Chapter Eighteen
Joel
I always consideredmyself a morning person. In New York, I went out for a run at least three times a week before work, but there was waking up early and waking up early. Fortunately, the real morning person in the room decided to wake me up by planting soft kisses on the back of my neck, then shoulders and lower back. When he got to my ass cheeks, he bit me, causing me to moan and press down into the mattress, giving me also much-needed friction.
“Oh no,” he said, crawling up my body to kiss me properly. “We don’t have time. Come on, sleepyhead, we have to go.”
The hotel staff couldn’t have been more helpful to us. Not only did they manage everything with the mechanic yesterday, leaving me only to sort out the payment, but they also put together a fantastic breakfast in a takeaway bag. They even made us some coffee for the road.
It took us one and a half hours to get to Santarém where we’d planned to visit the gardens with a viewpoint known as the sun’s gates. It was another one of the locations our moms visited on a school trip, and while they had only spent their lunch hour there, after some research, we decided we wanted to watch the sunrise from there.
It wasn’t difficult to find parking so early in the morning. The city was still asleep, so we strolled quietly toward the gate that gave entry to the gardens.
It was that time of day when it wasn’t nighttime anymore, but it wasn’t quite daytime. The temperature was still cool, but you could feel it warming up with the light of the sun, and the air smelled fresh.
There wasn’t even a breeze, which could only mean it would be another scorching day. I’d read that Santarém often had higher temperatures than the surrounding areas.
The gardens were nondescript. There were some trees, some areas with grass, but it certainly wasn’t something to write home about. The gardens were part of the old castle, and the tall, thick walls surrounding it had probably served the purpose of defending the city from invaders.
As we’d driven into Santarém, we’d crossed the river Tagus and noticed how high up the city was, but now from this strategic viewpoint, we could see why the viewpoint was called the Sun’s Gates.
Unlike the rolling hills of the Alentejo, this part of the country was like a patchwork of colors. Shades of green and brown fields separated in some areas by lines of trees. We could see villages in the distance where we could spot church bell towers taller than the buildings around it, and of course, the river snaking around the land making its way from Spain to Lisbon. The tide was low, and the water was so clean we could see the sandbanks beneath it. It was truly breathtaking.
We took a seat on the east side of the wall, facing the sun as it was rising. It felt warm on my face. There was something about the sunrise that had always appealed to me more than the sunset. Maybe it was that it was the sign of a new day rather than the ending. It was full of possibilities. I was glad we had our travel journal because suddenly I felt like I needed to write.
“Don’t you want to have breakfast?” David asked, opening the breakfast bag to find a few pastries and two small ham sandwiches.
“Yes, but in a minute. I need to write something down first.”
While I was writing, David sat in contemplative silence next to me. I wasn’t sure if he was trying to be quiet for me or if he was using the time for reflection.
With the sun rising fast and the temperature getting warmer, I put the journal down and had some breakfast too.
“Shall we read our moms’ journal?” I suggested.
He nodded and took it out of the rucksack he was carrying. We opened it on the bookmarked page.
3 June 1983 - School trip to Santarém
Dear Journal,
We came to Santarém today to see the church where the man who discovered Brazil is buried. We didn’t think it was very interesting, but we’ve been learning about the discoveries in history class, so we paid attention just in case it came up in an exam.
We had lunch in the gardens and viewpoint of Portas do Sol. The place has a view of all the fields. It was quite nice, especially as it was a warm day. We had our lunch sitting on the grass.
Sílvia – Oh, and Paula has a boyfriend!!!!!!!!
Paula - I do NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sílvia – Yes, you do because I saw you kiss Vítor by that gate looking over the river.
Paula - So? It doesn’t mean he’s my boyfriend.
Sílvia - Do you want him to be?
Paula - Yes, but I think Mário and Teresa are REALLY boyfriend and girlfriend. Wouldn’t that be weird?
Sílvia - Of course not!
