A dark and stormy night

Last night I was awoken by the biggest thunderstorm I have witnessed since living here. That is saying something as we have a lot of storms here, far more than I ever experienced living in the south of England.

I got up to look out of the window and found that the lightning was so intense that the sky did not get dark again between flashes. It was as if the sky was white, and yet flickering constantly. Then, when the thunder sounded, a huge glaring streak of lightning would flash through the sky above the hills behind our house. Flashes so bright that they hurt my eyes and I couldn't look at them. The thunder, meanwhile, was extremely loud almost making the house shake. After a few minutes the rain arrived. Torrential rain. I was so pleased that we were safely at home and not out having to travel in it. I couldn't help thinking about the local wildlife and wondering what the animals were making of it.

This morning the river, of course, was full and flowing quickly. The world feels cleaner and brighter after a storm like that.

River Congost after the storm, La Garriga

Poolside lizard

Getting out of the swimming pool at our campsite at Torroella de Montgrí, I headed back to my towel and found a little lizard sunbathing on it! He allowed me to take his photo before heading off to sit on another pool-goer's towel. I think he was a Catalonian wall lizard (Podarcis liolepis) but would be interested to hear from anyone who can confirm this for me (or give me the correct identification if I am wrong).

Catalonian wall lizard / Sarganta bruna (Podarcis liolepis)

A new book

It was my birthday the other day and I received a very exciting new book: the "Guia pràctica per conèixer la natura de Catalunya" published by IPCENA. It is a beautiful and informative nature guide with many illustrations and photographs about the geography, plants, fungus and animals of Catalonia. There is also information about protected areas and places to visit. I am already enjoying it and look forward to delving into it a lot in the future. You can find out more information about the book here.