Medieval Thyme
Posted on: February 13, 2019
- In: History | Spain | Travel
- 64 Comments
Every year for three days at the beginning of February, the city of Orihuela, Spain transforms itself into a medieval town complete with market stalls, soldiers, street entertainers and food cooked over open flames. The Moors and the Christians are both represented as at one time they lived side by side in this area. This year a friend and I took the twenty-minute bus ride to the city to partake in this fun event. Here are a few pictures. Enjoy!
Our first stop was at a Moorish tea tent, to partake in perfect mint tea and delicious baklava. We even got to keep the tea glass as a souvenier.
I got to pet a camel! Those of you who have read Amanda in Arabia, know how much I love camels.
We watched artisans at work, such as this potter
And this sculpture
And this baker making buns in a medieval oven!
Displays of sturdy ovenware for sale
and colourful graters, perfect for grating garlic, ginger, tomatoes and more
Street entertainers were spotted everywhere.
Medieval musicians
and dancers wound their way through the streets as in days of old.
Even a troll
and other scary woodland creatures
Adults dressed up in their finery
And children got to be a king for a day!
How would you like to buy a suit of armour?
We stopped for lunch at a charming little restaurant frequented by the entertainers!
There were plenty of food stalls with fresh produce
waiting to be cooked over the hot coals, resulting in paella and other mouthwatering dishes
We decided not to have soup with balls.
A handsome Bedouin poses for us by his tent
To catch the spirit of the day, watch the video I took while there. You might feel like you have gone back in time like I did.
64 Responses to "Medieval Thyme"
February 13, 2019 at 4:48 am
Looks like an amazing day 🙂
February 13, 2019 at 4:54 am
What a day out, I love that colourful ovenware, it would go with my multi colour kitchen. Did you want to take a camel home?
February 13, 2019 at 5:49 am
I did but I knew hubby and the dog would not approve. The pottery here is very colourful.
February 13, 2019 at 5:04 am
Beautiful pictures, Darlene. Such wonderful handicraft and, of course, delicious-looking food! This reminds me of a vacation I took as a child together with my father in Tunisia. I still remember the wonderful taste of hot mint tea they prepared for us in the desert. And I got to ride a camel, too. Fond memories!
February 13, 2019 at 5:50 am
So pleased this evoked some good memories. The hot mint tea with fresh mint and honey was so good as was the assortment of baklava.
February 13, 2019 at 5:11 am
This looks absolutely brilliant we love things like this! Our best experience has been in France, Chateauneuf du Pape and their fete du veraison, a medieval festival held in the village annually over the first weekend in August. Amongst other things, archery, jousting, mock weddings, food stalls, banquets and …. free wine all weekend! Done it 3 times now.
February 13, 2019 at 5:53 am
Free wine! They served sangria at this event but you had to pay for it. Some years they have jousting at this one but not this year. You would enjoy this fiesta! A medieval festival in France would be great as well.
February 13, 2019 at 6:01 am
Take a peek at video, you’ll spit free wine from the fountain tap! https://youtu.be/-5Nc6JHfSEI
February 13, 2019 at 6:21 am
A great video, thanks. I forgot to mention the falconry which was popular as well.
February 13, 2019 at 5:29 am
What a fun event. I am endlessly intrigued by how people used to live.
February 13, 2019 at 5:54 am
It is great that they recreate the atmosphere so we don’t forget how it was.
February 13, 2019 at 5:48 am
That looks just so wonderful and so much fun! I wonder if the ‘Sopa con bolas’ stands for meatballs, although the usual Spanish term is ‘albóndigas’. Did you buy any souvenirs? I would have gone mad for all that earthenware. I love your beautiful and colourful pictures. And I hope the camels didn’t spit!!! 👍💖
February 13, 2019 at 5:59 am
I am sure they meant meatballs but translated literally it didn’t sound very appealing. My friend bought a grater and I bought some spices and a cake to bring home to Paul. (It was delicious) Camels don’t usually spit unless you anger them. They knew I loved them.
February 13, 2019 at 6:43 am
This is awesome. I could spend the whole three days there, lost in time. Thank you for sharing.
February 13, 2019 at 8:00 am
You would just love it. This was my third time to visit and it is different every time.
February 13, 2019 at 7:40 am
How wonderful! It’s like a Sturbridge Village or Williamsburg having a festival. Fabulous photos, Darlene.
