July gave us the southern European heatwave

July began with an evening visit to the lovely town of San Nicola Arcella. Here, the decorative lights for the summer were installed and lit and the town is alive with visitors.

Outside of the season San Nicola is a quiet sleepy town with not a lot going on. We had a great meal at Qcècè with cocktails. It is a lovely place but extra lovely when the outside area is open for seating.

We did notice that a new gelateria call La Contessa had opened in the same piazza and later found out that it was opened by our friend Michele. We have yet to go but it definitely looks very nice and will share what we think in the next post. Here is a great photo from their Facebook page.

Heatwave

As you may have seen in the press, Italy was one of the countries that suffered a heatwave in July. The range of temperature for us was from 27°C (80.6°F) at the beginning of July then our little thermometer in the shade showed the temperature of 40°C (104°F) on 24th July. The weather app Il Meteo stated 41°C (105.8°F), obviously the ground temperature was even hotter, definitely 50+ (122°F).

 

Those two days when it reached 40°C was impossible for me. Even John said it was too hot and he never says that. Walking out of the apartment was like hitting a heat wall. There were nights when I was unable to sleep so I would go out on the terrace where it was cooler as the ceiling fan in the bedroom wasn’t enough for me. So my sleep pattern is complete confused.

Also according to the weather app the sea was around 27°C+. This has pretty much turned the sea green with algae. It is very strange to see. The photo below was taken from Facebook, I don’t know who took it, but it shows what it looks like.

We put on our air conditioning in the lounge and stayed inside until the sun had moved from our terrace. This summer we haven’t seen much of our cat Freddie as he slept in a shady spot somewhere until late afternoon. I did see him during my sitting out in the early hours of the morning. Also, he hates fans, so when he comes into our home and sees or hears fans, he is not happy. Poor little anxious Freddie. But we survived of course and it dropped to 30°C on 26th from then it was low to mid 30s like normal. I feel for the other places around the world that experienced much higher temperatures than 40. Also the wildfires have been terrible. Luckily, we have not seen that many near to us, just the odd little ones.

Tourist Season

July is the month when a large number of tourists come to Scalea. Scalea had a full entertainment schedule as normal. As we overlook Scalea, we can hear the entertainment from our terrace. The entertainment carries on through to the end of August. It ranges from book presentations to classical music and pop concerts. Some events take place in the Centro Storico and some on the main piazza or lungomare. Also the coastline is very busy with sun worshippers. That is one thing I really can’t do. I can burn in the shade with factor 50 on. Thanks to my mum for my Irish skin.

Also the apartments around us in our condominium fill up with the owners who only come for the months of July and August. It still comes as a shock to us every summer when they arrive, as we have grown accustomed to the quietness of the other 10 months.

Diamante

We visited our friend Giovanni in Diamante one afternoon for a catch up. He has been travelling around Europe for his work so we haven’t seen him much. He kindly took a photo of us in front of the stone Diamante (diamond) which I thought you would like to see. We have not taken notice of it before. It is amazing that you can go to a place many times but not see the obvious. It is huge!

Reopening of Lido Da Pietro

As you may have read, the lido and bar Da Pietro sadly went up in flames in January. Well on the 1st July, it reopened. Yay! It is just fantastic to see it open as we love that place and the people who own and work there. Thank goodness they were able to open it for the summer so they can make some money this year. Wishing you all the best Carmelo, Antonella and Chiara.

A lunch in the hills of San Nicola Arcella.

We were kindly invited to lunch by our new friends Melanie and Paul along with Justin and Michael. They are from the UK and have a holiday home in a place called Atrigna which is a hamlet of San Nicola Arcella. They have amazing views of Dino Island, the coast of Praia A Mare and beyond. We had amazing food and great company, so much so the day turned into night. Thanks to both of you for your amazing hospitality. Also thanks for returning my purse which I left there.

Cute dogs

Our friends Justin and Michael had to go to Milan for Justin’s clinic appointment. Yes, in Italy you travel the country for various appointments, especially when you want a good consultant. Anyway whilst they were away, they asked if we could feed and water their two dogs Gucci and Lucy. We sat with them and took and drank some wine whilst they stretched their legs around the large garden. They didn’t run around too much as it was so hot but at least they had what they wanted. I just thought I would share their photos. Aren’t they cute?

New after dinner garden opened in Scalea

We decided to check out this new spot in Scalea called Civico 33. It’s a bed and breakfast with four double rooms. The interesting thing is they recently opened their garden to everyone for some post-dinner drinks and snacks. They call it “Dopo Cena”. The garden is a lovely space with benches and tables, perfect for winding down.

A group of us decided to give it a shot. We headed to Civico 33 a little after 9 pm. The weather was warm, so we kicked things off with their granita cocktail, which was refreshing. Most of us went for the one with gin, and it hit the spot. Michael had the mojito version and he loved it. John had a straight G&T which was also tasty and refreshing.

Then came the food. They set up a generous platter of good quality meats and cheeses. We all dug in and had a great time chatting away. It was like the perfect way to extend the evening.

We hung out in the garden, enjoying the cozy ambiance, until a bit past midnight. The place had a lovely vibe with soft lighting and the whole setting under the starry sky. It was hard to leave, especially after they brought out this fruit spread that was like the grand finale of our little feast.

Thanks to Corina for inviting us. It was a pretty unique experience, and I can see us going back there again.

Well that’s it for July. Thanks for reading I hope you have enjoyed reading about activities, although a tad limited due to the heat. Let’s see what happens in August. If you haven’t read before and want to know how we got here in Scalea, check out the archive

Stay cool and hydrated.

Ciao