Population: 46,000,000; According to the Spanish government, 11% of the population is comprised of foreigners. Spain has always been a melting pot, and today it has the highest number of immigrants in the EU, due in part to its cultural ties with Latin America, its border, its underground economy and the strength of its agricultural/construction economy which demand low cost labour, and the people who retire along the 8000km of beaches along the Spanish Mediterranean coast.
Area: Second largest country in Western Europe after France
Currency: Euro
Part of EU?: Yes (since 1986)
Parliament: President Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero (Zapatero means shoemaker); King Juan Carlos I
Languages: Spanish is the only official language, however in their respective regions, Basque (in the Basque Country and Navarre), Catalan (in Catalonia and the Balearic Islands), Valencian (in the Valencian Community), and Galician (in Galicia) have been declared co-official.
Religion: 94% Roman Catholic; immigration has brought an increasing number of Muslims, making it the second largest religion (although still only around 2%).
Rivers: Madrid is the only European capital not located on a river.
Mountains: the Sierra Nevadas, the Pyrenees (Spain is the most mountainous country in Europe after Switzerland and Austria)
Well-Known Companies: Zara, Mango, Chupa Chups (“sucky sucks”).
QUICK HISTORY
In the 15th century, Spain was made up of several different kingdoms (and in a way, it still is, but more on that later); Portugal, Navarre, Aragon, Castile. But in 1469 came one of the most famous weddings of all time; Prince Ferdinand of Aragon married Princess Isabella of Castile. They then made sure that their children married advantageously; they married their daughter Joanna to the Duke of Burgundy (Philip of Habsburg, son of Mary and Max), and their other daughter to one of the Tudors, Henry 8th’s brother, Prince Arthur.
Isabella was very religious, so in 1492, she invited Pope Sixtus to set up an inquisition to find out whether the Muslims and Jews in the country (there were many of them), were actually practising Christianity, as they said they were, or if they were secretly still practising their own religion behind closed doors. This was the Spanish Inquisition (Reconquista); they used torture to get results, and the guilty were paraded through the streets and burned at the stake. They finished by getting revenge on the Muslims for taking Constantinople away from Christianity by conquering Granada, the last Muslim stronghold in the West. Not surprisingly, the Reformation happened only 20 years later.
These were the Spanish glory days. The same year, Christopher Columbus came to visit, asking for a grant to sail to the new world. Rumor has it, Isabella had a little crush on him, so she backed him, and when he returned, Spain reaped all the glory of his discoveries.
Joanna and Philip’s daughter, Charles V, subsequently became king of Castile and Aragon, Duke of Burgundy, and soon Holy Roman Emperor. He ruled mostly from Spain, but also the Low Lands, and his other territories as well. He was the lord of all Spain’s lands in the New World as well, as well as the Habsburg lands (coinciding with his counterpart on the Austrian Habsburg branch). Their explorers went off in search of El Dorado, the fabled land of gold, and in the meantime conquered the Aztecs and the Incas.
In 1493, the Pope drew a line down the world and gave half to Spain and the other half to Portugal. They started importing slaves from Africa to populate and work on their new lands. In 1580, King Philip II (Charles V’s son) took over the Portuguese Empire, making him King of the first world Superpower. He was a complete control freak, and felt that God had given him this power and he would use it to defend his religion.
The other players in Europe started to take notice of Spain’s expanding Empire, and decided to close in on North America, ambush Spanish ships, and claim more territory for Protestantism (making the religious wars global).
Speaking of the religious wars, they were raging in Europe. The Reformation was sweeping the continent, the Dutch Calvinists were smashing Church statues in their Iconoclastic Fury. Philip, with help from the Venetians and Austrians, crushed the Muslim Turks, a major coup for Christianity by its Most Catholic King. But that was Spain’s last major success for a while: the Spanish Armada he sent to topple Elizabeth I and take the English throne was defeated; the Dutch Revolted, and after all the fighting, Philip led Spain right into bankruptcy.
