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Spain is situated on the Iberian Peninsula.

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The country's mainline is bordered to the south and east by the Mediterranean Sea, to

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the north by France and Andorra, and to the west by Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean.

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We enjoy 5,000 km of coastline.

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Spain's capital and largest city is Madrid, and if you visit Spain, you can expect a Mediterranean

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climate with hot, dry summers and mild winters.

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The Cape of Altamira is stunning.

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It was discovered in 1868 and it has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

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The Romans occupied the Iberian Peninsula around 200 BC.

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They held sway for six centuries.

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In 711, the Muslims launched an invasion across the Strait of Gibraltar, occupying

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most of the peninsula within a few years.

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Their presence lasted more than seven centuries.

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Castellano is the official term for Spanish.

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Around the world, Spanish is spoken by 580 million people.

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It is the world's second most spoken native language after Chinese.

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Other languages in Spain are Catalan, Galician, and Basque.

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Spanish architecture is strongly influenced by the Romans and the Moors.

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The Arquedacte is located in the center of Segovia and was built to bring water from

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the mountains to the city.

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The Alhambra is a set of Andalusian Islamic-style palaces.

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They are located in Granada.

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The name Alhambra has its origins in an Arabic word meaning red castle.

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In Barcelona, we find the Sagrada Familia, a large unfinished Roman Catholic basilica.

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It was designed by Spanish architect Antonio Gaudi.

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The Monastery of El Escorial is one of the most representative monuments of the community

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of Madrid.

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Spanish Holy Week is a religious festival.

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There are processions and parades all across Spain.

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In a typical Holy Week procession, we find nafadenos.

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They wear a capirote that represents the penance they have committed.

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The Christmas season in Spain is a time for celebration, gifts, and many fun traditions.

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The tradition of creating nativity scenes in Spain to commemorate the birth of Jesus

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is thought to be about seven centuries old.

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Christmas Eve is known as Nochebuena.

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Nowadays, the most popular meal for Christmas Eve and for Christmas Day is seafood.

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Popular desserts and sweets include mazapan and torron.

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New Year's Eve is called Nochevieja, and one special tradition is that you eat 12 grapes

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with the 12 strokes of the clock at midnight.

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This tradition is supposed to bring you good luck in the new year.

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Let's see if you could do it!

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San Fermín is one of the greatest festivals in the world.

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Celebrated in Pamplona, it lasts for nine days at the beginning of July.

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It involves bullfighting, running of the bulls, and loads of street partying.

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La Tomatina is a festival celebrated in a town near Valencia, where festival-goers throw

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ripe tomatoes at each other.

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It is well-known everywhere, and hundreds of young people come every year to enjoy it.

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Spanish cuisine is famous because it is healthy, traditional, creative, and varied.

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One of the star ingredients is olive oil.

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Here we have the paella, one of the most typical foods in Spain made of rice and seafood.

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You only need potatoes, eggs, and oil to make this wonderful Spanish omelette.

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For the cold days, nothing better than cocido, a typical dish from Madrid.

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Those are torrijas, a Spanish Easter treat.

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But of course, the best torrijas are always one's mother's.

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No discussion about it.

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Croquetas are a heavenly invention.

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Pablo Picasso, born in 1981, was a Spanish painter and sculptor, considered one of the

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greatest painters in history.

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He is also known for co-founding the Cubism movement.

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Picasso's most famous work is his depiction of the German bombings of Guernica during

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the Spanish Civil War.

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Another Spanish painter is Salvador Dalí, who is considered one of the highest representatives

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of surrealism.

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Miguel de Cervantes was born in a town close to Madrid in 1547, and he is also the writer

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of Don Quixote.

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It is considered by many one of the best literary works ever written, and it was published in

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1605, when Cervantes was already 58 years old.

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Flamenco is folk music from Spain.

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In a flamenco performance, typically, you could see singing, guitar, clapping and dancing.

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Have you heard of Rosalía?

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She is a global star, and her music riffs on traditional flamenco sounds.

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Within Spanish folklore, we also find chotis in Madrid.

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If you want to dance Sevillanas, you must go to Andalucía.

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In the north, we can find Celtic music.

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It is influenced by English and Irish folk music.

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You already know some famous Spaniards.

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First, Rafael Nadal, who is one of the greatest tennis players in history and has won 20 Grand

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Slam titles, including the record 13 French Open singles titles.

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He is just 34, so certainly expect more to come.

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She is Carolina Marín, the Queen of Badminton.

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She has won three times the world champion.

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We also have some internationally well-known cinema people.

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Among them, we have actresses such as Penélope Cruz and actors such as Antonio Banderas.

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We cannot forget Almodóvar, our most international director and filmmaker.

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He has won two Oscars and many other awards.

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And finally, it is needed to mention some of our top companies.

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Inditex is a multinational textile manufacturing and distribution company.

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It operates more than 7,000 stores all around the world.

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And some of its brands are Zara and Bershka.

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Telefónica is the largest telecommunication company in Spain.

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It operates in other places such as Latin America and the European Union.

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Other huge companies are Santander Bank, Mercadona and El Corte Inglés.

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Thank you for watching.

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I hope you enjoyed this video about sunny Spain.