Wish you were here?

[katy]

I would really like to be out of here in July and August. I don't want to spend my time shut up in the house with the blinds down or the air-con on. I don't sleep as well either. I like to go walking with my dogs and even they don't like to be out in the heat. Also like gardening and thats just too hot even in the shade of the trees.

My friends kids spend a lot of time playing in the basement out of the sun when they have a large but too hot garden.

Ok. I do swim every day which is nice but find these couple of months a bit boring. Every time you go anywhere you have to look for shade. About 25C year round would be fine.

Just arrived back from a wedding in North West Spain and feel (or felt) refreshed lots of cool mountain air. Plenty of breeze in the mountain where my house is but in full sun the temperature can easily rise to over 38C.

Lots of friends here do go back for a few months. I can't because I have cats and dogs, even my trusted pet sitter doesn't want to come in high summer. Used to have a weekend place in the Forest of Dean and I miss it.

[kevin77]

I simply stated that the summer weather in Britain is much more comfortable than in Southern Spain.
Aside from the irrelevant stuff like prices of Bacardi & Coke and lack of yobs in the town centre, the weak arguments I read are that I can stay inside with the shutters down (living the Dream!), I can move around to my other houses in Cadiz and Northern Spain (I wish!), or I can stay out at night and sleep during the hot day (and hold down a job at the same time?, presumably in an office with no air-con?)
This doesnt change my original view that summer weather is more comfortable in the UK.
Why dont people admit that ?- they always have to make out that they live in some sort of paradise, which is better than GB in every way.
OK, you might like very hot weather and not sleeping, in which case tell me about it.

[katy]

Kevin it is more healthy in summer in the UK, a man died last week aged 42 working out in his fields near cordoba - just an example many more get treated in urgencias. Personally I don't want to sleep all day and only surface at night.

[frank]

Why dont people admit that ?- they always have to make out that they live in some sort of paradise, which is better than GB in every way.
.

That's basically my argument. I love holidaying in Spain, we have some excellent Spanish friends, but I can also recognise that not everything is as perfect there, as the likes of Babby would have us believe. I love walking, I'm out every day somewhere, but to be confined to a darkened room for two months, or seeking sactuary in the shade all day, I'd go stir crazy! Babby mentions fresh air, traffic jams etc, you won't get fesher air than where I live, and I've seen more horrendous traffic jams around San Pedro, Marbella etc than I have ever seen here, we don't have them. I'm not even sure cheaper booze is a good thing, the vast majority of well heeled Brits, bored with nothing do, generally take it to excess, with the resuting consequences. Saw a programme once about foreigners admitted to Malaga hospitals, and a huge percentage were all alcohol related illnesses. Agree with Katy, do what a lot of the Spanish do, head north to Galicia, Asturias etc for the summer, much more tolerable.
Beachcomber, I'm concerned for you , that's all! But if you are travelling around Spain, that's fine. So long as you are not festering in the same spot all the time! I remember talking to a Spanish guy in a bar, and he asked me where we had been in Andalucia, and when I told him, he said we had seen much more of it than he had.

[Babby]

[quote="kevin77"]What a great bank holiday weekend its been back in the UK!
Sunshine all the way - about 25 degrees, not up to Andalucia sweatbox standards but quite comfortable.
We slammed the Aussies at cricket - I bet you dont play that in Spain, you need this stuff called grass to play on.
The footie season got off to a start - Chelsea are winning obviously!
Michael Owen is coming back to Liverpool - he trusts scousers more than madrilenos.
And Tony Blair is bringing in extended opening hours, to keep us in line with the continent - i'll vote for that fella again!
What more could you want?.
Seriously, the best place to spend August is Britain, no? What do you all think?[/quote]

[Babby]

We all are in the right place then I love it here and you love it over there. I don´t say that it is paradise here Frank, what is paradise anyway? To a fly a bin is paradise. I simply live my life over here and enjoy it personally a lot more than I did in the UK. There is still cooking, washing, ironing, mopping the floors, cleaning the car - the same normal life as anywhere. The difference for ME is my journey to work in the UK was on the M4 crawling at a snails pace breathing in fumes. Over here I don´t have that. I know you live in a lovely part of the world Frank and you don´t have fumes and traffic. Similarly, I do over here, I do not live in San Pedro.