By the 17th century, Spain had ceded command of the seas to England and France. Portugal declared independence, the Dutch had surpassed them and were having their own Golden Age. By 1700, the last Spanish Habsburg, Charles II, died without an heir (ending that Habsburg branch). The crown was going to pass to Philip, a relative of his and, incidentally, grandson of Louis XIV of France. This meant that he was in line to acquire the thrones of both Spain and France, and the rest of Europe was not impressed with the idea of such a great consolidation of power. The War of the Spanish Succession ensued, which ended with all of Spain’s possessions divided between the Austrians, British, and French. Philip kept the throne of Spain, but had to give up his claim to the French throne. Spain had become like its most famous literary hero, Don Quixote, who doesn't realize his glory days are over.Spain was neutral in both world wars, but it had its own problems during the Spanish Civil War. In 1936, Spain had elected a left-wing government, which was challenged by a right-wing army general named Francisco Franco. People came from all over the world to fight this war in Spain. The left-wing sumpathizers joined the International Brigade, and other dictactors such as Hitler and Mussolini sent assistance to their friend Franco. The atrocious bombing of the Basque town Guernica on market day was memorialized in Picasso’s painting (found in Madrid’s Reina Sofia Museum).
By 1939, Franco had defeated the government and declared himself dictator of Spain. He ruled Spain until his death in 1975, and the next ruler, King Juan Carlos, was a good, democratic ruler. Spain joined the EU in 1985, showing that they were democratic.
After the terrorist attacks on the U.S. on September 11, 2001, Spain backed the military action in Afghanistan and Iraq, and lead the EU in pushing for increased international cooperation on terrorism. Spanish parliamentary elections on March 14, 2004 came only three days after the terrorist attack on Madrid commuter rail lines that killed 191 and wounded over 1,400. With large voter turnout, PSOE Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, took office on April 17, 2004. Carrying out campaign promises, he immediately withdrew Spanish forces from Iraq but has continued to support Iraq reconstruction efforts.
Today, there are over 400 million Spanish speakers worldwide, as a result of their previous world-domination. As a country that freed itself from fascism only 30 years ago, Spain may be the most underrated economic success story on the planet. However, the downside of the real estate boom has been a corresponding rise in the levels of personal debt; as prospective homeowners struggle to meet asking prices, the average level of household debt has tripled in less than a decade The government continues to battle the Basque Fatherland and Liberty (ETA) terrorist organization, but its major focus for the immediate future will be on measures to reverse the severe economic recession that started in mid-2008.
Spain is now spiralling into the worst crisis since the Franco dictatorship. Over 10% of Spain's economy had been building houses. This compares with 6%-7% in the US at the height of the bubble. House prices fell drastically, expected to fall by 35% by 2011. There were almost a million unsold homes. In Castilla-La Mancha - ironically, Don Quixote's region - some 69% of all houses built over the past three years are still unsold. Spain, once again, is that old knight, wandering past empty houses in the countryside of a country that was once the greatest power in the world.
But ... it's not all bad!
Spain is:
... the world's second most popular tourist destination (after France)
...(after Italy), home to the second highest number of UNESCO sites in the world, with a total of 40 (including the Alhambra, the most visited spot in the country).
...the world's sixth-largest car manufacturer
... the eigth-biggest economy in the developed world
... the most land covered by vineyards
...home to the most bars per person than any other country (San Sebastian has the most bars per capita)
FLAMENCO
When the Gypsies arrived in Spain from India in the 1400s, Andalucia was still under Arab rule. However, the Spanish Inquisition took place shortly after their arrival, and Jews, Muslims and Gypsies alike were forced to either convert to Christianity and give up ties with their original culture, or retreat. The three groups banded together through their shared persecution, and all of their cultures, music and dance fused together to become flamenco. When they finally were allowed to come out of their hiding places and re-integrate into society, flamenco spread.
In its original form, Flamenco was only voice, a primitive cry or chant accompanied only by the rhythm which would be beaten out on the floor by a wooden staff or cane. Today, Flamenco is made up of four elements, Cante-Voice, Baile-Dance, Toque-Guitar, and the Jaleo, which roughly translated means “hell raising” and involves the handclapping, foot stomping, and shouts of encouragement.
Another important component of flamenco is the element known as duende, and this is shrouded in as much mystery as flamenco itself. Writers and poets over the years have given duende a magical and mysterious meaning, a spiritual significance that goes beyond human understanding.
The poet Federico Garcia Lorca romanticized duende saying, “Duende could only be present when one sensed that death possible.”
