the definite article el becomes l' before a noun beginning with a vowel or mute h.

So:

• el llibre
• el cotxe
• but l'examen
• l'amic
• l'hotel

Here:

• de + l'examen = of/from the exam in form, but in this expression it means after the exam

So després de l'examen literally contains de + l' + examen.

Because del is only used when de combines with el:

• de + el = del

For example:

• després del sopar
• parlem del llibre

But when the noun takes l' instead of el, you do not use del:

• de l'examen
• de l'amic
• de l'hotel

So:

• després del sopar is correct
• després de l'examen is correct

Catalan often omits subject pronouns when the verb form already makes the subject clear.

Here:

• vol already tells us it is he/she/it singular

And since the noun subject la meva mare is present, there is no need to add ella.

Catalan usually avoids unnecessary subject pronouns unless you want emphasis or contrast.

So:

• La meva mare vol preparar un viatge... = normal
• Ella vol preparar un viatge... = possible, but more emphatic or contrastive

Mostly yes. The structure is:

La meva mare / vol preparar / un viatge / després de l'examen

That corresponds quite closely to:

My mother / wants to prepare / a trip / after the exam

So the overall sentence order is fairly familiar to an English speaker:

• subject
• verb
• object
• time expression

One important difference is inside the noun phrase:

• Catalan: la meva mare
• English: my mother

In the most natural reading, després de l'examen modifies the action preparar:

• My mother wants to prepare a trip after the exam.

So the preparation happens after the exam.

However, like in English, context can sometimes make time phrases slightly ambiguous. If you wanted to make the trip itself more clearly the thing happening after the exam, Catalan might use a different phrasing or give more context.

So in isolation, the default reading is:

• after the exam, she wants to prepare the trip

A simple approximate pronunciation is:

la ME-va MA-re vol pre-pa-RAR un vi-AT-ge des-PRÉS de lek-ZA-men

A few useful notes:

• meva sounds roughly like MEH-vuh
• mare sounds roughly like MAH-ruh
• vol has a short o
• viatge is roughly vee-AH-juh or vee-AHT-juh, depending on accent
• l'examen links together smoothly after de, almost like delexamen

The stressed syllables are especially important:

• meva
• mare
• preparar
• viatge
• després
• examen