Every year, around this time in July, the Mallorcan ‘scorchio’ takes me completely by surprise. Even after twenty summer seasons on the island, the arrival of serious sunshine still delivers a celebrated shock to the system, particularly after the milder months beforehand. Thankfully, this year seemed to casually drag out the milder spring season, giving me the false impression that if nobody mentioned the obvious, we might even get away with it!
OK, so we always knew it was going to get ‘HOT’, at some time or other. And every year we find ourselves chiming the same old mantra. ‘Phew! I don’t know if I can honestly stand this! Perhaps it’s time to leave!’ However, it’s not just the expat whimps who whinge at the blistering weather. Even the locals- those bronzed, born and bred across the burnished Balearic islands still wave their hands with incredulity at the arrival of temperatures hugging the heatwave slots on the thermometer, when little more than a month ago the temperature was absolutely and simply perfect, with cool evenings and welcome breezes wafting through the winking shutters.
So . . . what to do? Each year we religiously take task and plan our escape to cooler climes with the repeated threat of renting somewhere for a month or two in Northern Spain where the weather bodes more to our comfort, and a spattering of cooling rain would arrive as a regular, and welcomed promise.
We plan our exodus in detail every year, yet never actually fulfill the flight of fantasy, conceding to the stark reality that the unbearable, searing summer scorch only lasts a few weeks anyway; ten tops. Many locals ritualistically pack a minimal of necessary belongings into the car, including granny, then lock up the house and head to their summer homes at the coast during the hottest months. Sadly, not everyone can indulge in such a privileged escape to a second home, even though it doesn’t have to be a grand villa, and usually more often than not is just a simple, modest residence, yet perfect for take advantage of the cooler coastal breezes.
Escape is a curious concept. And those who are not lucky enough to have a ‘house-switch’ choice must face the pending summer days and revert to the Mallorcan method of enjoying and surviving the ‘scorch’ on our beautiful sun kissed island where thousands flock to enjoy the same weather we are sometimes desperate to get away from!
Funny that! The locals seek shady refuge from the heat whilst tourists lather themselves with oil and happily roast in Balearic bliss, crackling and all.
This year, with so many travel complications, along with failures and unreliable promises from airline companies, I consider myself extremely fortunate to already be here on this fantastic holiday island of Mallorca – heat wave and all, without having to experience any travel traumas or airport chaos which brings the onslaught of regular visitors to our shores.
Mind you, when you are away on holiday, you don’t seem to notice the intolerable heat as much as when you’re living with it back home. You just lie back on the golden sand or the designer sun-lounger, take it all in your stride, and relax with a cocktail or two into the bargain. However, living and working in a sunny location like Mallorca, involves a completely different mind-set. For starters, your daily routines are so different from those of idling in the bliss of a vacational void. Every single chore you undertake seems magnified and hindered by a debilitating struggle with the heat.
I honestly don’t know how builders, gardeners, manual workers, or anyone else involved with the complexities of physical labour exist outside in such caustic conditions. I suppose that’s why August is often written off in the building trade. But it’s a survival gene that kicks in when you realise that if you’re not on holiday, then life MUST go on! You just have to get on with things. There are everyday jobs that need to be done, even though the simplest of chores (like vacuuming or mopping a floor) turns your entire back into Niagara Falls. And ironing!!! Well, if your room doesn’t already feel like a sauna, it soon will! As for cooking! Probably best to keep the oven switched off and out of bounds. Keep meals light and cook on the hob if you must, or avoid cooking altogether with a variety of fresh, healthy salads. Most tourists get all this done for them. Their biggest struggle is deciding which sandals go with which outfit!
With hot summer days, Mallorcan ways are best employed, and spent like a local. So, while the Mediterranean sun is searing, observe the natives. See how v-e-r-y slowly they move. No one here is rushing around in this heat. Or racing to bag their favourite spot on the beach! Adopt the Spanish walk and amble everywhere. Seek the shade, preferably under a tree as the air is decidedly cooler than under a parasol. Sit quietly, take a siesta in the afternoons if you don’t have a noisy holiday let next door, and don’t even think of doing anything strenuous or manual after 11am in the morning. Wait until the sun is going down. Or it can always wait until ‘mañana’. Or next month. After all, why the rush? It will cool down, eventually. Won’t it?