Many will say that duende can only be experienced in certain surroundings like an intimate flamenco session where a singer will be possessed by the dark tones of the song and the spirit will enter the mind and soul of anyone who opens up to it.
Flamenco is mostly popular in Southern Spain, in Andalusia where it originated.
Possibly began during the Roman Empire, the word “siesta” comes from the Latin term “hora sexta” (Sixth hour). This is the term used by Romans to refer to the period of time between 2pm and 4pm, when they would have their lunch and then have a nap in the heat of the day.
Spaniards typically get an hour less sleep per night than other Europeans (which suits their lifestyle of eating dinner no earlier than 10pm and only starting to party at midnight). However, a law has recently passed that changes government employees' work hours to a 9-5 schedule, to get them in line with the work hours of other European countries.
BULLFIGHTING
Bullfights were popular spectacles in ancient Rome, but it was in the Iberian Peninsula that these contests were fully developed. The Moors from North Africa who overran Andalusia in AD 711 changed bullfighting significantly from the brutish, formless spectacle practised by the conquered Visigoths to a ritualistic occasion observed in connection with feast days, on which the conquering Moors, mounted on highly trained horses, confronted and killed the bulls.
As bullfighting developed, the men on foot, who by their capework aided the horsemen in positioning the bulls, began to draw more attention from the crowd, and the modern corrida began to take form. Today the bullfight is much the same as it has been since about 1726.
Today, bullfighting is most associated with Spain, but the world's largest bullring is located in Mexico City, while the oldest bullring is found in Peru.
Six bulls, to be killed by three matadors, are usually required for one afternoon's corrida, and each encounter lasts about 15 minutes.
Matadors wear gold-embroidered outfits that cost thousands of euros. They have practised and studied this artform since they were children, and they get their applause and respect depending on how close they get to the bull and how graceful their movements. Also, in order to kill the bull, they must stab it directly between the shoulders, which calls for very precise and skilled swordwork.
While there is usually no doubt about the outcome, the bull is not viewed as a sacrificial victim - it is instead seen by the audience as a worthy adversary, deserving of respect in its own right. Bulls learn fast and their capacity to do so should never be underestimated. Indeed, a bullfight may be viewed as a race against time for the matador, who must display his bullfighting skills before the animal learns what is going on and begins to thrust its horns at something other than the cape.
For the matador, this means performing skillfully in front of the bull, often turning his back on it to demonstrate his mastery over the animal. The skill with which he delivers the fatal blow is another major point to look for. A skillful matador will achieve it in one stroke. Two is barely acceptable, while more than two is usually regarded as a bad job.
Ernest Hemingway pointed out in Death in the Afternoon: “The bullfight is not a sport in the Anglo-Saxon sense of the word; that is, it is not an equal contest or an attempt at an equal contest between a bull and a man. Rather it is a tragedy: the death of the bull, which is played, more or less well, by the bull and the man involved and in which there is danger for the man but certain death for the bull.”
Bullfighting supporters say: "The bullfight is a portrayal of life as it is, from life to death ... All the activists see the blood, they don't see the art. The fight is the struggle between man and beast, transformed into art."
68% of Spaniards express no interest in bullfighting, and National Spanish TV has banned it from being televised. Some in Spain despise bullfighting because of its association with the Spanish nation and its blessing by the Franco regime as the fiesta nacional. It is criticized for its cruelty to animals, as well as for the expense (it receives grants of up to 6 million euros per year).
The Catalan government is seeking to ban bullfighting this year, and would be the first region in Spain to do so if they are successful.
SPANISH FESTIVALS La Tomatina (Bunol)
San Fermin (Pamplona)
Las Fallas (Valencia)
... there is even a baby-jumping festival near Burgos, where babies are lined up and jumped over!
SPANISH CUISINE
-Italy might have perfected pasta, but the Spanish brought tomatoes back from America, and someone made the first tomato sauce out of them (and the tomatoes also enhanced Gazpacho, which until then had just been an Andalusian cold vegetable soup).
- Olive oil is used lavishly in Spain, the largest olive grower on the planet.
