“Happiness is that glorious feeling when everything seems right. When all of life’s twists and turns and jagged edges seem to fit together perfectly. In those often all-too-brief flickers of genuine happiness, every thought in your head is agreeable, and you wouldn’t mind if time stood still and the present moment extended forever.”
– Mo Gawdat
When I left the quinta late Thursday morning on my way to Talavera de la Reina, about an hour-and-a-half drive from Madrid airport, where I was spending the night before picking Michael up on Friday, it was pouring with rain. Not ideal for driving, but after about an hour on the road the rain eased off, despite some threatening skies. It gave me a reprieve to check into my accommodation, and go for a short walk through the old city and across the Roman bridge, before it caught up with me again, while having supper.
The Tagus River, which flows into the Atlantic Ocean in Belem, Lisbon, and from where the great Portuguese explorers departed, originates in the Montes Universales in mid-eastern Spain, and is the longest river on the Iberian Peninsula. Talavera de la Reina is one of the major cities through which it flows along its 716 km route through Spain, before it forms the border with Portugal for 47 km, and meanders another 275 km on its final leg through Portugal. It is a river that fascinates me, and one of the reasons that helped me find an ideal spot for an overnight stay.
Unfortunately, I woke up again to pouring rain on Friday, so there was not much sightseeing in this city that is known for its pottery. The glimpse I got was lovely, and as Michael will hopefully from now on be flying into Madrid, I suspect I will have more opportunities to explore Talavera de la Reina’s culture and heritage; especially its pottery. One of the things I loved in the city was the tilework, not just as a way to showcase glimpses of its history, but also being utilized for displaying street names and information.
Join me for a quick stroll through Talavera de la Reina.
Notes:
# The UAE has two major airlines, Emirates, which most people know because of their reach and advertising campaigns, flying out of Dubai, and Etihad, whose home-base is Abu Dhabi. Our guest miles programme is with Etihad, but because of the difference in Covid regulations between the emirates of Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Michael has been using Emirates, which flies to Lisbon, up to now. Abu Dhabi recently changed their quarantine policy, which meant that Michael could start flying with Etihad again, and make use of the two free upgrade vouchers he received a while back and which are expiring in December. Etihad, though, doesn’t fly to Lisbon – only to Madrid, which is roughly 200 km (round trip) further than Lisbon from us, which means I will use the statement “760 km is a bit too far for me to drive in one day” regularly from now on to stop for the night and do some exploring along the way.
Portuguese Words:
uma desculpa – an excuse
rio Tejo – Tagus river
cer̢mica Рpottery
Written by: Jolandi
Que uma desculpa!
I wonder how far you are from the Serra da Estrela and Castelo Branco.
You may be able to visit the Parque Nacional de Monfragüe on one of your trips.
Ah, Spain and Portugal (que saudade para Lisboa)! We hope to return to Spain (fly to Seville) for a bit in October (from England) and hopefully fit in a visit to the Algarve.
That’s quite a glimpse of Talavera (I’ve never been there) for a ‘quick stroll’.
I hope you can manage to do that, Trevor. Both Spain and Portugal have so many lovely places to visit. We are basically between the Serra de Estrella and Castelo Branco, so am familiar with signposts for Parque Nacional de Monfragüe, and have often wondered what it looks like there. So perhaps on one of these trips to Madrid I will plan a visit there. There are so many little towns with cathedrals towering over them on the way, and each time I say that I should start turning off for a closer look. – Jolandi
Oh! 760 km is a lot! You’re doing it right, seizing the chance to look around. That said, it’s about 777 km between my two homes and countries and yet we do it in one go. Amore does most of the driving though – sometimes all the way. I loved the first quotation already. 🙂 Your happiness shines through. And thanks for giving me the English word for Tejo. Tagus! First time I hear of this word (or is it Spanish?). Oh, another thing: as your reader and fan I find your photos in this type of gallery a tad small. I often find myself wishing to enlarge them but there is no way. Still, I can see how pretty it was. Have a most excellent time!
You know the small pictures is a complaint Michael share with you, Manja, especially as he usually reads it on his phone. Since WordPress changed to the block format, one can no longer click on a picture to make it bigger the way it used to be. So perhaps I should, instead of making a gallery, select less pictures and only load one per block. Thanks for letting me know.
Tagus is the English name, while Tajo is the Spanish name for the rio Tejo.
For me 500 km in one go is about my limit of what I consider comfortable. When I was younger I could and did longer distances, but I find driving tiring, and would much rather make shorter hops if possible. Not that it is any more comfortable for me as a passenger! – Jolandi
Lovely photos. I do want that weathervane with the black cat! I’d buy a barn just to put it on!
I hear you on not wanting to drive such a long distance without resting overnight, either at the destination point or somewhere in between. Where I live, it’s not unusual for people to commute 200 miles round trip: so when I tell friends I won’t drive to any destination over 200 miles away without having a place to spend the night, they express surprise or even laugh at me. But driving here is exhausting, between the traffic, the constant construction on the highways, and the extreme heat. (Not to mention the insane drivers here!) By the time I reach the place I’m traveling to, I just want to lie down in a cool room with an icy drink or two—not get ready to drive home again!
I can just see you rushing out to buy a barn and a weathervan, Hangaku. 😂 I love it too.
