España
España (Spain):
Capital: Madrid
Population: 40,448,191
Religions: Roman Catholic 94%, other 6%
Currency: Euros
España: Historia
• Spain was ruled by the Romans for seven centuries.
• In 1492, the Catholic Monarchs began the era of Spanish
expansion.
• In 711 A.D., the moors invaded and ruled parts of Spain.
• Explorers and missionaries
colonized parts of the Caribbean
and Central and South America.
• After wars with France, England,
and the United States, the Spanish
empire was weakened
España: Historia
• After the 1936-1939 civil war,
general Francisco Franco ruled
Spain until his death in 1976.
• Today, Spain is a democratic nation.
España: Geografía
Los Picos de Europa is the largest
national park in all of Europe. After
Switzerland, Spain is the most
mountainous country in Europe.
La Doñana is a nature reserve along the
coast of Andalusia, is home to many
protected bird species.
La meseta is Spain’s interior high plateau. It covers
15,000 square miles and has a continental climate
similar to that of Montana, with very cold winters.
España: Fun facts
• Eusquera: The language of the basque region, is not related
to any other language in the world. Its origins date back to
the stone age.
• El ave: A high speed train linking Madrid and Seville. It
carries passengers between the two cities in three hours,
less than half the time it would take to drive.
España: Fun facts
• Pablo Picasso (cofounder of the Cubist
movement) spent the majority of his life in
exile due to the dictatorship of General
Franco.
España: La comida (food)
• La paella is the most well known Spanish dish.
• There are three widely known types of paella: Valencian
paella, seafood paella and mixed paella but there are many
others as well.
España: La comida (food)
• Paella consists of the following ingredients: white rice, green
vegetables, meat (rabbit, chicken, duck) land 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,
vegetables, and sometimes beans.
España: Bullfighting
• Bullfighting is a traditional spectacle of Spain, Portugal,
southern France and some Latin American countries
(Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, Peru and Ecuador), in which
one or more bulls are baited in a bullring for sport and
entertainment.
• It is often called a blood sport by
its detractors but followers of the
spectacle regard it as a fine art
and not a sport as there are no
elements of competition in the
proceedings.
España: Bullfighting
• The tradition, as it is practiced today, involves professional
toreros (also called toreadors) who execute various formal
moves which can be interpreted and innovated according to
the bullfighter's style or school.
• Toreros seek to elicit inspiration and art from their work and
an emotional connection with the crowd transmitted through
the bull.
España: Bullfighting
• After the bull has been hooked multiple times behind the
shoulder by other matadors in the arena the bullfight usually
concludes with the killing of the bull by a single sword thrust
which is called estocada.
• Supporters of bullfighting
argue that it is a culturally
important tradition and a fully
developed art form on par with
painting, dancing and music,
while animal rights advocates
hold that it is a blood sport
resulting in the suffering of
bulls and horses.
España: Running of the Bulls
• The Running of the Bulls is a practice that involves running
in front of a small group (typically a dozen) of bulls that have
been let loose, on a course of a sectioned-off subset of a
town's streets.
• Unlike bullfights, which are
performed by professionals,
anyone may participate in an
encierro.
España: Running of the Bulls
• The purpose of this event was originally to transport the bulls
from the off-site corrals where they had spent the night, to
the bullring where they would be killed in the evening.
Youngsters would jump among them to show off their
bravado.
España: Running of the Bulls
• Spanish lore says the true origin began in North-eastern
Spain during the early 14th century. While transporting cattle
in order to sell at the market, men would attempt to speed
the process by hurrying their cattle using tactics of fear and
excitement. After years of this practice, the transportation
and hurrying began to turn into a competition, as young
adults would attempt to race in front of the bulls and make it
safely to their pens without being overtaken. When the
popularity of this practice increased and was noticed more
and more by the expanding population of Spanish cities, a
tradition was created and stands to this day.
España: Running of the Bulls
España: Personas famosas
(famous people)
• Antonio Banderas is a Spanish actor, perhaps best known
for his roles in Desperado and The Mask of Zorro and won
an Image Award for Best Actor in 2006.
• He provided the voice for Puss in Boots in Shrek.
• 1996 Banderas starred opposite
Madonna in Evita, the musical about
the life of Eva Peron.
• Banderas returned to collaborating with
Robert Rodriguez in the Spy Kids
trilogy and also in the last film in the
'Mariachi' trilogy, Once Upon A Time In
Mexico, which also featured Johnny
Depp on the cast list.
España: Personas famosas
(famous people)
• Penelope Cruz is a Spanish actress who has successfully
made the transition into mainstream Hollywood films.
• She intrigued audience members and Tom Cruise in Vanilla
Sky and won the Academy Award for Best Supporting
Actress for Vicky Cristina Barcelona.
• She starred alongside Matt Damon in All
the Pretty Horses.
España: Personas famosas
(famous people)
• Enrique Iglesias has become one of the most influential Latin
American singers. He is the son of Julio Iglesias, a famous
Spanish singer who has sold over 300 million records
worldwide in 14 languages and released 80 albums.
• He is a Grammy award-winner who is known for singing the
#1 hit, "Be with You" in 2000, and "Hero" in 2001, and has
sold over 100 million records.
• He has won over 25 Billboard Latin
Music Awards and won the BestSelling Pop Male Artist and
European Male Artist World Music
Award for his album Escape in 2002.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93zlJYQMT8U