March 5 - 6: Rain, Skies & Snails (Santarém & Golega)

We were uncannily lucky for the last 2 days. The forecasts were dreadful, but we managed just shy of 60km with, at most, drizzle. We got caught in one thunderstorm, last night (on the way home from dinner), but with only a 500m dash back to a warm, dry room.

Between showers and storms, we are being treated to spectacular skies as you can see from the photos (Camino Week 1: MAR 2 - 8). The skyscapes have been stunning: clouds from brilliant white to deep dove grey; blues from glassy turquoise to hazy teal; rain showers and rays of light bisecting the horizon, physically linking earth and sky. Of course, we also experience the white of fog/drizzle that simply envelopes endlessly, from which occasionally trees or buildings loom.

All the paths are waterlogged. There are stretches of boot-sucking mud, slick ascents, slippery descents, and a general “give” underfoot, such that the ground gives you nothing back in terms of energy recycling as you kick off a new step. The road to Santarem was tough – a little under 35km by the time we found our hostel: the last 2-3km uphill. We were so grateful to have avoided the rain. Carey even had a chance to bring out "droni” and have it walk with us a while (Also in the album).

We stayed in a stunning homestay inside the ruined walls of the medieval castle. With the thunderstorm, and my actually trembling with hunger and exhaustion by early evening, we did not get the full benefit of our location. Still, a big meal and a deep night’s sleep heals almost all (camino) ills. The bliss of peeling off cold, wet socks; the luxury of a dry bed; the feeling of energy passing from anxious appetite, through arresting aroma, through hot bite and warmed belly, to refreshed blood and sinew; the pleasure of a cold beer - it is important to experience these things, to really feel them from time-to-time. We easily forget how blessed we are to expect them regularly. This is particularly true at the start of Lent, which is, at least in part, about acknowledging our frailty, our humanity, and how we share it.

Speaking of sharing, we spent our evening in Azambuja with François, a very talented, vivacious Mexican with whom we talked about life, belief, history (and drank first coffee, then beers in the Town Square). Today, we stopped into a small café about midday and met D’Arcy and Geoff, two fellow pilgrims from Calgary. D’Arcy took my details because his wife is an accountant who wants to retire – a generous act, responding to the serendipity of our meeting. In itself, that is a very “pilgrim-y” thing to do. We should see all of them again as we continue North.

We are staying off stage today, in another (much less-fancy) homestay, with a washing machine. In the spirit of gratefulness, noted above, the luxury of our clothes washing themselves is not going unnoticed as I write!