I’m glad I’m not the only one having an aversion for driving long distances. I cannot even start to imagine how anyone can commute 200 miles round trip and not lose their sanity. Thank goodness I’ve never had to do that. The traffic when we left Madrid was just terrible, and it reminded me of how lucky I am not to live in the city where one is subjected to that anymore. When I have to I would drive that distance, but why do something unpleasant if one can instead turn it into a pleasurable experience? – Jolandi
I hope it won’t be long before Talavera de la Reina shows you its sunny face.
Fingers crossed it will during my next visit, whenever that may be. 🥰 – Jolandi
It’s been wonderful to explore Portugal and Spain with you as you settle into your new home and lifestyle. I’m glad you are staying overnight on your way to Madrid.
I love overnight stays like this, as they don’t just make a journey more enjoyable, but are wonderful little mini-breaks, Peggy. Glad you enjoy my little excursions with me. – Jolandi
What a pity you had so much rain on your journey to collect Michael! I loved all the photos you took on your wander through the city, especially those showing the tiles.
You mentioned in your answer to Manja that now you are using the Block Editor you are unable click on a picture to enlarge it. I’m not sure if it will work for you, or even if you wish to revert to the Classic Editor but if you do, here is how you might be able to do it.
1. Go to your dashboard. The top left block is entitled ‘At a Glance’ and at the top left of that block is a pin motif and ‘Posts’. Click on ‘Posts’.
2. This is a summary of all the posts you’ve published. At the top left of this page is the Add New button with a drop down menu arrow next to it. Click on the arrow and you will be given a choice of either the Block Editor or the Classic Editor.
I know that some people aren’t given this choice. I think it depends on how long you have been blogging and which Editor you used to use before the block system was introduced.
Best wishes,
Clare xx
Thank you for that detailed step-by-step instructions, Clare. Sadly my version doesn’t give me those options (it is not hosted on the free WordPress site, but with BlueHost). BUT I’ve just had another look at my block options, as someone else made a different suggestion which also didn’t work, but I discovered that I could choose within a block “Classic Block”, which means I could created my gallery within that. Perhaps they’ve had too many complaints and this is a way to access that option when needed. I will give that a try and see if that is my solution. Change is not always a good thing, I’ve discovered with technology . . . 🙈 – Jolandi
Hopefully Michael arrived safely and are enjoying some much needed time together. Love the photos and taking the stroll with you. There is so much history steeped in the town and what a fun place to explore.
I always enjoy virtually traveling with you when you take us on town and village walks. Thanks for posting and keeping us up to date on life in Portugal.
Terri
I’m so glad you enjoy these little strolls with me, Terri. Yes, Michael arrived safely and we’ve been quite busy, but are managing it with a slower pace, which I’m grateful for. The days at the moment are also glorious autumn days, with chilly nights, but lovely warm late afternoons. Perfect for enjoying a glass of wine on the veranda each afternoon. – Jolandi
Some lovely photos.
Must certainly be a sight worth exploring sometime.
Something I noticed is that there doesn’t seem to be many people around? Was it maybe too early?
I have to confess, Richard that I prefer to take pictures with no people in them, but that said, although there were quite a couple of people walking close to the river, the streets were fairly deserted at around 5pm. Perhaps the threat of rain chased them home early. I do find that there were far less people around in all the places I’ve visited recently, as I guess less people travel these days. – Jolandi
Oh how I love the way greens glow on a rainy day. The photos are gorgeous. And how unexpected and delicious the colourful wall art amidst all that grey. I am curious about going to Madrid when your residency isn’t settled. Are you ok to travel to EU countries? I am so glad you get to have your Michael back again. ~C
Like you know, there are no land border crossings in Europe, Crystal, so I shouldn’t get stopped. Also, our car is obviously Portuguese registered and I travel with a stack off paperwork with me, so if I am stopped in Spain for whatever reason, it should be fine, as it would be clear that I live in Portugal and the relevant paperwork were filed with immigration. It is lovely to have Michael with me again, even if our time together always feels to short. – Jolandi
Crossing EU country borders with no effort still blows my mind though, even though conceptually I understand (and just experienced it in September during my trip!). I’m glad you are not totally caged.
I love that you’re using your long drive to explore “locally” on the way. Looking forward to your explorations of tile-work in Portugal as it’s something I’ve been fascinated by and would love to see someday. Wishing you well!
Thank you, Atreyee.
Yes, Portuguese tile-work is fascinating. I’ve done some research on it before, and always love finding houses covered in it, so perhaps I should do a proper write-up on it one day. These days, working outside has a much bigger appeal to me than sitting in front of my computer, though, so it may take a while. 🙈 – Jolandi
An incredible set of photos, and I always like taking the time to roam around a new area – even better if camera is in hand. Being able to break up a drive with making places along the way a ‘destination’ kind of adds to this allure 🙂 Great to hear that you and Michael are doing so well and in such a beautiful area. Enjoy the great autumn season ~
So true, Randall. And thank you. Hope you are well, and find time to roam around with a camera in your hand. – Jolandi
Looks like a lovely place even in overcast weather. The town square with the striking floor tiles and palm tree in the middle is spectacular. Great photo. The use of tile for street names and information reminds me a bit of what I saw in Sevilla, Spain. Hope you’ll get to explore more in depth over your next visits.