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1ST DEC 2008
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Students and graduates considering travelling around the beautiful country of spain should read on for advice on when and where to go.
 The exuberance of the Spaniards and the glorious predictability of the summer weather have been attracting refugees from northern Europe's damp and clammy lands for decades, but Spain is much more than the Costa del Sol and warm English beer. It is drenched in the historical pageantry of empire and conquistadors, the artistic legacy of Goya, Vel�zquez, Picasso and Dal�, and the romance of Don Quijote, Papa Hemingway and the International Brigades.
Full country name: Kingdom of Spain
Area: 504,784 sq km
Population: 39.7 million (growth rate 0.1%)
Capital city: Madrid (pop 3.1 million)
People: Spaniards (though Catalans and Basques display a fierce independent spirit)
Language: Castilian Spanish (also Catalan, Galician & Basque)
Time Zone: GMT/UTC plus 1 hour in winter, or two hours in summer (from the last Sunday in March to the last Sunday in September)
Religion: 90% Roman Catholic
Government: Parliamentary monarchy
Prime Minister: Jos� Mar�a Aznar
Facts for the Traveler
Visas: Spain, along with Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Portugal, forms part of the border-free travel zone subject to the Schengen Agreement. US, Canadian, Australian, New Zealand and Israeli citizens are among those who may enter Spain as tourists without a visa and stay up to 90 days. EU passport holders can come and go as they please.
Time: GMT/UTC plus one hour (plus two hours in summer)
Electricity: 220 volts, 50 Hz AC
Weights & measures: Metric
Tourism: 51 million visitors
When to Go
The ideal months to visit are May, June and September (plus April and October in the south). At these times you can rely on good weather, yet avoid the sometimes extreme heat - and the main crush of Spanish and foreign tourists. That said, there's decent weather in some parts of Spain virtually year-round. Winter along the southern and southeastern Mediterranean coasts is mild, while in the height of summer you can retreat to the northwest, or to beaches or high mountains anywhere, if you need to get away from excessive heat. If you want to make sure you hit some parties, the best festivals are concentrated between Semana Santa (the week leading up to Easter Sunday) and September.
Provided by The Student Zone (United Kingdom) |
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