No white Christmas for Majorca says weatherman

by Irene Taylor
THERE may have been a sprinkling of snow on the Sierra de Tramuntana mountains earlier this month, but any hopes of a white Christmas in Majorca have been shattered by the weatherman who yesterday said that the temperatures will be mild, with no cold wave on the horizon. Angel Rivera, head of predictions at the National Meteorology Institute, said yesterday that Christmas Eve and Day will be what he called “tranquil” with some frost and clouds in the southwest and showers in Extremadura and Andalucia, but not the Balearics, on Monday. The skies will be clear, with some wind in the north of the Mediterranean, but “no masses of cold or Siberian air seem likely,” he said yesterday.
But just how accurate is the report? Rivera said “between 50 and 60 per cent.” The long range weather forecast speaks of an anticyclone over the Peninsula and the Balearic Islands.
On Sunday, a new Atlantic front will lie over the southwest of the Peninsula moving south on Tuesday and Wednesday, and bringing moderate rain to Extremadura and Andalucia and some showers to Madrid and Castille. The anticyclone over the Balearics will lead to clear skies on Wednesday and Thursday, when a drop in temperatures can be expected, Rivera said.
Today and tomorrow are expected to be bright and clear, with a slight increase in temperatures and light variable winds.
When the weather is like this, it is possible to sit outdoors in a sheltered café in mid-morning or mid-afternoon.
And surely that beats having to wrap up and battle against icy roads, cold winds and snow -even if the snow-covered mountains do make a pretty picture.