My husband and I recently spent three wonderful weeks traveling around Portugal. We’d never had the country on our travel bucket list, and after our visit, I am already eager to return. It’s a beautiful country, full of good food and wine, friendly people, and fascinating old churches, castles and the like to tour. Because there is so much old history there, I was curious about whether I would encounter anything paranormal. I was a little surprised that it only happened once, given that we were staying in areas where, for the example, the Inquisition had been violently active. Maybe ancient ghosts have finally moved beyond the physical realm or the crowds of people make it hard to sense the subtle. I can tell you that my one experience did not feel at all subtle to me!
The incident happened in the city of Tomar. We were staying in an old, historic part of town that is charming and fun to wander through. Nearby was the Convento de Cristo, a former stronghold of the Templar Knights. The area had a bit of a heavy feel to it, but it’s not surprising given it’s long history. We were staying in a lovely 400 year old stone apartment, and had chosen to sleep on the top floor, in a room with twin beds. The room just seemed cozy and inviting to us. I drifted off happily to sleep that night in my little bed, after a good takeout meal of pizza, salad, and dessert (we needed a break from regional cuisine that night).
I awakened in the middle of the night to a slightly shaking bed. I wondered if a car had gone by or if there was a small earthquake, but I also had a sense of not being alone (technically, I wasn’t, as my husband was less than three feet away, but this was a different feeling). I also noticed I had a sense of fear; I was definitely picking up on something. I went uneasily back to sleep, only to feel like someone was intruding in my thoughts to get my attention, similar to an experience I had in a haunted hotel in Baker City, Oregon. The intention of the “visitor” was pretty strong and I tried to ignore it, only to have my bed shake/vibrate more. I let out a startled sound. This time, I knew it wasn’t about a car or earthquake. Something was definitely trying to get my attention. I was frightened, but didn’t dare wake up my husband, and besides, what on earth could he do about it?
I did some deep breathing and fell asleep again, but my dreams were about an odd woman who kept coming toward me. She seemed menacing and had her arms stretched straight out and moved toward me. In the dream I screamed, “You can’t touch me!” to no avail. She moved forward more as if to say, oh I can and will touch you! I then screamed, “I don’t want you to be anywhere near me! go away!” She backed off, but I struggled to get out of the dream and woke up with a loud yelp, which got a “What’s going on?” from my husband, who then rolled back over into sleep. the unwanted mental intrusion continued, though I don’t at all remember the content – it was just a strong physical sense and I seemed to be in a slightly altered state. I was definitely freaked out and finally had the presence of mind to call in my guardian angels for protection. That must have worked, for I woke up later when it was light out and there was no longer a sense of something else being there. It took me awhile to shake off the odd, creepy night I’d experienced.
I have no idea what I experienced or who might have been there, though this is the third or fourth time I’ve now experienced something trying to get my attention through mental intrusion (I guess it’s sort of like someone speaking to me, but in my mind) and dreams. For me, it is a fairly distressing experience, but I think I am getting better at setting boundaries. I did talk to whatever might be around the next night and said it could share space with us, but needed to let me sleep. Whether that really had any effect or not, I don’t know, but I do know I slept peacefully that second night. And despite all of the places we visited that are absolutely steeped in history, that was my only experience.