WELCOME

THE TOURIST SEASON DOES NOT START IN EARNEST UNTIL THE WEEKEND OF 15TH JULY AND THEN THE MADNESS WILL CONTINUE UNTIL 26TH AUGUST WHEN THE SPANISH, ITALIANS AND MANY OF THE FRENCH WILL DISAPPEAR BACK TO THE MAINLAND TO PREPARE FOR THE RETURN TO WORK. IT IS 6 WEEKS OF FULL RESTAURANTS, CROWDED ANCHORAGES, BUSY BEACHES AND OF COURSE THE HOTTEST WEATHER OF THE YEAR WHICH LEADS TO SHORT TEMPERS ON THE ROAD.

For most of the year the locals are happy to sit and wait while shopping is unloaded, gas bottles are delivered, a hot chicken is picked up for lunch., or simply for friends and cousins (there are countless cousins) to stop and have a chat as they pass each other in the street. I could also mention the tabacs, where drivers will abandon their cars on the main road as they dash in for some cigarettes. In summer this behaviour Is upsetting for the outsiders who are in a rush and start honking their horns after 30 seconds. On the other hand, tourists upset locals as they stop on roundabouts and dangerous corners to consult their maps. And then of course there is the local way of driving around a roundabout which is a whole article in itself. In summary, always be prepared for cars in the right-hand lane to be turning left. However upsetting this can be to a visitor, this is how they are taught for their test and so there is nothing to do except expect the unexpected.

In July and August boat drivers will also be causing mayhem out on the water, both in anchorages and in the harbours. The right of way rules we are taught when learning to sail (keep to the starboard side and pass ‘port to port’) will be largely ignored as boats race in and out of harbours to make the most of the day or to get back to beat the queue at the fuel berth. There are strict speed limits in the port and they are there for good reason. Boats breaking the 3-knot limit cause a wash which can lead to destruction, damage and injury. To give you a few examples from last month our friend Mike lost his brush overboard as he was rocked violently while cleaning his boat on the pontoon, beaches have been washed away on Isla del Rey and in Cala Corb two friends were washed onto the rocks as they were swimming. Out in the anchorages the small boats which can be driven without licences will be getting themselves and other boats into trouble as they drive over anchor chains, get in the way of large boats or simply capsize!!

I can’t finish without mentioning the weather. Yes, it has been hot here in July, but we can count ourselves lucky that we are in many ways shielded from the dangerously high temperatures that they experience on the mainland and in Sicily and Sardinia. As we go to press the highest temperature recorded at the airport was 37 deg C in the shade in mid-July. I read that the hottest day ever recorded in Menorca was July 26, 1983 when 39.6°C was registered. In the past we have been lucky that days with these sorts of temperature have been few and far between. We should also be grateful that we now have fridges, freezers, A/C and fans. As Graham tells us on page 18. In the late 60’s he had to collect a large block of ice from the Bodega (still there) in Mahon every morning and take it in his car to his bar in Cala en Porter!! Personally I am not good in the heat and I am grateful to live up high in Menorca where there is normally a breeze.

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