Description of Andalucia

Andalucia is an autonomous communitiy of Spain, consideres as a histrical nationality. Is is the most populous and second largest area. Its capital and largest ciyt is Seville. The region is dividesd into eight provinces: Huelva, Seville, Cádiz, Córodaba, Almeria, Granada, Málaga and Jaén. Andalucia is in the south of the Iberian peninsula, immediately south of the autonomous communities of Extremadura and Castile-La Mancha; west of the autonomous community of Murcia and the Mediterranean Sea; east of Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean; and north of the Mediterranean Sea, the Strait of Gibraltar, wich separates Spain from Morocco, and the Atlantic Ocean. The small Brtish territory of Gibraltar shares a three-quarter-mile land border with the Andalusian province of Cádiz at the eastern end of the Strait of Gibraltar. Andalucia has three major geographic subregions: Sierra Morena, Meseta Central, Baetic Cordillera, Baetic Depression of the valley of the Guadalquivir.

Beaches in Andalucia

Andalucia has over 800 Km of coastline most of which is sandy beach. No wonder going to the beach is the single most popular recreational activity for tourists and residents alike. The sunbathing on beaches generally becomes popular from late May until late September. This is when the Chiringuitos (beach bars) start to open. The sun beds are set out and the paddle rafts and jet skis are prepared for the season. There is a noticeable increase in beach popularity during the school holidays and especially in July and August when many residents from Madrid and other cities in Spain arrive on the coast for their annual holiday.

The coastal strips or costas have been given names. General information about them can be found on the following pages. The Mediterranean seaboard is graced by the Costa de Almeria, Costa Tropical and the glamorous, cosmopolitan Costa del Sol, while the Costa de la Luz lies along the Atlantic shore to the west of Gibraltar.

Andalucia has beaches for all tastes. Wide open golden sandy beaches backed by sand dunes are typical of the Costa de la Luz. Popular bathing beaches with showers and beach bars are typical of the Costa del Sol. Hidden coves reached by paths or tracks down from the cliffs, excellent for snorkeling and diving are typical of the Costa Tropical. Open beaches and hidden coves, some of the quietest around are typical of the Costa de Almeria.

Andalusian cuisine

Andalusian cuisine is rather varied, corresponding to a region that is itself extensive and varied. Notwithstanding that, the cuisine of Andalusia is characterized by gazpacho, fried fish (often called pescaito frito in the local vernacular), the jamones of Jabugo, Valle de los Pedroches and Trevélez, the wines of Jeréz.Comprobar ortografía

Typical Andalusian dishes include pescaito frito (fried fish), gazpacho, Cordoban salmorejo, pringá, oxtail, jamón ibérico, prepared olives, alboranía, poleá, anise, Málaga wine, various kinds of wine, including sherries, fino, manzanilla, oloroso, Pedro Ximénez, amontillado, which are undoubtedly the most exported and most widely available of all Spanish wines. The wine from Montilla, while similar, is not technically a sherry, but gives its name to amontillado, meaning "in the style of Montilla".

Some other Andalusian dishes are: salmorejo (Córdoba), Flamenquín (Córdoba), Gazpacho andaluz, Pirpirrana (Jaén), Habas con calzones, Migas de Harina, Gachas, Tortillas de camarón (Cádiz), Puchero, Gazpacho (Málaga), Biénmesabe o adobo, Ajo harina (Jaén), Soldaditos de Pavía, Patatas a lo pobre, Tortilla de patatas.

Folklore in Andalucia: flamenco and bullfighting

Flamenco is a passionate and seductive art form, a mysterious and misunderstood culture that has been burning in Andalucía for nearly five hundred years, and today flamenco has thousands of aficionado’s worldwide. The common image of Andalucía is one of colour, romance, and passion, and the lone figure of the matador in the bullring, cape and sword in hand beneath the burning afternoon sun, and the equally gypsy art of flamenco seem to somehow go hand in hand.

Flamenco has been shrouded in mystery for many years, and it has only in recent years become known to, but not fully understood by, the rest of the world. Many people witness flamenco in some form during their summer vacations in Andalucía, especially on the Costa del Sol, where there are flamenco Tablaos in abundance, these though rarely show the true flamenco.

Bullfighting is very closely associated with Spain and can trace its origins back to 711 A.D. This is when the first bullfight took place in celebration for the crowning of King Alfonso VII. It is very popular in Spain with several thousand Spaniards flocking to their local bull-ring each week. It is said that the total number of people watching bullfights in Spain reaches one million every year. Bullfighting was originally a sport for the aristocracy and took place on horseback. King Felipe V took exception to the sport however and banned the aristocracy from taking part, believing it to be a bad example to the public. After teh ban commoners accepted the sport as their own and, since that could not afford horses, develped the practice of dodging the bulls on foot, unarmed. This transformation ocurred around 1724.

Steps to learning sevillanas

Monuments in Andalucia

Giralda of Seville
The cathedral of Seville, also known as Santa Maria’s cathedral, was built between XV and XVI centuries and is the biggest gothic cathedral in the world. It’s the most beautiful monument and image of Seville, with its 94 metres of height.

The Alhambra of Granada
The Alhambra is a fortified palatine city situated in Granada. It was the rich residence of royalty and of the court of Nasrid kingdom.

Mosque of Cordoba
The mosque of Cordoba, is a roman catholic cathedral and former mosque situated in the Andalusian city of Cordoba.The construction of the mosque started approximately 600 A.D as a Christian Visigoth church. Later, the mosque was rebuilt for two centuries to turn it into a mosque, starting in 784 A.D.

The cathedral of Cadiz
The cathedral of Cadiz was built in 1635 over a period of 116 years.

The citadel of Malaga
It is a palatine reinforcement of the muslim period. You can find that on Gibralfaro’s hill, in the same place, there is also a castle, and they are united by two walls, called “la Coracha”.

Citadel of Almeria
The citadel of Almeria was built in X century, by Hakim king. The citadel had a castle and a wall that surround ed the medina. Santa Catalina's castle was built between XIII and XIV centuries. It has got a muslim origin.

History of Andalusia

The existence of human populations in the region goes back to the Upper Paleolithic era and from those dates are many found archeological sites, such as paintings preserved in many caves. In the beginning of the historic era, Andalusia maintained the population of Tartesus, the first organized state on the Peninsula from what we now see with the Treasures of Carambolo.

Afterwards, the Greeks and the Phoenicians established their costal colonies and cities creating great trade centers such as Cadiz. After a century of Carthage's stay, Rome conquered Andalusia.

In 711, we find the key date of Andalusian history. The entering of the first Arab contingents constituted the beginning of eight centuries of Islamic domination. The period of the Caliph of Cordoba was a flourishing period making the entire region the center of gravity of Western Islam. The disintegration of the Caliphate constituted a grand opportunity for the Northern Christian kings. After Castile and Leon's unification by Ferdinand III, there was a great movement for the recuperation of Christian Andalusia. The Catholic Kingdom ended the splendid past of Al-Andalus with the fall of Granada in 1492, the same year Andalusia contributed to the decisive discovery and later conquest and colonizing of America.

Andalusia came into the 19th century with an active participation in the War of Independence, but there will be two facts not only in this century but rather a great part of Spanish history: the convocation of the Courts of Cadiz and the proclamation of the 1812 Constitution.