2009-2010 Comenius partnership between Jessheim videregående skole(Norway), Gymnasium Carolinum(Germany), ECC Baruffi(Italy) and IES El Palo(Spain).

2. Spanish Languages

3. Spanish Literature

4. Famous Spanish Sights

5. Spanish Festivals

8. Celebrities

9. Politics

10. Religion

11. Music

13. A brief history of Spain Spain occupies most of the Iberian peninsula situated in the South-East of the European Continent. The Atlantic North and North-West are very different from the central plains and the South, where we come from, and the Mediterranean coast on the east.

15. Spain: a country of countries Spain is Castille, Catalonia, Andalucia, Galicia, the Basque Country, the Balearics, the Canary Islands and two cities in Northern Africa, Ceuta and Melilla.

16. Spain has seen many tribal groupings coming through and settling and mixing to produce the current colourful mixture which are the Spaniards and other, still separate groups: Iberians, Celts, Romans, Vandals and Visigoths, Moors and Berbers, Gypsies... Spanish History: a country of countries

17. Spain is the result of the amalgamation of kingdoms that started taking place during the Middle Ages. Spanish History: a country of countries

18. Which continued till the end of the 15 th c. when modern Spain was born. Surrendering of Granada to Isabelle and Ferdinand (1492) – By Francisco Pradilla (1882) Spanish History: a country of countries

19. Spanish History : Arabic Moors in Spain For 700 years, until 1492, the arabic Moors dominated most of the Spanish mainland. The Christian reconquered their former land little by little.

20. From 1492, the Spaniards colonized the “New World”, America. Cristopher Columbus 'discovered' America during an expedition sponsored by the Catholic King and Queen, Isabella and Ferdinand. Spanish History : a new world

21. During the 16th century, Spain lived through a "golden age", literally as gold and silver flowed from mines in the Indies. It was also a time of cultural flowering, with music and literature. Spanish History : the golden age

22. Spanish History : decline and fall of a great empire. The last of the immediate descendants of Charles V died in the late 17th century, which caused a great war among European powers. This event is called 'The war of the Spanish Succession'.

23. Spanish History : French Borbons As a result, the French Bourbons came to power and the current king is therefore more a successor of Louis XIV than of Charles V.

24. Spanish History : Napoleon However, the French were again to cause war at the turn of the next century, when Napoleon invaded Spain.

25. Spanish History : Parliament of Cadiz The war of independence which followed was a great turning point in Spanish history. For a short period a quasi-democratic parliament was set up in Cádiz.

26. Spanish History : Spanish politics. The monarchy returned and reintroduced absolute rule, leading to a century and a half of intermittent civil war and swings from totalitarian rule to democratic experiments.

27. Spanish History : New Stars General Primo de Rivera gave a coup d'état in 1923, which was supported by the majority of the political forces in Spain. After municipal election and the proclamation of the II Republic, the king fled the country without abdicating.

28. Spanish History : Franco and Civil War In 1936 General Franco staged the most bloody coup ever in Spain. This led to the 'Civil War' which lasted 3 years. Hundreds of thousands of people died. Over a million went to exiled. A fascist dictator ruled Spain for almost 40 years.

29. Spanish History : Franco's death and Juan Carlos I It was a hard time for many people, because of the war, hunger, religion... Franco died in 1975 and the politics of Spain changed. Juan Carlos I was the king of the democratic monarchy. He is the current king of Spain.

30. Spanish Languages The Spanish language is official throughout the country but there are some areas where they have another language, as you can see in this map.

31. Spanish Literature: Cervantes Cervantes' Don Quijote is still regarded as the first modern novel .

39. Spanish Festivals: Valencia Fallas The Fallas are a Valencian traditional celebration in praise of Saint Joseph in Valencia, Spain. Hundreds of gigantic figures are built and and then burnt at the end of the festival.

43. SPANISH SPORTS: Basketball Basketball is a popular sport in Spain too. The Spanish ACB league is one of the major European basketball leagues. Spanish teams such as Real Madrid, FC Barcelona. Unicaja Màlaga have won Euroleague trophies.

45. SPANISH SPORTS: Tennis Spain has produced a number of tennis champions, excelling in tournaments held on clay courts such as the Roland Garros tournament.

46. SPANISH SPORTS: Tennis Rafael Nadal is considered one of the greatest Spanish tennis player of all times.

47. SPANISH SPORTS: Motoracing Fernando Alonso has recently signed to race for Ferrari. He's been world champion twice.

48. SPANISH SPORTS: Cycling Cycling is also very popular in Spain. Alberto Contador is the double winner of the Tour of France. He's also won the Tour of Spain and the Tour of Italy.

49. SPANISH SPORTS: Motoracing Bikes races are specially popular among the young. He two young men above have been world's champions. Both of then are currently racing in the top GP category. Lorenzo on the left. Dani Pedrosa on the right.

50. Spanish Gastronomy : Typical dishes Valencia's paella it's the most popular plate in Spain and now it's became a world wide popular dish.

51. Spanish Gastronomy: Cocido Madrileño 'Cocido Madrileño' is one of the Spanish people's favourite dishes. Usually cooked as a winter's dish. It's a soup with vegetables and meat.

52. Spanish Gastronomy: Gazpacho This is a typical Andalucian cold soup, popular during the Summer. The main ingredients are tomato,bread crumbs and olive oil.

53. Spanish Gastronomy: Espetos Typical of Málaga. Sardines barbecued in the open.

56. Celebrities: Bulfighters They're still very popular in Spain. The one on ther left is called José Tomás, currently the most popular one. The one on the right is is a legend. His name is Paquirri. He was killed by a bull 25 years ago.

57. Politics Spain is a Parliamentary Monarchy. The current head of the State is King Juan Carlos. His son Prince Felipe is the heir.

58. There are two main political parties that can get to power: The PSOE (Social Democrats), currently in power and the PP, conservative, currently in the oposition. Their main leaders are Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero (on the left) and Mariano Rajoy (on the right). Politics

59. Religion The majority of the population in Spain are Roman Catholics. There are also other Christian, protestant denominations like Evangelists. The most important non-christian religion is Islam. There's over a million people who practise this religion.

60. Music Spain is rich in folklore and traditional music. Flamenco singing and dancing is probably the best well-known. Diego 'El Cigala' is one of the most popular flamenco singers.

61. Pop and rock are as popular in Spain as everywhere else. Some well known names are Alejandro Sanz, El Canto del Loco, Chambao, Amaral (above left) and Fito y Fitipaldis (above right). Music

62. Young's people lifestyles: 'Botellón' This is gatherings of youths who carry their own drinks. The idea, supposedly, is to get together, drink and have a good time. It's very popular though most adults are against it.

63. Young's people lifestyles: 'Qualifications' Young, Spanish people nowadays are more qualified than any other generation before. The jobs available, unfortunately, tend to be below their qualifications and the salaries they expect. The term 'mileurista' reflects this situation.