Re the drinks, it was to give an example - I am sure a lot of people in the UK enjoy going out for a drink, I know Kevin does as he is quite excited about the longer opening hours, it is good to socialise, I was merely comparing the prices.

Re staying in with the blinds down - why not catch up on housework, reading, watch a film etc. during the hottest part of the day. If you like walking why not go out at 8 a.m. for a stroll or after 5pm, the evenings are so pleasant for walking.

Tourists or holidaymakers will always explore more than the locals. I used to live near Windsor Castle but never did the full tour, never went to Scotland, - for some reason never seem to do that when it is on your doorstep as something always gets in the way. It will be the same here for locals. When you come away on holiday you feel more like going out and enjoying yourself, exploring and so on.

Both the UK and Spain have nice bits and horrible bits so we´ll leave it at that.

[frank]

The difference for ME is my journey to work in the UK was on the M4 crawling at a snails pace breathing in fumes.

Agree with you entirely, I have said here before, if I came from the same places as some of you have, I'd have deserted UK long ago like you did! Anything to do with M6, M25, M4 etc would have seen me off!

Similarly, I do over here, I do not live in San Pedro.

Be grateful for that, Babby!

Re staying in with the blinds down - why not catch up on housework, reading, watch a film etc. during the hottest part of the day. If you like walking why not go out at 8 a.m. for a stroll or after 5pm, the evenings are so pleasant for walking.

Babby, it's not quite the same is it? I'm normally out 3-4 hours minimum, and the day temps here are just right for that. Warm enough to work up a sweat, but not so hot that you cannot enjoy it.

Both the UK and Spain have nice bits and horrible bits so we´ll leave it at that.

This is true! I'll continue to live here for a while, and carefully select my times and places to visit in Spain. See you on the 28th! Where are we going? Not really sure yet! We'll be spending some time in a property belonging to Spanish friends, and then maybe a few days in Córdoba, and a few days at an undecided location. Flights are booked, that's all I worry about, the rest will fall into place.

[anewlife]

The thing is that if you get one or two days of sunshine/hot weather in the UK, by God you will pay for it for the rest of the year in rain, storms, winds, cold breezes etc. You don't get that in Spain!!! And the hot weather in the UK is so unpleasant because it is too humid, you wish it was raining anyway!!!!

[frank]

The thing is that if you get one or two days of sunshine/hot weather in the UK, by God you will pay for it for the rest of the year in rain, storms, winds, cold breezes etc. You don't get that in Spain!!! And the hot weather in the UK is so unpleasant because it is too humid, you wish it was raining anyway!!!!

You're having a laff, ain't you? I've attended language schools in Nerja in March and April, and we had much worse weather than we were having in UK, it was sheeting down nearly all the fortnight! We stayed in a house in Montefrio (not for nothing do they call it cold mountain) in May, and it was the coldest house we have ever been in. It was the first time I ever worn anything to bed, it was freezing! Lots of places there had temps of -15 degrees last winter, something I've never seen here. I've seen more impressive storms in Spain than I've ever seen in UK. And if it's cold here, I switch on the central heating or/and gas fire, I don't have to resort to humping logs or gas cylinders around. Someone here said recently they had 10 or 12 huge gas cylinders to run their central heating, that sounds like fun!
I've seen Spain in the rain, and it can't handle it. Like last year when part of the motorway was blocked and the airport road was under feet of water and dozens missed their flights home. Spain certainly gets more sun, at times too much, but don't try and kid us you don't do storms, rain etc

STORM DAMAGE ESTIMATED AT 500,000 EUROS
Meanwhile, the Junta de Andalucía has estimated the storm and rain damage to rural and agricultural roads in the Axarquía region at 500,000 euros, not including Rincón de la Victoria, which had an additional 530,000 euros in damages to such roads.

