When I call my dear mom during the summer, I invariably get the question,”Isn’t it too hot
there now, son?”. “Because”, she then adds, “I saw on the weather report that it’s as high as
40 degrees in Spain.” Mom will turn 85 in a few weeks, but she is still clear-headed and
healthy in body and soul. She even visited us last winter. It was only the second time she
traveled by plane! The first time was on her honeymoon, many decades ago. Just to tell you
that I am very proud of her and certainly appreciate her concern for our living conditions
here.
But, when it comes to interpreting the weather forecast, she, like many, is a bit taken aback
by unsubtle weather men and women. “In Spain it will be 40 degrees” actually means,
“Somewhere in Spain it could possibly reach 40 degrees at the hottest part of the day.”
(Often this is in inland Andalucia; Jaen is the hottest city in the country.). So weather reports
may be nuanced. This is not to say that it is never too hot here. This is now our fourth
summer here and every summer there are some days when it puffs between 2 and 6 pm. So
we invariably spend those hours in the shade of the linden tree or the coolness of our living
room. But most days of the summer, the maximum temperature here fluctuates somewhere
between 28° and 33° C. In other words: ideal to enjoy being naked!
Finca Soñada is located about 450 meters above sea level and is surrounded by three
mountain ranges of over 1000 meters. This location ensures that it cools down at night and
the mornings here are always pleasant. Hardly any of our guests get it into their heads to
leave the air conditioning on at night and we are quite happy about that because it saves on
the electricity bill. It is also more ecological and healthier to sleep with an open window.
Could that partly explain why our guests here almost without exception sleep like babies?
Moreover, Gaianes, our village, is located on the southern flank of the Sierra de Benicadell.
This side of the mountain here is called “La Solana”, which stands for “the sunny one”. In
recent years we have regularly noticed that on the other side of the mountain it has been
cloudy or even raining, and not on ours. It would then seem as if the ridge was blocking the
clouds. Locals, have confirmed this to us and speak of “los paraguas de Gaianes”, the
umbrella of Gaianes. This microclimate means that the many weather apps are invariably
wrong in predicting our weather. Thus, we have learned not to be alarmed when those apps
predict a 40% chance of precipitation. Those rain-soaked clouds rarely make it over our
mountain.
So is it pure luck that we have settled here? Those who know the story of our quest know
that it is indeed largely so. But, on the other hand, we didn’t rush into this either. When we
first visited the finca, I made a detailed climate analysis. In this analysis, I compared the
number of hours of sunshine, the liters of precipitation, the annual number of rain days, the
wind strengths and a few other climatic parameters between Mechelen (Belgium), Iznajar
(Andalucia) and Alcoy (near Gaianes). Alcoy came out best in each comparison.
“In other words, you can guarantee us that the weather will be nice when we visit?”
Unfortunately, we can’t. What we can guarantee is that you can count on us to make your
stay an unforgettable vacation, even on a cloudy day!
Would you like to have your skin caressed by the sun with your eyes closed while happy
birds sing their summer song? Then grab your chance like lightning and book your room
today : https://fincasonada.com/reservation/?lang=en. See you soon?
Un abrazo,
Luc y Valérie
