2. Spanish Gastronomy
Spanish gastronomy is based on the Mediterranean diet. Although it varies according to
the region, there are some common characteristics such as the use of olive oil as main fat, the
use of garlic and onion as main condiments and the habit of drinking wine and eating bread at
meals. Potato, tomato and spices are very often used in the dishes.
In practically every Spanish bar and restaurant it’s possible to find “Tapas”. “Tapas” are
a mix of several ingredients, served cold or hot. In Spain, people usually go “bar hopping” and
eat tapas after finishing work and before having dinner. Some common Tapas are “aceitunas,
calamares, bacalao and banderillas”, for example. Another habit in this country is to eat
“Churros” at breakfast, after these are dipped in hot cocoa or coffee with milk.
The most famous Spanish dish is “Paella”, original from Valencia, which consists of rice
with olive oil, saffron and various seafood or chicken. Gazpacho is also very famous worldwide
and it’s a cold soup mainly made of tomato, cucumber and garlic. “Tortilla de Patata”, which as
the name says, it’s made of potato and eggs, and “Pisto”, made with fried vegetables and a fried
egg, are very appreciated. In Spain, salads are often consumed, mostly in summer. A very known
Spanish salad is Zarangollo.
As already seen, wine is appreciated in this country. A popular Spanish drink is “Sangria”.
This drink is made of red or white wine, fruit juice, sliced fruit and sugar. It’s usually drunk while
fresh and cold.
In Spain, the art of making desserts is called “repostería” and it’s diversified. Some
traditional desserts are “Crema Catalana, Alfajores, Churros, Panellets, Huesos de Santo,
Panacota and Tarta de Santiago”.
Concluding, Spanish gastronomy has several delicious flavours, but it’s very healthy
because it includes a lot of vegetables, proteins and low fats.
Maria Ferreira, n. º 12
Matilde Figueiredo, n. º 14
Micaela Mendes, n. º 15
Sara Sousa, n. º 17
9. º A
3. Erasmus +
Traditions and Fiestas of Spain
As you know, Spain is well known by its fiestas and traditions so we are going to talk a little bit
about some of them.
All over Spain we can find folk traditions like Flamenco which is a popular dance, from the south
of the country, in particular in Andalusia and Bullfights that are the most popular event during
Sanfermines in Pamplona (it´s a festival where the spectators are waiting for the spectacle of
bulls running through the streets of the town and hundreds of young men ahead of them). As
well, there is a typical festival, La Tomatina, which is held on every year in August.
Flamenco is an artform, a genre of music and native dance of the Southern Spanish regions of
Andalusia, Extremadura and Murcia. It isn´t just a dance, because it includes singing, guitar
playing, dancing and animation with the rythmic sounds of handclapping (palmas) and finger
snapping (pitos).
Flamenco is associated with gipsies (especially Romani). In recent years flamenco has become
popular all over the world and it is taught in many non-Hispanic countries like USA and Japan.
On November 16th
of 2010, UNESCO declared flamenco one of the masterpieces of the Oral and
Intangible Heritage of Humanity.
The most popular Bullfights in Spain are the ones that are practised during Sanfermines in
Pamplona, but there are also other bullfights practised in the arenas.
The bullfight involves professional toreros. The bull is hurt behind the shoulder by the matadors,
the bullfight usually concludes with the death of the bull by a single sword thrust, which is called
estocada.
La Tomatina is a festival that takes place in the Valencian town of Buñol, a town located in the
East of Spain, in which participants throw tomatoes and get involved in this tomato fight purely
for entertainment purposes. Since 1945, it has been held on the last Wednesday of August,
during the week of festivities of Buñol.
With this work, we realized that Spain is a country where most of the people get in the spirit of
their fiestas and traditions. Also their traditions are very different from the ones we are used to.
We hope you enjoyed our presentation and of course we hope you now know a little bit more
about Spain´s traditions!
Done by:
- Beatriz Nº3
- Camila Nº6
- Catarina Nº8
- Margarida Nº11
- Rute Nº16
9ºA
4. Spanish singers
We are going to talk about some famous Spanish singers and their famous songs. The most
famous type of music in Spain is Latin pop. In Spain there are many artists in the area of music
and we are going to talk about some of the most famous singers.
