Sunday - 21st October, 2012. Note to self - do not, in future, book an early morning flight for a holiday when you have a gig the night before which means you get no sleep and end up being a complete grump for the day.
Going from Southend was good, the flight was good, the private transfer was good and the hotel Pinhal do Sol in Quarteira on the Algarve was good. Unfortunately the weather wasn't and we were greeted by grey, overcast skies and temperatures approaching the dizzy heights of 16 degrees. Not exactly what was expected as our suitcases contained mainly summer clothing with probably just one cardigan or fleece each. The pilot on the plane clearly was fibbing when he said that the forecast was for temperatures in the mid-20's and clear skies. The sun made a brief appearance for about 15 minutes at lunchtime but then gave way to greyer skies and the inevitable rain, which just got harder and harder until it became of biblical proportion. There was nothing for the kids to do and we tried to brave the elements to a degree by sitting outside under the large verandah but this was full of mainly older couples (was this hotel featured in the Saga brochure perhaps?), most of whom smoked, meaning that the outside area was almost permanently engulfed in a nicotine based cloud. The food was fairly decent in the restaurant, which was a plus, but by 8pm I was not really in the best frame of mind to enjoy it, barely being able to keep my eyes open and barking at the kids for doing anything remotely out of order, like breathing too loudly. Tomorrow the forecast is for a much better day, with unbroken skies and temperatures around 23 degrees. Yay!
Going from Southend was good, the flight was good, the private transfer was good and the hotel Pinhal do Sol in Quarteira on the Algarve was good. Unfortunately the weather wasn't and we were greeted by grey, overcast skies and temperatures approaching the dizzy heights of 16 degrees. Not exactly what was expected as our suitcases contained mainly summer clothing with probably just one cardigan or fleece each. The pilot on the plane clearly was fibbing when he said that the forecast was for temperatures in the mid-20's and clear skies. The sun made a brief appearance for about 15 minutes at lunchtime but then gave way to greyer skies and the inevitable rain, which just got harder and harder until it became of biblical proportion. There was nothing for the kids to do and we tried to brave the elements to a degree by sitting outside under the large verandah but this was full of mainly older couples (was this hotel featured in the Saga brochure perhaps?), most of whom smoked, meaning that the outside area was almost permanently engulfed in a nicotine based cloud. The food was fairly decent in the restaurant, which was a plus, but by 8pm I was not really in the best frame of mind to enjoy it, barely being able to keep my eyes open and barking at the kids for doing anything remotely out of order, like breathing too loudly. Tomorrow the forecast is for a much better day, with unbroken skies and temperatures around 23 degrees. Yay!
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