Spain Travel

Archive for the ‘Spain Facts: Interesting Facts About Spain’ Category

Spain is situated in the Northern hemisphere and is a reasonably big country. Being a large country there are various climactic zones within the same country. Climate of a country is largely dependent on relief features of that land and when we look at the relief features of Spain, we see that there is vast difference in the relief features of the coastal areas and the interiors. The lowland formed by the river Guadalquivir and also the highlands of Sierra Nevada occupy the southern part of Spain and the Sierra Nevada is a major relief feature on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea.

Therefore it is evident that Spain enjoys diverse climate and weather changes, in fact Spain is known for its diverse climates and there is a saying that in Spain you might enjoy the snow fall in one part of the country while in the other you might just enjoy the cool breeze of the sea with your swim suit on. This diversity and variety in weather condition comes from the vastness of the landmass of Spain. The eastern part of Spain experiences weather conditions that are far dissimilar to weather conditions in the western part and similarly the weather in North Spain varies from weather in South Spain. Spain has many mountains and its weather is also affected by the influence of two water bodies namely, Mediterranean and Atlantic. Let us take a brief look at the various climates and the zones, which experience these climates.

Different Weather Zones

Spain can be fairly divided into the following three weather zones except for Canary Islands where it is pleasant throughout the year, summers and winters being mild and rainfall being scarce. These islands are favorite tourist destination in Spain and they roughly have the same kind of climate though when studied in detail it can be observed that every island has one or the other unique weather aspect.

Continental Weather Zone-The Central region of Spain experiences the Continental kind of weather, so we can say if you are in Madrid you would experience the Continental weather. Continental weather would mean extremes of temperature with little rainfall so when the temperature increases it might rise up to 30 to 40 degree Celsius and when it starts decreasing it might fall below 4 degree Celsius.

Maritime Weather Zone - As we understand by “maritime”, the weather never reaches the extremes and is moderate most of the time which is due to the influence of an adjacent water body and the land breeze and sea breeze that works against the prevalent climate. Therefore north and northwest part of Spain, being close to the Atlantic Ocean experience climate that is neither hot and neither cold. Winters are not cold and summers are not hot because in summer the cool sea breeze creates a cooling effect and similarly in winter the hot sea breeze does not let the temperature go really low. This region receives high rainfall due to the proximity to the sea

Mediterranean Weather Zone- Mediterranean Weather is primarily hot and even in winters there are hardly cold days though the atmosphere becomes cool and this kind of weather can be found in the eastern coast of Spain. The duration that this region receives sunshine is more than average – during summers the duration of sunshine is somewhere around twelve hours a day and in winters it is around six hours a day. Though there is hardly a season which can be called winter yet this is one of the most visited regions of Spain owing to the beach like climate which is favorite for the visitors who take a break from the cold climates of their countries. In this zone rainfall is moderate and comes mostly as a part of the sea storms.

The official nomenclature of Spain is the Kingdom of Spain. Spain is located in Southern Europe and has two enclaves, territories surrounded by other countries in North Africa. The origin of the names Espania and Spain is said to be rooted in the Roman name ‘Hispania’. Here are some interesting facts about Spain.

Spain is bound by the Meditarranean Sea on the south and the east. It shares it borders with the Bay of Biscay on the north and is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the west. It’s terrestrial borders are shared with Morocco, Gibraltar, Andorra, Portugal and France. Spain is the largest of all the sovereign states making up the Iberian Peninsula.

The Iberians, Basques and the Celts were the original inhabitants of Spain. It became a part of the Roman Empire in 206 B.C. It was later ruled by Visigothic rulers, Muslims, the Franks and the Christians.

In the 1600s, SPain ruled the entire Iberian Peninsula, a number of Carribean Islands, most of central America, South America and parts of North America. The Spanish Empire, as it was known then, also included Austria, parts of France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands.

Spain is the country nearest to Africa. Spain has contributed a lot to world history and culture. In ancient times, the Pheonicans traded with spain for minerals. When Spain was ruled by Islam, it was famous for its learning. Cordoba in Spain became the global center for studying literature, philosophy, medicine and science. Eusaska, the language spoken by the Basque population, is one of the oldest living languages in the world. The Basque people live in the Pyrenees in North Central Spain.

Spain has been instrumental also in the discovering of places and other important landmarks in the extension of the globe. Ferdinand Magellan, a Portuguese explorer was the first to complete a circumnavigation of the globe. He was financed by Spain.

Christopher Columbus was financed by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, who then ruled Castille and Aragon in Spain for his journey to America. Spanish Explorers also have claimed a number of countries in the early sixteenth century. Francisco Pizarro invaded Peru, while Pedro de Mendonza colonized Argentina and Hernan Cortes annexed Mexico.

The Spanish have contributed a lot towards literature as we know it today. Ernest Hemingway wrote the famous novel ‘For Whom The Bells Toll’ about the Spanish Civil War. ‘Don Quixote’, which is considered by some to be the first modern novel, was written by the Spanish Miguel de Cervantes. The oldest known Spanish poem is about the Eil Cid, an eleventh century hero from Castille.

Today, Spain is an constitutional monarchy consisting of a parliament with two legislative chambers and a hereditary monarch. A council of Ministers is presided by the President of Government for the executive branch, whereas the legislative branch consists of a Congress of Deputies. The President of Government post is equivalent to the post of a Prime Minister in other countries.

The Congress of Deputies consists of three hundred and fifty members, all of them elected by popular voting. They serve a four year term. The Senate in the legislative branch is consists of two hundred and fifty seats. Two hundred and eight seats are elected by popular voite, whereas the other fifty one are elected by the regional legislatures. They serve a four year term.

Spain is the eighth largest economy in the world. The purchasing power parity as of 2006 is estimated to be more than one thousand billion dollars. The real growth rate as of 2005 is estimated to be about three percent. The purchasing power parity per capita is about twenty six thousand dollars.