Summer in Soller: Embracing traditions and tackling change

Where do you celebrate life was a question this week? There is an ‘ad of the world’ which says, ‘I was born in Carlisle, but I was made in the Royal Navy’. We hear that about some relocators to Soller. They say they were ‘born in London/Leeds/ Glasgow/Belfast but made in the Soller Valley.’ This was the place which released their love of exercise and embracing the great outdoors. It was after holidays, they saw what a life with access to the sea, the mountains plus hundreds of sunshine days a year, could do for them and their families.

They can embrace Firo because they have absorbed the Soller life not because they were born to it. Sollerics are always sceptical of incomers who say they really understand the feelings which Firo represents. The wiser here would say this is impossible unless it is in your blood. We can all have our own valid version, but you can’t pretend to be born in Soller if you are not. The solidarity can be the next best thing.

Now these celebrations are over its on to planning the next one. The Fiesta of San Juan, the summer solstice, is the next in the calendar of annual events. The Town Hall separates events into historical and church influenced and commercial. We may well have other events before San Juan, but we get little notice of the ad hoc ones. We enjoy them very much, but we can’t do much planning. If we are here, we are here.

The summer solstice is a very low-key affair with picnics on the beach and a purification dip in the water at midnight. For some it is full of magic and mystery and known by other names such as the Night of Fire, Night of the Witches, or the Night of Magic.

The link with the beginning of summer and the summer solstice gives it a special dimension and the act of passing from darkness to light is emblematic. The sunsets are usually spectacular at this time of year, and we have a catalogue of superb shots taken on this night on past occasions. My family have favourite place on the beach for this night. The pizza and cava are in the picnic bag and sometime music drifts over us from a nearby bar. We meet many of our neighbours doing the same thing. A gentle celebration which heralds the start of the summer.

As the countdown to Summer begins the same problems are being aired. So many of our excellent bars and restaurants are struggling to find staff. Some have changed their hours to cover one shift a day. Often not opening until 12 noon, forgetting the breakfast trade altogether, and giving a lunch and early dinner service. Many of these places close by about 10pm. This is just not the Soller we know and love, as locals and many holiday makers are ‘late night people’. Even local bakeries are not opening for the 5pm to 8pm slot for the same reason. The lack of staff is forcing a fundamental change in the service being offered to the public. Cultural change was not planned but is a consequence of housing which is too expensive for the workers. The salaries and the desire for staff to have 2 consecutive days off is also another important issue. There is a lot of talking, thinking and planning going on, but the bigger issues like realistic wages to afford to live in the Soller Valley seem impossible to achieve. No wonder so many waiters are re-training into the computer tech world. Summer thoughts for 2024…