Christmas in Spain

Christmas in Spain

The first thing that the visitor will notice is that Christmas in Spain is not as huge a commercial occasion as is the case in many other western cities. Christmas lights are usually lit in the main cities in the first week of December by which time the shops are fully stocked with Christmas supplies. Nothing like the US and UK where the end of summer marks the build up to Christmas.

Christmas trees are common in the home but again they don't appear until the second half of December. Also in the home there intricate, miniature nativity scenes calledBelénes which depict life in the village where Jesus was born. The Belén always include the baby Jesus, Mary, Joseph as well as the Three Kings, Baltasar, Melchior and Gaspar.

The chronological order of notable Christmas events in Spain is as follows:

December 8th - This is the public holiday of Immaculada (Feast of the Immaculate Conception) which marks the beginning of the religious Christmas celebrations. Most notable in Seville.21st December - In a few cities including Granada the celebration of Hogueras(bonfires) takes place. This date marks the winter solstice (shortest day) and where it is celebrated involves people jumping through fires to protect themselves against illness.

22nd December - All over Spain people never stray far from a TV or radio as theChristmas lottery is drawn over a period of many hours. Everybody in Spain buys tickets for this lottery in the hope of winning El Gordo (the fat one) and the winning number usually means that a good number of people from the same village become a lot better off overnight. Besides the big three prizes there are thousands of smaller prizes shared by people all over Spain.24th December - Christmas Eve is called Nochebuena in Spanish (Goodnight) and it is the most important family gathering of the year. In the evening people often meet early for a few drinks with friends then return home to enjoy a meal with the family. Most bars and restaurants close in the evening. Prawn starters followed by roast lamb would be a typical meal rounded off with a typically Christmas sweet called turrón which is a nougat made of toasted sweet almonds. Another typical festive sweet is called Polvoroneswhich is made from almonds, flour and sugar. Cava, Catalan champagne, would be the chosen drink for the Christmas toast though plenty fine Spanish wines will also be consumed with the meal.

25th December - Children may receive a small gift on Nochebuena or this morning but the day for presents is 6th January, Epiphany, when the Three Kings bring gifts for the children. Christmas Day is a national holiday in Spain so shops are closed yet it is not a day of great celebration but rather a calm day when people go out for a walk, drop into a bar, etc. Another large family meal at lunchtime is common though it's becoming more common to see families eating out on the afternoon of Christmas day.28th December - This is the day of Santos Inocentes (Holy Innocents) and is the equivalent of April Fools' Day when people play practical jokes on one another. Often the national media will include a nonsense story in their broadcasts. In some villages youngsters of a village light bonfires and one of them acts as the mayor who orders townspeople to carry out civic tasks such as sweeping the streets. Refusal to comply results in fines which are used to pay for the celebration.

31st December - New Year's Eve is known as NocheVieja. It is a big celebration all over the country with street parties and special nights in hotels and clubs everywhere. Until midnight people tend to stay at home and on the stroke of midnight it is traditional to eat 12 grapes, one on each stroke of the clock to bring good luck for the new year. In Madrid and other main cities revellers congregate in the main square (Puerta del Sol in Madrid) and eat the grapes along with a celebratory bottle of cava then head out into the night until after sunrise.1st January - A low key public holiday with plenty people sleeping off their excesses.

Reasons to fly to Spain

Reasons to fly to Spain

Spain is more than bullfights, flamenco dancers and crowded beaches. It's a spectacular and diverse country, the north resembling the rolling, green hills of Ireland and the south giving you a taste of Moroccan landscapes and architecture. Its tremendous history is reflected in its prehistoric cave paintings, Moorish palaces, crumbling castles, Roman ruins, Gothic and Renaissance cathedrals as well as some very distinctive modern architecture. The uniqueness of Spain lies in the separate kingdoms which made up the original Spanish nation. These regions remain diverse in their language, culture, cuisine and art. They include: Andalucía, Aragon, Asturias, Basque Country, the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands, Cantabria, Castilla La Mancha, Castilla León, Catalonia, Extremadura, Galicia, La Rioja, Madrid, Murcia, Navarra and Valencia. Spain Beaches Excellent and quiet beaches can be found near Malaga, Huelva and Almería in the south as well as near the coasts of La Manga, Galicia, Asturias, Cantabria and Euskadi. If you do enjoy extremely developed resort towns, there are plenty of crowded beaches on the Costa de la Luz and the Costa del Sol. Interesting is the harbour of Almerimar with cosy bars, just south of El Ejido (Almeria). Very unique architecture can be found in Córdoba, Salamanca, Granada, Toledo, Madrid... The visionary architecture of Antoni Gaudí and the Picasso museum are in Barcelona while Madrid is home to Spain’s top three art museums. There is some incredible, unique accommodation in these cities that is really worth taking a look at. You will no longer simply be visiting the architectural gems, but staying inside them! With hundreds of Barcelona apartments located throughout the city, it really is the best way to experience this enchanting location. Costa Blanca Holidays Spain Countryside If you would rather get some fresh air, Spain is filled with opportunities to visit wildlife parks as well as trekking. The Pyrenees, especially around the Aragón area, are the best areas for trekking. Andalucía has its Sierra Nevada mountain chain with luxurious skiing resorts near Granada. Ski-sports are possible from November up to May. Between Guadix and Baza (famous horsemarket) one can find cave-dwellings, cave hotels, and beautiful natural parks. North and between these towns still are unexplored desert sceneries, with hamlets not even found on maps! The highway infrastructure in this "wild" part of Andalucia is excellent. Spain Social culture Spanish people are very open-hearted and comunicative. You won't have any problems to get to know someone, especially in the big cities like Madrid or Barcelona, and you can attend a big football match if you buy FC Barcelona Tickets. It's often said that the Spanish living room is the bar where the people usually spend a lot of time in the mornings and in the evenings. If you wish to discover Spain by car, we suggest you visit Rhino Car Hire Spain. If you are looking for cheap flights to Spain, why not visit Jet2.com.