February 13, 2019 at 8:03 am
It was like stepping into a storybook! So glad you enjoyed the pictures. Always difficult to choose which ones to include. I always take so many.
February 13, 2019 at 11:42 am
You look happy to be there! Lovely and colourful.
February 13, 2019 at 2:35 pm
I love these sorts of cultural and historical festivals they have in Europe and the UK, Darlene. Fabulous photographs.
February 13, 2019 at 4:16 pm
What an incredible experience and adventure! Wonderful photos!
February 13, 2019 at 6:01 pm
I adore these festivals but I generally manage to miss them by just a day or two. Two years ago we went to Alcoy specifically for Moors and Christians and it was wonderful!
February 13, 2019 at 6:46 pm
That used to happen to us all the time when we would visit Spain. I have the Alcoy Moors and Christians Festival on my list. They do such a good job of these things here in Spain.
February 13, 2019 at 9:35 pm
Darlene, I ended up reading your post from the end, watching the video first. I thought you were in Tunisia or such!! A wonderful Moorish feel to this area of Spain, the film really carries across the spirit of the occasion (in spite of the passers by walking on … I always tend to stop if I see people taking photos, videoing!). The paella looks divine and the costumes are fantastic. As for the camel, did you get to ride one? Or have you ever? A wonderful magical day out for you … and for us here. Thank you for sharing. hugs xx
February 14, 2019 at 12:07 am
It was impossible to get pictures and videos without some of the onlookers in them as it was very busy and crowded. It’s a popular event. The costumes were amazing. I didn’t ride a camel this time but I did ride one in the UAE a few years back. I based a chapter of Amanda in Arabia on that ride! It was a magical day for me and I’m so pleased you enjoyed the post.
February 13, 2019 at 10:41 pm
What a wonderful day out. I love all those beautiful crafts. All very tempting.
February 14, 2019 at 12:08 am
The crafts were amazing and I only showed a few pictures. A great day!
February 13, 2019 at 11:07 pm
Oh my goodness—I love all of these pictures and I feel like I am right there along with you. Thanks for sharing —love the camel pics of course!
February 14, 2019 at 12:09 am
I knew you would love the camel picture. Happy to have you along!
February 14, 2019 at 4:47 am
I’ve always savored the Medieval period in English history & literature when I taught it. Through your post I feel the same affinity in Spain. The video was extra special – I felt as though I’d gone back in thyme. Great post!
February 14, 2019 at 4:54 am
It was a fascinating time in history so I can see how you would enjoy teaching it. Glad it took you back!!
February 14, 2019 at 5:32 am
Oh, this looks like my kind of Day, Darlene – wonderful!
February 14, 2019 at 11:20 am
It looks fascinating. How wonderful that you were able to experience this!
February 14, 2019 at 11:51 am
Spain sounds like one festival after another. Would have loved browsing through this one, though. What fun! Loved your photos, as always.
February 14, 2019 at 6:22 pm
The Spanish people do love their fiestas. They have more religious holidays than anywhere else. This is a fun one. It is about 3 kilometers long and you are tired at the end of walking through it but it’s well worth it. Glad you enjoyed the pictures.
February 14, 2019 at 4:25 pm
That looks fabulous Darlene, so colourful. I love those plates. 🙂
February 15, 2019 at 7:15 am
That looks very fun! Fiesta en España! The paella is enormous and looks delicious. -Rebecca
February 15, 2019 at 7:55 am
It was so much fun. The paella was huge and there was more than one!
February 16, 2019 at 2:05 am
What a great day you had. I remember riding on a camel many years ago.
February 16, 2019 at 3:07 am
This looks like so much fun, Darlene – and I’m embarrassed to admit my mouth started watering when I read ‘baklava’, lol.
February 16, 2019 at 3:13 am
There is nothing better than freshly made baklava! No need to be embarrassed. I love it with mint tea too. It was a fun day.
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February 17, 2019 at 2:45 am
[…] These are some amazing photos via Medieval Thyme […]
February 28, 2019 at 3:06 pm
Magical! Very tired today and very not well, so just stopping by. Congrats on great post.
Darlene Foster's Blog 
February 13, 2019 at 4:44 am
Wow! These are great pictures. Looks fun and interesting too.
February 13, 2019 at 5:47 am
Thanks, Anne. It is always a lot of fun!!