The legend of the almond blossom in the Algarve, Portugal!
It is a folk tale that has been told for many centuries in different variations and in different places around the world. It seems that there is only one true place where this story belongs and that is in Portugal.
This romantic story tells of the love between a Moorish king and his queen from the North and how that love has ensured that it still “snows” in the Algarve every year, centuries after their wedding.
Once upon a time............
Like every story that tells of kings, queens and true love, this story also begins. Once upon a time, in the south of Portugal in the province of Al-Gharb, the Moorish name for the Algarve, there was a handsome king by the name of Ibn-Almundim.
He was a formidable general and won victory after victory. With this he contributed to the expansion of the Moorish empire on Portuguese territory. He was loved by his people and feared by his enemies. After winning another battle, the prisoners were brought to Xelb, the place that would later be called Silves.
King Ibn-Almundim saw among the prisoners a beautiful woman with a white skin, blue eyes and blond hair. The king fell in love with this princess from the North at once. She fell in love with him too and they got married. It was a celebration that was unparalleled.
Even after the wedding, everything was fine. The king and queen loved each other very much. Until one day, Queen Gilda fell ill. She felt sad, deeply unhappy and could only cry from longing for her homeland and from missing the winter snow.
The king found it terrible to see his great love like this. The king, who would have done anything for his wife, desperately searched for a solution. From his homeland he had thousands of almond trees brought to Xelb and planted around the castle.
He took her to the window and threw open the shutters so she could look out. Queen Gilda couldn't believe her eyes. All the hills around the castle and all the trees looked as if they were covered in snow, thanks to the white almond blossoms!
They lived happily ever after
Every spring when the almond trees blossomed and covered the hills in a layer of white blossoms, Queen Gilda felt as if she were back home in the far North. The queen no longer felt homesick and lived happily ever after with her husband, King Ibn-Almundim.
Spring
This old legend speaks of one of the most typical elements of the Algarve landscape: the many beautiful flowering almond trees, which every winter fill the fields with their delicate white and pink blossoms. They promise us that spring is coming!
Photo: our blossoming almond tree with Casa Pauline in the background 
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