source:http://www.justspain.org/

Things to do in Spain In each region's guide we have more specific things to do, but this is a list of our favourite things to do whilst in Spain. We hope you find it useful. Visit the Alhambra in Granada. This moorish fortified palace is absolutely incredible. The complex is vast and occupies a large portion of the city centre, so make sure you have a whole day to explore it. If you are visiting in the summer though, you are well advised to buy tickets in advance. See Frank Gehry's amazing architecture. Whether it is the amazing Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, the huge copper fish on Barcelona beach or the new conference and convention centre near Malaga Airport, all of Frank Gehry's pieces are futuristic masterpieces. Skiing in the Sierra Navada Mountains. Andalucia is blessed to have these mountains so close to legendary tourist spots such as Malaga and Torremolinos. During late spring you can go skiing in the morning and do a spot of sunbathing on the beach in the afternoon. Marvelously bizarre! Take part in a local village fiesta. The local fiestas are mostly religious in nature, but that doesnt mean that they arn't a lot of fun. The colourful processions are worth it in themselves, and the parties usuallu go on throughout the night. You can find out more information about Spanish Fiestas here. Experience Gaudi's Barcelona. Of all the buildings in Barcelona that Antoni Gaudi designed, no visit is more spectacular than Parc Guell. The large park has numerous buildings and sculptures featuring Gaudi's well known broken tile style, and elegant organic curves. A great day out for all ages. Do tapas! It is one of the Best and most uniquely Spanish things to sit in a bar in the evening and eat tapas while you have a drink. Find our more about tapas here. Sit outside in a cafe and watch the world go by! Spain's villages, towns and cities all have numerous cafe's when you can sit outside, enjoy a coffee and simply watch the world passing by. It is made all the better by the weather which is usually fine. Feel Surreal with Dali in Figueres. Salvadore Dali has become one of the most loved painters in the world, and his mausoleum/museum is a surreal as the visions he created. This is one of the highlights of the north of Spain. Stamp you heals to the Flamenco! A must do for Andalucia and the South of Spain is to catch some of the heel tapping music known as Flamenco. Twenty five years ago it looked like Flamenco was on the decline, but has recently enjoyed a huge surge in popularity, and not just as a tourist attraction...

Tourism in Spain

Spain travel guide

Spain is a beautiful and diverse country located in the southwest of Europe. It shares the Iberian Peninsula with Portugal, Gibraltar and Andorra. To the Northeast it borders with France and the tiny principality of Andorra. To the West its limits are defined by the Balearic Islands located in the centre of the Mediterranean Sea. Its Southern most territories are the picturesque Canary Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean and the cities of Ceuta and Melilla located in the North of Africa. This is why travelling to Spain is likely to be a enriching experience since tourism in the country offers a wide variety of destinations, activities and landscapes.

Spain is a country of large geographical and cultural diversity, often a surprise for tourists who are expecting to find a country mostly known for beach tourism. Travel to Spain and you will find everything, from lush meadows, green valleys, hills and snowy mountains in the Northern regions to almost desert zones in the South. Its beaches are also famous and worth visiting, small and charming creeks in the North and wide white sand beaches on the South and Western parts of the country, without forgetting the exotic black sand beaches of the volcanic Canary Islands.

Every year millions of tourists decide to travel to Spain, the country has been one of the most important tourist destinations of the last decades becoming the third most popular travel destination in Europe.

One of the better known cities is Madrid, capital city of Spain. Due to its central location, in the heart of Spain it has excellent communications with the rest of the provinces and is seat to the Spanish government and to the Royal Palace where the kings of Spain usually dwell. The city features distinctly winding streets, all of which seem to be heading either up or down and gather in the central square in the centre of the city.

Barcelona is probably one of the favorite destinations for tourists, a worldwide known city whose name recalls the awesome art of the architect Gaudi, the celebration of the 1992 Olympic games, and the cosmopolitan atmosphere of its streets. Tourism in the city offers also the possibility of enjoying its beaches and water sports.

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