Good morning bloggers or is it good afternoon or good evening whatever time you are reading this doesn’t matter, what does matter is how blessed I am to have some wonderful followers, just saying.
This week we are looking at Spain, which is in Western Europe, it has a population of 47 million, the capital is Madrid. It dominates most of the Lberian Peninsula in southwest Europe.
It’s official name is the Kingdom of Spain and was originally called Hispania.
They have a Parliamentary Monarchy with King Felipe VI as the head of state.
The national flag of Spain, as it is defined in the Constitution of 1978, consists of three horizontal stripes: red, yellow and red, the yellow stripe being twice the height of each red stripe. Traditionally, the middle stripe was defined by the more archaic term of gualda, and hence the popular name la Rojigualda.
It is a country famous for its culture, which includes flamenco dancing and bullfighting, it also has some beautiful beaches.
The country’s official language is Spanish or Castilian Spanish, which is spoken by everyone. However, certain Autonomous Communities have their own official language in addition to Spanish. Catalan is spoken in Catalonia, Galician in Galicia, and Basque in the Basque Country and part of Navarre.
Of course, we can’t talk about Spain and not mention bullfighting. Spanish-style bullfighting is a type of bullfighting that is practiced in several Spanish-speaking countries: Spain, Mexico, Ecuador, Venezuela, Peru, as well as in parts of southern France and Portugal.
Although it is still legal in Spain there are some Spanish cities that outlawed it and there are only a few countries throughout the world where it still goes on.
Jo-AnneRamplings 
Dearest Jo-Anne,
One of my favorite countries and languages! Did study the Castilian and that is slightly different from the South American Spanish but I’ve always managed to work with it.
LOVED the Cathedrals in Spain when I was there in 1994 with my Pieter. Would have loved to spend more time in certain areas but when traveling with a group, you must depart all together. We were with a luxury bus, lots of leg room. All the way from The Netherlands.
Not a fan of the bull fighting…
Flamenco is so beautiful and temperamentful! We went to a real flamenco performance inside a cave. Incredible!
Also their music is very special.
Hugs,
Mariette
How wonderful that you have been to Spain and have seen a flamenco performance in a cave that is a WOW moment. I also do not like bullfighting.
That was absolutely a WOW experience and so was our visit to the Alhambra.
Love Spain. We were lucky enough to spend three consecutive holidays, Christmas/New Year …. August …. Christmas / New Year. Staying at a friend’s apartment in Torrevieja just south of Alicante. We never saw a bull fight but did experience a lot of lovely food, including Paella, Patatas Bravas, Tortilla (Spanish Omelette), Albondigas (meatballs) and of course the many many varieties of Jamon. Of course, visiting in August, at the height of summer, was always going to be a challenge, way way too hot for me, but just how my wife likes it.
What luck your friend living there and allowing you to stay at their apartment, it is one of those countries I find fascinating