Spain out of lockdown!

The days are rolling by - hot and sweaty - and we're now well into August.  The Port clearly still has visitors - those from the UK who can quarantine on return plus from the Spanish mainland, but it's definitely getting quieter as those from the UK who were here when the ruling came in, have now gone home and have not been replaced in the same numbers.  As previously mentioned, this means that many hotels that had opened up, have now closed down again.  However some key hotels such as the Daina, the Miramar, and the Sis Pins have remained open so there is still a gentle buzz going on in the evening and some bars and restaurants seem to be well patronised which is good to see.  What will happen at the end of this very strange summer season remains to be seen.....

On Saturday when I was in Pollensa at the radio studio for my show on English Radio Pollensa, there was a great deal of activity in the cloisters (the radio studio is also in the cloisters) preparing for the opening concert that evening of the 59th Festival of Pollensa which was given by the Symphony Orchestra of the Balearic Islands.  As you can see, strict social distancing and mask wearing were observed:

The weather today is of course sorchio 🔥 36 degrees is what the TV weather forecast joyously proclaimed for us today with a promise of 37 degrees tomorrow, which I was completely ecstatic to learn, as you may well imagine.  I believe the weather in the UK has been hot, hot, hot too so I guess we're all feeling the heat right now.  In the UK I always said that summer was my favourite season but here, it's winter.  I guess this sums me up at the beginning of summer compared to July/August, quite nicely:

The heat is such that we've spent quite a large amount of time in our hot tub on the roof terrace where the water actually got up to 31 degrees solely from the heat of the sun.  But my goodness it's lovely to get in later in the afternoon and just wallow in the bubbles of water, definitely one of our better purchases.  We understand that three other people in the Port have now bought one following my mention of it in this blog and are enjoying theirs too 😎  

In local news, Al Fresco Deli has sadly decided to close for this season and will re-open in February 2021.  In the meantime they will continue to do home deliveries and outside catering.  During lockdown here, we had a home delivery from them of fish and chips and it was absolutely delicious!  So if you are out here, or due to come out soon, just contact them via their FB page fi you fancy eating in but can't be bothered to cook.  

Yesterday we had a lovely meal at Trattoria de Razza which is on the corner of C/de la Verge del Carme which is the street where Liberty Kitchen and Tierra de Fuego are.  Their cheesecake is a thing of joy and beauty and comes highly recommended.  Afterwards we had a cheeky chaser at Bar Bonys - well it would have been rude not to 🍹😂  I can confirm that their cocktails are just as huge and just as delicious as ever!

Tonight is a family quiz night via Zoom again.  We've taken to doing these roughly every 10 days or so and fully intend to continue even once the current situation is but a distant memory.  It's a great way to have a laugh and spend some quality time with loved ones, even if you can't meet in person.  So I'm taking that as a positive from all the issues we've been facing this year.  And it's important to take what positives you can from a year that I suspect will go down in history as a global 'annus horribilis'.

Finally, here in Mallorca, from 10pm tomorrow evening (11th) until dawn on 12th we are in for some spectacular meteor showers; possibly 100 per hour.  Sounds magical and we will definitely be up on our roof terrace to watch - fingers crossed for a lovely clear night sky! 🤞

Stay safe and hasta jueves!