And back again

We are now back in the UK.

We had a very nice holiday but we came to the conclusion that we probably did not want to live on the island of Mallorca full time. We anticipated that we would target the north west area of the island to "live". Well we visited this area and whilst parts of it were visually stunning, I felt that the area had been spoilt by tourism, large imposing hotels and far TOO MANY PEOPLE. And it was hot.

I had visions of us settling a while in the areas of port andratx or andratx itself or San Telmo, close to some great walking and not too far from the sea. But we just were not feeling it. And it was really too damn hot to make us want to commit to a 6 month lease. The reality of living in Mallorca had hit is, nice place to go on holiday, but unless you have bags of money it may be more of an endurance than an experience.

I think we hit the island at the wrong time, we should have waited and gone in mid October, but when you don't have anywhere to live you just have to go and make the best of it.

DH and I also learned a few things about ourselves and what our (dare I say it) comfort levels are. We found that we were just spending more and more money on the island just to get comfortable, I hate hard spanish beds!

We also learned that we really do need a base, were are sick and tired of living out of suitcases . In hindsight we probably should have just gone with some rucksacks, well you live and learn don't you. We didn't plan it very well. Perhaps I should start a new blog and call it Pissed off with Luggage? :) What is surprising to me is that I thought that we would really enjoy wandering around, but instead of feeling liberated I found the moving around quite stressful.

We do need somewhere to live. Do we buy a house, do we buy a house on wheels, do we look into a boat? Some things to think about.

But can I say again how wonderful it is to be FREE from the 9 - 5 grind. Yes we haven't got it all figured out yet but I am so thankful to be out of the dirty concrete jungle.

We are now in North Devon! What a gorgeous place. Yesterday we went to Cornwall to do some coastal walking and the scenery is fantastic. As DH and I drove back to our little rented holiday home yesterday the sun was shining and "More than a feeling" by Boston was playing on the radio and I have to say that I felt so happy that I thought I was drunk. I have not felt like that in a long time.

Cala Figuera

Photo- Cala Figuera

Having left Santanyi we are now in Cala Figuera, this place seems to be more bohemian and arty. Lots of boats and lots of fisherman selling fresh fish from the catch of the day. This place is MUCH more tranquilo than Santanyi and MUCH cheaper. We are staying at a small aparthotel and for the past few days there has only been DH and I by the pool, its like having a villa all to ourselves.

The weather remains problematic, so we sit in the shade taking it easy.

Its tough this island living :)

A cloud appears

photo - cala pi

Well this morning we got up and looked out of the window and it was cloudy!

Great we thought. So after the obligatory four cups of coffee we strapped on our walking boots. I wanted to head for cala pi which I heard was a beauty spot with a 3 hour hike nearby.

Cala Pi is lovely, crystal clear water, quiet little beach with a few sailing boats moored. I said to DH that we needed a boat and I want to learn how to sail a boat.

Well, it might have started out cloudy but it was humid, apparently 70% humidity. Anyway we started out coastal walk but after an hour it became obvious that it was still too hot and then the sun started to come out. We started back on our return. Trying to walk/hike in the heat is not a good idea, for one thing you can never carry enough water with you.

After cutting the walk short we walked back down to the beach and literally ran into the water. Never has a swim felt so wonderful.


The photo above is for Frank C who wanted more photos.

Hay mucho color acqui!

It is very hot here.

It appears to be getting hotter not cooler. The last few days have been in the early thirties, some days 35 degrees c. Too hot to do much, certainly too hot to go hiking or to go running. It has become very wearing.

According to the weather forcast we were supposed to have rain and clouds. No sign of any rain or clouds.

By now I would have expected it to be cooling down.

We are thinking about returning to the UK. If we did that then we could always return here later on in the year when it cools down, or go somewhere cooler.

DH and I are not really sunworshippers,we came here for the laid back lifestyle and the great outdoors, well its really too hot to enjoy the outdoors. There is a lot to be said for living in a temperate climate.

I'm not having a moan, I am so thankful for the escape from the grind, and well you cant have everything :)

something doesnt feel right

I think that next week is week 7 since the escape. It still feels great to be free.

The mornings are wonderful. I drink lots of coffee in the morning and sit on my balcony overlooking beautiful turquoise clear water. Santanyi is indeed beautiful and looks even better in reality than in photos. I can go for a run in the morning and snorkil and eat tapas for lunch. The weather is beutiful and still relatively hot. Either it is cooling down or we are aclimatizing as I never would have thought that we would be able to run in temperatures of 28c albeit we choose a route which affords us some cover from the pine trees.

But I still dont feel "at one". I have tried to analyze these feelings and what comes to mind is that I am fed up of living out of a suitcase, I am fed up of living in hotels. We really need a base of some sort. To get what we really want we would need to comit to a six month lease and well, im just not sure I want to stay on the island that long.


Also, there are still quite a few tourists here at the moment and perhaps I am just not getting the tranquility and peace that I still crave.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, this was never about travelling, I dislike travel for travels sake. This was about escaping the 9 - 5 grind and finding somewhere.

Next week we move to a different part of the island, somewhere which is supposed to be bohemian and laid back, perhaps that will suit us better.

Vamos a Mallorca!

photo - cala santanyi

Tomorrow we are finally off to Mallorca.

August was a long month. DH and I learned that we do not much like being house guests and we do need our space and privacy. We also learned that we are not ready to have dogs, as much as I would love some animals they are a tie and they are really dependants.

Now we are finally free.

So first stop is Santanyi in the south east of the island. I checked the weather forecast and it is 28 degrees c out there at the moment. For the first few weeks we are just going to have a "holiday". Thereafter when the weather cools we are hoping to go hiking up at the north west of the island and have a look around for a base.

I have bought a one way ticket. There is no return date planned.

Hasta la vista :)