Tortilla: Potato/egg omelette
Churros: Donuts dipped in chocolate
MENU DEL DIA: the most economical way to eat in Spain; three courses at lunch, all delicious and all for one low price.PAELLA
Paella originated in the Valencian region. The word stems from the latin for PAN, and it was eaten by poor people who threw everything into a pan to make a meal. Valencian paella consists of white rice, green vegetables, meat, snails, beans and seasoning. Seafood paella replaces meat and snails with seafood and omits beans and green vegetables. Mixed paella is a free-style combination of meat, seafood and sometimes beans; The rata de marjal, marsh rat, was one of the main ingredients of early paellas.
The biggest paella in history was made in Valencia and eaten by over 100,000 people. During Las Fallas, you'll find huge pots of paella cooking in the streets of Valencia.
JAMON SERRANO:
“Cured Meat”; it is rubbed with salt, hung up for a year or so (you’ll see it hanging in bars around Spain, and on the pole at La Tomatina); the most expensive type is Jamon Iberico, for which prices start at around 100 euros.
TAPAS
There is an old Madrid ruling (dating from the 11th century) that alcoholic drinks must be accompanied by a nourishing tidbit in order to "lesson their noxious influence," so you usually get a small free tapa thrown in with your drink.
Pintxos is the Basque version of tapas, meaning "something with a stick."
Jugs or glasses of wine used to be cover with a tapa (a piece of jamon, for example).
-San Miguel and Estrella beer;
-Valencia Orange Juice
-Horchata/orxata (almond millk drink)
SPANISH WINE
Until fairly recently, Spain was not taken particularly seriously as a winemaking region. Overshadowed by France and Italy, it was mainly associated with cheap red wine and sangria (and calimoxo). But thanks to the innovative practices of a handful of winemakers, and particularly of those in Catalonia, Spanish wine is currently undergoing a renaissance, offering some of the best wines (like Spanish Rioja) in the world.
CAVA
Made by the same method as French champagne, most of the high-end producers will swear that cava is as good as, if not better than, champagne. The most famous brand of cava is Freixenet.
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SPANISH CELEBRITIES: Pedro Almodovar, Penelope Cruz, Julio and Enrique Iglesias, Antonio Banderas, Javier Bardem, Guillermo del Toro (director of "Pan's Labyrinth")
(1813-1906)
The architect of Barcelona who was killed by a tram when he stepped back to admire his work.
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS
-Actually an Italian, he wasn't finding the funding he needed from his own country, so he turned to Ferdinand and Isabella, and they gave him what he needed.
The Columbus monument in Barcelona is supposed to point out towards the new world (the U.S), but it doesn’t actually point there because if it did, it would be pointing inland
ARTISTS: Diego Velazquez, Francisco Goya, Picasso, Salvador Dali
Sport: Rafael Nadal is one of the top tennis players,
SPANISH FOOTBALL:
The Spanish team won the 2008 Euro Cup; (Spain has never won the World Cup); La Liga, (The Spanish League) is ranked as the highest division of football and it is considered to be one of the world's best competitions. Successful teams in recent European competitions include Real Madrid (The Most Successful, having won the Euro Cup five years in a row, from 1956-1960), FC Barcelona (doesn’t accept sponsorship payments, but wears UNICEF shirts), Sevilla FC, Villareal FC and Valencia FC. Real Madrid and Barcelona have dominated La Liga for much of its history.
QUIRKY FACTS
-The Spanish word for “wife” is esposa, which is the same word they use for handcuffs.
-It was the Basques, not the French, who invented the beret
-Public nudity is legal in Spain
-Spain was the third country in the EU to legalize same-sex marriage (after Belgium and The Netherlands)
-There’s no concrete evidence that King Pedro of Castile spoke with a lisp and it therefore spread through the region (no one knows where the lisp really came from)
Language
You’re fit: Hola Guapa! Guapo!
Hello: Hola
Goodbye: Ciao
Thank You: Gracias
You’re welcome: De Nada
Excuse Me/Sorry: Lo siento
Yes: Si
No: Non
Do you speak English?: Hablas Ingles?
Where is?: Donde Esta?
How much? Quanto cuesta?
One: Uno
Two: Dos
Three: Tres
Four: Quatro
Five: Cinco
Water: Agua
Beer: Cervez
Wine: Vino
Cheers!: Salute!
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