O Blogue de Julie Fox da Moura Morta - R is for Rain in Portugal

R is for Rain in Portugal 

February 21, 2014 · by Julie Dawn Fox · in A personal A to Z of Portugal, Living in Portugal

http://juliedawnfox.com/2014/02/21/r-rain-portugal/

 

It’s not just the British who love complaining about the weather, the Portuguese do their fair share of grumbling at this time of year.
No one really minds a day or two of rain. After all, we all know how necessary it is in the scheme of things, especially those of us who have sweated through long dry summers. By the third day of non-stop rain, however, the novelty has worn off and the garden has had a thorough soaking. We want our blue skies and sunshine back; they make it so much easier to deal with the day, both in practical terms and psychologically.
After a week of rainy days, everyone is noticeably grumpier and more lethargic.
After two weeks of pretty much constant downpours, the washing is piling up, water has found sneaky ways to enter buildings and rivers have broken their banks.

River Alva in flood, Moura Morta. There was a road under here.

The optimist in me keeps telling me that after two weeks, we should be due a respite, although I know from experience that we often get full months of solid rain.
That’s what we got in January, or so it seemed. Oh well, I thought. February is bound to be better; I remember sunbathing in the garden last February.
This year? Not a chance!
Instead of winter sun, we’ve had some frighteningly bad storms and rain almost every day. I know Portugal isn’t the only country to have suffered severe weather conditions but since most people think of it as a sunny country, the shock of rough weather smacks us round the back of the head every time. 
(By the way, if you’re wondering about severe weather conditions in Portugal or any other European country, this site shows current warnings.)
Across the country, roads have collapsed, trees have fallen, giant waves and ferocious winds have caused millions of euros worth of damage and I’m thankful not to have suffered personally. In fact this year, by some miracle, my internet connection hasn’t been cut off – I just hope I’m not jinxing myself with that!. We’ve had minor power cuts and I have a permanently shrieking phone line but as long as the internet works, so can I.
Expat Tip: If you’re moving to Portugal and wondering which internet provider to use, I’d strongly recommend anything that isn’t dependent on the phone lines. I have no choice at the moment but you might save yourself a lot of headaches. 

Dirty black storm clouds in Moura Morta

And on it goes

I’ve lost count of how many days it’s rained this winter but I do know that dry days, let alone sunny ones, have been scarce. Despite the central heating, patches of mould have sprouted on our walls and both me and the dog are getting fatter as our walks get shorter, and the River Alva has been flooded for weeks. The air is so damp that nothing dries, even under cover. I’m extremely glad we invested in a tumble dryer during a similarly rainy winter a few years ago. Another purchase that’s proved its worth is the dehumidifier although I probably should have started using it before the mould, not after it.
Expat Tip: Most older Portuguese properties don’t have central heating so in practice, one room gets too hot while the others are freezing, and probably damp. If you can, you should seriously consider installing central heating. We went for a pellet stove so we can programme it to start warming the house before we get home from work and we love it.

More rain in Portugal than in the UK

While we were bemoaning  the rain, a Portuguese colleague surprised me by telling me that Portugal’s annual rainfall is actually greater than that of the United Kingdom. We just get it all in huge doses instead of spread throughout the entire year! While I haven’t managed to come up with exact figures to prove or disprove his claim, the UK does appear to get a lot less rain than I thought. Here’s the wikipedia link if you want more on that.
And there’s definitely more rain here than I expected. One consolation is the number of rainbows we get, often double ones. Sometimes, they even land in our garden but I always seem to be walking the dog when that happens. Now where did I leave my shovel…?
 
http://juliedawnfox.com/2014/02/21/r-rain-portugal/

Double rainbow in Moura Morta

Is there an end in sight to all this rain?

Not for at least a week. According to the weather forecast, we should get three whole days of sunshine to get March off to a good start. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for that.
Expat Tip: If you want to practice your Portuguese weather vocabulary with a detailed local weather forecast that has plenty of images to help you understand it, try tempo.pt.
I hope I haven’t made you too miserable with my latest Personal A to Z of Portugal post. If you haven’t been following my alphabet, check out the other A to Z posts here. They’re not all complaints about the weather, I assure you.