[silver]

What a great bank holiday weekend its been back in the UK!

How nice for you all.

cricket - I bet you dont play that in Spain.

Cricket..oh yes I remember it well..very british.

stuff called grass

is that the same stuff the golf corses have?

Chelsea are winning obviously

Do they always win then??

extended opening hours

it was only a matter of time, to keep us in line with the continent.

Seriously, the best place to spend August is Britain

No..the world has much more to offer.

[kevin77]

Quote:
stuff called grass
is that the same stuff the golf corses have?

No, not quite - I would think that most golf courses in the South of Spain are resembling deserts at the moment, a lack of green? - unless they are being secretly watered to keep the tourists happy.
You couldnt hold a test match on one thats for sure, somebody would get killed.
Go on then, tell me that Spain is not suffering a drought, sprinkler bans etc - the worst in its history, and there is plenty of water available. And tell me the grass is greener there!

[katy]

Actually, everything cultivated is very green. There are no restrictions and all the golf courses are watering as usual and private houses are irrigating like crazy. They say they will review the situation in Oct.

[Babby]

You sound really bitter Kevin, it´s a pity you didn´t have a nicer experience when you were living here, you might have had a different opinion of Spain. Or do you just like winding people up?

[silver]

secretly watered

No recycled

You couldn't hold a test match on one

There is no call for cricket here, when you get it all together and move perhaps you could hold one yourself.

Go on then, tell me that Spain is not suffering a drought

Mañana..its gonna rain.

[kevin77]

Actually, everything cultivated is very green.

Yes, olive trees are nice arent they - just they get a bit boring after the first half million. Sorry, I forgot the palm trees on the Avenida.

Once again, I seem to hear opposition to my England is a green and pleasant land claim, but it is greener & it is more pleasant in summer than Southern Spain, thats my whole point.

I see Babby has got her head stuck in the sand again, well she calls it topsoil!

What is this story in el Mundo this morning all about ? Quote:

España sufre en 2005 el año meteorológico más seco de su historia, y los pronósticos indican que no habrá suficiente lluvia en los próximos meses como para llenar los embalses, según aseguró la semana pasada el Instituto Nacional de Meteorología.

En los 12 meses finalizados en agosto de este año, España registró casi un 40% menos precipitaciones que el promedio anual.

Dryest year of its history, 40% less rainfall than yearly average? Am I really making this up? Can anybody put a positive spin on it please? Thats not a cricketing term either.

[Babby]

No one has denied there is a drought here

In answer to your first post Kevin, you may think it is better over there and maybe it is for you, but why can´t you accept that there are some people in Spain who are living here and are VERY HAPPY

[redsoxbrit]

Well we can't wait until we move on 24th September. It might be hot here in Britain at the moment but it is grey and muggy-once again we have been cheated of the sun. Let me OD on vitamin D please!

[Beachcomber]

... but why can´t you accept that there are some people in Spain who are living here and are VERY HAPPY

Kevin tried life here but was a miserable failure and is quite unable to accept that other people have made more of a success of it than he did.

[kevin77]

Oooh, Beatchy!! Dont they take it to heart? Must be the hot weather!

Depends how you define success doesnt it?
My time in Spain has been a success in many ways and I learnt a lot - firstly I can read a Spanish newspaper or listen to a Spanish radio station and tell when there is a national drought, even when im sat back in the UK watching cricket. Also, I am quite used to reading weather forecasts in both Centigrade and Farenheight now.
If you dont like me giving my opinion on Spanish weather, literature, sport, beer etc. just because its different from your own then you are at liberty to ignore me or put me straight with some factual information.

[Beachcomber]

Sorry if I touched a nerve, kev, I will try to be a little more diplomatic in the future.