A Glance at Toledo

The Tagus River is the longest river in the Iberian Peninsula (the southwest corner of Europe). Toledo is fortified by location due to the Tagus River that runs through the city and many different types of soil around the town. 

What challenges do people face living in this environment?:

The biggest challenge faced by people living in this environment was the development of their city. Toledo is also known as a city of three cultures. Those three cultures are Muslim, Jewish, and Christian cultures that have impacted all of the city’s development. The biggest challenges people faced may not have been noticed naturally. The challenges may have been their politics or the government structure that was not efficient enough. However, since trading was the way to develop cities in earlier centuries, being landlocked may have hindered the progress of Toledo. 

How have people been adapting to this environment?:

During my visit, I noticed people fishing at the Tagus River. That means that a lot of freshwater fish are in the river. For example, trouts are caught and used as the local food source and have been the local food source for several centuries. As early as the second century, local agricultural engineers have been developing ways to plow the land to reap the most from it. I learned that not only did these agricultural engineers developed ways to best utilize soil, but they also devised ways to create hydraulic systems (a fancy word for using water to power machines). These systems produce electrical power. Ditches, wells, and pumps were among the earliest things to be designed by these early engineers.

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