The heatwave begins
wondering why we chose to live at what currently feels like the burning gates of hell.......
Hello my wonderful friends & readers, I hope you are all doing fine, I am sending this sub out to you just after the Solstice, the longest day of the year & the point of the Strawberry full moon according to some facebook articles about astrology I read this weekend.
In Europe, June’s full moon was actually known as the Honey Moon. Other European names for it included the Hot Moon, signifiying the beginning of hot summer days, or Hay Moon, because of the first hay harvest. Those names aside, European names for the Full Strawberry Moon overall tend to have sweet, romantic connotations - a good example is the name Full Rose Moon. June’s full moon is also called Mead Moon, which could refer to the mowing of meadows during summer, but there’s another more romantic interpretation as well.
In Europe, it’s traditional to gift mead or honey to a newlywed couple during their first moon of marriage. The name Honey Moon itself has now become a common word in the English language, used to refer to the honeymoon holiday that couples go on right after they’re married. It used to be that newlyweds in ancient Europe would go on a sweet romantic holiday around the time of June’s full moon, because the moon phases were seen as a symbol for the phases of a marriage, with the full moon signifying the fullest and happiest part, the wedding itself.
the moon - this text was found here.
The solstice sunset
I found this to be quite sweet, these balmy Summer evenings are actually quite romantic & I really enjoy learning about astrology & the moon & its influence on us as human beings. It feels like a time of year where spending time eating, drinking, laying in a hammock with your lover outside is a perfect way to celebrate the love you share. Marley & I spend a lot of time in the hammock together around this time of year. We decided to celebrate this months honey moon with a gathering of beautiful people at an ancient chapel close to our quinta. We meet at sunset, we toast the moon, we play music & sing & dance & laugh. We also wish each other luck with surviving the Summer, which is about to hit hard.
Mid June has always seemed to me to be a time of the year where the Sun turns things up a notch on the centigrade scale in this part of Portugal… Last month we already had temperatures above 35, we are forecast for a few days in the high 30’s this week, today is 37 with a “real feel” of 40 & to be honest with you it really is blood boiling weather. I am such a Summer lover, I love the long days with slow dinners in the evenings & the early morning rising to catch a cool breeze while I walk with Willow around our magical mountain. Things here that really make me adore Summer are the Golden Oriels dancing around the skies in flashes of bright yellow after not being here all Winter, the yellow plums in our valley ripen ing on the tree, the haze that the mountain in the distance kicks off, the intense pink sunsets but July & August in this part of Portugal is so intense, it is often brutally hot, raged by forest fires & it makes you question why we decided to start a life at the fiery gates of hell.
Another reason why we are building a house with stone walls that are 60cm thick is to keep out the hot sun on these days. We are not fans of air conditioning so I don’t see us getting that at any point, better to build a home that functions as it should in this climate, which means keeping the sun out in the Summer & keeping the heat in during the Winter.
the stone walls of our tiny house that we are building (photo 2020)
A home in progress ( photo taken in 2020 )
In 2017 when we moved here we witnessed areas all around us burn to a crisp so we are always extra cautious during these months, we don’t use heavy machinery that could send sparks flying, we don’t make fires or BBQ’s when it is super super hot or the risk is above orange, the local junta notifies you every day on the level of fire risk which is helpful because making pizza during these months is rough but we only cook at the cafe in the evenings where we know it is safe to light a fire, not in the countryside.
If anyone tries to say global warming is not real they should spend a Summer in this part of Portugal…..
So tell me in the comments what your favourite thing about Summer is where you are living, I am intrigued if we are the only people who suffer this heat….
Lots of love
stay cool, please like & subscribe & share this stack with your friends
Jaymie xoxo