The first singer that we are going to talk about is Enrique Iglesias and his complete name is
Enrique Miguel Iglesias Preysler;he is the King of Latin pop and his name is in the walk of Fame,
in Hollywood, since 2008. Enrique Iglesias was born on 8th
of May of 1975 in Madrid, Spain and
now he is 40 years old. He sarted his career in 1995. He is a spain singer and a songwriter. At the
moment Enrique Iglesias lives in Miami, United States. His most famous song is “Bailando”. We
are going to listen to this song. Everybody knows it for sure!
Another famous singer is Pablo Alborán and his complete name is Pablo Moreno Alborán
Fernandez. He was born on 31st
of May of 1989 in Málaga, Spain and now he is 26 years old. His
genre of music is Latin pop, too. He is a singer and a songwriter and he started his career in
2010. He plays the guitar, piano, timbales and flamenco “cajón”. His most famous song is
“perdóname”. We are going to watch this video. In this video he is singing with Carminho, a very
famous Portuguese singer. She usually sings Fado, the most traditional type of Portuguese
music. If you pay attention to the video, you will recognize Lisbon in the background.
Another well-known singer is Nicky Jam and his full name is Nick Rivera Caminero; He was born
on 17th
of May of 1981 in Boston, Massachusetts. He was born in Boston but he has Hispanic
roots. He moved to Puerto Rico when he was 10 years old. He worked in a grocery to help his
family. At the age of 14, he recorded his first album. He is a singer and a songwriter and he
started his career in 1994. He plays the guitar and he is the lead singer. His type of music is
Reggaeton and his most famous song is “El perdón”. He sings this song with Enrique Iglesias. Just
to finish, we are going to listen to this song. We hope you like it.
Done by:
Beatriz Gomes Nº4
Bruna Cerqueira Nº5
Carolina Silva Nº7
Mariana Figueiredo Nº13
Susana Silva Nº19
9ºA
5. Places to visit in Badajoz
Badajoz is a wellknown city in Spain. It has 1427 sq km and in 2013 it had 150,621 habitants,
representing approximately 20% of the population of the province and 7% of Extremadura. In
Badajoz there are several places that we must visit. These are just three that we found the most
interesting: Palmas Bridge, The Alcazaba and San Juan Bautista Cathedral.
-Palmas Bridge
Palmas Bridge is the oldest bridge in the city of Badajoz, crossing the Guadiana river. It was built
in 1460. Its style is “Herrera”. It has 32 arches and measures 585 meters, though its dimensions
were varied over the centuries, as the reconstructions were happening. At one end of the bridge
is the “Puerta de Palmas”, a major city in the past, making their way through the walls
surrounding Badajoz fully entries. At the other end there is a wall built in the seventeenth
century to protect the bridge head. Currently it joins the San Fernando or Station through the
Carolina Coronado Avenue and the Old Town.
-The Alcazaba
The “Alcazaba de Badajoz” is located in the “Cerro de la Muela” surrounding the old Badajoz of
the Muslim era. To the north it is surrounded by the Guadiana river and east by the Rivillas
stream. On both fronts there are steep slopes on the ground that increase the defensive nature
of the Alcazaba, which is reinforced with natural moats that represent the rivers. The Alcazaba
was built in a strategic position to control the natural north-south and east-west passage. As it
is preserved today, it was built by the Almohads in the twelfth century, although it has its origin
in the fence in the ninth century and it was built to found the city. “The Alcazaba de Badajoz”
was the residence of the monarchs of the Kingdom of “Taifa de Badajoz” or Badajoz, during the
eleventh and the twelfth centuries.
-San Juan Bautista Cathedral
After the Christian conquest of the city in 1230 by King Alfonso IX of Leon, he was appointed
bishop Fray Pedro Pérez. Two years after the completion of the conquest it was considered
necessary to build a cathedral. The work began in the thirteenth century and it was located in
“Campo de San Juan”, place outside the “Citadel”.
In 1276 the cathedral was consecrated and dedicated to St. John the Baptist, even though the
work had not been completed. The construction of the fundamental aspects of the building
lasted until the fifteenth century, performing during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries
and added sucessive reforms which have given the cathedral its present form. It was not
completely finished until the eighteenth century.
Done by:
João Marcelo
Tiago Pinto
Hugo Jesus
Roberto Coutinho
