July 9, Santarem, 520 km

Beat the heat yesterday. 17 km (a little over 10 miles) walk, starting at 6:30. For almost 8 km I was walking north with a 30 foot berm to my right, keeping me in the shade. Stopped for a break with a to go meal provided by the previous night’s lodging. That place had a fabulous outdoor pool. Got to Santarem at 11 am. As the day progressed it got really hot 99°. The city is on top of a prominent hill looking over the river valley. The trudge up the hill would have been brutal a few hours later. The man who owned the apartment I rented wouldn’t let me in before 4 pm, even though he lived next door. Being a dickhead is a universal human trait.

I spent the afternoon drinking some beer, eating lunch and hanging out in a park that was a roman fortress 2,000 years ago. Not too shabby. I had duck for dinner. I had a bad experience with duck as a teenager (buckshot, dry, gamey) This was delicious.

I have met a few pilgrims, a Danish couple in their early 60’s, and Mark from Connecticut, and they have been defeated by the heat and decided to skip ahead by train or bus. Except for the first day, I have kept the heat at a bearable level. It’s supposed to start dropping back to the normal range. The owner of the restaurant I ate an omelette for breakfast told me it hasn’t been this hot since 2003.

View from the fortress.