Olive Leaf Tea: A humorous story of starting a new life abroad (New Life in Andalusia Book 3) by Sabina Ostrowska

Author:Sabina Ostrowska [Ostrowska, Sabina]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: textworkshop.org
Published: 2023-09-01T05:00:00+00:00

I don’t know much about Ferdinand II, but one thing is sure, the artist-king had an imagination, and he didn’t waste his talents. Like Disneyland, Pena Palace is a hotchpotch of creative ideas that bring people great joy. On the palace grounds, one finds expression of a deep nostalgia for the past, the spirit of the great explorations to the New World, a dash of romanticised Nature, and classical splendour. As we strolled the rooms of bygone monarchs and their private chambers, I could easily imagine the Portuguese royal family celebrating Christmas in the Great Hall with the biggest tree money could buy and the most elaborate baubles imported from Bohemia. On cold winter nights, German composers and writers would entertain them. The king was of German origin, which explained many of the Germanic influences on some of the buildings. The best French chefs would travel across Europe to cook for the European elite in the royal summer house.

Ferdinand’s grandson, Carlos I, continued to reside in what was supposed to be a holiday home on the palace grounds. He surrounded himself and his wife, Amélie of Orléans, with the finest art of the era. But whilst admiring his extensive collection, I also felt a tinge of sadness for the doomed ruler. Carlos was soon to be assassinated together with one of his sons. His wife would become known as the last Queen of Portugal. It was from Sintra that she left Portugal as the 1910 revolution disposed of the royal family and everything it entailed.

Even though I felt somewhat sentimental about the old regime, I also knew that such lush and opulent riches as one can find at Pena Palace could only be brought into existence off the back of the suffering of others. While the kings enjoyed the company of Strauss and drank Glühwein by coal furnaces, millions of poor people struggled to make ends meet, many starving or living hand-to-mouth. That said, it felt nice to airbrush out the harsh realities of the past and spend a day surrounded by world-class art and architecture, to stroll the gardens, wandering from an enchanted grotto to a folly, envisaging a different life for oneself. But as the cold December afternoon darkened, it was time to return to the real world. Unlike Ferdinand II, we had no magic wand or copious amounts of gold to fund our final house renovations. We had but some meagre savings that we planned to use to finally make our own living quarters liveable and presentable.

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