When a blog post starts with “According to Portuguese folklore,” you know there’s going to be a story. This one involves a Roman soldier, a beggar, half a cloak, and a rather optimistic weather forecast.
Dia de São Martinho
November 11 is Dia de São Martinho, a day for eating roasted chestnuts, tasting the new wine made from grapes harvested earlier in the year, and enjoying a brief return of warm, sunny weather. But to understand why, we have to go back about 1,700 years.
According to legend, Martinho was a Roman soldier traveling on horseback through a cold, rainy day when he encountered a beggar shivering by the roadside. Having nothing else to offer, Martinho took his sword, cut his cloak in half, and gave one half to the man. As he continued his journey, the clouds parted, the rain stopped, and the sun appeared. This unexpected stretch of warm weather became known as Verão de São Martinho, or Saint Martin’s Summer.
And apparently, there’s a little meteorological truth to the legend. Portugal does sometimes experience a spell of warm, dry weather in early November, although the sunshine doesn’t necessarily arrive on schedule.
This year, however, São Martinho and the weather gods seem to be having a disagreement. And with the entire country of Portugal on alert for Storm Charles, our planned feast will have to wait until Saturday. There’s a certain irony in postponing a celebration famous for bringing sunshine because of the rain.
Sights of Natal
Meanwhile, autumn is having an identity crisis. Christmas decorations started going up in early November, and while the lights won’t officially flick on until closer to December, it’s hard for autumn to have its moment in the spotlight with Christmas already waiting in the wings.
A Change in Plans
A couple of weeks ago, a friend asked if we’d like to join them for a fish-and-chips lunch in Moncarapacho. Sure, why not? The calendar entry was duly made, and that was that.
The day before, we got a confirmation, followed moments later by another message: Never mind, we’re not going. It turns out the lunch was being held at a center for people with special needs, and we suddenly weren’t quite sure what we’d signed up for. Was this a public event or had we inadvertently invited ourselves to a gathering intended for families?
None of us felt confident enough to sort this one out so we decided to give it a miss.
With rain forecast for Sunday and a bigger storm on the horizon, we made a new plan: Portimão on Friday and a bike ride on Saturday.
In Portimão we started with Vietnamese food, then wandered through the old town.
Wandered from the Marina to the ocean.
Finished at a miradouro with a beautiful sunset.
Not bad for a day that started with fish and chips.
What’s Keeping Me Busy
I have a couple projects in the works.
Cultivar Solo Vivo
For the past few months, I have been working with a local organic farmer to get her YouTube channel full of content. It’s been informative, at time a little stinky, and a lot of fun. Visit the channel here: YouTube Channel.
Half Baked Designs
I’ve been busy making greeting cards and jewelry for an upcoming local holiday market. Take a peek at Half Baked Designs, Tavira to see what I’ve been creating!
More Portugal
Read more about daily life, the embarrassing moments, and the process for having a long stay in Portugal. If you are more of a picture person, follow me on Instagram.
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