Heavy Weather

So I got this call to my mobile. It was Ben, Ben of Piccadilly Ben but no longer as he's Bellevue Ben now. Did I know there was a hurricane on the way, my having the finger on the pulse of all things? Not as such, says I. When? Now, he says. I look to the sky and, in that it can ever be described as sunny here at present, it was doing a fairly good job. Ben had got the word from Sara at the Condes who themselves had been warned by head office to get the sunbeds off the terrace - you don't want them floating down to the beach or being hurled against the back of Bar Bamboo if it turns out to be more of a tornado like last October. And then ... Nothing. Watched Spain thrash Russia with what passes for perfect weather at the moment outside. So I thought, well where is Condes HQ that they can issue such a warning? Does it orbit the Earth on a weather satellite, or is the good Starship Condes boldly predicting weather events that no man has experienced before? I thought that and it seemed like a good line, but it turns out that there was a general alert yesterday with schools being evacuated in the south.

With all the awful weather and last autumn's tornadoes still fresh in the memory, it was fair enough that they took precautions even if it turned out to be a false alarm. Mind you, nothing would surprise now. We can all take a joke, but this is getting to be a nightmare. And this morning, another storm, another deluge. How long can it go on for? Yesterday morning I was down in Puerto Alcúdia's marina among the Waterworldists; they tend to have as good a handle on the weather as most. There were no predictions of immediate extreme weather but there was talk of a 40 days, 40 nights variety. No end in sight.

And the rain and cloud is now becoming the stuff of myth. The word is that holidays are being cancelled because of the weather. People are returning to from wherever they came and spreading the word, and their mates are pulling their reservations. I don't think so. People don't cancel; not unless they want to incur a whacking loss they don't. Last-minute business may well be a different matter.


Meanwhile, down in jolly old Can Picafort, local politicians seem to have been woken at long last from the long sleep of inertia into some action (or talk at any rate) regarding the nature of the beach and frontline. Can Pic has long been little Germany and it has taken a German newspaper, "Bild", to put the wind of fear up the politicos. Reported in today's "Diario" are evaluations made by "Bild" of the Can Pic beach. There is one word that stands out. The Spanish is "pésimo". This can be translated as abominable.

I think that "Bild" is actually overdoing it, but it has drawn attention to things like the seaweed, the predominance of concrete along the promenade, the inattention to gardens, and the lack of shade and children's play areas. It has gone on to recommend that visitors go to Playa de Muro beach instead. "Bild" awards Can Pic beach the second worst score available on its ratings system.

As I say, this is perhaps a bit over the top, but it's not to deny that there are indeed problems with Can Pic, its beach and frontline. For much of the length of the "concrete" promenade that runs along the back of the beach, the sensation is not unlike an English seaside resort. Then there are the numerous restaurants, all with boards offering grilled sardines, breakfasts and coffee and cake. Go inside any of them, and they are like barns, and there is little to distinguish one from the other. As far as the beach itself is concerned, there is the constant problem with the seaweed, but this does get cleared now and then and Can Pic is not the only beach to have to contend with this.

Can Picafort, to be absolutely blunt, is an unremarkable resort. Oh it's pleasant enough, but that concrete description can just as well apply to the whole place. Hotels, hotels and more hotels. I read recently someone describe Can Pic as "picturesque". Each to their own, it's not something that would spring to my mind. Indeed, try as I have to take some good pictures of Can Pic, it's difficult because there really isn't anything much that lends itself to being photographed. Compare it to, say, the port area of Puerto Alcúdia, and the contrast is quite striking. Alcúdia's marina is a thing of some splendour, its promenade wide and attractively landscaped. You cannot say the same about Can Picafort.

To be fair, there is a money issue. Santa Margalida is not as wealthy as Alcúdia, but it should not take a German newspaper to put the frighteners on to make the town hall do something to smarten the place up. One of the politicos is calling for an urgent debate to which various bodies should supply ideas. Why has it taken them so long? One fears the stirrings of a promotional campaign, now that neighbours Muro have decided they need one. I'll give them a slogan: "We Can, Can You?" Suitably vague and useless; I commend it to them. There again, maybe it should be "we can't, but you can try if you want".

The thing is though, when it comes to the promenade, "Bild" is missing something of the point, and that is that because someone decided to eradicate all the dunes and build right up to the beach, in winter the beach encroaches onto the prom, as can the sea. So any attempt at prettifying the frontline has to take into account the force of nature; the force of nature that no one had the foresight to consider when they developed the place.


QUIZ
Chain - Patrick Moraz played with both Yes and The Moody Blues. And go on, what's the really simple link between the Moodies and Paul McCartney? Yesterday's title - "Calling All The Heroes". Today's title - album by which jazz band ? (Clue's in the title.)

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