R is for Rain in 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, w
e’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.
Etiquetas: Julie Fox
