When summer changes to autumn.

How do we know autumn has arrived in Spain? We don't have the colours of the changing leaves, we don't see hedgerows full of fruits and we don't have the farmers out in volume trying to harvest the crops before it's too late.

We do have the darkness of night starting earlier and the mornings starting later, we do have the cooler temperatures compared to the recent summer and we do have a change in the tree fruits we can buy at market.

So, we know autumn is here, how has that changed how we live from the first 4 months of our new life here where so much of our time has been spent living outside, enjoying the constant sun and adapting to doing chores early morning , walking the dogs before the sun was up over the mountains and forgetting what it was like to have a pair of jeans or anything other than sandals on your feet.

When we arrived in Spain in May it was already into summer, and the villa doors have been open since we arrived to let any cool breeze circulate through the villa in an attempt to stay cool. The shutters have been down on any room we weren't in to keep the heat of the sun out and even when we were in the lounge the shutter at the side window was down and the one across the patio doors was half shut - to anyone passing they must have thought the Dracula's had moved in, but it's the way the spanish live and for understandable reasons. It's the english that have it wrong when they come over here and the first thing they do in the height of summer is throw open all the shutters, but with so little sun at home it is understandable. The ambient light is so strong that even with the shutters down you don't need the lights on most of the time.

Throughout the summer the pups have been used to being able to wander in and out as they please, the only time doors were closed were when we were out.

Drying clothes hasn't been any problem, towels would be baked dry with a couple of hours of putting them on the line and bedding could be washed and back on the bed the same day. The biggest issue was making sure that anything coloured was put out to dry inside out so that the colours didn't fade in the sun. Clothes were so light weight that they would be dry within the hour.

We've had our share of insects of every description which I've already covered and the pool saw more action than I ever envisaged, with even me venturing in on a regular basis. Sleep was difficult without the air con on and it was not uncommon for several changes of clothes in a day. THe hairdryer was banished to the back of the cupboard as the heat from it was too much to cope with and the hair, tied up for the summer.

And of course, the biggest change for us was that we had stopped looking out of the window in the morning to see what the weather was like - we just knew, it would be sunny.

Well, autumn is now here, so what are the noticable changes.

Well, for one, we have the shutters open at all the windows when we are in and quite often the doors are closed. The pups have just about learnt to check whether the patio doors are open before trying to go out, they've bumped their noses enough times now to know it makes sense to check first.

The dry air is now very humid and even when it hasn't been raining the air is damp and clothes are taking much longer to dry. Towels are taking days and the bedding? well, don't get me started - finding somewhere to put it out is a big enough headache, now I know why so many of the friends we have made out here have tumble dryers. Spanish homes by nature are smaller than back in the uk (in general) so you don't have the space to have soggy laundry hanging around - looks like we have a shopping trip coming up.

Most of the flies, grasshoppers and other flying beasties have gone but we are now overrun with ants and beetles (I don't think they're cockroaches - time for a google I think- just checked, they're definitely just beetles).

We are back to checking out of the window to see what the weather is like and also, checking the thermometer to see whether it's a shorts or jeans day. It gets too cool to sit outside at night without a jacket and we are starting to see people in leather jackets and boots at night. Quite a change in such a short time. The hairdryer is back in use and the hair is left long once again

It will be interesting to see how things change when the current 'wet' spell is over, according to the locals, the length of the rains is most unusual - more akin to February - oh joy, we have it to look forward to again in a few months.

Another symptom of the autumn is the number of shops and bars that have closed in Terreros. We are a small summer holiday village which sees an increase in population during June, July and August of 10 fold or more and so we have the bars, restaurants and shops to deal with that number of people. Now, the villas and apartments are mainly empty and so the shops etc are empty. I don't know where the workers and owners go for 9 months of the year, but it's obvious they have gone from here. We have several Chiringuito's along the beach front, these are the snack bars and restaurants that cater for the sun worshippers who swarm to the beach every summer. Now, all but one is closed and I've even heard that the hotel on the beach closes for the winter.

We have also noticed the amount we are drinking (water and soft drinks - not beer) has significantly reduced, the beer consumption has remained the same so far (at least it's not started to increase - yet). And the air con is no longer needed at night.

Our first year here was always going to be a learning experience, and unlike in Sheffield, there does seem to be a clear definition to the seasons. We once heard someone who had moved from Canada to the UK say that what they missed about Canada was the clear change from one season to the next, in the UK you have 2 seasons, warm rain and cold rain. Well, in Spain it would seem we have the real change from one season to the next, summer is definitely over and autumn is definitely here.

It will be interesting to see what changes happen when winter arrives.