Port de Soller, Mallorca, Spain - snow and surf

After Heather, Fiona and Sarah left on Monday, it turned into a nice sunny day and, after returning to bed for a 2 hour sleep, I walked and sketched and generally relaxed.
The next day, cold and rainy, I took the tram into Soller and bought new sketching pens as mine (that I realized I bought in Paris 4 years ago) were running out of ink.

Although the guy pushing it looked at me like I was crazy, I had to take a picture as Heather hasn't got a shot of an orange Vespa.

Returning home, Liz and I again yelled ourselves silly at a Scottish rugby game. We knew the end result (they beat Italy for 3rd in the 6 nations) as it had been played on Saturday but we were busy moving gravel that day.
Overnight it was cold and there were thunderstorms, lightning and torrential rain. By about 11am it had stopped raining and I was tired of being cooped up in the apartment so set out just to walk around the bay (no hiking poles, backpack or sunglasses as it still looked stormy and I wasn't going to be long).

Gabrielle was putting the finishing touches on the top of the patio. They had been working on it between showers this morning.

There had been a wind warning on the weather forecast and I could see waves crashing just outside the harbour entrance

and out on the lighthouse headland.

Snow (again!!) on the mountains. It was about 8 degrees today. I am back to wearing my vest, fleece and raincoat.

The sight of those crashing waves

lured me round the bay

and up the lighthouse road

to take, what Heather and Dan call,

"splash pictures"

I was off the road, clambering on rocks, leading other walkers astray -

and when I got this shot, and a fine salt spray in the face, I remembered all the stories of tourist getting washed off the rocks at Peggys Cove, and skedaddled back on to the road.

By now I had decided to walk to the lighthouse as, although the wind was strong and cold, it was invigorating.

Fiona had mentioned that the wind can support your weight, if you lean into it, at about 20 knots. It was easily gusting over 20knots as I walked up and increased during the time I was out.

I don't think the people who receive this blog by e-mail get the videos. Sorry, but I was playing with the new cameras capacity for video and panoramas.

Lots of snow up on Puiq Major.

Up at the lighthouse I tried to get angles that I hadn't before

and I sat for a while, just enjoying the wild wind and waves. Even up there it would sound like thunder when a big one crashed against the rocks below.

That's the zigzag road that winds its way up to the lighthouse and the ramp (to the left of centre) is where I climbed down to get my splash pictures.

These 2 crossed the road in front of me and then worked their way up the steep hillside.

Mum was intently grazing but the little one was keeping an eye on me.

The waves had bought a lot of debris up on the beach. Someone will be out cleaning it soon. They take their tourism seriously here.

Back at the apartment the builders had finished putting the pattern in the patio cement

and the forms were cleaned and drying ready for the next section, tomorrow.