Día nublado.

It takes me by surprise every year when the weather turns grim and grey and windy. It was actually colder than the UK today. Unless you're super rich and own a mansion with central and/or underfloor heating (and the associated enormous energy bills), houses here aren't generally equipped to counter the Winter cold or the Summer heat, both of which can be excessive. I don't mean to sound all "poor me", living in an island paradise as I do, but living and holidaying in a place are very different. The tourist season is officially May to October, when dogs are banned from the beaches and bars and shops are heaving with (often) badly-behaved tourists who just take all the island can give without any consideration for the environment or the people who work to serve their perceived needs. Winter and Spring are when the island recalibrates, sucking much-needed moisture into the parched earth, plants reviving, and native birds building nests for a future generation. The hedgerows are green and lined with yellow flowers; shrubs and trees are about to blossom. Cattle and sheep are happily eating fresh grass instead of bales of hay, when sheltering from the fierce Summer sun. I know much of the island's income derives from the tourist industry, so accept this is an unavoidable evil - after all, I only discovered this place as a tourist 30+ years ago with a young family. It was much different then, and not nearly so developed: rough, gritted roads, fewer buildings, and to this day no Macdonalds (hurrah!) although a few Burger Kings have crept in over the years, selling the tourists favourite greasy over-salted potato peelings (aka chips) with what may actually be real meat-based hamburguesas. Cold gazpacho soup is also on the menu. Whenever I've walked past the BK in Mahon, it's been heaving with local teenagers, so I fear for the next generation of unhealthy overweight adults.
I seem to have turned this post into a massive grumble, but didn't mean to. I love living here, especially at the start of the pandemic, when restrictions were severe but it felt like you were being protected. People are so used to it now that everyone still willingly wears a mask (mesh-maskers are a special case of stupid). Interesting to see how it pans out when the Brits flock over in Summer with their "freedom day" expectations...
Rant over, for now.