A relatively small set this week, partly because I was busy at work, and partly because the weather was fairly awful during the first half of the week. Beginning at the weekend, winter storm Gloria lashed the northern half of Spain with torrential rain or snow, depending on elevation, combined with winds that created waves as tall as 9 meters further north along the Mediterranean coast. Here in Alicante we were on the southern edge of the system, so the impact here was much less severe than further north and in the interior. I present the images chronologically.
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According to the forecast, it was supposed to start raining here already on Saturday, but much to my delight the forecast was wrong and it was still dry on Sunday morning, allowing me to get my couple of hours on the bicycle both days. But by late morning, the clouds were beginning to look somewhat serious:
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On Sunday afternoon, there was just a hint of rain out at sea and to the north:
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The wind was blowing, but people were still enjoying the beach:
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On Tuesday morning I stopped by the beach on my way to work to “enjoy” the wind and rain for a few minutes:
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By Wednesday morning, the rain had stopped, but there was some still strong wind. There is a particular spot on my commute where the waves are crashing in even when it is not particularly windy. So I left home a bit earlier than usual to have time for a couple of photos:
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By Saturday, everything was calm. I walked down to the beach before going to the bakery for the morning bread. The morning light was lovely on my street:
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The sea was quiet:
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The beach cleanup operation was under way:
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On Saturday afternoon, I did a longish bike ride of 63 km with significant climbing, to the town of Relleu. But the views along the way were worth every pedal stroke. This is Sierra de Aitana, rising to about 1200 meters, with traces of last weekend’s weather:
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But where I was, at elevations of around 500 meters, there had been no snow and the almond trees were blooming:
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In Relleu I drank a Coke, ate my banana, took a picture of the narrow street emanating from the square, and cycled home:
