Spain out of lockdown!

So....we're beginning to see a few tourists out and about and so far, I've not seen or heard of any issues; this is I think in no small part due to the fact that visitors currently are largely people who have a second home here.  Certainly the majority of the hotels are yet to open - of those that are, it's mostly from this weekend I think.  In any event, I think there's a number of us who, if we're really honest, are a little wary of visitors and it is a tad unsettling after such a long and very hardcore lockdown.   Nevertheless, the economy needs visitors and so we have everything crossed that everything goes well both for those having a holiday here and for those with businesses.

On Tuesday I met my Spanish friend for our usual chat - half an hour in Spanish and then change to English.  We talk about all sorts - politics, culture, events - it certainly stretches my Spanish!  And in the evening we went to Tasty Tuesday at Nostalgia where currently certain dishes plus a drink is only 10€ - bargain!  I had lovely fish n' chips and Ian had chicken and leek pie which was full of flavour.  We got a little over-excited and also had crumble for dessert so could hardly move but hey - who's counting calories?! 😳

The mercury in the thermometer moved effortlessly up to 34 degrees 🔥 on Wednesday.  And wouldn't you know it - Wednesday is Tabata class day.  For those unsure, Tabata is high-intensity interval training where you do a particular exercise for 20 seconds, then rest for 10 seconds for 8 rounds - sounds not so bad? 😂 Trust me, it's the longest 4 minutes of your life!!  And you do 8 rounds over and over doing different exercises, some to build strength and others cardiovascular.  I feel I should now point out that the studio is not air-conditioned 😱....... luckily there are fans but even with one pointing directly at me I end up looking like a sweaty tomato by the end of it which is never attractive, unless sweaty tomatoes are your thing of course.  Then there's the walk home.  At least there are sunglasses to hide behind but you can guarantee that as you scuttle sweatily home that's when you bump into various people who, sadly, all recognise you 😳  

Due to the high heat levels and different types of grass (to avoid a repeat of sharp pieces of grass in paws), we've slightly changed where we take the dogs for toilet walks and also use routes with the maximum opportunity for shade so the ground isn't too hot for their paws (or indeed, us!).  One of these is up to the grass under the trees by the big Eroski and when walking past the culvert behind Eroski on the bypass side we noticed these two:

The one on the right in particular looks very similar to the famous Pine Walk Muscovy duck which sadly met it's end some weeks ago and who was much lamented by many; I like to think perhaps one or both are related 💕

The current heat levels also mean we've used our hot tub most afternoons.  It seems like a misnomer to use a hot tub in the heat but although the water temperature measures about 29-30 degrees it really feels very cool once it's bubbling and in comparison to how hot you feel outside in full sun.  But it really is the place to be towards the end of a hot afternoon and we're very happy that we treated ourselves last summer.

In local news, Tolos is opening and Liberty Kitchen opens tomorrow so that will mean that a high percentage of local restaurants will now be open.  Accommodation-wise Hotel Capri opened yesterday, the Daina opens on 6th and the Illa d'Or on 15th.  Bottom line - if you are coming to PP this year, you'll find plenty of places where you can eat and drink!

Tomorrow we're finally putting the boat in the water 🎉 after Ian did some further work on something technical (the water pump for the technically minded, which I'm not) - only about 3 months later than usual!  Need mind, we'll just have to use it more often to make up for lost time.

Stay safe and hasta lunes!