| Area: |
504,750 sq km; 194,884
sq miles |
| Population: |
39.5 million (growth rate 0.2%) |
| Languages: |
Castilian Spanish (official
language)Catalonian, Galician, Valenciano, Vasco (are
also official languages in the autonomous communities
of Catalonia, Galicia, Valencia and Basque Country, respectively) |
| Religion: |
99% Roman Catholic |
| Capital: |
Madrid |
| Head of State: |
King Juan Carlos |
| Tourism: |
45 million visitors per
year |
| Time: |
GMT/UTC plus 1 hour |
| Electricity: |
220V |
| Weights and Measures: |
metric |
| Credit Cards: |
Visa, Eurocard, American
Express, MasterCard, Diners Club and Access are widely
accepted. |
Nature
Spain, occupying the greater part of the
Iberian Peninsula and positioned as the nexus between Europe
and Africa, boasts a range of widely contrasting natural attractions.
Its extensive perimeter of coastline -bathed by three different
seas- and its Mediterranean (Balearics) and Atlantic (Canaries)
island possessions are eloquent testimony to its seafaring traditions.
At the same time however, the distance separating the seaboard
from large tracts of the hinterland, along with the mountainous
nature of the intervening terrain, act as a brake on this maritime
influence and imbue the territory with an unmistakeably continental
character, relatively isolated from ocean-borne penetration.
A continent in miniature, its link with Europe lies through
the mountainous folds of the Pyrenees, an unbroken line stretching
for 440 kilometres (273 miles) at an average height of around
2,000 metres (6,400 ft.). In the interior, more than 400 protected
natural areas have been set aside to conserve the principal
mainland and island ecosystems. Spain's mean altitude is 660
metres (over 2,000 ft) above sea level, far above the European
average. In fact, almost half the country's surface area lies
at altitudes ranging from 1,900-4,000 ft. above sea level, with
its chief mountain ranges flanked along the coast.
The Mountains
The mountains reach their maximum height in the Pyrenees
(north) and the Sierra Nevada (south), the latter system containing
the highest peak on the mainland, Mt. Mulhacén, which
rises to 3.482 metres (11,425 ft.). These uplands are home to
glaciers, alpine lakes and an overwhelming display of flora
and fauna. National Parks and Game Reserves, wintersports and
outdoor-adventure facilities are just some of the attractions
lying in store for the visitor to Spain's high mountain areas.
Numerous mountain ranges and systems criss-cross the mainland,
the most notable being: the Cantabrian Range with the Picos
de Europa; the Central system with the Gredos massif; and the
Iberian and Bética Ranges. Protected areas and natural
spaces, abounding in impressive swathes of forest and woodland,
act as a wildlife habitat for animals, such as the bear, wolf,
wood grouse (capercaillie) and ibex, and a haven for valuable
indigenous flora.
The Central Plateau
Thanks to its central position, the Central Plateau or Meseta,
the largest of its kind in Europe, has played a dominant role
throughout the country's history. It is an essentially agrarian
region where Spain's time-honoured classic crops are still grown,
i.e., winter cereals (wheat, barley), grapes and olives.
To the north and east of this Meseta lies an extensive stretch
of mountainous country and a coastal fringe washed by the waters
of the Bay of Biscay and the Atlantic Ocean. This is the area
known as Green Spain, a lush wet area with abundant rainfall,
mild temperatures and verdant, leafy, woodland vegetation.
The Mediterranean Region
To the east, against a backdrop of serried mountains, Mediterranean
Spain opens out, an alternating strip of sandy flats, salt marshes
(the Mar Menor and the Albufera of Valencia) and sheer cliffs
(Costa Brava, La Nao). The area's traditional agriculture, wheat,
grapes and olives -now supplemented by modern irrigation systems
that yield vegetables and citrus fruit- co-exists alongside
a prosperous industrial sector.
The south too reveals sharp contrasts: a shoreline, Mediterranean
for the greater part, sown with crops suited to the varying
micro-climates and terrain, buttressed by a folded mountainous
region that is given over to animal husbandry (cattle, pigs,
horses and fighting bulls).
Out in the waters of the Mediterranean, the Balearic Isles are
singular in being blessed with an interesting and changing coastline,
birdlife of note and matchless scenery. Lying off the western
shores of North Africa, the Canary Islands, with their volcanic
topography and unique species of flora akin, in many cases,
to living fossils, not only account for four of Spain's twelve
National Parks but run the entire gamut, from beaches to mountains,
from arid deserts to lush valleys.
From its readily accessible coasts, dotted with white sandy
beaches, to the heights of its snow-capped peaks, Spain embraces
a surprising wealth of Nature, in which broad bands of wetland,
semi-desert areas, bleak moors, mountain ranges and river valleys
highlight the differences in splendid degrees of nuance, shading
and tone.
Scenery
Spain is a land of contrasts, with marked differences in natural
surroundings, climate, culture and lifestyles. This plurality
is equally evinced in its scenery which, to the eyes of the
traveller, seems to change with startling swiftness.
Inland Areas
Occupying the entire central portion of the Iberian Peninsula,
a high plateau, the Meseta, opens out onto another of Spain's
most powerfully expressive and distinct areas of scenery. Running
across the centre, a mountainous watershed bisects the land
into two well-defined physical and historical units. Throughout
the length of Castile -structured nowadays into the Autonomous
Regions of Castile & León, Castile-La Mancha and
La Rioja- this vast plain, along with the farmlands of Extremadura,
offers the traveller vistas of wide open horizons, seen across
flowing fields of wheat and other cereals, river valleys, and
tiny villages which, together with cities steeped in history,
house a veritable treasure-trove of art and monumental sights.
The Mediterranean Coast
From the Pyrenees to Andalusia, Mediterranean Spain is a shifting
kaleidoscope of sand flats, marshland (the Valencian Albufera,
the Mar Menor in Murcia) and plunging cliffsides (Costa Brava),
where the steep rocky coast is broken here and there by a sprinkling
of small coves and huddled fishing villages. Away from the coast,
typical Catalonian farmhouses (masías) and vineyards
preside over a landscape which, moving southwards, takes on
new colour, in almond groves and orchards of oranges and lemons,
and softens along the shoreline, opening out into beaches of
fine white sand.
On reaching Andalusia, through olive groves and salt marshes,
the scenery shimmers with light and the sun reigns supreme in
towns and beaches of dazzling white. Soaring mountains (the
Alpujarras and the Sierra Nevada) strike an awesome contrast,
as do the desert dunes and wastes of Almería, moulding
areas of great diversity and beauty.
Perched on the African continent, Ceuta and Melilla are two
warm and pleasant cities. Situated in the Atlantic Ocean to
the south, the Canary Islands, with their spectacular volcanic
backdrop and tourist developments, offer a scenic display that
is at once unique and impressive. |
