A Trip Through Spain

Spain is located on the Iberian Peninsula, and with Portugal, it helps to form the westernmost peninsula of southern Europe. The major religion is Catholic, and the population of Spain as of July 2007 was 40,448,191. Spain has a bicameral legislature that has many of the same powers that the United States Legislature (ratification, repealing, and reforming laws). The king still proposes the names for Prime Minister, but the legislative house, the Cortes, has to approve the appointment. Spain uses the Euro as currency. They joined the organization six years ago. The Spanish economy is really bad, but they still produce the majority of the world's citrus fruits, but only three of Europe's top 100 companies are Spanish. The unemployment is high in present day Spain with Barcelona holding 85% of Spain's industrial companies.

Spain is famous for its tourist attractions. One of the famed attractions of Spain would be the Tomantina Fight. A truck drops off a bunch of tomatoes, thus starting the world's biggest food fight. This food fight starts with a ham on pole. People have a race to retrieve ham by climbing up the pole. This all started as a food fight between young carnival goers. When people have thrown all of the tomatoes, the fight is over. Another famous attraction is bullfighting. Bullfighting started in 711 A.D. The first bullfight took place as celebration for crowning of King Alonso. The bull is drawn by the movement of the cape not the color. Another main attraction is the running of the bulls. The running of the bulls is a famous world renowned festival that started out of respect for San Fermin. It takes place each year from July 7th- July 14th, as thousands go to Pamplona. The contest starts as the runners honor San Fermin with a song. Rockets are let off to signal the start of the running. People run 825 meters to the ring looking for any sort of gap in a fence or diversion.

One can't talk about Spanish culture without talking about Flamenco dancing. Flamenco music originated around 200 years ago as a combination of song, dance, and rhythm. Flamenco has shaped modern day Jazz.

Some famous festivals:
a)Tamborrada de San Sebastian: massive drum festival as marchers march to deafening sounds parading through city on first day of year
b)Feria de Abril/April Fair: shortly after Holy Week; belief of spirit taking over throats of flamenco singers and arms and legs of dancers. Multicolored tents, wreaths and paper lanterns fill the sky
c)Fiesta de Haro: "summer festivals" The most famous festival is the wine battle.

Some famous Spanish landmarks are El Escorial, a famous building built by Felipe II after he defeated France in 1557, Old Town of Segovia and aquaduct,the Roman walls of Lugo, and Burgos Cathedral. Some famous people from Spain include painters Salvador Dali and Pablo Picasso, actors Antonio Banderas and Penelope Cruz , and singer Enrique Inglesias. Famous historical events in Spain's history include the Spanish Inquisition. It was established in 1478 to detect heretics, or people that disagreed with the Catholic Church. The inquisition served as inspiration for the Edgar Allan Poe story, “The Pit and the Pendulum.” Another major event in the history of Spain would be the Spanish Civil War. The war itself took place from 1936-1939. A rebel army led by Francisco Franco rose up out of Morocco to take on the democratically elected government. This struggle was captured by Pablo Picasso in his painting "Guernica."
I would like to go to Spain, because it is a country that has always intrigued me. I would enjoy the festivals and attractions. I have watched a bull fight on television and greatly enjoyed it. I could only imagine actually being there. Running with the bulls has always sounded good to me. Spain would be a great country to visit due to the food, people, culture, and atmosphere.