Another Reminder to Stay Safe in This Unbearable Heat

It’s dangerously hot here in Galicia this week. Our temperature gauge at home is sweating. And Pilgrims are walking in this weather, from all over Spain and Portugal, towards Santiago. Last night, we ran to Leroy Merlin and bought two of the last A/C units they had. These poor machines are struggling to keep up.

To say the last couple of nights have been rough would be an understatement. Sleeping has been impossible. The new kitten pants like a dog. A Galician cat, she is so confused by this heat she tries to snuggle me for comfort, but it makes us both hot.

A smart kitty, at one point today, I found her on top of the wine rack. The glass bottles are the coolest place in the house.

We closed the food truck early today – I couldn’t take it. Likely, I will only be open tomorrow from sunrise to 10am. I gave out so much ice water today, it was ridiculous. No one should be walking in this. A Pilgrim died this week after getting heat stroke the first day out of St. Jean Pied de Port in France. He was otherwise healthy and would not have been someone you would think would be at risk. And it reminded me of a post I wrote last September when I started my ill-fated Camino that wouldn’t end up being finished until the end of April this year. It’s about a Pilgrim who became a good friend, and who nearly didn’t make it. You can read it here. It’s a good reminder that a reservation for a room or a bed is no reason to put our health in jeopardy.

Today, I messaged the Pilgrim back in the US who is referenced in this old post, and told him about the heat we are having. He said he feels incredibly lucky to have survived that first day. A smart, capable man, he sees just how close he came and can’t believe how quickly it happened.

Please stay safe and, frankly, skip the next few days if you are walking the Camino. Find A/C and shelter in place. Pushing forward in these conditions is like walking through a blizzard in the winter. You wouldn’t even consider it. Because both of these extreme conditions are ill advised.